16 Top Tourist Attractions in Liverpool

Author Bryan Dearsley traveled to Northern England to explore cities, including Liverpool.

Think of Liverpool, and you immediately think of The Beatles and Liverpool Football Club and their famous Anfield stadium (one of the country's largest). And, of course, there's that unique Scouse accent. But tourists will find many more attractions in this vibrant city.

The heart of Merseyside lies on the east bank of the Mersey estuary, just three miles from the sea. At this point, the Mersey is almost a mile wide, opening out inland into a three-mile-wide basin. This is one of the reasons why Liverpool, with one of the largest harbors in the world not dependent on tides, remains a major port for transatlantic shipping.

Liverpool is an important trading metropolis, a university town, and financial center, as well as a key city for the Catholic and Anglican churches, both of which have bishops here.

The city also has many handsome historic buildings, as well as numerous gardens and parks, museums, and recreational facilities. Some of the main attractions are the Walker Art Gallery and the Philharmonic Hall, the latter regarded as one of the best concert halls in Europe. The city is also a popular shopping destination, particularly around trendy Liverpool One, a 42-acre site dedicated to serious retail therapy.

To learn more about why this vibrant city is one of the best places to visit in England, read our list of the most popular tourist attractions in Liverpool.

Meet The Beatles

Liverpool is famous as the birthplace of The Beatles. Various tours offer fans the opportunity to follow in their footsteps, taking in such famous destinations as Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields. Tours also usually include The Beatles Story in Albert Dock and the rebuilt Cavern Club, where they made their debut in 1961.

Other Beatles-related sites include the famous Beatles statue on Pier Head, the must-visit Beatles Shop, and Paul McCartney's home at 20 Forthlin Road. It was in his humble home that the band wrote and rehearsed many of their early songs, and the property is now open to the public and features Beatles memorabilia and photos.

Also of interest to fans are John Lennon's childhood home at 251 Menlove Avenue, along with the Casbah Coffee Club in West Derby. Opened in 1959 by the parents of Pete Best, the Beatles' first drummer, as a venue for upcoming local bands, the Casbah became a regular haunt of the Fab Four and remains much as it was in its heyday.

Address: Britannia Vaults, Royal Albert Dock, Liverpool

Official site: www.beatlesstory.com

See a Game or Take a Tour at Anfield Stadium

Famous as the home Liverpool Football Club, Anfield Stadium is a must-do for any sports enthusiast planning on visiting the city. Whether you're able to get tickets for a home game or not, you'll certainly enjoy taking one of the fun-for-the-whole-family stadium tours.

A variety of tour options are available, all of them including a visit to the LFC Story Museum. Exhibits include artifacts and memorabilia from the club's long history, displays of awards and trophies, as well as plenty of fun facts about current and past players.

Depending on the tour option you choose, you'll also get a peek into the Home Team dressing room and the press room, as well as pass through the player's tunnel that leads to the famous pitch. A highlight is climbing up into the stands for a superb view over the pitch from on high.

If time permits, and you've still not had enough, head over to Goodison Park, home to Everton FC. Stadium tours here include a peek into the Director's Box and other areas, including a walk onto the pitch.

Address: Anfield Road, Anfield, Liverpool

Official site: www.liverpoolfc.com/return-of-supporters-to-anfield

Explore Royal Albert Dock

The superbly restored Royal Albert Dock was the first such facility in Britain to be built using only bricks and iron. At its heart is an impressive five-story-high block of buildings surrounding the harbor basin where cotton, tobacco, and sugar were once unloaded. These enormous Victorian structures are built around an arcaded walkway, their cast Tuscan columns once serving as capstans for moored ships.

Today, these decoratively restored warehouses house luxury apartments, designer boutiques, restaurants, cafés, and museums. They now stand as prime examples of gentrification, a phenomena which can also be witnessed in other places to visit in the UK such as London, Manchester, and Glasgow, where once decaying inner cities are restored to provide recreational amenities.

Royal Albert Dock is also home to a number of first-rate attractions and things to do. These include The Beatles Story with its memorabilia, photographs, and films of the Fab Four; the International Slavery Museum, just yards from the dry docks where 18th-century slave ships were repaired and fitted; and the Border Force National Museum, which tells the story of smuggling and contraband from the 1700s to the present day.

