Relocate - Bath, Cambridge or other for a young family who love cycling?

[Confusedmama89]

We are a young family looking to relocate - 8 month old and almost 3 year old (starting school next year). We've considered Bath and Cambridge. We love to keep active and be outdoors, but also love the buzz with cafes/ restaurants when we've visited both (pre-kids). Ideally a suburb where you can easily access amenities/ city centre without getting in the car all the time. We love to cycle so access to cycle routes would be ideal. Any areas we should consider specifically? Or any other cities/ towns to look at? Need to be close to a good primary school.

Cambridge is better suited to cycling especially with little ones ... less hilly!

I was going to say the same as @Mischance. A lot of Bath is very very hilly so that even the buses struggle whereas Cambridge is basically flat. You could also consider Oxford which is also pretty flat but house prices are worse than Bath and Cambridge.

Bath and Cambridge are both beautiful, but the best place for cycling is Milton Keynes - 200 miles of traffic-free redways covering the whole city. Also full of lakes woodlands and green spaces plus all the standard city amenities (but not as pretty, granted)
getaroundmk.org.uk/cycling/where-to-ride/redways

Bath is great for young families.
Lots of electric and cargo bikes here to help with hills.
Lower weston, upper weston and Newbridge are all easy flat cycles from the centre. Larkhall is flat but not a bike friendly route.

Knowing your budget would help but the fact you are already considering the suburbs of Bath & Cambridge would indicate it is very healthy.
In that case, I would also recommend Oxford as cycling has always been a major way of getting around the city. Also it is not large and has a good PT network so essentially a car is not really necessary until you want to go outside of the ring road.

I agree with the PP about MK and the extensive cycle path network, parks etc but it does have a bit of a rundown feel nowadays and the new developments feel too developed & congested.
I was there the other week and shocked at how the centre has gone downhill with multiple office-blocks no-longer in use. The centre used to be such a busy & vibrant place evidenced by the fact it was difficult to find a parking space in the centre, now carparks have been closed and the others have huge swathes of empty spaces, unthinkable a decade ago.

There are several threads you might find helpful on the Mumsnet Local - Cambridge board.

Oh is Bath littered with Lime/Forest bikes now? That’s a horrible thought.

We live in a village south of Cambridge and to be honest, if you've got free choice and being outdoorsy is important I'd avoid it. The cycling is great, we largely use our cargo bike for transporting the kids. But other than that it's full farmland as far as the eye can see. We're a really long way from forests and hills and beaches and I'm constantly spending 2+ hours schlepping to places that are more interesting for outdoor pursuits.

There are certainly lime bikes around yes, are there any cities without them?!

However I meant more that many families own ecargo bikes here.

York ticks all those boxes too

It’s way up north compared to where you’re looking but Whitley Bay is very family friendly with excellent schools and lots of cycle paths. You can cycle for a good distance along the coast without being on roads and there is the wagon ways network that you can access which has miles of traffic free cycling. You can surf and paddle board and kayak at Cullercoats and Tynemouth and you’re a short metro ride from Newcastle. Northumberland is easily accessible for beautiful countryside and even more outdoor adventures!

This sounds great and definitely one to explore as DH head office currently Newcastle. Thanks for suggesting.

My brother and sister in law live in Cambridge and we have visited with our small children — it honestly seems like such an idyllic place to raise a family. I’d go for it if I lived in England!!

Oxford cycling infrastructure is poor unless you like a pothole ridden ride for most of it

Cambridge is good for cycling as a mode of transport/ commuting but not as a sport imo

Just how important is the cycling? Cambridge is almost certainly better than bath from that perspective - it's impossible to deny that bath is hilly. However, as an overall package, I prefer bath. The surrounding countryside is absolutely stunning. It's less dominated by the university and just incredibly beautiful. It makes my heart sing being here. Less of a flood risk too.

In terms of areas within bath there are no bad ones really so it just depends on your budget and housing needs. You'll get a bigger house with a nicer garden/view etc in the cheaper areas. But pretty much everywhere is safe and pretty - we went for the nicer house/cheaper area trade-off and are very happy. If you have a large budget you could live in the posher bits or nearer to town. The buses are fine for casual use, there's talk of a tram system being implemented as well although that won't be immediate.

There's a cycle track that joins Bath to Bristol. It passes through open country and for part of the route runs alongside a heritage railway. The HQ for the national cycle network is in Bristol.
Parts of Bath are really hilly though and the house prices can be high due to its Unesco World Heritage status.