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Sand Dunes at Formby - Photo:
Mark Arrowsmith
CCL |
Although this region of 1.5
million people is synonymous with The Beatles,
soccer, the football pools and a certain ferry,
Merseyside has a great deal more to offer the
visitor.
Here you will find elegant
architecture, an unrivalled nightlife, would-famous
cathedrals, innovative museums and a maritime
history that is both fascinating and shocking.
With a unique and flat
coastline, it has its own seaside and is even home
to one of the last bastions of our native red
squirrel. |
At its heart lies the great city of Liverpool, once
capital of the slave trade and still noted across the
world as a major port. Yet the area possesses more Grade
II listed buildings than anywhere else outside London –
and more Georgian buildings than Bath! It is also
one of the few cities in the world that can boast two
cathedrals (one Anglican, one Roman Catholic), both
built in the 20th century.
Metropolitan Merseyside takes its name from the River
Mersey and only came into being in 1974 in the wake of
local government reorganization. Historically, it dates
back at least to the 5th century when St Patrick
reputedly sailed from Liverpool to convert Ireland to
Christianity, although Liverpool only became a borough
in the 13th century thanks to King John.
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The very first ‘ferry across the
Mersey’ – to borrow a phrase from a famous pop song
– was established as long ago as 1282 by monks at
Birkenhead Priory.
It was during the steam-powered
industrial revolution, when the world’s first
passenger railway between Liverpool and Manchester
was launched here, that its famous five miles
of
docks were reconstructed to cope with
a boom in
trade. Today this vital dockland, which features,
among other things, Pier Head’s ‘Three Graces’ and
an enthralling maritime museum – has been
transformed into one the north west’s leading
attractions. |
Crosby Point - Photo:
Johanna
CCL |
Other special places include the two cathedrals, The
Walker art gallery, Tate Liverpool, the Lady Lever Art
Gallery and The Regimental Museum of the Liverpool
Scottish… not to mention a veritable galaxy of museums
boasting collections that range from space travel and
social history to dinosaurs, archaeology and the horrors
of the profit-driven slave trade. Another key attraction
is a series of labyrinthine tunnels and caverns beneath
Liverpool’s Edge Hill district. Built in the early 19th
century by the retired tobacco merchant Joseph
Williamson, they seem to have no true purpose. Some have
been lost while others are waiting to be rediscovered.
Liverpool’s homage to The Beatles includes a host of
separate features – from the Cavern Club to the Fab
Four’s childhood homes and schools and including
‘Strawberry Field’ and ‘Penny Lane’. It was here in 1957
that Paul McCartney and John Lennon first met at a local
church fete and unwittingly conspired to create
Britain’s first international super-group.
Their potential was harnessed by entrepreneur Brian
Epstein who spotted them singing at the Cavern Club. At
one stage in their early career they played to an
American television audience of 74 million people.
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Lady Lever Art Gallery at Port Sunlight
- Photo:
Rich Daley
CCL |
Beyond Liverpool are many other tourist spots. The
Wirral peninsula, for example, is a haven for nature
lovers while Ness Gardens, at Neston, is one of
England’s finest horticultural highlights, being famous
for its collection of alpine and hardy plants. It also
houses tropical and arid plants in 62 acres of grounds
and greenhouses.
From a sporting point of view, Merseyside has no less
than 40 golf courses, seven of which are of championship
standard, and is home to both Liverpool and Everton
football clubs as well as Aintree Racecourse and the
Grand National.
A poignant spot is Port Sunlight, the unique garden
village which was founded in 1888 by soap maker William
Hesketh Lever to house his factory workers.
He not only
financed the village church, technical institute and the
Lady Lever Art Gallery but employed no less than 30
different architects to plan the village. In addition
this remarkable Victorian philanthropist introduced a
number of schemes designed to take care of the welfare,
education and the entertainment of his workers.
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Tourist
Information Centres:
BIRKENHEAD (Ferry Terminal)
Tourist Information Centre, Woodside Ferry Terminal,
Birkenhead, Merseyside, CH41 6DU
Tel: 01516 476780
www.wirral.gov.uk
LIVERPOOL
Tourist Information Centre, Queen Square Building, Roe
St, Liverpool, Merseyside, L1 1RG
Tel: 09066 806886
E-mail:
askme@visitliverpool.com
Web:
www.visitliverpool.com
LIVERPOOL (Albert Dock)
Tourist Information Centre, Unit 4, The Pavilion, Albert
Dock, Liverpool, Merseyside, L3 4AE
Tel: 09066 806886
E-mail:
askme@visitliverpool.com
Web:
www.visitliverpool.com
SOUTHPORT
Tourist Information Centre, 112 Lord St, Southport,
Merseyside, PR8 1NY
Tel: 01704 533333)
E-mail:
info@visitsouthport.com
Web:
www.visitsouthport.com
Useful
Links:
|
Bebington
Hotels |
Bebington
Bed & Breakfast |
Bebington
B&B |
Birkenhead Hotels |
Birkenhead Bed & Breakfast |
Birkenhead B&B |
Formby Camping
sites, camp grounds, caravan sites |
Greasby
Hotels |
Greasby Bed & Breakfast |
Greasby B&B
| Haydock
Hotels |
Haydock Bed & Breakfast |
Haydock B&B
| Knowsley
Hotels |
Knowsley
Bed & Breakfast |
Knowsley
B&B |
Liverpool Hotels |
Liverpool
Bed & Breakfast |
Liverpool
B&B |
Liverpool Self catering cottages, apartments, flats |
Maghull Camping
sites, camp grounds, caravan sites |
Prescot
Hotels |
Prescot Bed & Breakfast |
Prescot B&B
|
Southport Hotels |
Southport
Bed & Breakfast |
Southport
B&B |
Southport Self catering cottages, apartments, flats |
Southport
Camping sites, camp grounds, caravan sites |
St Helens
Hotels |
St Helens
Bed & Breakfast |
St Helens
B&B |
Wallasey
Hotels |
Wallasey
Bed & Breakfast |
Wallasey
B&B |
Wallasey Self catering cottages, apartments, flats |
Wirral Self
catering cottages, apartments, flats |
Wirral Camping
sites, camp grounds, caravan sites |
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