Slap, bang in the centre of Basingstoke, just off the M3, Festival Place is no average shopping centre: this massive 1.1m sq ft destination is a retail therapy and family entertainment fun zone.

Hit the shops, bars and restaurants or just come to play with entertainment, events and all the latest movies.

If you’re here to shop be sure to wear some comfy footwear – Festival Place is home to around 140 stores including premium brands and High Street go-tos. Think Next, Marks & Spencer, Apple, H&M and Jack Wills, Tiffany and Co., Hotel Chocolat (tempting) and loads more.

Still suffering from a touch of post-pandemic shopping angst? Helpfully, the Festival Place team publish quieter times on the website.

Hungry? Festival Place has a choice of 20 brilliant eateries for date nights and family outings. Look out for favourite chains like Côte Brasserie, Las Iguanas, Ask Italian, Pizza Express, Wagamama, Pret, Five Guys and Nandos, as well as independents like Chi Asian street food and the brilliantly eccentric Cosy Club bar and restaurant.

Need a work out? Check out Basingstoke Sports Centre, a vast fitness, leisure and sports complex spread over 7 floors in the middle of Festival Place. It’s got a 186-station mixed gym, two swimming pools, three squash courts, studios, a huge 5-badminton court sports hall and separate ladies-only gym. Oh, and a Play Den soft play area for littlies!

Fancy catching the latest blockbuster? You’re bound to find it showing at the 10-screen Vue multiplex cinema. Take the kids to Flip Out and let them bounce off the walls happily – without causing chaos in your living room.

Looking for something new to read? The city’s main library, Basingstoke Discovery Centre, is here and there’s a branch of Waterstones, too. And if finding your way back to the car isn’t enough of a challenge, you can lose yourself properly in the immersive Escape Hunt Basingstoke escape rooms.

Keep a close eye on the website and look out too for the competitions, concerts, theatre and other brilliant happenings organised by the Festival Place team.