Beatles fans flock to Liverpool to learn about the Fab Four’s early days, but the city has much more to offer: a wealth of free and good museums, a pair of striking cathedrals, a dramatic skyline mingling old red-brick maritime buildings and glassy new skyscrapers, and—most of all—the charm of the Liverpudlians. It provides the best experience of urban England outside London.
Sitting at the mouth of the River Mersey, Liverpool has long been a major shipping center. Its physical devastation during World War II, followed by the advent of container shipping in the 1960s, led to economic decline through the 1970s and 1980s. But today, things are looking up. The city’s status as the 2008 European Capital of Culture spurred gentrification and a cultural renaissance. The 50,000 students attending three universities in town keep Liverpool youthful, with a pub or nightclub on every corner.
Spend the morning at the Albert Dock, home to The Beatles Story, Merseyside Maritime Museum, and Museum of Liverpool—choose what interests you. When you’re done with the dock, it’s easy to take a Beatles bus tour (2 hours, departs from Albert Dock).
Mid-afternoon, visit the two cathedrals. Ramble down Hope Street, which connects the cathedrals and hosts recommended eateries and pubs, offering lots of good choices for dinner. Try to make time to stroll the downtown pedestrian core between Queen Square and the Liverpool One mall. Enjoy the lively nightlife scene.
If you’re in town only to binge on the Beatles, you can easily fill a day with Fab Four sights: Tour the interior of John’s and Paul’s homes in the morning (smart to reserve in advance), then return to the Albert Dock to visit The Beatles Story. Take an afternoon Beatles bus tour from the Albert Dock to see the other Beatles sights in town, winding up at the Cavern Quarter to enjoy a Beatles cover band in the reconstructed Cavern Club.
International Beatles Week, celebrated in late August, is a very busy time in Liverpool, with lots of live musical performances.
With nearly half a million people, Liverpool is Britain’s fifth-biggest city. But most points of interest are concentrated in the pedestrian-friendly downtown. Interesting sights and colorful neighborhoods are scattered throughout this area, so it’s enjoyable to connect your sightseeing on foot. You can walk from one end of this zone to the other in about 25 minutes. Beatles sights, however, are spread far and wide—it’s much easier to connect them with a tour.
▲▲Museum of Liverpool Three floors of intriguing exhibits, historical artifacts, and fun interactive displays tracing the port city’s history, culture, and contributions to the world. Hours: Daily 10:00-17:00. See here.
▲▲Liverpool Cathedral Huge Anglican house of worship—the largest cathedral in Great Britain—with cavernous interior and tower climb. Hours: Daily 8:00-18:00; tower Mon-Fri 10:00-16:30 (last ascent), Thu until sunset March-Oct, Sat 9:00-16:30, Sun 12:00-15:30. See here.
▲The Beatles Story Well-done if overpriced exhibit about the Fab Four, with a great audioguide narrated by John Lennon’s sister, Julia Baird. Hours: Daily May-Sept 9:00-19:00, Oct-April 10:00-18:00. See here.
▲Merseyside Maritime Museum and International Slavery Museum Duo of thought-provoking museums exploring Liverpool’s seafaring heritage and the city’s role in the African slave trade. Hours: Daily 10:00-17:00. See here.
▲Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King Striking, daringly modern Catholic cathedral with a story as interesting as the building itself. Hours: Daily 7:30-18:00, until 17:00 on Sun in winter; after 17:15 (during Mass), you can’t walk around; crypt Mon-Sat 10:00-16:00, closed Sun, last entry 45 minutes before closing. See here.
▲Inside the Lennon and McCartney Homes The 1950s boyhood homes of Beatles John Lennon and Paul McCartney, with restored interiors viewable on a National Trust minibus tour (worth ▲▲▲ for diehard fans). Advance reservations recommended. Hours: Tours run mid-March-Oct daily 4/day, mid-Feb-mid-March and Nov Wed-Sun 3/day. See here.
Tate Gallery Liverpool Modern-art gallery with 20th-century statues and paintings. Hours: Daily 10:00-18:00. See here.
Liverpool 360 Ferris Wheel Offering sky-high views on the waterfront. Hours: Daily 10:00-21:00, until 23:00 Fri-Sat. See here.
