Most travellers blast through Peterborough on the London-to-Edinburgh line without a second glance. That's a mistake worth correcting. This Cambridgeshire city — often overshadowed by its famous university neighbour — packs Norman history, a canal-side food scene, and a proper steam railway into a compact, walkable centre.

Start in the Old Town Quarter, where streets like Queensgate, Park Road and Westgate line up centuries of architecture. Westgate itself mixes Victorian buildings with quirky modern pastiche, and the 1920s Westgate Arcade is a covered market full of independent shops. From there, Long Causeway leads straight to the cathedral precincts, passing Tout Hill, a Norman earthwork tied to a castle built by Abbot Thorold.

Peterborough Cathedral deserves real time. Founded as a place of worship back in A.D. 655, it's considered one of England's finest Norman cathedrals — and it holds Katherine of Aragon's tomb, plus the former resting place of Mary Queen of Scots. History continues just outside town at Flag Fen Archaeology Park, where Bronze Age remains sit preserved in wetland. There's even a handsome Art Deco lido for warmer days.

The railway theme runs deep here. Peterborough spent decades as a railway town, and that legacy pays off for visitors: London is only about 45 minutes away, York roughly an hour, and both Luton and Stansted airports sit within about 70 miles. Better still, the Nene Valley Railway runs heritage steam and diesel trains over roughly 7.5 miles from its own Peterborough station, stopping at Wansford, Orton Mere, Overton and Yarwell — a slow, scenic drift past rivers, woodland and villages.

Food is a genuine draw rather than an afterthought. Blind Tiger Taproom & Kitchen, just outside the centre, pours local craft beer alongside sourdough pizzas baked on-site. In the nearby village of Yaxley, Slattery's at The Duck and Drake serves an entirely gluten-free menu of roasts, soups and gastro-pub classics. For a splurge, Prévost at the four-star Haycock Manor Hotel in Wansford holds three AA Rosettes and a Michelin Guide listing, with tasting menus served in a former coaching inn by the river — and it's walkable from the NVR's Wansford station.

Eastern England is one of the driest corners of the UK, so sightseeing on foot rarely gets washed out. With the museum on Priestgate (housed in a Georgian mansion), shops on tree-lined Bridge Street, and heritage sights clustered close together, Peterborough works well as a low-fuss weekend base — particularly for anyone who wants to break up the great London-Edinburgh rail journey and see the small towns the expresses skip.

For travellers after an under-the-radar English city break with real history and a scenic train thrown in, this is an easy sell.