Top Attractions In Manchester

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Freebies

If you have friends or family coming and you want to do something on the cheap, there’s free entry to a range of museums:

The People's History Museum - On which £12 million has been spent redeveloping a showcase of working-class history.

The Imperial War Museum North - Focuses chiefly on the human cost of war in the 20th and 21st centuries.

A little closer to home for those students of the University of Manchester is the Manchester Museum, which holds various changing exhibitions as well as its permanent exhibits.

Whilst the Whitworth Art Gallery, also on the Oxford Road holds one of the UK's finest collections of art and design, fine art, prints, textiles and wallpapers.

Among the bustle of the city centre the John Rylands Library on Deansgate hosts a considerable collection inside its beautiful Victorian Gothic exterior of stain glass windows and turrets.

A visit to the Town Hall, also provides an awesome architectural spectacle in the historical; heart of the city’s affairs.

And nipping into St Ann's Church in-between the two will certainly cement your historical journey.

More culture can be found a stone’s throw away in the Manchester Art Gallery, which has free permanent exhibitions as well as temporary installations and projects including the Gallery of Costume, which re-opened after a £1 million renovation.

Our Pick: for an interactive experience the Museum of Science and Industry, set amid the remnants of the world's oldest surviving passenger railway station, this offers a walk-through replica sewer among exhibits illustrating Manchester's industrial and scientific history.

Retail

When you think Manchester shopping you might picture the Arndale Centre, packed full of your favourite food and clothes chains. Or maybe you conjure up images of footballers roaming around the decadent shops of the Trafford Centre. You’re less likely to know the city centre’s Market Street is home to the largest Primark in Europe or about the joys of The Lowry Outlet Mall which has over 80 boutiques and shops offering discounts of up to 60%. 

Our Pick: is one of Manchester’s real gems, which is the Northern Quarter. Home of fashion designers, creative agencies, art galleries and quirky retailers its growing to encompass bars, restaurants and residential development. 

Local Markets and Areas of Interest

Sometimes it’s not just the buying but the general hustle and bustle of a market scene that can excite, and Manchester has a deluge of places where you can quite literary taste its local flavour.

The Curry Mile is perhaps one of the most famous stretches of road in the North, Two miles south of the city centre and close to the Fallowfield university campuses you are sure to find your fav haunt from over 70 restaurants and fast food outlets offering Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Middle Eastern cuisine. From national award winners to top kebabs, establishments cater for a high quality eat or a 3am munch. With sweet shops brimming with honey and pistachio filled pastries (baklava) and lattices of jilebi, shisha lounges, sari shops and, intriguingly, ice-cream parlours you would be forgiven for thinking yourself somewhere much more exotic than the South of Manchester.

Elsewhere you can get your Asian fix in the city centre’s Chinatown.The second largest in the country, you’ll find Thai, Malaysian, Singaporean and other Pan-Asian restaurants among Chinese restaurants, shops, bakeries, supermarkets, herbalists, betting and gift shops; most of which have their main trading times on Sunday mornings.

Manchester also hosts a range of local markets each with a distinctive of the communities they serve; Gorton Market offers authentic Polish goods, hot and cold food, fresh meat, fish, veg, cakes and smoothies as well as sports and electrical equipment;

Whilst at Longsight Market you can buy anything from Jamaican plantains, Asian-style jewellery, hand crafted saris and freshly caught fish, exotic fruits and spices.

Our Pick: Easily the most heavily anticipated moment of the festive season is the arrival of the Christmas Markets . Held from 17 Nov - 21 Dec they fill multiple squares in the city centre with Spanish, French, Dutch and German crafts, alcohol and food. The focal point in Albert Square in front of the Town Hall heaves with people eating Bavarian sausages, pork baps, pancakes and strudel whilst warm cocktails and beers can be enjoyed in marquees huddled away from the cold. Ok so its only once a year, but trust us it’s worth the wait!

Theatre

There’s the Palace Theatre on the Oxford Road offering musical theatre productions such as Oliver and Casablanca and The Lowry at Salford Quays attracting major touring shows but for unbeatable value and opportunities to see local and national shows.

Our Pick: Located in the city centre the Royal Exchange Theatre is not only spectacular to look at but also hosts some spectacular shows. They also have fantastic offers fo students - Check it out  

Check What’s On:

Royal Exchange

Palace Theatre  

The Lowry 

Partying

An abundance of clubs mean there’s always a night out to be had.

The Deaf Institute the name a reference to its previous incarnation as a Deaf Centre, has a regular slot for Manchester favourites Gold Teeth and their mix up of hip-hop r’n’b and dubstep.The Factory, Joshua Brooks  and 5th Avenue  are among some of the clubs sprawled down the Oxford road alongside Sound Control  and the newly renovated hmv Ritz, formerly a dancehall. The Printworks in the city centre is fine fodder for commercial nights out whilst the Northern Quarter, home to bars like Mint Lounge and The Roadhouse  boasts some great ‘60s Swing nights very popular with the student population, if sometimes a little more expensive. For a pricier but high calibre night out Warehouse Project,  in its last year in residency under Piccadilly Station, hosts some of the world’s top DJs and draws in 2000 strong crowds. For something different why not check out Satans Hallow this is defiantly a great place for punk, rock and heavy metal music fans.

