5 Reasons to Add Manchester to Your UK Travel List

When talking about the UK, everyone almost always thinks about London. Understandably so, seeing as it’s the capital. But London aside, let us tell you about Manchester, located in the Northwestern part of the country, and why you should add it to your UK travel list.

First, a little history about Manchester: It’s a city of many firsts-for example, it was the world’s first industrialised city due to the rapid rise in textile manufacture in the area during the industrial revolution. Also, the city had the world’s first inter-city passenger railway station.

Its rich history cuts across different areas like culture, science, engineering, sports, and music. But why should you travel to the Northwest of England? Let’s find out.

Reasons You Should Visit Manchester

To Experience the Rich and Vibrant Culture

Manchester’s heritage and culture are things that you need to explore and experience when visiting England. The city has many artistic treasure troves that you wouldn’t find anywhere else in the world.

Their art galleries are filled with unique collections to feed your eyes on. In addition, there are different niche museums that can walk you through the history of the world, science, football, and society as a whole. And the city hosts various festivals all year round to showcase and celebrate different aspects of their culture.

Examples include The Manchester International Festival, The Manchester Literature Festival, craft beer festivals, CHEESE festivals, vegan food fests, and the Parklife music festival.

Also, Mancunians are friendly and welcoming people. They’ll gladly share recommendations, show you directions, and engage you on different topics about their city. It’s very easy to make friends in manchester. However, try not to ask which Manchester team they support.

It’s Affordable

Considering the tough economic times, it’s a relief to know that you don’t have to empty your savings to visit and spend time in Manchester. It’s almost as though their entire system is built on affordability. From the comfortable hotel rooms, efficient public transport, convenient food joints, vibrant pubs, and world-class museums and galleries.

Simply put, you can eat, sleep, entertain yourself, and travel around Manchester with a low budget. Whatever remains, you can splurge on shopping. The city offers diverse shopping choices for varying top-quality products at good bargains. The Manchester Arndale would be a good start, followed by the North Quarter, Afflecks, and then the Craft & Design centre, to name a few.

So, if you want to escape the pricey London, but still get an equally-fulfilling experience and or better, start moving north.

Food (Scran)

Get a taste of manchester-literally, by sampling the city’s delicious “Scran”. There Are countless cuisines to exhaust your taste buds and fill your stomach. Whether you prefer fine dining, fast food, or street food, the mouth-watering feel is the same.

In addition to the local favourites like Manchester egg, Manchester tart, Eccles cake, and Manchester caviar, you’ll find some menus with Chinese, Indian, Italian, Vietnamese, and even Thai foods. Especially if you visit the Northern Quarter, Manchester House, the Rabbit in the Moon, and other exquisite locations.

The food markets are a must-visit if you want a taste of the local street food and other modified recipes from around the world. Whatever your food craving is, Manchester will fix it-one food bite at a time. Once you finish with the market, ask around if there are any ongoing food festivals so that you can stop by for more sampling.

Manchester Doesn’t Sleep

Manchester’s nightlife is also a great part of its identity and a major reason to visit the city. Immediately after the sun sets, the city comes alive and turns into one big party scene with multiple options for everybody’s tastes and preferences. The Northern Quarter has its hipster bars, Spinningfields provides some glitz and glamour, and Canal Street houses a lively gay village. The gay village in Canal Street is particularly well-known for its acceptance and celebration of LGBT+ culture, with a variety of bars and clubs that attract people from around the world. Increasingly, people have become more open about taboo topics like gay sexuality, porn websites such as GayPornHD, and homosexuality in general, so Canal Street’s gay village is an ideal place for LGBT+ people to express themselves and feel welcome. The gay village is an area with a high concentration of LGBT+ people and businesses. It is often a center of gay culture and nightlife.

You’ll get the chance to dance to your favourite beat or relax to cool jazz tunes, drink the world-famous craft beer, taste local stouts, ales and lagers, sample distinct cocktails, and enjoy everything else Manchester nightlife has to offer.

For instance, some bars like Sam O’Gowrie have entertaining pub quizzes with prices for the winners. Others host comedy nights for those who prefer to enjoy a good laugh. Then, Chinese Karaoke bars take care of those who want to sing their favourite tunes throughout the night.

Manchester Football

Lastly, Manchester is synonymous with its football culture. And, there are two great teams at the centre of it all. In one corner, there’s Manchester United-arguably the most popular club in the world, and on the other end, there’s Manchester City-crafting its winning legacy one title at a time.

If you want to understand and get a feel of the football frenzy, start by booking yourself into Hotel Football, then go for a Manchester United (Old Trafford) or Manchester City (Etihad) stadium tour. Next, stop and eat at Cafe Football before visiting the National Football Museum.

Before you plan the trip however, you should take a look at the Manchester weather for the days of your travel. As you may well know, it’s not the best thing to travel in the rain or snow, especially not to a football stadium (although matches happen even during heavy downpours!).

If you visit during the football season and are lucky to be around when either team is playing, you should go and watch the match. Even better if the two teams are playing each other.

Conclusion

Do you need more reasons to add Manchester to your UK travel list? You can visit the Manchester Cathedral, which dates back to 700 AD, go to Chetham’s library (the oldest public library in the English-speaking world), Enjoy the legendary music scene, and marvel at the old and new architecture. In short, Manchester has something for everyone.

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