My esteemed colleague and I have just arrived in Crawley for a 6 week course (aircrew-pointy end actually) New to the area. Any info would be most welcome. Where to eat, and errmmmm... most importantly where and when to go out for a night out and dance like wild animals - Only joking. Tips maybe rewarded with shot tokens. Quid pro quo or somethin like that.
Go to the train station, buy a ticket and head in either direction. Town is a dump (Miss ZFT born in Crawley, I used to own property there so some local knowledge).
There isnt really much thats great about Crawley! The octupus bar or punch bowl aare probably your best bets for bars/pubs. Bar med is still crew night on a tuesday.... and the only thing good about it is probably the cheap drinks (if you can get to the bar!) There is quite a few big chain resturants about the town.... best bet to head to the megaplex....about 5-6 to choose from there! Good luck...!
Avoid bar med and liquid envy like you would avoid Hep.C, head down to Brighton or up to London, the punch (up) bowl on the old high street is ok and blue india is good for a ruby but otherwise avoid the area. (Unless you dont mind cack music and awful skanks)
Yuk - Creepy Crawley. Get a train to Lewes. Lots of lovely pubs there and a brewery. Harveys of Lewes. There is a great bar opposite the brewery - The John Harvey. Beer straight out of the barrel. Enjoy.
Just into the hotel. Well those comments really creased me up. Come on, its not that bad. I'll work my way through the recommendations (and the train rides) BarMed tomorrow for sure (I'll be the one with the big ears ) Probably a curry at the Taj first.
pig n poke pub up the road from the Hilton or six bells Horley - in the old days famous haunts. These days there's only one good thing in Crawley and that's the road out of it.
(too many BHFC there, up the Palace )
Quite a decent Turkish restaurant in the High Street next to the George Hotel, also a Prezzo in the same area. A good Indian in Ifield Avenue about 20 minutes walk from the town centre. Two good pubs near Charlwood/Ifield : The Half Moon and the Gate.
Other than that Crawley is ZRF zone (zero redeeming features) unless Grab-A-Granny on Thursday nights is your scene.
As others have said, the best thing about Crawley is the train to .... anywhere!
Stop it. I get the picture. ZRF just outrageous. Thanks anyway guys n gals. I'm proud of you for what imho is one of the shortest but funniest threads I've read. Like the BBC. The opinions expressed in this thread do not necessarily reflect those of the the poster.
I'm considering moving into a bedsit above the Punchbowl to get the full experience, blog it and by the end of the course, run for Mayor
Post #4 has it. The Taj is the best Indian for miles. The cooks are Indian (not Banglandeshi). Near the Crawley railway station. You need to save up a bit though...
East Grinstead, in the old days, was a pretty good place to head out to, can't say what it is like now, but for travelling anywhere, who cares where it is, it will be an improvement on Crawley, one can simply go to www.traveline.org.uk , select the region, then enter the postcode of the hotel then the destination and one can get the bus/coach/train schedules of where one wants to go, and return, and establish the last schedules back of an evening out.
Thinking about it, my most recent visit to Crawley was for a business meeting with a Swedish associate, he was then resident in Crawley so, knowing my way around, I took him to the 'Hillside Inn' on the Balcombe Road near to the Europa Hotel.
He loved it, a 'English country pub' atmosphere, log fire, nice atmosphere and good 'pub grub', he said that he would go there again and with business associates so I guess that comes as a recommendation.
As others have said the best thing about Crawley is the road out of it but if one takes the Balcombe Road out of it they'll come across the Hillside Inn
Last edited by Phileas Fogg; 5th Oct 2010 at 21:19.
) BarMed tomorrow for sure (I'll be the one with the big ears ) Probably a curry at the Taj first. 
)
just outrageous. Thanks anyway guys n gals. I'm proud of you for what imho is one of the shortest but funniest threads I've read. Like the BBC. The opinions expressed in this thread do not necessarily reflect those of the the poster. 