Our Pick: Located in Ancoats there is Sankeys, which got voted DJ Mag’s number 1 club in 2010.  

For the latest information on nights out in Manchester, check out - Skiddle

Music

From 21,000 capacity venues like the MEN Arena hosting stars such as Take That and Rihanna to standard indie venues in the Manchester Apollo and Manchester Academy, Manchester mixes a wealth of solid music venues with more quirky locations such as jazz bar Band on the Wall. Home to the Bridgewater Hall and Opera House your classical fancies can also be fulfilled, especially with the Bridgewater offering discount tickets for afternoon and instrumental concerts. The biannual Manchester International Festival, next to be held in the summer of 2013 amalgamates music and art forms alongside famous artists in a cultural stravaganza.

Our Pick: for the student population is Parklife Music Festival. Moving from its base in Platfield Park in 2012, it offers two days of great bands and DJs for a cheap prices.Tickets sell quickly! 

Sporting  Venues

New to Manchester you must check out the National Football Museum,  the home of the greatest collection of football memorabilia ever assembled, should satisfy fanatics and casually interested alike. Elsewhere the legacy of the Commonwealth games has brought the Manchester Aquatics Centre, ocated on the Oxford Road, is a great facility that holds Great Britain Polo matches and tournaments at concession prices as well as providing student gym and pool facilities. Or if you like your water a couple of degrees colder Manchester’s Chillfactore, which offers a chance to fulfil your winter sport cravings with ski, snowboard, tubing and luge sessions as well as climbing facilities and an array of events and offers. The more adventurous will enjoy Aerial Extreme where you can zip wire, climb and claw your way around the outdoor course located next to the Trafford Centre. More group friendly fun can be found paintballing.There are also some other big sports club in and around Manchester, Sale Sharks represent Rugby Union whilst St Helens and Salford Reds represent Rugby League in the region.There is also Lancashire Cricket Club that play at the famous cricket ground Old Trafford, and if you fancy something different why not try watching ice hockey and watch the Manchester Phoenix or maybe go and watch some speedway at Belle Vue . And going into the Olympic Year, why not check out the Manchester Velodrome. With Team Sky training in Manchester, you’ll probably see some of the riders wandering around Sainsbury’s in Fallowfield or riding along the Moseley road. Regular users of the track include Sir Chris Hoy and Vicky Pendleton MBE and Sports Personality of the Year Winner Mark Cavendish. There’s always plenty of events to see and opportunities to get involved on the track as well.

Our Pick: Manchester is renowned for its football teams so it’s worth a trip to either Manchester United’s Old Trafford or Manchester City’s Ettihad Stadium to watch a match or enjoy some of the hospitality events they host. In particular Manchester City has a close relationship with the student population, with the University of Manchester often advertising discount midweek student tickets and European match deals.

Our Random Top Pick:

The Comedy Store - Fancy having a laugh? Well there’s nowhere better in Manchester to go than here, some great shows and comedians to make your sides hurt (in a good way).

•  Have we missed something? Please leave a comment and tell us, we would love to hear!

Article Requested By: Tom Panny 

 Useful Resources

www.prideofmanchester.com/music/tickets

www.timeout.com/manchester/features/405/10-great-things-to-do-in-manchester

www.visitmanchester.com

www.manchester.gov.uk

www.manchestertheatres.com

Tags:

Manchester/ Attractions/ Manchester Attractions / Freebies / The People's History Museum / The Imperial War Museum North / Manchester Museum / Whitworth Art Gallery/ John Rylands Library / St Ann's Church/ Manchester Art Gallery / Gallery of Costume/ Museum of Science and Industry/ Arndale Centre/ Trafford Centre/ The Lowry Outlet Mall/ Northern Quarter/ New Urban Street Fashion Market/ Curry Mile/ Chinatown/ Gorton Market/ Longsight Market/ Christmas Markets/ Palace Theatre/ The Lowry/ Royal Exchange Theatre/ The Deaf Institute/ The Factory/ Joshua Brooks/ Fifth Avenue/ Sound Control/ HMV Ritz/ The Printworks/ Northern Quarter/ Mint Lounge/ The Roadhouse/ Warehouse Project/ Satans Hallow/ MEN Arena/ Manchester Apollo/ Manchester Academy/ Band on the Wall/ Bridgewater Hall/ Opera House/ Manchester International Festival/ Parklife Music Festival/ National Football Museum/ Manchester Aquatics Centre/ Manchester’s Chillfactore/ Aerial Extreme/ St Helens/ Salford Reds/ Lancashire Cricket Club/Manchester Phoenix/ Belle Vue/ Manchester Velodrome/ Manchester United/ Manchester City/ The Comedy Store