Could be 5 stars through the week and 1 star at the weekend. It varies that much.
Very busy on Sats, too busy to visit. Good exercise though dodging everyone.
Weekdays and evenings can be relaxed fun though strolling along. Especially Barton Square. Like being in Italy.

I love it here, so much to do, and the food is great! So much variety, and the cinema is pretty big too, love it! you can spend a day just shopping.. there is also laser quest here so you can get up to so much. its great

The Trafford Centre is great, as long as its not Christmas or Sale time!!!
The centre is great for shoes and clothes but lacks the quirky little gift shops you might find in a town centre.
Its is easy to get round, extremely clean and well maintained and indoors which is a definate bonus in this country!
Food choice is excellent from Mcdonalds, Sandwich shops to Chinese and Indian Restaurants - something for every taste and budget.
Other facities include a play centre, cinema and little buggy cars for the kids!

there eally is something or everyone at the trafford center and you can easilly pick up whatever you want from there!!! it really does encompass all shops you could require and also has some wonderful restaurants and bars in there. not only that it has a multi screen cinema located in there too so tyou really can spend a whole day there

can’t complain at all about this place apart from traffic especially at xmas but on the whole you can spend the day here quite easily. great for food, cinema and shopping second to none.

All the big stores are here but it is so noisy this must be due to poor design as bluewater and lakeside are much quieter and nicer

I never go into Manchester City Centre anymore. It is so much easier to get to the Trafford Centre, it is easy to get to from most places in Trafford/Manchester. I have always found a parking place, although on a Saturday on the run up to Christmas it could be quite far away. It is open until 10pm during the week, 8pm on Saturday evenings and 6pm on Sunday - Great if you realise you needed something after 4pm when most other shops are shut.

The food is great too. We often go to the Trafford Centre on dates as there are loads of choices and you can go to the cinema or spend a bit of time in the arcade area afterwards. LOVE IT!!

If there’s a way that you can get to Manchester town centre then do that instead. Where as there are lots of shops here and they are all indoors, the place is usually rammed and there is no parking. It always seems to be dull lit and most of the shops are just smaller versions of those in Manchester. The food is just a typical shopping centre food court and there usualy aren’t enough seats. It also is a nightmare to get to when it’s busy as it gets really congested on the m60. Even on a quiet week day it just seems to lack light and life. Do yourself a favour and go into Manchester instead where there’s more choice bigger shops and a much better atmosphere.

POSITIVE reasons I shop at the Trafford Centre:

Free Parking

Kids coupe cars (but be prepared to pay A LOT)

Vivienne Westwood Accessories

John Lewis’ excellent baby change facilities

Only place I can find Rigby and Peller bras in Manchester

Excuse to pop to Krispy Kreme across the road after

However, I’ve never really walmed to this place. I’m quite happy trampling the cobbled streets of Manchester town centre to do my shopping in the pouring rain. I know the Trafford Centre has the advantages listed above but I can think of numerous reasons against it too…

The NEGATIVES:

Claustrophobic despite its massive size

Packed full of gangs/groups of squeaky voiced, indecently dressed, foul mouthed little girls and boys

The shear volume of scallies and chavs, you’ll be seeing Burberry print when you close your eyes

Total lack of unique independents, it’s SO generic and uninspiring

All the orange faced cosmetic women

Tacky surroundings sap you of any sense of taste, time and enthusiasm for life

Pram/buggy rage is rife

The list goes on

great opening hours. those late night 10pm closes help you shy away from the murder of weekend shoppers. Great selection of shops. could quite easily spend 2 hours in Selfridges dept store alone! nice to see shops that you dont find in other malls such as miss sixy, diesel these are nomally only available through smaller off-chains such as tucci, bank. Mango and aldo are my favourites stores and both are found here. The next place to me those stores are available are leeds and york, so its great that they are both there under 1 roof. The only thing i would comment on is the lack of seating aroung the complex. Seating in the eating areas. but not populatesd very well else where. not a problem for me but it takes a while to get around, may not be ideal for the elderly etc..

