Manchester, things to do/see?

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beetlebrain

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hi all. heading to manchester for a few days. just wondering what would there be to do/see. best places to go shopping? nightlife? have been to old trafford before (just there though no where else). Would it be worth my while heading to liverpool?

any info appreciated thanks

Edited to add: Would dublin airport be busy on monday's? Flying with aer lingus are these flights usually full up? when booked the seats plane was empty

Thanks again.
 
I think theres a huge shopping centre there if your into shopping.

sorry i dont know the name of it, you could google it
 
the imperial war museum (north) and the lowry gallery are near old trafford, what do you normally like doing in another city?
 
Manchester - class town. Right, to business....
Shopping: Trafford Centre is just off the M60 which runs around Manchester, big, monstrous place to spend hours losing your life savings in! If you want to be in town you could do worse than start with the Arndale Centre, the centre of Manchester is a cornucopia of shopping, there is something there for everyone, personally I like St. Ann's Square which is very close to the Arndale centre.
Things to see and do: Well start by looking into the music scene in Manchester, the place is brimful of venues and there should be something for everyone. Other than that try the Museum of Science and Industry, or if you are arty go for the Lowry Gallery. Have a look at the Visit Manchester site for lots of suggestions and details. Don't forget that Manchester has some beautiful countryside nearby, don't forget to consider walking outside the city. Nearby places to visit, Liverpool and Chester, Chester is pretty, Liverpool is fun but if you are only there for the weekend there is more than enough in Manchester to do!
Restaurants: Where to start!! There is Chinatown, plenty of Chinese, Japanese and Thai restaurants there or nearby. Or go to the Curry Mile if your tastes run that way. There is an excellent Thai restaurant near to St. Peter's Square (Koh Samui). For Italian, I like Piccolino's, there is an excellent Argentinian steakhouse (Gaucho) on St. Mary's street and a brilliant little Teppanyaki bar in Chinatown (haven't tried the Sapporo one yet), a fun Greek meze restaurant down the end of Deansgate and across the road a tapas bar with an excellent selection of wine. Have a look at Sugarvine for choice, reviews & details, you will be spoilt for choice.
Bars and clubs again abound - for a the best pint in Manchester I reckon go to Tom's Chophouse. Other than that have a look at www.worldsbestbars.com for some starter suggestions though I would recommend just walking and finding them.
Have no connection to the Marriott group but for really friendly staff, central location, big rooms and an excellent breakfast I would recommend the Renaissance in Manchester.

If you are on the red-eye to manchester it is usually pretty busy and the airport is normally mad on a Monday morning.
 
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hi guys, cheers for the replys. thanks so-crates for that extensive reply! I can see me been dragged around the shopping centre's alright as herself is big into shopping.

Its also her birthday when we will be there i guess im looking for a nice restaurant with like normal food like we have here?

How far away is coronation street? id earn extra brownie points if she got a tour of that!!

What is the red-eye?is that what they call trains over there? Any have a rough idea on how much sterling you would need for 4days? havent a clue!!
 
Honestly, there is more than enough in the city centre so keep her out of the Trafford Centre - she won't spend less but she can drop into Harvey Nicks while you find solace across the road in the pub :) if you go to the TC you have fewer escape options.

What sort of food do you like (what's normal these days!!)? If you want to treat her Piccolino's would be my suggestion, Italian (so basics like pasta dishes, meat dishes, chicken, fish, veg etc), big menu, excellent wines and very popular - so book if you do. It is a little pricey but she's worth it. Have a look at Sugarvine, I have used them for suggestions in both Liverpool and Manchester and found them very useful. Another suggestion if you want "British" food would be Sam's Chophouse (it is a sister pub to Tom's chophouse) - again book in advance - the restaurant is quite small and can be very busy. Another suggestion would be the Ox Bar and Grill on Liverpool Road, have been there several times (though not recently) and for the Corrie fan, there have been some of the actors in there each time (although every time I had to have someone point them out to me so they could have been anyone!!)

"Coronation Street" is on the lot of the ITV studio. That is situated just off Deansgate and is pretty close to the centre of Manchester - not being a fan myself I have never thought to visit it. I don't think you can visit it any more but you could always contact ITV and find out. The area it is based on is Salford but I wouldn't recommend going wandering around Salford trying to find a Corrie lookalike street as it can be quite rough. The stars do drink and socialise in the venues close to the studios (like the Ox bar) so maybe a bit of star-spotting.

By the "red-eye" I mean the early morning flight at 6.30am. The train is still the train!! Speaking of which there is a good link from the airport into the city centre stations of Oxford St and Picadilly.

How much will you need? Well shopping aside, a hotel will cost you anything over £60 a night, try to stay central it is easier for getting back to and getting around.

So I will say 3 nights at £100 = £300
Train to and from Manchester for 2 people: £10
Eating out: 3 nights @ £30 a head (I am guessing on the more expensive side with a glass or two of vino)= £180
Other incidentals & breakfast/lunch: 4 days @ £30 (again this is a guess - allowing a tenner for lunch each and some money for getting around) = £120

Roughly (eek) £600 which is ~€900. I am not being conservative here but at the same time it could easily cost more than that, I haven't factored in much for socialising at night beyond food. Might want to ban her from the shops!!
 
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Thanks alot so-crates for taking time to reply. I had thought about 1000 euro dunno what that works out at havent checked yet 6/700 sterling.

I checked the coronation street and no your right you can' get a tour of it anymore! Will be sure to book one of the restaurants you mentioned.

Thanks again appreciate it.;)
 
you're welcome - it is a great city and I always enjoy myself when I have to go there so it is easy to talk it up! Hope you have a good weekend and the restaurants are as good as I remembered!

1000 would be between 6/700 sterling alright.
 
Manchester is not an expensive city by any means, plenty of reasonably priced restaurants in the city centre. There's a nice Italian pasta place on Deansgate, and the Cafe Rouge (a few yards up the street) isn't bad either if you want to refuel.
If you haven't booked your hotel, there are some reasonable options in the city centre. The travel lodge in Deansgate is ok, basic but fine for purpose, and never too pricey. There is an old hotel close to Picadilly called the Britannia (one of the Britannia Hotels group) that is quite good and does a great breakfast buffet. It's not a modern place, a bit olde worlde, but the location is great and it does good deals. The building used to be the headquarters of one of the old woollen merchants in Manchester's heyday and the fantastic stairway has survived; well worth a look anyway even if you're not staying there.
The trafford centre is miles out of town, just another Dundrum but bigger (2nd biggest SC in British Isles). Not much to see there unless you like shops.
A walk around the city centre is worth doing, the town hall and the library are very impressive. There's also a giant ferris wheel beside the Arndale Centre if you want a mini "London Eye" experience. The arndale isn't up to much by the way, reminds me of the Ilac centre in Dublin.
Good city for a few days off, agree on war museum, also the heritage of the woollen industry and the canals etc.
 
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