Address: 3-4 The Colonnades, Liverpool

Official site: www.albertdock.com

Admire the Art at Tate Liverpool

An acclaimed branch of the Tate Gallery, Tate Liverpool, was established in the Royal Albert Dock in 1988. As chance would have it, the London Tate Gallery, established at the end of the 19th century with a legacy from the sugar magnate Sir Henry Tate, found space in the original warehouses where raw sugar was stored before being refined.

The ground floor of the 'Tate of the North" has exhibition halls and galleries dedicated to contemporary art, as well as works on loan from the London gallery. Admission is free, and a great café with complimentary Wi-Fi is located on-site.

Address: Albert Dock, Liverpool

Official site: www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-liverpool

Explore Liverpool's Seafaring Past at Merseyside Maritime Museum

The Merseyside Maritime Museum in Liverpool is home to numerous fascinating exhibitions about the many thousands of emigrants who left Britain via the Mersey for North America between 1830 and 1930. The museum also boasts an impressive collection of artifacts related to seafaring in Liverpool, stretching back in time as far as its establishment as a fishing port in the 13th century.

This rich history is illustrated with model ships, workshops, and historic vessels. Equally fascinating are exhibits relating to the stories of the Titanic and Lusitania, two of the most famous — and tragic — passenger vessels in history, both of which had strong links with Liverpool.

Other popular things to do include visiting the nearby U-boat Story, which depicts life aboard a submarine during wartime, and the impressive Western Approaches museum, with its original map rooms and displays relating to the Royal Navy in WWII.

Address: Albert Dock, Liverpool

Official site: www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/

Visit Victoria Gallery and Museum

Art lovers should also check out The Victoria Gallery and Museum. Located in a spectacular red-brick building at the University of Liverpool, the museum, known locally as the V&M, includes large collections of sculptures and ceramics, along with an impressive array of paintings by the likes of Lucian Freud and J. M. W. Turner.

The facility also boasts a program of educational lectures and workshops, as well as a café and shop. Check out what events are on during your visit on their official website, below.

Address: Ashton Street, Liverpool

Official site: https://vgm.liverpool.ac.uk

Take a Stroll in Pier Head

The Pier Head area of Liverpool includes the traditional trio of harbor buildings known as the Three Graces: the Port of Liverpool Building, the Cunard Building (named after Canadian Samuel Cunard, owner of the first shipping line from Liverpool-Halifax-Boston), and the Royal Liver Building (not open to the public).

It's also where you'll find the Titanic Memorial commemorating the "Heroes in the Engine Room" on the luxury liner that sank in 1912. Also located here are the Queen Victoria Monument; The Beatles Statue; and the Georgian Town Hall, built in 1754 with its lovely copper cupola crowned by a statue of Minerva.

Address: Pier Head, Liverpool

Liverpool's Landmark Venue: St. George's Hall

The façade of St. George's Hall on Brown Street is festooned with Corinthian columns and statues. Its sumptuously decorated Great Hall, boasting one of the world's largest organs, is often used for concerts. To the rear of the building, the splendid St. John's Gardens feature statues of prominent Liverpudlians.

The nearby Polytechnic Building is part of an imposing group of neo-Greek buildings that include the William Brown Library, the Picton Reading Rooms, and the Hornby Library. Also of interest is the impressive Bluecoat Chambers, built as a charitable school in 1717 and the city center's oldest building.

Somewhat newer (it was built in 1969) but worth a visit is Radio City Tower. Also referred to as St. John's Beacon, this observation tower offers superb views over the city.

Address: St. George's Place, Liverpool

Official site: www.stgeorgeshallliverpool.co.uk

Tour the Walker Art Gallery

The Walker Art Gallery boasts a rich collection of works by Italian, Flemish, and French Masters from the 14th century to the present. These include masterpieces by Rubens, Rembrandt, and Rodin. Its display of English painting and sculpture, particularly of the 18th to 20th centuries, is unrivaled outside London and features works by Gainsborough, Hogarth, and Moore.

Of particular note is the poignant farewell scene at Liverpool's Pier Head, as depicted by John J. Lee, entitled Sweethearts and Wives. The John and Peter Moore Exhibition, an important display of contemporary British art, is held every alternate year.

Associated with the Walker Art Gallery, Sudley House is well worth visiting. Set in an early 19th-century mansion on Mossley Hill, it's home to a gallery containing artists such as Gainsborough and Turner.

