As well as housing one of my 100 Top Pubs, Walsall is a very underrated place for a short break. We’ve stayed there many times since discovering it with a young family 10 or so years ago, when it provided excellent parks (the Arboretum), cheap Asian food in Pleck, and some family friendly museums, as well as bargain hotel accommodation.
The town has a very different feel to the neighbouring towns of the Black Country, with some surprisingly smart housing to the west.
The town rewards the walker, with the colourful neighbourhoods of Caldmore and Pleck providing lots of Asian colour. The town centre itself has some Victorian and Art Deco gems alongside the usual street sculptures.
Since a burst of regeneration 10 years ago, leading to the still excellent New Art Gallery, Walsall has suffered the loss of the annual Illuminations at the Arboretum, but gained some superb places to eat, including the Five Rivers Indian Restaurant and The Bakehouse.
There does appear to be some significant building work going on at the moment which will hopefully continue these improvements.
retiredmartin 
Hoping for a let’s celebrate Walsall post soon. Meanwhile I’ll enjoy reading your old blogs on our much maligned little town. 😀
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Not maligned by me, Neil!
That first one from 2015 was in my experimental stage before I learnt how to add photos and post blogposts on Twitter!
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Neil,
Do you live in Walsall or have you moved on ?
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Yes, I’m still here. Live in a village called Pelsall (never troubles the GBG) 4 miles outside
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Neil,
Yes, I know Pelsall from when an old school friend lived there.
I think Pelsall is unique in being the only village in the country to have had a CAMRA branch. On being set up it was suggested that before long everywhere would have a CAMRA branch much as having a British Legion club. I’m in the background of the newspaper photo of the first meeting and the accompanying report mentions one member cycling all the way from Stafford to be there.
It became the Pelsall and Mid Staffs branch for a while, then I think the Lichfield and Mid Staffs branch
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First thing to mind -Four Crosses. Still good ?
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That’d be in Shelfield.
At least 45 years since I’ve been in that Four crosses so I wouldn’t know.
Sadly the Hatherton one has been closed for a few years and the Stafford one has only keg.
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That’s something I never knew. Thanks for the info. Such a shame that we haven’t kept that legacy going. It’s not a real ale village anymore. More like the capital of carling.
Oh yes, the four crosses continues to impress. Hopefully it will carry on when service resumes.
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