As a port city, Southampton was bombed heavily during WW2. The result, naturally, was the need for a mass porgramme of rebuilding during the 1950s and 60s and an awful lot of concrete. So lets be honest, it's not a pretty city and has virtually no character.
Currently the city centre has no more facilities than the average large town, though the new shopping centre should change this soon. There are multiplex cinemas and other entertainments at Ocean Village and Leisure World, both ten minutes walk from the centre.
County Cricket and Premiership football are both hosted in the city, the two grounds being twenty minutes walk North from the main station. Visitors to the north of the city, including the university, can alight at 'Parkway' station which is next to the airport, from where regular buses will take you into the city.