Address: William Brown Street, Liverpool

Official site: www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/walker/index.aspx

A Modern Marvel: Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral

The Catholic Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral reflects the high proportion of Liverpudlians of Irish origin living in the city. During the Irish emigrations of the 19th and 20th centuries, Liverpool was the principal port of embarkation for the United States, and many emigrants ended up settling in the city.

Construction began in 1928, although it wasn't actually completed until 1967. Around its cylindrical tower is a huge "tent." Two hundred feet in diameter, it rises sharply to a funnel-shaped drum that stands 270 feet high, making the whole structure look like a huge lantern rising above the city.

Location: Mount Pleasant, Liverpool

Official site: www.liverpoolmetrocathedral.org.uk

Visit Liverpool Cathedral

The Anglican Liverpool Cathedral on St. James's Mount was consecrated in 1978, although services were held here in the 1920s. Also known as the Cathedral Church of Christ in Liverpool, this huge red sandstone structure was designed by the same architect who created the country's iconic red telephone boxes.

Atop its copper roof is a 330-foot-high tower containing a carillon with 2,500 bells, the largest weighing in at four tons. The cathedral's 9,704-pipe Willis organ is one of the largest in the world, and can be viewed as part of a guided tour of the cathedral.

Also of interest is the Anglican Church of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas, a parish church that dates back to the mid-13th century.

Address: St. James Mt, Liverpool

Official site: www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk

Explore the City's Past at the Museum of Liverpool

Opened in 2011, the iconic, ultra-modern-looking Museum of Liverpool celebrates the city's unique geography, history, and culture using displays related to the port and its people. Collections include period costumes and decorative art, as well as objects representing the city's social and urban history, along with oral testimonies, archaeological material, and photos.

The museum is also home to the famous Lion steam engine, built in 1838 and star of the film The Titfield Thunderbolt.

Location: Pier Head, Liverpool

Official site: www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/index.aspx

Get Smart at the World Museum

While you're museum hopping in Liverpool, be sure to also visit the World Museum, with its fascinating account of how we humans have impacted the world we inhabit. Among its most important collections are materials relating to archaeology, science, and ethnology, with numerous artifacts on display along with accompanying explanations of their place in our world.

The natural history collection is also noteworthy, and features live exhibits of insects and marine specimens. The museum is also home to a fun Planetarium with kid-friendly shows detailing the solar system and space exploration.

Address: William Brown Street, Liverpool

Official site: www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/world-museum

Take a Trip to Croxteth Hall

This charming Edwardian mansion on the outskirts of Liverpool is well worth taking the time to explore. Highlights of a visit to Croxteth Hall include the chance to see countless rooms filled with furniture and character figures representing both the wealthy owners and their staff. Be sure to strike a pose on the majestic central staircase, popular as a setting for wedding photos.

The Country Park is also worth exploring. Here, you'll find a real working farm (kids love the chance to interact with its animals), a delightful Victorian Walled Garden, and a 500-acre nature park with many pleasant walking trails.

Address: Muirhead Ave. E., Liverpool

Official site: www.croxteth-hall.co.uk

National Waterways Museum in Ellesmere Port

On the banks of the Mersey and the Manchester Ship Canal in Ellesmere Port, the National Waterways Museum includes numerous indoor displays, boat trips, and historic Victorian-era buildings. The big draw here, of course, is the canal with its many wonderful locks.

Designed by Thomas Telford under the direction of William Jessop, the docks at Ellesmere Port were still in use as late as the 1950s. Visitors can explore their unique workings, as well as the docks and warehouses, a working forge, stables, and workers' cottages.

Address: South Pier Road, Ellesmere Port

Official site: https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/museums-and-attractions/national-waterways-museum

Take the Ferry to Birkenhead Park

Birkenhead lies on the west side of the Mersey and is linked to Liverpool by tunnels and the excellent Mersey Ferry service. Near the tunnel are the ruins of a 12th-century Benedictine abbey with a chapterhouse, crypt, and refectory.

Birkenhead Park, the first publicly funded park in Britain, opened in 1847. Notable features include its three entrances with Gothic, Italianate, and Norman architecture, as well as two lakes and an ornate bridge.

Also of interest is The Williamson Art Gallery and Museum with its first-rate collection of pictures and porcelain, together with material on the history of the town.

Address: Park Drive, Birkenhead

Official site: www.williamsonartgallery.org

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