Attractions in Manchester

Few cities in the world have embraced social change so heartily as Manchester. From engine of the Industrial Revolution to test-bed of contemporary urban design, the city has no realistic provincial English rival. Its domestic dominance expresses itself in various ways, most swaggeringly in the success of Manchester United, the richest football club in Britain, but also in a thriving music and cultural scene that has given birth to world-beaters as diverse as the Hallé Orchestra and Oasis. Moreover, the city's concert halls, theatres, clubs and café society are boosted by England's largest student population.

Barton Arcade
Deansgate, City Centre, Between Deansgate and St. Ann's Square
Beautifully restored Victorian glass arcade with shops and offices.

Boddingtons Brewery Tours
32 Great Ducie Street
Boddingtons Brewery has been located on the outskirts of Manchester since 1778 and has been brewing the famous "Cream of Manchester" since 1853, when Henry Boddington became sole proprietor. Boddingtons is still brewed today using traditional techniques and the traditional recipe, including its own strain of yeast and a blend of English hops that have made it famous since its early days. The Brewery Tap is the Boddington's merchandise retail center for the UK, where you will find a full range of Boddingtons memorabilia as well as fine food and a pint.

Cathedral
This is the third church on this site since its founding in the ninth century. A fragment of stone by the choir and a 14th century arch by the tower are all that remain of the earlier structures. The famed widest nave in England (114ft, as opposed to York Minster's 106ft) is a result of wealthy families adding side chapels to the fifteenth-century church, which were later opened out to provide space for Manchester's large 19th population of worshippers. A 1000lb bomb in 1940 damaged the interior, knocking out most of the stained glass and necessitated the complete restoration of the fine misericords, which depict dragon-slaying as well as more mundane scenes - backgammon players and a calf butcher among them. The 1996 bomb did relatively minor damage, now largely restored

Central Reference Library
City Centre, overlooking St. Peters Square
Circular neo-classical building with elegant reading room. Books on every subject, including technical subjects, law, local history, foreign languages. Newspaper and magazine archives, commercial library with European information. Frequent exhibitions of local interest and the Library Theatre and cafe in the basement.

Dunham Massey
Altrincham WA14 4J
Georgian House set in 101 hectare wooded deer park. Library, stables, moat, working mill, orange grove, garden, shrubs, rare, late-flowering azaleas.

Greater Manchester Police Museum
Bewton Street, M1 1ES
The museum is set in a Victorian police station and features 150 years of police history and a collection of police uniforms from around the world.

Heaton Park
Four miles North of central Manchester. Accessible via Metrolink.
600 acre park with boating lake, pets corner, golf course, working tram. Neo-classical Heaton Hall is the venue for music events. Concerts and events held in the park during the summer.

Hollingworth Lake Country Park
Rakewood Road, Littleborough, Rochdale
Lake with watersports facilities. Two and a quarter mile walk around the lake. See waterfowl, view of Pennines and M62 motorway.

Jodrell Bank Science Center and Arboretum
Macclesfield, Cheshire
Displays on astronomy and the universe with activities for children.

Manchester Jewish Museum
190 Cheetham Hill Road, M8 8LW
Manchester's Jewish history is recorded and displayed in this museum, housed in the restored Spanish and Portuguese synagogue. Exhibitions show everyday life in the community back to the 1740s. Education program, demonstrations, music and talks. Please apply for a calendar of events.

The Manchester Museum
The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, M13 9PL
Travel through time and discover ancient civilizations. Come and see the 2000-year-old Egyptian mummies and the footprint of a Mancunian dinosaur! Also, live snakes and crocodiles..

Manchester United Museum & Trophy Room
Old Trafford, Manchester, M16 0RA
When the Manchester United Museum & Trophy Room opened in 1986, it was Britain's first football museum. It covers the history of United from its inception in 1878 up to the present day, in words, pictures, sound and visual presentations. There are more than 1000 frequently updated exhibits as well as a full program of exhibitions. Guided tours of the stadium are held at regular times each day the museum is open.

Museum of Science & Industry in Manchester
Liverpool Road, Castlefield, M3 4FP
An award-winning museum with interactive exhibits, details about Manchester, the world's first industrial city, replicas and exhibits about planes that made flying history and an outstanding program of changing exhibitions.

Museum of Transport
Boyle Street, Cheetham M8 8UW
The Museum is dedicated to the preservation of public road transport in Greater Manchester from horse-drawn bus to Metrolink. Small exhibits and archives. Special event days. Gift shop and tea rooms.

Pankhurst Center
60-62 Nelson Street, Chorlton-on-medlock M13 9WP
Number 62 is one of the two Georgian houses where the Women's Social and Political Union was formed in 1903. The Pankhurst Parlour and the gardens are in Edwardian style. Suffrage Movement exhibition. Resources for women including meeting rooms, exhibition space, craft workshops and childcare area.

The Pump House: People's History Museum
Left Bank, Bridge Street M3 3ER
Exhibitions and displays reconstruct the lives of ordinary people of the past 200 years, from Victorian cotton workers to today's footballers. The Pump House also has a unique collection of banners. Guided tours available for groups.