Top 14 Things to Do in Manchester This 2024

The vibrant city of Manchester gets better and busier every year. As one of the UK's finest cities known for its music and football, there's always something new and exciting happening here. This insider's guide will let you in on some of Manchester's best-kept secrets for 2024!
 

Must-See Attractions in Manchester 2024

RHS Garden Bridgewater

This brand-new 154-acre world-class garden in Salford features stunning modern landscapes like grassy sculpted landforms, wild meadows, and massive tree-lined vistas. Don't miss the initial stages of the biggest gardening project in Europe underway, centred around the historic Bridgewater estate. Wander through the Woodland Garden, and Chinese stream side Garden and taste your way around the kitchen gardens. The Wellbeing Garden is designed to soothe the senses with its serene waterways and secluded wildflower glades.

Manchester Cathedral

This magnificent medieval church dating to 1215 awes with its soaring Gothic architecture, ornate woodcarvings, and medieval stained glass. The cathedral's most prized possession is its legendary wooden Angel Stone, intricately carved in the 15th century. Join one of the guided tours to fully appreciate all the hidden details like the medieval stalls, towering organs, and ecclesiastical treasures in the cathedral's museums.

Beetham Tower

At 47 stories, this glass residential skyscraper offers panoramic views of Manchester from its observation deck on the 23rd floor. On a clear day, you can even see all the way to the Peak District!

Football Stadium Tours

Depending on whether you support the red or the blues, you can go behind the scenes at Manchester United's legendary Old Trafford ground or Manchester City's Etihad Campus on immersive tours through dressing rooms, player tunnels and more. You'll be able to emerge from the same tunnel players use, visit the dugouts, and press room, and get photographed with Premier League trophies. Former players often lead United tours, providing an insider's perspective.

Top Experiences in Manchester 2024

Inflatable Park

Manchester's massive indoor playground is a fun factory of wipe-out runs, climbing walls, bouncy arenas, and other inflatable obstacle courses. Kids and kids-at-heart can expend some energy while battling through towering foam tubes, launching off blob jumps into ball pits, or traversing the convertible bunkers and mazes. Open year-round, it’s priced only at £4.95 which is a steal!

Manchester International Festival

This arts extravaganza features a-grade performance art, music, dance, public installations and more taking over unexpected venues every two years. From immersive theater performed inside abandoned buildings to large-scale robotic sculptures roaming the streets, the boundary-pushing experiences always leave audiences awestruck. It's a wildly creative celebration of Manchester's thriving arts scene. The next MIF is said to take place in 2025.

Sip & Paint in the Dark

This unique artistic night out lets you unleash your inner painter's creativity through the use of neon paints under UV lighting. As you sip on your choice of cocktails or non-alcoholic drinks (two free drinks included!), you'll guide your brush strokes to create a fun glowing masterpiece to take home. No painting experience is required for this brilliantly vibrant experience! Tickets for this experience cost around £35 for adults.

Best Free Things to Do in Manchester

Manchester Museum

From mummies to dinosaurs to reptiles and frogs, this university museum spans disciplines from archaeology to palaeontology to entomology. Don't miss the impressive Prehistoric Life gallery filled with fossils and massive dinosaur skeletons, as well as the age-old Ancient Worlds, exhibits with Egyptian and Greek antiquities. The museum's pride and joy is its preserved Addyman Ant colony housed in a special glass nest display case.

Football Art Trail

See painted soccer sculptures dotted all around Manchester's city centre streets and parks, each decorated by a different renowned artist. The fun trail sends you to all corners of town to spot 3-meter tall terracotta Warriors, colourful abstract jerseys, and other creative interpretations of the beautiful game - perfect for a self-guided walking tour!

Curry Mile

Sensory overload is guaranteed along this legendary mile-long stretch of Wilmslow Road in Rusholme, packed with sari shops, Asian grocers, and over 70 curry houses. Wander past neon-lit windows sizzling with tandoor ovens and score cheap and delicious samosas, kebabs, and curries dished out for both dine-in or takeaway. It's an immersive dose of South Asian culture.

