TRAVEL GUIDE
T he city of Ely has long island flanked by swamps and marshes. Once a destination that could only be reached by boat and causeways, the Isle of Eels may now be easily accessible by both road and rail, but it has continued its waterborne traditions despite the surrounding Fens being drained in the 17th century. Nowadays, most take to the Great Ouse from Ely’s scenic marina for leisure boating trips across the winding Fenland waterways – or spend an evening of dinner or drinks with views over colourful vessels bobbing on the water. A celebration of the humble and abundant creature that originally gave the city its name as its key export since dominated the vast open skies of the Fenlands, originally rising from these watery plains as an
surrounding skylines for over a thousand years, it was only officially granted city status by royal charter in 1974. With a population of just under 20,000 people as per the last census in 2021, Ely is a pocket city and England’s second smallest; but its size belies its many riches. Saints and sinners A visit to Ely Cathedral is a must, and the ideal way to introduce this historic island settlement. Known as the Ship of the Fens, this ancient building can trace its foundations back to the seventh century when Ely’s first Christian community was established in 673 by Etheldreda – a daughter of one of the ancient kings of East Anglia. As queen, foundress and abbess of Ely, you will still find a stone marking the original shrine of this saintly
the medieval period, the annual Eel Day festivities have been a staple of the Ely calendar since 2004 after being initiated by local charity Babylon Arts. Every April, a parade winds its way through the city’s historic streets with locals bearing giant models of its slippery namesake, before an Eel King and Queen are crowned. You can also witness the world eel-throwing competition (rest assured, no real eels are harmed in the process). Although the eel’s numbers are now at their lowest in the Great Ouse and the city’s last commercial eel catcher retired a decade ago, you can still find the delicacy of smoked eel at the Ely Farmers’ Market and on some local restaurant menus. While the city has been the seat of a diocese since 1108 and its towering Norman cathedral has defined the
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