Liverpool’s TI is at the Albert Dock. Pick up the free, good city map and the comprehensive Liverpool Visitor Guide, crammed with updated lists of museums, hotels, restaurants, shops, and more (daily April-Oct 10:00-17:30, Nov-March 10:00-17:00, just inland from The Beatles Story, tel. 0151/707-0729, www.visitliverpool.com).
If you want to see as many Beatles-related sights as possible in a short time, these tours are the way to go. Each drives by the houses where the Fab Four grew up (exteriors only), places they performed, and spots made famous by their lyrics (“Penny Lane,” “Strawberry Fields,” the Eleanor Rigby graveyard, and so on). Even lukewarm fans will enjoy the narration and seeing the shelter on the roundabout, the barber who shaves another customer, and the banker who never wears a mack in the pouring rain. (Very strange.)
Magical Mystery Big Bus Tours offer enthusiastic live commentary and Beatles tunes cued to famous landmarks. Fans hop onto an old, psychedelically-painted bus for a spin past Liverpool’s main Beatles landmarks, with photo ops along the way. As these tours often fill up, book at least a day ahead by phone or online (£17, 5-7/day, fewer on Sun and in off-season, 2 hours, buses depart from Albert Dock near The Beatles Story and TI, tel. 0151/703-9100, www.cavernclub.org).
Phil Hughes Minibus Beatles and Liverpool Tours are more extensive, fun, and intimate. These four-hour tours include information on historic Liverpool and a couple of Titanic and Lusitania sights, along with the Beatles stuff (£22/person, private group tour with 5-person minimum, can coordinate tour to include pickup from end of National Trust tour of Lennon and McCartney homes or drop-off for late-day tour starting at Speke Hall, also does door-to-door service from your hotel or train station, 8-seat minibus, tel. 0151/228-4565, mobile 07961-511-223, www.tourliverpool.co.uk, tourliverpool@hotmail.com).
Jackie Spencer Private Tours tailor visits to your schedule and interests (up to 5 people in her chauffeur-driven minivan-£210, 3 hours, longer tours available, will pick you up at hotel or train station, mobile 0799-076-1478, www.beatleguides.com, jackie@beatleguides.com).
Two different hop-on, hop-off bus tours cruise around town, offering a quick overview that links the major sights. The options are City Explorer (£9, buy ticket from driver, valid 24 hours, live guides, 13 stops; April-Aug daily 10:00-16:30, 2/hour; Sept-March generally daily 10:00 until 15:00 or 16:00, 1-2/hour; tel. 0151/933-2324, www.cityexplorerliverpool.co.uk) and Liverpool City Tours (£10, buy ticket from driver, valid 24 hours, recorded commentary, 16 stops, April-Oct Mon-Sat 10:00-17:00, 3/hour, less frequent Sun and Nov-March, tel. 0151/298-1253, www.sightseeingliverpool.co.uk).
▲MERSEYSIDE MARITIME MUSEUM AND INTERNATIONAL SLAVERY MUSEUM
▲METROPOLITAN CATHEDRAL OF CHRIST THE KING
Cavern Quarter: Beatles Sights
▲INSIDE THE LENNON AND MCCARTNEY HOMES
In its day, Liverpool was England’s greatest seaport, but trade declined after 1890, as the port wasn’t deep enough for the big new ships. The advent of mega container ships in the 1960s put the final nail in the port’s coffin, and by 1972 it was closed entirely.
Over the last couple of decades, this formerly derelict area has been the focus of the city’s rejuvenation efforts. The waterfront is now a venue for some of the city’s top attractions. The red-brick Albert Dock complex has museums, restaurants, and nightlife; nearby, to the south, is the Ferris wheel and futuristic arena. To the north, Pier Head hosts the Museum of Liverpool.
Opened in 1852 by Prince Albert and enclosing seven acres of water, the Albert Dock is surrounded by five-story brick warehouses. A half-dozen busy eateries are lined up here, protected from the rain by arcades. There’s plenty of pay parking.
Rick’s Tip: The eateries at the Albert Dock aren’t high cuisine, but they’re handy to your sightseeing. Some come alive with club energy at night, but are sedate and pleasant in the afternoon and early evening. For an inexpensive lunch at the dock, try the café in Tate Gallery Liverpool (daily 10:00-16:30, open to public).