Manchester Flower Show and King Street Festival

Get ready for some gorgeous floral inspiration by visiting the annual Manchester Flower Show. The event has been a part of the King Street Festival every year, but this year it’s expanded to be bigger and better. Which basically means the city centre is about to become a beautiful botanical garden. Keep an eye out for the "Jubilee Kiosk" installation taking over an ordinary red telephone box on King Street for a picture-perfect moment.

Top Events in Manchester 2024

Manchester Punk Festival

This May 2024, get ready for three raucous days celebrating the region's legendary punk rock scene at this annual DIY festival. Dozens of fiery punk, hardcore and alt-rock bands from across the UK and beyond will take over intimate venues like Rebellion and The Bread Shed for a proper knees-up of mohawks, mosh pits and mayhem.

Manchester Day Parade

One of the summer's most vivid spectacles held in June, is this ever-growing downtown parade that brings the streets alive with colorful handmade costumes, puppets, floats and dancers from the city's many communities. Once the procession passes, stick around the city squares surrounding Albert Square, St Peter's Square and Exchange Square where you'll find pop-up food stalls, festival bars, and non-stop live performances from musicians, acrobats, contortionists and other entertainers.

Parklife

The North's biggest music festival touches down in Heaton Park each June for a weekend-long summer celebration. Parklife's lineup just keeps getting more stacked annually, featuring chart-topping rappers, dance acts and buzzworthy indie bands performing across multiple stages. Past years have seen everyone from Tyler the Creator and Lewis Capaldi to Megan Thee Stallion and Liam Gallagher take the stage amidst fairground rides, bars, street food markets and outrageous festival fashion.

Getting Around In Manchester

Bee Network Manchester

Greater Manchester's fully integrated public transport system makes it a breeze to navigate on frequent tram, train and bus services. Just look for the bright bee symbol to hop between the 10 boroughs and neighborhoods like a local. You can also download the bee network app to get live updates. Grab a day pass or use their touch-and-go contactless payment system.

Driving

If you value the convenience and ease of having your own car, driving to Manchester or renting a car could be a solid choice - though finding a parking spot can often be a real headache, not to mention pricey, especially in the city center.

To steer clear of getting slapped with astronomical parking fees and wasting time circling for an open space, you can pre-book a space on Stashbee. Stashbee lets you effortlessly reserve reasonably priced, conveniently located parking spots from friendly locals near your destination ahead of time, guaranteeing a smooth arrival. It's an absolute game-changer for staying mobile while exploring Manchester's top sights without getting fleeced.

 

Where to Stay in Manchester

Castlefield Hotel

If you're looking for a budget-friendly hotel that has all the amenities of a luxury hotel, you've stumbled upon just the right one. Located only 400 meters from the city centre, Castlefiled Hotel overlooks the Bridgewater Canal.

Mollie's Motel & Diner

Seeing massive success in both Bristol and Oxfordshire, this iconic retro motel and diner is said to open in Manchester in the summer of 2024. With its bright neon signs, vintage decor and classic American Diner, it's the perfect Instagramable spot. Starting only at £70 a night, it's one of the more budget-friendly, yet stylish hotels in Manchester.

FAQs

How’s the Nightlife in Manchester?

Manchester's long-standing reputation for a legendary club, bar, live music and comedy scene is truly second to none in the UK. From massive dance clubs like Warehouse Project and Factory to swanky cocktail lounges in Deansgate, indie rock dives in the Northern Quarter and laugh-out-loud comedy joints, this 24-hour party city caters to every late night entertainment taste.

Is the Weather in Manchester bad?

You can expect that classic unpredictable British mix of cloudy drizzle, sunny spells and brisk breezes, sometimes all in the same day! The key is to dress in lightweight layers and always pack a travel umbrella, jacket and sunglasses just in case. The weather may be erratic but Manchester itself is consistently brilliant.

How can I get Premier League tickets?

Book stadium tours and tickets for Premier League matches at Manchester United's Old Trafford (capacity 74,000) or Manchester City's Etihad Stadium well in advance as they sell out quickly. The stadium tour packages including locker room access and keeper experiences offer incredible behind-the-scenes insight. Attending a match is a bucket-list experience for any football fan.