Explore the UK

Manchester

Back to region content

Claimed to be the first industrialised city in the World, Manchester was once the heart of the industrial revolution and the dominant centre of cotton spinning and textile manufacture. Manchester today is a city of some 2,240,230 people and is the UK’s third largest conurbation. Manchester is a centre of arts and media, education and commerce and regarded as one of the best places to locate a business in the UK. Manchester is the third most visited city in the United Kingdom, well known for its sporting connections supporting two premiership teams and as a host of the 2002 commonwealth games.

The road, rail and air connections to Manchester is second to none and going to and from the city is extremely easy making it one of the best places to stay for a weekend when visiting the attractions of, not just Greater Manchester, but the surrounding areas of the North West Region. The Lancashire coast with the bright lights of Blackpool, visitor attractions and museums of Merseyside, the wonderful countryside of Cheshire, and the most visited area in the UK, the Lake District.

It is not necessary though, to move out of the city as the attractions and entertainment are plentiful. There has long been a thriving nightclub culture in Manchester; amongst the oldest venues is the Band on the Wall, a live music club in the northern quarter. Manchester is home to two symphony orchestras, the Hallé Orchestra and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. There is also a chamber orchestra, the Manchester Camerata. The main pop music venue is the Manchester Evening News Arena, seating over 21,000 people and is the largest arena of its type in Europe. Other venue includes Manchester Apollo and the Manchester Academy. Smaller venues throughout the city are the Bierkeller, the Roadhouse, and Night and Day Cafe.

There is no shortage of interesting buildings in Manchester from Victorian to modern much of which harks back to its days when it was the centre for the cotton trade. There is no shortage of skyscraper buildings in Manchester mostly built in the 1960’s and 70’s. With its heritage Manchester has plenty of monuments and statues commemorating people and places synonymous with achievements associated with engineering, inventing and social military achievement. For the most part these are situated in Manchester’s two main squares, Albert Square and Piccadilly Gardens.

There is a canal network running through Manchester, developed during the industrial revolution still working, but now providing leisure facilities for the visitor and Manchester resident alike. Manchester is a fine city to visit with plenty of attractions for all taste with the widest variety of accommodation, again to suit all taste and pockets, being very easy to get to and to use as base.

• Places to Stay
• Events & Entertainment
• London Theatre
• Days Out
• Eating Out
• Activity Breaks
• Health & Beauty
• Shopping
• Travel
• Blog