It seems almost wrong to bottle up the Beatles in a museum, but the exhibit—while overpriced and a bit small—is well done. The story is a fascinating one, and even an avid fan will pick up some new information. The Beatles Story has two parts: the original, main exhibit at the south end of the Albert Dock; and a much smaller branch in the Pier Head ferry terminal, near the Museum of Liverpool, just to the north. A free shuttle runs between the two locations every 30 minutes.
Liverpool’s rejuvenated waterfront
Liverpool has become a pilgrimage site for Beatlemaniacs. Most Beatles sights focus on their early days, before the psychedelia, transcendental meditation, and Yoko. Because these sights are so spread out, the easiest way to connect all of them in one go is by tour (see “Tours”).
All four Beatles were born here, spending their formative years amid the city’s WWII-era bombed-out shell. Any tour glides by the home most identified with each one’s childhood: John Lennon at “Mendips,” Paul McCartney at 20 Forthlin Road, George Harrison at 12 Arnold Grove, and Ringo Starr (a.k.a. Richard Starkey) at 10 Admiral Grove.
Behind John’s house at Mendips is a wooded area called Strawberry Field (he added the “s” for the song). This surrounds a Victorian mansion that was, at various times, a Salvation Army home and an orphanage. John enjoyed sneaking into the trees around the mansion to play. Today, visitors pose in front of Strawberry Field’s red gate (a replica of the original).
In the mid-1950s, John formed a band called the Quarrymen. Paul met John when he saw the Quarrymen on July 6, 1957, at St. Peter’s Church in Woolton. After the show, in the social hall across the street, Paul noted that John played only banjo chords (his mother had taught him to play on a banjo—he didn’t even know how to tune a guitar). John, two years older, was a better improviser than a musician, so he was impressed when Paul played a note-perfect rendition of Eddie Cochran’s “Twenty Flight Rock.” Before long, Paul had joined the band.
In the St. Peter’s Church graveyard is a headstone for a woman named Eleanor Rigby. But to this day, Paul swears that he never saw it, and made up the name for that famous song. Either he’s lying, the name crept into his subconscious, or it’s a truly remarkable coincidence.
The boys went to school on Mount Street in the center of Liverpool (near Hope Street, between the two cathedrals). John and his friend Stuart Sutcliffe attended the Liverpool College of Art. Paul and his pal George Harrison went to Liverpool Institute High School for Boys. (When Paul suggested George as a possible new member for the band, John dismissed him as too young...until he heard George play.) Paul later bought his old school building and turned it into the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA).
As young men, the boys waited at a bus stop in the Penny Lane neighborhood. Later they wrote a nostalgic song about the things they observed there: the shelter by the roundabout, the barbershop, and so on. (While they also sing about the fireman with the clean machine, the firehouse itself is not actually on Penny Lane, but around the corner.)
After some shuffles in lineup, by 1960 the group had officially become The Beatles: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and...Pete Best and Stu Sutcliffe. The quintet built a name in Liverpool’s “Merseybeat” club scene. While the famous Cavern Club is gone (the one you see advertised is a reconstruction), the original Casbah Coffee Club is open for tours (3.5 miles northwest of downtown, prebook by calling the TI at tel. 0151/707-0729 or online at www.petebest.com).
The group went to Hamburg, Germany, to cut their teeth in its thriving music scene and performed as the backing band for Tony Sheridan’s single “My Bonny.” When this caught on back in Liverpool, promoter Brian Epstein took note, and signed the act. His shrewd management would eventually propel the Beatles to superstardom.
Many different people could be considered the “Fifth Beatle.” John’s friend Stu, who performed with the group in Hamburg, left to pursue his own artistic interests. Pete Best was the band’s original drummer, but he was replaced with Ringo Starr (John later said, “Pete Best was a great drummer, but Ringo was a Beatle.”) Manager Brian Epstein is another candidate. But it’s hard to ignore the case for George Martin, who produced all the Beatles’ albums except Let It Be, and was instrumental in both forging and developing their sound.
By early 1964, the Beatles were world-famous, but—as evidenced by their songs about Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields—they never forgot their Merseyside home.
