Cheltenham is a thriving and popular town in the cotswolds and wider Gloucestershire area. Many people visit the area for shopping and some of the events that are held annually such as the Cheltenham festivals including the music and literature festivals and also for the incredible popular gold cup week festival at the racecourse. There are also many locations in the town in which you can enjoy a show, whether this a comedian, pantomime or dance show and these include the Everyman Theatre and the Town Hall. The nightlife of cheltenham is as vibrant as the day time shopping with many Cheltenham Nightclubs and pubs and restaurants for you to visit.
Cheltenham itself was first established as an Anglo-Saxon settlement and was centred around a monastery of 9th Century origin. It was a small settlement and there are very historical records about the area during this time and it as not until the town became a popular location for those wishing to enjoy the health benefits of the spa waters that much become known about Cheltenham. Spa towns became the go to places for those people living further away from the coast as a way in which to either drink or swim in the spa waters which had long been noted for the healing qualities. People were already well aware of the benefits of sea air and the sea waters but it was difficult for people to regular make the trip to the coast. This is where spa towns became incredibly popular.
Following on from the success of the spa town, during the Victorian era the town became the go to place for both shopping and entertainment with many from high society enjoying the walk down the promenade to the shopping quarters and during this time period the Theatre Royal and the Assembly Rooms were als built. It was also during this time that the town became a location for horse racing and the first race meeting occurred in 1815 with the race course being established on its current site back in 1831.
Cheltenham continued to thrive into modern times and more people moved into the area after the establishment of GCHQ in the town and the addition of the university campuses. Thousands and thousands of people still visit the town each year for a variety of reasons and there is also something interesting going on somewhere in the area all throughout the year. It has grown dramatically in size since its early days back in Anglo-Saxon times.