To the north and south lie the Dark Peak highlands, which are made up of millstone grit and are heather-covered moorlands, rugged and bleak.

To the east is the gentler and more pastoral White Peak, consisting largely of limestone grasslands, nevertheless with spectacular bluffs and the occasional gorge.

Combs Moss, a gritstone 'edge', dominates the valley in which Chapel lies from the south and Eccles Pike rises sharply above the town to its west and provides a commanding 360° viewpoint.

The first chapel in the town (now the Church of St. Thomas Becket) was originally built by the Normans but was replaced with a larger building a hundred years later.

The brake-lining manufacturer Ferodo was a family concern for over a hundred years and was first established in the town; it is now part of the international conglomerate Federal-Mogul.

There are a number of other thriving businesses based in the town and adjacent areas, including scientific research companies Concept Life Sciences and Retogenix as well as Rochling Fibracon Ltd and Kelsa Truck Ltd.

It consisted of an entrance range and an accommodation block of three wings centred on an octagonal hub, an infirmary and an isolation hospital.

The town is also served by High Peak's 199 skyline service, which runs every 30 minutes between Buxton, Stockport and Manchester Airport.

[9] There is also a leisure centre, with tennis courts co-located with High School which provides a range of fitness classes and sports facilities.

A square of cobbles adjacent to the stocks marks the spot where Will Scarlet, the legendary companion of Robin Hood, is said to have died on 14 December 1283.

[15] Also in the east of the parish, next to a lake alongside the A623 and not nationally listed for its architecture, is the modest Bennetston Hall, which is being renovated as a hotel.

[21] In the rolling hills between Combs and Chapel is Bank Hall, extensively altered in 1872–74 for Henry Renshaw of Manchester on an ornate aerial plan with an elaborate stone balcony over the door, a bay window with fine botanical painted glass and canvas panels to the doors, formerly with painted panels by Armstrong and Caldecott.

The south elevation of the house has a central Venetian doorway with columns either side of double-glazed doors—here too are voussoirs decorated with floral motifs, set in an imposing ashlar surround.

Within the village lie the earthworks of a Neolithic henge known as the Bull Ring; the site also includes an oval and bowl barrow.