Cost and Hours: £15 covers both parts, tickets good for 48 hours, includes audioguide, daily May-Sept 9:00-19:00, Oct-April 10:00-18:00, last entry one hour before closing, tel. 0151/709-1963, www.beatlesstory.com.
Visiting the Museum: Start in the main exhibit with a chronological stroll through the evolution of the Beatles, focusing on their Liverpool years: meeting as schoolboys, performing at (and helping decorate) the Casbah Coffee Club, making a name for themselves in Hamburg’s red light district, meeting their manager Brian Epstein, and the advent of worldwide Beatlemania (with some help from Ed Sullivan). There are many actual artifacts (from George Harrison’s first boyhood guitar to John Lennon’s orange-tinted “Imagine” glasses), as well as large dioramas celebrating landmarks in Beatles lore (a reconstruction of the Cavern Club, a life-size re-creation of the Sgt. Pepper album cover, and a walk-through yellow submarine). The last rooms trace the members’ solo careers, and the final few steps are reserved for reverence about John’s peace work, including a replica of the white room he used while writing “Imagine.” Rounding out the exhibits are a “Discovery Zone” for kids and (of course) the “Fab 4 Store,” with an impressive pile of Beatles buyables.
The great audioguide, narrated by Julia Baird (John Lennon’s little sister), captures the Beatles’ charm and cheekiness in a way the stiff wax mannequins can’t. You’ll hear clips of interviews from the actual participants in the Beatles’ story—their families, friends, and collaborators. Cynthia Lennon, John’s first wife, still marvels at the manic power of Beatlemania, while producer George Martin explains why he wanted their original drummer dumped for Ringo.
While this is a fairly sanitized look at the Fab Four (LSD and Yoko-related conflicts are glossed over), the exhibits remind listeners of all that made the group earth-shattering—and even a little edgy—at the time. For example, performing before the Queen Mother, John Lennon famously quips: “Will the people in the cheaper seats clap your hands? And the rest of you, if you’ll just rattle your jewelry.” Surprisingly, there are no clips from Beatles movies or performances—not even the epic Ed Sullivan Show broadcast. You’ll find that it’s strong on Beatles’ history, but you’ll have to go elsewhere to understand why Beatlemania happened.
Cavern Club replica
The Pier Head exhibit is less interesting, but since it’s included with the ticket, it’s worth dropping into if you have the time. You’ll find it upstairs in the Pier Head ferry terminal—10-minute walk north (at the opposite end of the Albert Dock, then another 5-minute walk across the bridge and past the Museum of Liverpool). The main attraction here is a corny “Fab 4D Experience,” an animated movie that strings together Beatles tunes into something resembling a plot while mainly offering an excuse to play around with 3-D effects and other surprises (such as the smell of strawberries when you hear “Strawberry Fields Forever”). There are also rotating temporary exhibits here.
These museums tell the story of Liverpool, once the second city of the British Empire. The third floor covers slavery, while the first, second, and basement handle other maritime topics.
Cost and Hours: Free, donations accepted, daily 10:00-17:00, café, tel. 0151/478-4499, www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk.
Background: Liverpool’s port prospered in the 18th century as one corner of a commerce triangle with Africa and America. British shippers profited greatly through exploitation: About 1.5 million enslaved African people were taken to the Americas on Liverpool’s ships (that’s 10 percent of all African slaves). From Liverpool, the British exported manufactured goods to Africa in exchange for enslaved Africans; the slaves were then shipped to the Americas, where they were traded for raw material (cotton, sugar, and tobacco); and the goods were then brought back to Britain. While the merchants on all three sides made money, the big profit came home to England (which enjoyed substantial income from customs, duties, and a thriving smugglers’ market). As Britain’s economy boomed, so did Liverpool’s.
After participation in the slave trade was outlawed in Britain in the early 1800s, Liverpool kept its port busy as a transfer point for emigrants. If your ancestors came from Scandinavia, Ukraine, or Ireland, they likely left Europe from this port. Between 1830 and 1930, nine million emigrants sailed from Liverpool to find their dreams in the New World.
Visiting the Museums: Begin by riding the elevator up to floor 3—we’ll work our way back down.
