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Things to do
in Manchester.

Get to know Manchester through its food, neighbourhoods and landmarks. Browse guided visits and activities for your trip.

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Manchester
Photo: Mdbeckwith, CC BY 3.0

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Finding experiences in Manchester…

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How to choose

Nine of Manchester's 22 tours leave the city

Manchester's list is built to get you out of Manchester. Nine of the 22 experiences we publish leave the city altogether: three into Derbyshire and the Peak District, three into North Wales, two to the Lake District, and one to the Yorkshire Dales and Brontë country. Each is a full day of eight to eleven hours priced between EUR 63.66 and EUR 125.40, and between them they hold 987 of the 11,054 reviews on this page, under nine per cent for two-fifths of the inventory. Derbyshire and the Peak District is the cheapest at EUR 63.66 over eight hours; Chatsworth with the Peak District the dearest at EUR 125.40. The median length across all 22 is three hours and 45 minutes, and nothing at all runs between four hours and eight.

The 13 that stay in town lean on one ticket. Manchester City's 75-minute stadium tour at EUR 33.28 carries 6,276 reviews, more than half of everything here, and no other club is named in any title. Put it with the Alcotraz cocktail experience (105 minutes, EUR 60.61, 1,238 reviews) and the LEGOLAND Discovery Centre (EUR 19.01, 1,070) and three listings hold over three-quarters of the reviews on this page. Food follows with three tours that include meals, clustered within six euros of each other at EUR 101.02 to EUR 106.96. Four listings walk the centre, starting at EUR 16.64 for 90 minutes, though two of those are private and rest on one and three reviews. The weakest ratings belong to the open-top bus at 3.9 and a museum admission ticket at 3.8.

What to know before you book in Manchester

None of the 22 listings enters the Science and Industry Museum, Manchester Art Gallery, the People's History Museum, Manchester Museum or John Rylands, so those stay off the booking list. The Science and Industry Museum asks you to reserve admission and check its gallery map, and its regular session opens at 10:00. The National Football Museum encourages advance booking and normally opens daily from 10:00 to 17:00, worth checking before EUR 21.39 on our ticket listing, the lowest-rated of the 22.

Chetham's Library is the one place that genuinely requires a booked tour: visits are by pre-booked guided tour, for ages eight and over, so look at its dates early. Otherwise the week sets your order. John Rylands normally opens Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 to 17:00, with queues to allow for; Manchester Art Gallery and Manchester Museum normally run Tuesday to Sunday; the People's History Museum normally closes on Tuesdays. Central Library separates staffed from self-service hours, with a staffed 09:00 start on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Free cancellation covers every listing here except the indoor skydiving.

Full ticket rules and opening days for ManchesterManchester day plans

Quick answers

Is there a Manchester United stadium tour on this page?

Not among the 22 experiences we list. The only club stadium tour here is Manchester City's, 75 minutes at the Etihad for EUR 33.28, rated 4.9 from 6,276 reviews, which is more than half of every review on this page. The one other football listing is a National Football Museum ticket at EUR 21.39, and the museum itself encourages advance booking and normally opens daily from 10:00 to 17:00.

Which day trip from Manchester is worth the whole day?

Nine of the 22 head out of the city, all of them eight to eleven hours: three into the Peak District and Derbyshire, three into North Wales, two to the Lake District, and one to the Yorkshire Dales and Brontë country. Their review bases are thin, 987 across all nine, so the best-supported are the North Wales sightseeing day at EUR 70.12 (4.8 from 264 reviews) and the Windermere and Lake District tour with a cruise at EUR 89.51 (4.9 from 247). The cheapest is Derbyshire and the Peak District, EUR 63.66 for eight hours.

Do I need a guided tour for Manchester's museums and libraries?

Only for one of them. No listing among the 22 enters the Science and Industry Museum, Manchester Art Gallery, the People's History Museum, Manchester Museum or John Rylands, so you book those directly; the Science and Industry Museum asks you to reserve admission and check its gallery map, and its regular session opens at 10:00. Chetham's Library is the exception, seen on a pre-booked guided tour with a minimum age of eight. Plan around Tuesday, when the People's History Museum normally closes.

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