Officially England's second largest city (through Brummies might contest that), Manchester has reinvented itself from its Industrial Revolution glory days as a vibrant northern hub of music, sport & media. It boasts neo-Gothic palaces (not least the Edwardian Royal Exchange and the ornate Town Hall), two world-class football teams (choose your allegiance carefully), the giant Arndale shopping centre, its own Chinatown lined with restaurants, a Bohemian bier palace (plus cook haus and ents venue) in Alberts Schloss, and a Gay Village along Canal Street which pumps with music. Everything here is designed to impress and invigorate.
With five universities and a cutting-edge live music scene, the vibe is youthful and edgy; Mancunians' quick humour is as dry as their weather is wet. Once you've admired its industrial heyday in the old brick warehouses of the Science and Industry Museum, and sampled world cuisine at the historic covered market on Liverpool Road, take a tram out to Salford Quays to explore the city's new identity. These restored docklands are home to MediaCity - with BBC and ITV studios as well as Coronation Street tours - plus the award-winning Lowry arts centre, with a vast collection of Lowry’s industrial urban paintings.