Rachel's Guide to Newcastle and Beyond!
An afternoon of gossip, cocktails and retail therapy with the girls… I doubt there’s a greater way to spend a Saturday afternoon; Especially when the chance to indulge in this much loved pastime is such a rarity!
So when three of my favourite friends came to visit me in Newcastle recently, I knew they would be as excited as I was to jump in the car and head to intu Metrocentre across the river in Gateshead.
Lindsey, Helen and Gemma had travelled far and wide for our day out (from Runcorn, London and Halifax to be precise), we’ve been pals since we were all students at the University of Sunderland and shared a house together, over 15 years ago!
Back then, shopping trips and leisurely lunches were a regular occurance, despite being broke students we always managed to find the means for a pair of must have bootcut jeans or lycra halter top and would spend whole afternoons at the all you can eat Chinese buffet!
These days, family commitments and full time jobs, not to mention the distance, means we only get together a few times of year, so our little reunions are really special and intu Metrocentre provided the ideal setting.
After a leisurely lunch at Carluccio’s, where we could have happily sat chinwagging all day, we hit the shops and scoured the rails for bargains in the last of the winter sales (we may no longer be broke but we will always be thrifty).
Intu Metrocentre is the biggest shopping centre in the whole of Europe so as you can imagine, we were in retail heaven!
The new Coast store was a particular hit with the girls… Our social calendars are often filled with weddings and christenings now that we’re in our 30’s so we didn’t need much encouragement to treat ourselves to something fancy.
We dominated the swish changing rooms at Coast for ages, reminiscing about the times we would spend hours on end getting ready for a night out at the student’s union.
(You can read more about my love of the new Coast store at intu Metrocentre in this post).
A couple of us managed to squeeze in a blow dry at Supercuts before we left, while the others sipped champagne at Oh You Pretty Things, the trendy cocktail bar in the Platinum Mall.
We didn’t want our day trip to end but with a night out on the Toon planned we had to force ourselves away.
Eventually we made our way back to the car, armed with bags of bargains we didn’t need but couldn’t resist, still giggling and gossiping like we were 18 again.
I had such a lovely day out, intu Metrocentre really does have everything you need for a top time with with your mates! So to help you plan your own perfect day at the shops, I came up with these…
Great post – I only ever go to Metrocentre to shop, I don’t go as a destination but I might have to change that!
Rachael xox
http://gatsbyandglamour.blogspot.com
I go to the cinema at the Metrocentre as well – perfect to relax after an afternoon of shopping, eating and drinking!
JH | hellojenniferhelen.com
LOVE this post! Some of my best friends come up for a visit a few times a year and I’ve never thought about using the Metrocentre as a destination, but you are so right – there’s so much to do and it’s the perfect place for a girlie catchup!
I’ve been meaning to try Oh You Pretty Things for ages and this type of trip would be the perfect excuse!
Great post! We love the metro centre..it’s brill for all the family and in all weathers!
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