Swindon's historic hilltop quarter — Wood Street and Devizes Road independents, the Town Gardens, and the best of the town's food, drink and nightlife.
Old Town is the historic heart of Swindon, sitting on the hill above the modern town centre. This was the original Swindon — a small Wiltshire market settlement on the hilltop — long before the arrival of the Great Western Railway in the 1840s pulled the town's centre of gravity downhill to the north. Today Old Town is the most characterful part of Swindon, and the go-to district for independent shops, restaurants, bars, and nightlife.
The main streets — Wood Street, Devizes Road, Victoria Road, and Bath Road — are lined with independent cafes, delis, wine bars, barbers, and restaurants. Wood Street in particular has the town's highest concentration of independent eating and drinking, from long-standing cafe-bars to Italian restaurants and specialist coffee shops. Devizes Road ("the Doo-Dah" to locals) has a run of traditional pubs and micropubs that make it a popular evening circuit.
Green space is close at hand: the Town Gardens, a Victorian public park with a bandstand, ornamental planting, and a bowling green, sit just off Quarry Road. Christ Church — the striking parish church designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott and consecrated in 1851 — stands on the hill and is a local landmark visible across the town.
Old Town has a distinct identity from the rest of Swindon, with a village-like community feel, a lively independent business scene, and a calendar of local events. It is the part of town people mean when they talk about Swindon's best food and drink.