Seven reasons Merry Hill rivals Birmingham as being the best shopping destination in the Midlands

Published date22 January 2022
Publication titleBirmingham Mail: Web Edition Articles (England)
As a shopping destination that many of us have visited frequently since childhood, it's easy to take Merry Hill for granted

But with its relatively new signage beaming down over a free car-park, visitors like me are forced to reassess the centre now that it's had a facelift.

Read more: Hidden market just yards away from Lidl which may be the best in the city

These days, I spend more time in Birmingham city centre than at Merry Hill, but Bullring store closures and a slew of other issues have really taken the shine off it.

Merry Hill, on the other hand, looks shinier than ever.

Here are seven of the ways that the wickedly-nicknamed "Merry Hell" rivals the city as the best shopping destination in the Midlands.

1 Free parking

Birmingham city centre isn't a 'pop into' or 'swing by' destination, really. If you want to go there, you have to dedicate time.

Sure, those who don't have to pay for the clean air zone charge have a much easier time of 'nipping into' town. But then there's the car parking charges to factor in too.

There are thousands of spaces in the Bullring and Grand Central's four car parks, but parking in them will set you back £3 for an hour. Factor in the CAZ charge and it can make for an expensive trip.

Train tickets aren't much cheaper, especially if there's a few of you travelling together.

Merry Hill, however Colour coded car parks all around, indoor and out, all absolutely free.

Popping into Primark There's a car park for that. Swinging into Marks and Spencer That too.

Convenient, plentiful and fantastically free. What more could you want!

2 More for mums

...or dads! Round by the now closed Debenhams store is a free soft play area, complete with a giant animatronic mammoth that, we are reliably informed, honks his trumpet 60 times a day.

Marmalade the mammoth watches over the Marmaland soft play zone. When we visited on a Tuesday afternoon, parents were sitting happily as their little ones climbed, played and had fun with other little ones in the brightly coloured area.

For parents who don't get much of a chance to mix with others in a free, fun environment, it's just lovely.

And for little children who otherwise sit patiently in their pushchairs in shops, it's surely a welcome reward.

If you do have a couple of quid to spare, there's a conveniently located Krispy Kreme donut stall just by it too, for after play treats! And a Costa too, for refuelling.

3 Primark Home

OK, OK. So Birmingham is hard to beat when it comes to Primark, the world's...

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