On floor 3, three galleries make up the International Slavery Museum. First is a description of life in West Africa, which re-creates traditional domestic architecture and displays actual artifacts. Then comes a harrowing exhibit about enslavement and the Middle Passage. The tools of the enslavers—chains, muzzles, and a branding iron—and the intense film about the Middle Passage sea voyage to the Americas drive home the horrifying experience of being abducted from your home and taken in life-threatening conditions thousands of miles away to toil for a wealthy stranger. The exhibits don’t shy away from how Liverpool profited from slavery; you can turn local street signs around to find out how they were named after slave traders—even Penny Lane has slavery connections. Finally, the museum examines the legacy of slavery—both the persistence of racism in contemporary society and the substantial positive impact that people of African descent have had on European and American cultures. Walls of photos celebrate important people of African descent, and a music station lets you sample songs from a variety of African-influenced genres.
Merseyside Maritime Museum
Continue down the stairs to the Maritime Museum, on floor 2. This celebrates Liverpool’s shipbuilding heritage and displays actual ship components, model boats, and a gallery of nautical paintings. Part of that heritage is covered in an extensive exhibit on the Titanic. The shipping line and its captain were based in Liverpool, and 89 of the crew members who died were from the city. The informative panels allow you to follow real people as they set off on the voyage and debunk many Titanic myths (no one ever said it was unsinkable).
Floor 1 shows footage and artifacts from another maritime disaster—the 1915 sinking of the Lusitania, which was torpedoed by a German U-boat. She sank off the coast of Ireland in under 20 minutes; 1,191 people died in the tragedy, including 405 crew members from Liverpool. The attack on an unarmed passenger ship sparked riots in Liverpool and almost thrust the US into the war. Also on this floor, an extensive exhibit traces the Battle of the Atlantic (during World War II, Nazi U-boats attacked merchant ships bringing supplies to Britain, in an attempt to cripple this island nation). You’ll see how crew members lived aboard merchant ships. The Hello Sailor! exhibit explains how gay culture flourished at sea at a time when it was taboo in almost every other walk of British life.
Make your way to the basement, where exhibits describe the tremendous wave of emigration through Liverpool’s port. And the Seized! exhibit looks at the legal and illegal movement of goods through that same port, including thought-provoking displays on customs, taxation, and smuggling.
This prestigious gallery of modern art is near the Maritime Museum. It won’t entertain you as well as its London sister, the Tate Modern, but if you’re into modern art, any Tate is great. Its two airy floors dedicated to the rotating collection of statues and paintings from the 20th century are free; the top and ground floors are devoted to special exhibits. The Tate also has a fine, inexpensive café.
Cost and Hours: Free, donations accepted, £7-13 for special exhibits, daily 10:00-18:00, tel. 0151/702-7400, www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-liverpool.
You can take a spin for panoramic views on a Ferris wheel with 42 enclosed capsules (£9, family deals, daily 10:00-21:00, until 23:00 Fri-Sat, near Albert Dock—can’t miss it, www.liverpool-360.co.uk).
A five-minute walk across the bridge north of the Albert Dock takes you to the Pier Head area.
This museum, which opened in 2011 in the blocky white building just across the bridge north of the Albert Dock, does a good job of fulfilling its goal to “capture Liverpool’s vibrant character and demonstrate the city’s unique contribution to the world.” The museum is full of interesting items, fun interactive displays (great for kids), and intriguing facts that bring a whole new depth to your Liverpool experience.
Cost and Hours: Free, donations accepted, daily 10:00-17:00, guidebook-£1, café, Mann Island, Pier Head, tel. 0151/478-4545, www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol.
Visiting the Museum: If you’re short on time, spend most of it on the second floor. First, stop by the information desk to check on the show times for the museum’s various videos. If you have kids age six and under, you can get a free timed-entry ticket for the hands-on Little Liverpool exhibit on the ground floor.
Ground Floor: On this level, The Great Port details the story of Liverpool’s defining industry and how it developed through the Industrial Revolution. On display is an 1838 steam locomotive that was originally built for the Liverpool and Manchester Railway. The Global City exhibit focuses on how Liverpool’s status as a major British shipping center made it the gateway to a global empire and features a 20-minute video, Power and the Glory, about Liverpool’s role within the British Empire.