It’s huge. Just getting there and into the complex is confusing enough - it is indeed like a town of it’s own. I went here again last weekend with guests up on a visit. I make the trip to the Trafford Centre bi-annual. Anything more regular would probably be the end of me. I have a bit of a like/hate (never love) relationship with this monolithic shopping cathedral. I’ve admittedly had pleasant evenings strolling through seemingly 12,000 stores (all pretty much the same chains you see in everywhere uk), the busy hum of evening shopping is somewhat soothing.
I’ve had other times however when a mental meltdown is mere minutes away and I have to leave the place quick like.
The collection of restaurants here are surprisingly good - give or take a few fast food joints there are some top notch family restaurants (the likes of Giraffe); the new Great Hall (including Carluccio’s and Pesto); the Orient section (containing probably the best eateries in the Trafford Centre with local names such as Yang Sing and Tampopo represented.
All a little expensive for what you’re ultimately getting but if you view this as an occasional visit then it can be fairly enjoyable.
Selfridge’s have their second Manchester store here and that is always good for an hours perusal - the food section in here is well thought out if not a tad pricey.

They’ve recently opened a 200,000sq foot extension called Barton Square: this contains mainly home wares stores and in true Trafford Centre 'Classy’ style it is supposed to represent an Italian Piazza with attached Bell tower for authenticity. This probably pushes the TC back nearer the top of largest malls in the country.
The vast car park is reputedly the safest in the country, getting out of it can be a little daunting however…I’ve lost count at the amount of times I’ve ended up traversing Trafford park.

A short while ago a huge indoor ski slope (Chill Factor E) opened across from here, then even more recently one of the largest indoor golf courses opened slap bang next to Dome - Paradise Island…which actually looks like a whole load of fun.

Seems to have lost its initial appeal since it first opened however still gives a whole days worth of stuff to do for all the family. Situated off the motorway to Trafford it has ample parking (that much you are very capable of losing your car!)

The site is absolutely huge and comprises of a large amount of shops as well as a massive indoor food area, its own cinema etc

The shops cater for numerous clientelle offering a wide range of mens/womens/childrens/household names to suit your needs. There is nearly always a good bargain to be had even if its on something you don’t really need.. but have to have anyway!

After trekking what seems miles up and down the centre there are many areas you can take a break, have a coffee and relax your feet. A popular spot is the huge fountain that performs different spectacles you can watch as you enjoy your mocha.

If shopping isn’t your thing you can visit for other reasons - watching a film in the cinema, visiting for an evening meal etc. There are a huge range of different style restaurants/cafes on offer that are open till late (just like the centre itself)

There is a live stage situated within the food area which can offer live entertainment on specific days, if not when you visit there is a large screen that advertises/plays numerous things throughout the day. Above the food area is a specially crafted ceiling that represents night and day through special lighting. Fantastic to watch as you are eating and a great way to distract the kids! There is a play area for the children to visit right next to the food complex so you can enjoy your meal as they burn off energy.

There is a lot to say about the trafford centre so I have probably missed most out but definitely go see for yourselves as its a must do.

its a brilliant place to go shopping and a cinema a lot of bars arcade and much more

Can you say massive? Everything you need in this huge mall, shops, food, places for the kids and so much more! TC as it is known is a 3 mile walk from start to finish, there are over 230 stores and over 60 restaurants to choose from as well as the usual fast food chains! This place is always busy and is open until 10pm nightly. What more could you ask for? The areas are clean and tidy and the scenery as you walk round is brilliant!

Absolutely amazing place to go, I travel 80 miles each year to do my Christmas shopping there.

shopping shopping shopping. fantastic place, clean tidy. anything you wish to buy you can find under 1 roof, plenty of eating places inside whether you want fast food ie mcdonalds, kfc burger king, sandwich bars or a pub lunch . chinese , indian thai or a 3 course meal. suitable for all ages and wheelchair users. shop til you drop

I think the Trafford Centre is one of those places people tend to love or hate.

What’s to love? The range of shops. Everything under one roof (handy if Manchester’s weather is having one of its off days). Plenty of places to eat/drink after a hard day’s assault of one’s credit card. Loads of car-parking spaces, all free. Cinema. You are free to do your shopping without being stopped by charity workers, Big Issue sellers or market researchers or having to dodge gangs of youths hanging around looking for people to annoy.

What’s to hate? Public transport links to the TC are poor, to say the least: there’s no rail link or Metrolink (what were the GMPTE thinking of!!?), so the car really is your best bet. The sales crowds are unbearable, as are the pre-xmas ones; whatever you do, don’t go to the TC on Saturday or Sunday in November/December - it just ain’t worth the stress.