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If your children are heading off to university later this month it’s a fair bet that over the years they’re away partying – sorry, studying – you’ll get pretty familiar with the city they’re in.

Doubly familiar in my case, since both my offspring are at the University of Sheffield.

My wife and I have become minor experts on the sprawling, hilly Steel City, having done several trips from our home in Essex to and from various halls of residence and student pads (last Saturday Mum and Dad’s removal services installed our daughter in a new house).

We lived there ourselves in the early 80s and you couldn’t avoid the scars from the ravages of Thatcherism… lovely people but a careworn city.

Well, goodness me, has it changed. And based on my experience over that past couple of years, I reckon it’s actually a seriously underrated bet for a weekend break.

Where to stay

I seem to recall Sheffield being something of a hotel desert in the 80s.

Now it has an excellent range of modern chains, including Novotel (very handy by the station and Sheffield Hallam University, got a room for £58), Mercure St Paul, Holiday Inn and Hilton. You might also try the historic Leopold Hotel, built on the site of a Grade II-listed school right in the city centre, and Sheffield’s first boutique hotel.

We’ve also stayed at the Kenwood Hall Hotel, set in 12 acres of grounds in a pleasant suburb close to the uni but only a mile or so out of the centre.

Be warned, it’s not easy to find and the distance from the reception to our room was quite extraordinary.

We tried the Garrison Hotel in Hillsborough, about three miles north-west of the centre but on a tram route. Quirky and motel-like there’s a nice bar and, at £50 a room, with English breakfast included, it’s decent value.

A Jurys Inn is close to the station and Hallam uni and with 259 rooms is the largest in the city. It’s very good for a three-star and the staff are really welcoming.

Getting around

Personally, I’d abandon the car as the traffic can be wearisome, and it’s horrendous when the freshers start and are getting dropped off by parents.

Sheffield has a modern tram network and buses are frequent although, irritatingly, tickets are not interchangeable between operators (First Group and Stagecoach). Taxis are plentiful. Parts of Sheffield are extremely hilly. The Crookes district is 3,000ft above sea level. Well, almost.

What to see and do

My favourite is the Kelham Island Museum, which tells the social and industrial history of Sheffield. Steel and cutlery, needless to say, are foremost.

Hence the Bessemer Converter (one of only three in existence) and the beast that is the 12,000 horsepower River Don Engine, used to roll armour plating. It’s run hourly and it’s like standing in your own private earthquake. Entrance is £4 but oddly it’s closed on Saturdays.

I’d also recommend Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet, an 18th century industrial works a few miles out on the A621. Free. Right by the impressive Victorian Town Hall are the Peace Gardens and Winter Garden. The former is grassed and paved with fountains and cafes and the latter is a conservatory with exotic plants, palms and a coffee shop.

Sheffield is a wooded city – I’m sure I once read somewhere that it has more trees per head of population (half a million or so people) than any other city in Europe. The charming Botanical Gardens cover 19 acres near the uni. Admission is free.

Sport & Leisure

A big part of the city’s make-up. Championship football is played at Bramall Lane, home of Sheffield United, and at Hillsborough, where Sheffield Wednesday are based.

Take your cossie if you fancy a dip. Ponds Forge is a huge complex near the station, with an Olympic-sized pool, diving pool and fun pool with waves, flumes and lazy river.

The Attercliffe district is a lively area for entertainment. It’s home to the iceSheffield skating complex, where sessions start at £3. My son rates a Sheffield Steelers ice-hockey match – they’re current UK champions.

Shopping

Meadowhall is a huge mall out by the M1. You could be in Lakeside or the Metro Centre for all it matters. Same old chain shops. Yawn.

So assuming you’re giving it a wide berth try the trendy Devonshire Quarter, just west of the centre and home to smart clothes shops and the kind of bars the purchasers of such clobber like to hang out in.

Food and drink

Cafe Manzil in Broomhill is very good, boasting excellent food, cheap prices and a good vegetarian menu.

If you want a traditional boozer, head to the Fat Cat by Kelham Island Museum. Proper pub with proper beer.

Another great pub is The Brothers Arms in Heeley, run by the Everly Pregnant Brothers, a popular local ukelele band. Good beer, better scotch eggs, and just round the corner from Heeley City Farm - a smallish inner city farm where kids can meet animals and has a play area.

Younger and trendier people than me will be heading to the bars of Ecclesall Road and Division Street - and Rajput in Crookesmoor is another student staple.

After a pint on your way home? The Sheffield Tap is a “world beer freehouse” serving a combination of locally brewed Thornbridge ales and a huge selection of beers and lagers from around the world. It sits inside Sheffield train station, with access from Sheaf Street or platform 1b.

There’s also a burgeoning coffee culture in the city these days.

Local firm Tamper has two branches - one very small, one a bit bigger, both in the Devonshire Quarter - serving excellent espresso with a New Zealand twist.

The atmosphere at the original tiny branch on Westfield Terrace is great if you can get a seat, but the larger Sellers Wheel venue on Arundel Street serves the same gourmet coffee and has a full food menu and a licensed bar.

Music

Like sport, a big part of the city’s persona. Home of the Arctic Monkeys, Def Leppard and Richard Hawley, it’s a major date on the touring circuit. Don Valley Stadium, the elegant City Hall, the Arena and the O2 Academy are the main venues.

Meanwhile, The Leadmill is a long a longstanding touring venue with bands including Pulp, Oasis, Manic Street Preachers, Muse, the Stone Roses and Coldplay having all played early gigs there since it first opened in 1980. A support slot at the Leadmill is a rite of passage for local bands.

On the doorstep

The gorgeous Peak District is almost regarded as the city’s private playground. Ladybower Reservoir and dams are impressive but I reckon you can’t beat Castleton with its pubs, shops, hills and caves. Hathersage is a pleasant village for a wander, too.

Contacts

Tourist information from sheffield.gov.uk/ outabout/touristinformation or evening paper The Star at www.thestar.co.uk. Attractions and dining: simt.co.uk, donvalley stadium.co.uk thefatcat.co.uk icesheffield.com www.sbg.org.uk/zeenat.co.uk

Getting there

By road - Sheffield is by the M1 (junction 33) for the link road right in to the city centre.

By rail - There are direct services from London and cities as far afield as Plymouth, Bristol, Bournemouth and Edinburgh.

Ps: If you spot two particularly intelligent and good-looking students that'll be my kids. Lend them a tenner for me.