ONE DAY IN LIVERPOOL – DAY TRIPPER
Liverpool is a maritime city located in North England most known for being the birth place of the Beatles and home to Liverpool Football Club (let’s go Reds!)
With a population around 500,000 it’s the fifth largest metropolitan area in the UK and less than an hours drive from Manchester and about four hours from London. As a Canadian, I find it amazing how you can drive across the entire country of England in a handful of hours.
Before meeting a friend in Birmingham to go on a little weekend adventure in Budapest (post to come on beautiful Budapest), I decided I wanted to do a bit of solo wandering in a city I had not yet visited in the UK. When I saw that Liverpool was a quick hour and half train trip from Brum, and that comedian Dylan Moran was performing the day I’d be there, the decision was made. I booked one night at a hostel right near the train station and put together what I think was a solid itinerary for a quick twenty four hour trip. So here it is, one day in Liverpool. Cue Day Tripper by The Beatles.
WATERFRONT/ALBERT DOCK/TATE MUSEUM
The Royal Albert Dock is the number one tourist attraction in Liverpool and the “most visited multi use attraction in the UK outside of London” according to Wikipedia. Here you’ll find a bunch of bars, restaurants, the Merseyside Martime Museum, the Beatles Story, and the Tate Liverpool. Having been to the Tate Modern in London I decided to add one more stamp to the Tate trio card. I can’t say I’m a big artie (is that even a word?) but I enjoy a casual artsy stroll through a gallery from time to time. Bonus points for the free admission. I didn’t take any photos of the actual art, unless this funky floor shot counts? What is art anyways? Deep question.
MUSEUM OF LIVERPOOL
After the art, I went on a long walk to the Museum of Liverpool, a whole three minutes away. And another free admission, who said travel has to be expensive? With 8,000 square metres of exhibition space and housing more than 6,000 objects, there’s lots to check out here if history tickles your fancy. According to Google there are four key cores: The Great Port, Global City, People’s Republic and Wondrous Place. Overall the museum is about the history of Liverpool and Liverpoolians (I’m fairly confident that is a word and if it isn’t it should be). There are also special rotating exhibits and during my visit I was lucky enough to get to check out “Double Fantasy” which was all about John Lennon and Yoko Ono. I got to see the bed they did that bed-in thing in. So that was something.
Leaving the Museum of Liverpool I stopped to check my map and saw that I was at Canada Boulevard. Cute.
CITY WANDERING TIME!
I always try to spend at least a bit of time simply walking around a new city without any real destination in mind. Just seeing where my feet wander, taking in the sights, doing some people watching. I think it’s important to have chill time while visiting a new place and not just be rushing from one spot to another so you can check them off your list. I spent a good hour or so walking around the city central which was bustling with shoppers and small crowds gathered on the streets listening to buskers perform. If shopping is a thing you’ll find lots to keep yourself busy with. It was just starting to rain when I found myself outsie the Walker Art Gallery. Perfect time for another round of art. Once again, as is the case with most museums and galleries in England, admission is free. I happen to really dig free.
DINNER AT THE EGG CAFE
I think most of my brief stay in Liverpool was fuelled by Tesco meal deals and Costa coffee to be honest, but I did have a lovely dinner at The Egg. Located up two sets of stairs (and unfortunately with no lift access), look for the purple doorway on the street as it’s somewhat easy to miss. This spot is often referred to as very quirky which might be why I liked it so much. Great atmosphere, sweet staff, vegan friendly menu. I had a nice little mix of pasta, cheesy bread and a tasty latte. Not exactly gourmet dining here but everything was delicious. Very artsy vibe and I felt totally comfortable sitting at a table by myself. Note, there is a minimum charge of 10 pounds for card transactions so bring cash as prices are pretty good and you may not hit the min if you’re solo.
CENTRAL LIBRARY
It was almost time to head to the Empire Theatre for Dylan Moran, but I still had an hour to kill and it was getting cold. I popped into what I thought was another museum to find myself in a huge library. I took a walk around a spectacular domed roofed “Picton Reading Room” with small winding staircases, big comfy chairs and a shit ton of books. Passing through I stumbled upon a dark back area empty of any people which happened to be a little exhibit on punk music! Fuck yeah. Old school posters of The Clash and Sex Pistols, it was absolutely an unexpected but excellent find. Maybe not a super exciting touristy destination overall but central library is a great spot to rest your feet, warm up, and charge your phone.
THE EMPIRE MUSEUM (DYLAN MORAN!)
Show time! The Empire theatre is a 2,348 seat two tier auditorium, the largest in Britain. It’s pretty nice and filled with “many curious decorative features including carved elephant caryatids”. Dammit, I totally didn’t notice the elephants. It’s a classy looking place that has played host to artists such as Elton John and Frank Sinatra as well as ACDC, Iron Maiden, and Black Sabbath. Damn, I wish I could see Black Sabbath there. Though not the pioneers of heavy metal, Dylan Moran put on a fantastic two part show which was hilarious and left me feeling a bit smug when I understood all the British jokes. I’m so British. With the show done and one or two (who’s counting?) glasses of wine in me, it was time to head to the Cavern.
THE CAVERN CLUB
Ah yes, the Cavern Club. If you only do one thing during your one day in Liverpool, make it be this. It was originally a jazz club when it opened in 1957 but is now known as where The Beatles famously played a bazillion times, no exaggeration. This was my “must visit” spot for Liverpool and it didn’t disappoint, as I happened to arrive a half hour before a Beatles Tribute band. Hell yeah. Apparently and unsurprisingly that’s a regular occurrence at the Cavern but I do suggest checking ahead if you want that experience which I highly recommend over the non Beatles cover band I first walked in on. Boooo.
Drinks aren’t cheap and it’s definitely a touristy spot because of course it is. The place was packed and the The Beatles cover band (they were even dressed like them, wigs and all. Adorable.) did a little country roll call. So many countries represented in that packed bar, my little solitary “woo!” barely heard when Canada was said. It did get the attention of a couple surfers from Devon that I spent the rest of the night singing and chatting with which was lovely. Music brings people together.
PEAKY BLINDERS
After the Cavern I vaguely recall getting some McDs and munching on French fries while walking down a street they used to film Peaky Blinders. I may have gotten one concerned look by a passerby while declaring to my filet o fish “by order of the peaky blinders!” No regrets. Peaky Blinders is filmed at various locations all across England (blog post to come on one really cool spot you can visit) and if you’re looking to check out some filming locations while in Liverpool take a swing by Admiral Grove and Powis Street.
I MAY HAVE ONLY SPENT ONE DAY IN LIVERPOOL BUT I LOVED IT
If I make it back to the city (which I sincerely hope I do) I’d love to catch a Liverpool game at Anfield Stadium and perhaps check out the British Music Experience. But for a quick 24 hour visit on a budget, I think my itinerary is a solid way to experience the city. With that said, I encourage you to make your own itinerary and add in some unplanned wandering, as you never know what you may come across while you rock’n’roam.
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