Visiting Manchester England

Manchester City Center

Moreover, Manchester is also a city of historic brick and stone buildings intermixed with marvelous modern architecture and impressive re-purposed structures that once housed the textile industries. And, the city is easy to get to with its own international airport and major train routes.

Manchester is an excellent walking city with a relatively flat terrain and inexpensive public transport, such as the Metrolink, buses, trains and free buses.

The Quays
A brilliant area to visit in Manchester is the Quays (pronounced keys). The Quays are located a few miles outside the city centre along the canals. Take the Metrolink downtown to the Harbour City stop to this new and stunning restructured area. Historically, the Salford Quays was an industrial area with ship canals that carried cotton and coal. Today, the Quays are a vibrant, waterfront urban living centre with modern flats and townhomes set against pedestrian bridges over sparkling canals and traversing ferries.

Within the Quays, there are numerous attractions, museums, sports facilities and the Lowry complex. The complex is comprised of the enormous Lowery Outlet Mall and The Lowry arts and entertainment centre that was named after the artist Laurence Stephen Lowry. Lowry's paintings are on display in The Galleries, located within the centre, with information and films on the fascinating and famed Mancunian (The demonym of Manchester) artist.

The centre is a commanding structure of modern steel architecture that features a main theater for stellar performances, such as Les Misérables, Evita and Britain's Got Bhangra. Visitors will also appreciate the numerous bars, restaurant, a cafe and gift shop located within the centre.

The Lowry Outlet Mall is located across the plaza from the theater centre and is a haven for the deal-searching shopper. The gorgeous bi-level mall features the Cadbury Factory Shop, Molton Brown and Marks & Spencer, to name just a few of the sought-after British shops. In addition, the mall offers numerous cafes, restaurants, hair salons and a cinema. Make sure to leave room in your luggage for all your finds from the Lowry Outlet Mall.

Imperial War Museum
Located just past the Lowry complex is one of Britain's most impressive war museums, the Imperial War Museum. The museum is an imposing structure, just like its subject matter, and presents the last 100 years of war in Britain. Exhibitions are separated into rooms or six silos, such as the Experience of War, Women & War, Impressions and Science, Technology and War. The displays feature artifacts from the British, allies and enemies, that focus on hardship, sadness and yet sometimes happy memories.

The most poignant exhibit of the museum is located in Silo 2 with videos of wartime experiences projected onto the towering walls with stories told by survivors of the war; it feels like you are there back in time. Another wall projects the names of those lost in battle, while a different silo is constructed to look like massive filing cabinets that contain personal effects from wartime soldiers, their history and names. And, perhaps the most important aspect of the Imperial War Museum, is how the war shapes futures and minds. The exhibits are at times heart-wrenching, astonishing and ultimately fascinating.

The Salford Quays offer visitors a plethora of venues, beautiful walking paths, boat cruises and museums to discover.

Manchester City Center

Manchester boasts a large college population with arts, culture and museums. If you're interested in natural history, visit The Manchester Museum, located on Oxford Road. With three floors of intriguing exhibits, the museum offers visitors everything from Ancient Egypt to Nature Discovery and their Living Animals section. Make sure to explore the Ancient Egypt galleries on the first floor. These displays feature several mummies up-close-and-personal with sarcophaguses, tools jewelry and artifacts from several dynasties. Located on the same floor is the complete Skeleton of an Asian Elephant, Maharajah, who walked from Edinburgh to Manchester in 1872 with his trainer.

As the staff of the museum is fond of saying, "It is a small museum but perfectly formed!"

The Palace Theatre & Opera House, located on Oxford Street, provides some of the best musicals concerts and comedy in Northern England. The Greek-style meets Victorian gilded theatre is a beautiful venue to watch and listen to dazzling performances, such as Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Hobbit and Monty Python's Spamalot.

Lodging - The Midland Hotel

Most hotels that reside in city centers range from budget to luxurious and some are quite noteworthy. However, few garner the exalted and beloved reputation that the historical and beautiful Midland Hotel receives.

Charles Trubshaw, for the Midland Railway Company, originally built The Midland Hotel, located on Peter Street, in 1903. Back in the day, cotton was king and money was no object for a grand hotel that boasted opulent rooms, restaurants and ballrooms for wealthy businessmen. These gorgeous rooms were constructed of vast amounts of marbles, rich woodwork and detailed, ornamentation on ceilings and walls. Today, the Midland's interior has been refurbished and its exterior preserved, but the exquisite architecture, grandeur and rich marbles and woods remain.

The hotel has seen historic meetings, such as Rolls and Royce meeting in the hotel's Colony Restaurant and formed what would become the elite British automobile company of Rolls Royce. Prime Ministers (Tony Blair) and presidents, opera singers (Pavarotti) and rock stars, (The Rolling Stones), as well as countless celebrities and the Crème de la Crème of society have all stayed at the hotel. In fact, going to the Midland Hotel for Afternoon Tea in the lovely Octagon Room has been a tradition for Manchester residents and visitors alike for scores of years. Another tradition is just to go and quietly people watch while sipping a cuppa or a cocktail to see who strolls about the fashionable hotel.

With the size of the Midland, 312 rooms, 14 suites and 350 staff members, the hotel is similar to a small community and any community sees events and stories come and go. The rich history of the grand Midland has gained such fame that books have been written on it and tours are even given during the day by Mancunian and author Barbara Frost who wrote Memories of the Midland.

If you visit Manchester, book a stay at the Midland Hotel, take a tour or indulge in afternoon tea, and become a part of history yourself.

And More...

Manchester is a thriving city with a great deal to offer visitors. Take a look at some of the additional venues and attractions:
For additional information on Manchester, England, visit VisitManchester.
For accommodations, that are midscale in price, visit the chic Velvet Hotel located on Canal Street.

Visit the exquisite John Rylands Library located on Deansgate, the Manchester Cathedral located on Cateaton Street, and Manchester Town Hall located in Albert Square, where several scenes of the New Sherlock Holmes movie were filmed with Robert Downey Jr.