The revitalized Pier Head area and the Museum of Liverpool
First Floor: Don’t miss the Liverpool Overhead Railway exhibit, which features the only surviving car from this 19th-century elevated railway. You can actually jump aboard and take a seat to watch 1897 movie footage shot from the train line. A huge interactive model shows the railway’s route. Also on this floor is the History Detectives exhibit, which covers Liverpool’s history and archaeology.
Second Floor: The People’s Republic exhibit examines what it means to be a Liverpudlian (a.k.a. “Scouser”) and covers everything from housing and health issues to military and religious topics. As industrialized Liverpool has long been a hotbed of the labor movement, exhibits here also detail the political side of the city, including child labor issues and women’s suffrage.
One compelling display is the recreation of Liverpool’s 19th-century court housing, which consisted of a series of tiny dwellings bunched around a narrow courtyard. With more than 60 people sharing two toilets, this was some of the most overcrowded and unsanitary housing in Britain at the time.
Next, the exhibit skips to religion and the centerpiece of this room: a 10-foot-tall model of Liverpool’s Catholic cathedral that was never built. In 1932, Archbishop Richard Downey and architect Sir Edwin Lutyens commissioned this model to showcase their grandiose plans for constructing the world’s second-largest cathedral. Their vision never came to fruition, and the Metropolitan Cathedral was built instead (for more on what happened, see here).
On the other side of the floor, the Wondrous Place exhibit celebrates the arts, cultural, and sporting side of Liverpool. An exhibit on the city’s famous passion for soccer features memorabilia and the 17-minute video Kicking and Screaming, about the rivalry between the Everton and Liverpool football teams and the sometimes tragic history of the sport (such as when 96 fans were crushed to death at a Liverpool match).
Music is the other big focus here, with plenty of fun interactive stops that include music quizzes, a karaoke booth, and listening stations featuring artists with ties to Liverpool (from Elvis Costello to Echo & the Bunnymen). And of course you’ll see plenty of Beatles mania, including their famous suits, the original stage from St. Peter’s Church (where John Lennon was performing the first time Paul McCartney laid eyes on him; located in the theater), and an eight-minute film on the band.
Finally, in the Skylight Gallery, look for Ben Johnson’s painting The Liverpool Cityscape, 2008, a remarkable and fun-to-examine melding of old and new art styles. At first glance, it’s a typical skyline painting, but Johnson used computer models to create perfect depictions of each building before he put brush to canvas. This method allows for a photorealistic, highly detailed, but completely sanitized portrait of a city. Notice there are no cars or people.
Liverpool has not one but two notable cathedrals—one Anglican, the other Catholic. (As the Spinners song puts it, “If you want a cathedral, we’ve got one to spare.”) Both are huge, architecturally significant, and well worth visiting. Near the eastern edge of downtown, they’re connected by a 10-minute, half-mile walk on pleasant Hope Street, which is lined with theaters and good restaurants (see “Eating,” later).
Liverpudlians enjoy pointing out that they have not only the world’s only Catholic cathedral designed by a Protestant architect, but also the only Protestant one designed by a Catholic. With its large Irish-immigrant population, Liverpool suffered from tension between its Catholic and Protestant communities for much of its history. But during the city’s darkest stretch of the depressed 1970s, the bishops of each church—Anglican Bishop David Sheppard and Catholic Archbishop Derek Worlock—came together and worked hard to reconcile the two communities for the betterment of Liverpool. (Liverpudlians nicknamed this dynamic duo “fish-and-chips” because they were “always together, and always in the newspaper.”) It worked: Liverpool is a bold new cultural center, and relations between the two faiths remain healthy here. Join in this ecumenical spirit by visiting both of their main churches.
This daringly modern building, a cone topped with a crowned cylinder, seems almost out of place in its workaday Liverpool neighborhood. The structure you see today bears no resemblance to Sir Edwin Lutyens’ original 1930s plans for a stately Neo-Byzantine Catholic cathedral, which was to take 200 years to build and rival St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City. (Lutyens was desperate to one-up the grandiose plans of Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, who was building the Anglican cathedral down the street.) The crypt for the ambitious church was excavated in the 1930s, but World War II (during which the crypt was used as an air-raid shelter) stalled progress for decades. In the 1960s, the plans were scaled back, and this smaller (but still impressive) house of worship was completed in 1967.
