Manchester is a Top Place to Go
Who says this crap? It’s apparently in the New York Times list at number 20 of 41 places to go in 2011 ahead of Miami and Zanzibar.
Manchester is a poor city and is very much second class compared to Liverpool, Glasgow, Newcastle, Leeds and of course London. You could argue it does have two good football teams, but London has three. It’s got no iconic buildings and it is not a World Heritage Site like Liverpool. I suppose you could argue, that Manchester has a couple of good hotels and is well connected by train to Liverpool and Leeds for days out. It also has a real tennis club.
The Anonymous Widower 
I completely disagree with you James. Manchester does in fact have a lot of things going for it. It isnt poor financially either – there are poor areas, but showme a city in UK which doesnt have poor areas. In and around the city there are a lot of interesting things for tourists, not least the old Medieval part of the city; it has excellent museums, art galleries, interesting old churches, and the towns around the city also have a great many interesting places, plus active archeology sites. And Rylands library on Deansgate, plus of course excellent and world leading universities. It is literally a footstep away from Salford, which also has historical features and of course its connection to Lowry. It has excellent restaurants from many cultures, a vibrant China Town, and although it may not have many fancy, expensive hotels, it does nontheless have plenty of good, reasonable priced hotels for people travelling on a budget. It has Bridgwater Hall, which is world class music venue, as well as hosting other events. Several excellent comedy clubs, and several very good conference and event venues, which hold several thousand people – and both Manchester Central and MEN arena regularly have very big name concerts. It also has a couple of “art” cinemas, and theatres which have programmes for those who prefer entertainment away from the mainstream. It has the gay village, which is a big draw for many people, both straight and gay. And whole city has a vibrant and fairly safe night life – there are emergency help alarms all over the city centre for example.
And there are lots of other places too, and thecity centre shopping is better than Liverpool, even with the new L1 complex in Liverpool.
Comment by liz | January 14, 2011 |
Have you ever heard anyone brag about a holiday in Manchester? Or a Brit list it on their ‘must go to’ places in the UK? Manchester has always been good at self-promotion though,so not totally surprised!
Comment by Karrie | January 14, 2011 |
I know many people who choose to visit Manchester as part of their tour of Europe, and it is also very popular for mini-breaks. There is plenty to do for all types of people.
Comment by liz | January 14, 2011 |
But it’s so inferior to Liverpool and I have the bad memories of my late son living there.
Comment by AnonW | January 14, 2011 |
It isnt inferior to Liverpool, it is just different to Liverpool. The part you probably saw most of, Trafford, isnt a great area, Chorlton, Didsbury, similar areas are much nicer. Perhaps your bad experience with your son has affected your opinion.
I love LIverpool, but I am quite happy living here in Manchester, it is a vibrant, cosmopolitan city with plenty going for it.
Comment by liz | January 14, 2011 |
I’m very much into architecture and Manchester lacks the great variety of buildings that Liverpool has. After all they used to think the Town Hall was made out of coal, until they cleaned it in the 1960s.
Comment by AnonW | January 14, 2011 |