Are you planning a visit to the UK? If Liverpool isn’t on your list then keep reading. If I haven’t convinced you by the end of this article then there is no hope! Here are some fun Liverpool facts to know before you visit.
Why you NEED to visit Liverpool
I am on a mission to entice visitors to England away from London. Now I know, London is London, it’s amazing and there is a lot to see. But it’s also crowded, expensive and well, it’s a bit obvious. If you want to see what England is really about, then you need to head north!
Yes, us Northerners may speak a bit funny, but we are very friendly and have some of the most incredible cities in the UK. Cities like Newcastle, Manchester, Leeds, and of course York where there are so many things to do you would need a week. But if you only have time for London plus one, make it Liverpool!
So I decided to create this post with some Liverpool facts to make you want to plan your trip right now.
Fun Liverpool facts
If you really want to see England you need to get yourself on a train, coach, or a plane and get out of London. If you fancy clean air, coastal walks and breathtaking views then head west and take a read of my posts on Cornwall, Plymouth, and Devon but if you want a vibrant city to rival London then you need to visit Liverpool and here are some fun things to do in Liverpool.
Liverpool is full of culture to explore
Liverpool was the European capital of culture in 2008 and you can still feel the effects of it years later. Thanks to a huge investment in the city over the last decade culture continue to thrive in Liverpool. If you love art then you have The Tate and The Walker. If you want museums you can’t go wrong with The International Slavery Museum, The Planetarium or The Maritime Museum.
Entry to all the Museums in Liverpool who are under the National Museums Liverpool banner is one of the free things to do in Liverpool. Yep, that’s right free. If it’s the Performing Arts you are after then The Blue Coat, The Empire and The Everyman.
If you are a music lover then Liverpool is the city for you. You can’t escape it, it is the home of the Beatles after all! You will find live music everywhere and if you are after some big names then the Echo Arena or the Philharmonic Hall are good places to start.
The Liverpool Nightlife is Amazing
Seel Street and Victoria Street for the young and the beautiful. If like me you are on the better side of 30 then head to Mathew Street or concert square. Scousers know how to have a good night out and you can go out every night of the week and have a good night here.
You can walk the streets once walked by The Beatles
Need I say more? For Beatles fans, you can fly into the John Lennon Airport, visit The Beatles Story, take a tour, sleep in the hotel or on the boat, get a picture with John on Mathew Street and then finish off with a pint in the Cavern Club.
I have created a Beatles self-guided walking tour on Walkli so you can see all of the City Centre Beatles places for yourself, without having to pay a penny (unless you want to go into the Beatles Story).
Liverpool is full of themed hotels
If you are after more than one day in Liverpool there are some pretty epic places to stay in Liverpool including the Titanic Hotel, Hard days night hotel and Themed barges you can stay overnight on. You can stay in a Batman-themed barge! I’ve written a whole post on this you can read here.
You can explore the historic Alber Dock
The Albert Dock is the largest group of grade I listed buildings in Britain. It is also home to Tate Liverpool, several of the city’s (FREE) museums and some of the best places to shop, eat and drink.
Liverpool has a lot of Monuments you can visit
The Liverbirds, The Yellow Submarine, Super Lamb Banana, St Georges hall, The Radio City Tower and the Bombed out Church. Liverpool is brimming over with history, every street tells a story.
Liverpool has 2 really special cathedrals
In Liverpool we have two cathedrals and they are both pretty spectacular and well worth a visit. Liverpool Cathedral is open 8am-6pm and free to enter and Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral which is also free to enter and open 7:30 am until 6 pm
The shopping is the best outside of London
Hands down the best shopping outside of London. If you are a fashion lover you will find high street brands and designer labels side by side in Liverpool One and if you venture out of the main streets you will find an abundance of smaller independent boutique shops.
You can eat some really good food!
Where to start! The food in Liverpool is excellent and you won’t struggle to find good places to eat. Here are some cheap restaurants in Liverpool to check out! For breakfast, you can’t go wrong with Moose Cafe. For lunch I’d recommend going to The Blue Coat, if it’s nice, sit outside and soak up the culture and for dinner it has to be China City – It’s in Chinatown and not only will you get a great meal but it is a karaoke bar, I mean what more could you ask for to end your evening? If you are vegan then you need to go to The Old Hardware Shop.
Liverpool has the most friendly people in the UK
I could easily list 10 more reasons to visit Liverpool and reel off a load of other places to visit and things to do but in my opinion, this one is the main reason you should pack your bag and visit Liverpool right away. Scousers are pretty amazing people; funny, friendly and fiercely loyal. I can guarantee you will be welcomed with a smile in Liverpool.
If you are looking for an itinerary for one day in Liverpool then check out this fab Weekend guide of things to do in Liverpool from Probe around the Globe.
This post was proofread by Grammarly
Book your trip now
Are you ready to book your trip? To help you get the best deals and service here are the companies that I personally use to book all of my travel online. I always shop around before booking anything, but these are my tried and tested starting places.
- Skyscanner – I’m a bit fan of Skyscanner, it is who I use to book all of my flights. I often will check other like Google Flights or Momodo, but I always go here first and it is who I book 99% of my flights with.
- Booking.com – I LOVE booking.com especially when I can book and cancel free up until a certain point, mostly because my plans are forever changing. It’s easy to use and has one of the widest selections.
- Airbnb – I’m not a huge user of Airbnb, but sometimes I do like to use it, and I ALWAYS check it before I book anything else. You can get some really cool places to stay here, and it is especially good in places like Cuba. If you don’t have an account and you click on this link then you will get $36 off your first booking.
- Hostelworld – If you are looking for hostels then this is a great place to check first. They often have additional places that you won’t find on Bookin.com.