Cost and Hours: Cathedral—free entry but donations accepted, daily 7:30-18:00 (until 17:00 on Sun in winter)—but after 17:15 (during Mass), you won’t be able to walk around; crypt—£3, Mon-Sat 10:00-16:00, closed Sun, last entry 45 minutes before closing, enter from inside church near organ; visitors center and café, Mount Pleasant, tel. 0151/709-9222, www.liverpoolmetrocathedral.org.uk.
Visiting the Cathedral: On the stepped plaza in front of the church, you’ll see the entrance to the cathedral’s visitors center and café (on your right). You’re standing on a big concrete slab that provides a roof to the humongous Lutyens Crypt, underfoot. The existing cathedral occupies only a small part of the would-be cathedral’s footprint. Imagine what might have been—“the greatest building never built.” Because of the cathedral’s tent-like appearance and ties to the local Irish community, some Liverpudlians dubbed it “Paddy’s Wigwam.”
Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King
Climb up the stairs to the main doors, step inside, and let your eyes adjust to this magnificent dimly-lit space. Unlike a typical nave-plus-transept cross-shaped church, this cathedral has a round footprint, with seating for a congregation of 3,000 fully surrounding the white marble altar. Like a theater in the round, it was designed to involve worshippers in the service. Suspended above the altar is a stylized crown of thorns.
Spinning off from the round central sanctuary are 13 smaller chapels, many of them representing different stages of Jesus’ life. Each chapel is different. Explore, tuning into the symbolic details in each one. Also keep an eye out for the 14 exquisite bronze stations of the cross by local artist Sean Rice (on the wall).
The massive Lutyens Crypt (named for the ambitious original architect)—the only part of the originally planned cathedral to be completed has huge vaults and vast halls lined with six million bricks. The crypt contains a chapel—with windows by Lutyens—that’s still used for Sunday Mass, the tombs of three archbishops, a treasury, and an exhibit about the cathedral’s construction.
The street connecting the cathedrals is the main artery of Liverpool’s “uptown,” a lively district loaded with dining and entertainment options. In addition to well-respected theaters, this street is home to the Philharmonic and its namesake pub (see “Eating,” later). At the intersection with Mount Street is a monument consisting of concrete suitcases; just down this street are the high schools that Paul, George, and John attended.
The largest cathedral in Great Britain, this gigantic Anglican house of worship hovers at the south end of downtown. Tour its vast interior and consider scaling its tower.
Cost and Hours: Free, £3 suggested donation, daily 8:00-18:00; £5 ticket includes tower climb (2 elevators and 108 steps), audioguide, and 10-minute Great Space film; tower—Mon-Fri 10:00-16:30 (last ascent), Thu until sunset March-Oct, Sat 9:00-16:30, Sun 12:00-15:30 (changes possible depending on bell-ringing schedule); St. James Mount, tel. 0151/709-6271, www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk.
Visiting the Cathedral: Over the main door is a modern Risen Christ statue by Elisabeth Frink. Liverpudlians, not thrilled with the featureless statue and always quick with a joke, have dubbed it “Frinkenstein.”
Stepping inside, pick up a floor plan at the information desk, go into the main hall, and take in the size of the place. When Liverpool was officially designated a “city” (seat of a bishop), they wanted to build a huge house of worship as a symbol of Liverpudlian pride. Built in bold Neo-Gothic style (like London’s Parliament), it seems to trumpet with modern bombast the importance of this city on the Mersey. Begun in 1904, the cathedral’s construction was interrupted by the tumultuous events of the 20th century and not completed until 1973.
Liverpool Cathedral
Go to the big circular tile in the very center of the cathedral, under the highest tower. This is a plaque for the building’s architect, Sir Giles Gilbert Scott (1880-1960). While the church you’re surrounded by may seem like his biggest legacy, he also designed an icon that’s synonymous with Britain: the classic red telephone box. Flanking this aisle, notice the highly detailed sandstone carvings.
