Over the past several weeks I have been sharing about our journey to seek some family and personal history in the U.K., and I will continue detailing recommendations from our trip in the weeks ahead. Today I am sharing about the few days we spent in Liverpool and Manchester, and my recommendations on some kid-friendly cultural and educational activities for the whole family to enjoy.
This area is rich with a diverse cultural history that encompasses maritime, science and industry, and of course, music and The Beatles!
Hotel:
Hampton by Hilton Liverpool City Centre (Kings Dock Mill, 7 Hurst St, Liverpool L1 8DA, UK). Great hotel with delicious free breakfast in a great location. It was in walking distance from the major attractions we wanted to see in Liverpool, and was lower in price than the other name-brand hotels in the vicinity.
Liverpool Activities:
I don’t know about you, but I can’t think of Liverpool without automatically thinking about the Fab Four. In preparation for this part of our trip, my Fab Four had The Beatles on our road trip Pandora playlist, and spent time on the road chatting about our favorite Beatles songs, the evolution of their sound, and trying to help our kids appreciate what made them so special. I am proud that G could recognize the sound of their songs (and even songs by Lennon or McCartney) by the time the trip was over.
Once in Liverpool, you’ll see that Beatles stuff is everywhere. Some great stops include Hard Days Night Hotel (full of memorabilia, and with a fun restaurant with great Beatles-themed food and cocktails – the boys LOVED the kid’s pasta dish) and the Cavern Club (walk by it with the kids at least; this was a center of Beat music in the 60’s and a home venue for The Beatles). Other great non-Beatles-related spots are the Maritime Museum (a free-entry museum with a lot of cool exhibits, including one about the RMS Titanic) and Albert Dock (food trucks, museums, historical buildings and the new Mattel Play! indoor activity center featuring Thomas & Friends, Bob the Builder, and more kid favorites).
Manchester Activities:
We have friends who live in Manchester who also have young kids, and they recommended we visit the Museum of Science and Industry. Hands down, this is an absolute must-visit if you are in the area with kids. Like other public museums in the UK, entry is free, though some of the craft activities cost a small fee. They have energetic presentations, hands-on experiments, robotics, old computers, trains, planes, and automobiles celebrating Manchester’s long history as a leader in industry and engineering innovation.
This was a very friendly area of England with a lot to entertain, very close to some beautiful countryside (we hit up the Lake District afterwards on our way north to Scotland), and very kid-friendly. We all had a great time there for our few days.
Related Posts:
- The Ultimate UK Road Trip Itinerary – Driving Tour of England, Scotland, and Wales with the Family
- Connecting with my family and personal history in the U.K.
- A Romantic Long Weekend in London
- Fabulous Things to Do in London with Kids
- A Weekend in Devon, England
- One-Day Road Trip Through Wales – Seeking Ancient Ruins, Dragons, and Castles
- Discovering the Beauty of Scotland’s Highlands
- Family Travel Bucket List: Hunting for the Loch Ness Monster in Scotland
- Family-Friendly Edinburgh
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rush my essay says
Manchester is indeed a beautiful place. But I didn't knew about this meusium. Better make a note of it!…Also not to mention those kids are sooooo adorable..