- Agoda – Although I don’t use it as much as booking.com, Agonda is especially good if you are traveling in Asia as they really do dominate there.
- Worldpackers – If you want to travel on the cheap and save money on accommodation then you need Worldpackers in your life. You can read more about it here. If you click this link to sign up and use the code CLAIRESITCHYFEET then you can get a 40% discount on your membership!
- Book a Way – If you are traveling in Asia and want to pre-book your transportation then bookaway.com is a fantastic site to do so. They have buses, trains, and cars.
- RentalCars – Looking to rent a. car while you are away? I always book through Rental Cars as they do a search of all of the big sites and find the best deals.
- Welcome Pickups – Very occasionally getting from the airport to my accommodation is a total pain in the butt, or I’m traveling in a group and it makes sense to arrange a pickup. When I do I use Welcome pickups.
- World Nomads – If you are looking for flexible travel insurance then it’s World Nomads all the way. I wrote all about insurance here if you want a more thorough review.
- SafetyWing – AsI’m a Digital Nomad and not moving around quite so much anymore I personally use SafetyWing now for my health insurance. I wrote a full review here.
- Viatour – Sometimes it can be a little expensive, but I like Viatour for somethings, especially if you can get a discount code! It’s also great for inspiration.
- Klook – If you are traveling in Asia, then Klook is great! You can book all kinds of tours, activities, and train tickets, plus they even have sim cards and WiFi.
I went to Liverpool a couple of years ago and I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it was. I also did not realise that there was so much to do. Unfortunately, we were there for the weekend, so we were on limited time. We never got to visit the Museums but we do the Beatles tour and went to Penny Lane, which was a lot of fun. Great pictures by the way
Ah sadly I can’t take credit for the images! I didn’t have my camera and couldn’t get anything half decent on my iPhone so I had to get some stick images! So glad you enjoyed your trip ?
I’m listing all the places I can go to for a quick break from London and you’ve just reminded me of this place. Thanks! 🙂
My pleasure! Have a great time 🙂
I could not agree more! I was born about an hour from Liverpool, and lived in the city for a year. It really bugs me when people say they’ve been to England but only to London – there is so much more to the UK than just London! So get on that train!!! 😀
Thanks Claire!
I have only been to London and have been wanting to go back to England and do more exploring. I think I would love Liverpool and I’m also a big fan of the Beatles! Also, your photos make the place look even more enticing!
You really should it’s such a vibrant and friendly city. The people are amazing! Sadly not my images although I wish they were. Rubbish weather and lack of decent camera prevented me getting anything I could use ?
Great place! How I wish to visit London.
I love this. As someone who has traveled extensively in the U.K I agree it is so good to get out of London and see what else is out there. I had no idea Liverpool was the cultural center of Europe in 08 and would love to visit the planetarium and other museums! Thanks for sharing, all 10 are great reasons to go!
Thanks Susan! Hope you had a great experience travelling the UK 🙂
I only spent a few hours in London on a layover so I would love to go back but you’ve convinced me to visit Liverpool as well. I only knew about Liverpool’s tie to The Beatles but didn’t realize there was so much more (free museums – yay!).
Honestly it’s amazing. There is so much to do! And it’s super cheep
You had me a Beatles! haha
I always thought London was a little overrated and didn’t really represent ALL of England. Looking forward to exploring more of the country when I come back next year – Liverpool on the list.
Glad to hear it! Have a wonderful time 🙂
alright then – You had me a Beatles! haha
I always thought London was a little overrated and didn’t really represent ALL of England. Looking forward to exploring more of the country when I come back next year – Liverpool on the list.
Well, you’ve totally convinced me. I’ve always wanted to travel to Liverpool because of the Beatles, but I had no idea there was so much more to see and do!
Its a wonderful city you will have an amazing time if you do get to visit 🙂
I totally agree with you. Even though I spent 1.5 months in England, I was mostly in the suburbs. Liverpool was on my list – esp to enjoy a soccer match but then I saw one at Arsenal instead. The yellow submarine sounds nice – would love to see that.
I have visited Liverpool three years ago and absolutely loved it! Great reading about it again 🙂
So glad you had a great experience there. Happy travels!
Wow Liverpool is on my list.
So gorgeous, hopefully one day I will be able to make my way to these places. Every photo makes it look like a photographers dream!
I know! I was gutted that I only had my iPhone to photograph so I had to use some stock images for this post. Planning a photo day when i head back next year though!
I know right! Wish I had of gone on it. I think it’s mostly used by larger parties who take over the whole barge for a night, not so much for solo travellers. Have fun if you ever get to visit!
My stepdad and brother are both lifelong Man Utd fans and so I’ve always been warned away from Liverpool for obvious reasons, haha. For 2017, though, I really want to make an effort to get out and see more of my own country (both Wales and the UK as a whole) and I’ll admit that Liverpool is on the list! Other than the Beatles stuff I didn’t really have a clue what was on offer to be honest, so I’m glad I stumbled across this as it’ll definitely come in handy when I eventually make it there!
Ah this makes me so happy! There isn’t so much rivalry these days…Just maybe leave your Man U scarf at home haha 😉
London is poo, the real UK charm is in Liverpool and I 100% agree with everything that you’ve said, and I’m not even from there! I’m from Newcastle (I’m totes biased and I think that this is the best city in the world) and I love going to Liverpool because the people are the type of friendly that I’m used to at home: funny, loud, and up for a laugh.
Went for a weekend last year and dying to go back, fantastic shopping too!
Liverpool is included in the bucket list of Beatles fan like me! Would love to go there, sleep on the boat and drop by The Beatles Story! I don’t have to worry about the accommodation cost, I read from your other article I could only spend 14 euros! Thank you for sharing!