Take a counterclockwise spin around the church interior. Head up the right aisle until you find the model of the original plan for the cathedral (press the button to light it up). Scott was a very young architect and received the commission with the agreement that he work closely under the wing of his more established mentor, George Bodley. These two architects’ visions clashed, and Bodley usually won...until he died early in the planning stages, leaving Scott to pursue his own muse. If Bodley had survived, the cathedral would probably look more like this model. As it was, only one corner of the complex (the Lady Chapel, which we’re about to see) was completed before Giles changed plans to create the version you see today.
Cathedral nave
Nearby, the “whispering arch” spanning the sarcophagus has remarkable acoustics, carrying voices from one end to the other. Try it.
Continuing down the church, notice the colorful, modern painting The Good Samaritan (by Adrian Wiszniewski, 1995), high above on the right. The naked crime victim (who has been stabbed in his side, like the Crucifixion wound of Jesus) has been ignored by the well-dressed yuppies in the foreground, but the female Samaritan is finally taking notice. The canvas is packed with symbolism (for example, the Swiss Army knife, in a pool of blood in the left foreground, is open in the 3 o’clock position—the time that Jesus was crucified). This contemporary work of art demonstrates that this is a new, living church. But the congregation has its limits. This painting used to hang closer to the front of the church, but now they’ve moved it here, out of sight.
Proceeding to the corner, you’ll reach the entrance to the oldest part of the church (1910): the Lady Chapel, with stained-glass windows celebrating important women. (Sadly, the original windows were destroyed in World War II; these are replicas.)
Back up in the main part of the church, continue behind the main altar to the Education Centre, with a fun, sped-up video showing all the daily work it takes to make this cathedral run.
Circling around the far corner of the church, you’ll pass the children’s chapel and chapterhouse, and then pass under another modern Wiszniewski painting (The House Built on Rock). Across from that painting, go into the choir to get a good look at the Last Supper altarpiece above the main altar.
Continuing back up the aisle, you’ll come to the war chapel. At its entrance is a book listing Liverpudlians lost in war. Battle flags fly high on the wall above.
You’ll wind up at the gift shop, where you can buy a ticket to climb up to the top of the tower. The cathedral’s café is up the stairs, above the gift shop.
The narrow, bar-lined Mathew Street, right in the heart of downtown, is ground zero for Beatles fans. The Beatles frequently performed in their early days together at the original Cavern Club, deep in a cellar along this street. While that’s long gone, a mock-up of the historic nightspot (built with many of the original bricks) lives on a few doors down. Still billed as “the Cavern Club,” this is worth a visit to see the reconstructed cellar that’s often filled by Beatles cover bands. While touristy, dropping by in the afternoon or evening for a live Beatles tribute act in the Cavern Club somehow just feels right. You’ll have Beatles songs stuck in your head all day anyway, so you might as well see a wannabe John and Paul strumming and harmonizing a close approximation of the original (daily 10:00-24:00; live music daily from 14:00, Sat from 13:00, cover charge Thu-Fri after 20:00 and Sat-Sun after 14:00, tel. 0151/236-9091, www.cavernclub.org).
Across the street and run by the same owners, the Cavern Pub lacks its sibling’s troglodyte aura, but makes up for it with walls lined with old photos and memorabilia from the Beatles and other bands who’ve performed here. Like the Cavern Club, the pub features frequent performances by Beatles cover bands and other acts (no cover, Mon-Wed 11:00-24:00, later Thu-Sun, tel. 0151/236-4041).
Out front is the Cavern’s Wall of Fame, with a too-cool-for-school bronze John Lennon leaning up against a wall of bricks engraved with the names of musical acts that have graced the Cavern stage.
At the corner is the recommended Hard Day’s Night Hotel, decorated inside and out to honor the Fab Four. Notice the statues of John, Paul, George, and Ringo on the second-story corners.
John’s and Paul’s boyhood homes are now owned by the National Trust and have both been restored to how they looked during the lads’ 1950s childhoods. While some Beatles bus tours stop here for photo ops, only the National Trust minibus tour gets you inside the homes. This isn’t Graceland—you won’t find an over-the-top rock-and-roll extravaganza here. If you don’t know the difference between John and Paul, you’ll likely be bored. But for die-hard Beatles fans who want to get a glimpse into the time and place that created these musical masterminds, the National Trust tour is worth ▲▲▲.
Famous musicians who perform in Liverpool often make the pilgrimage to these homes—Bob Dylan turned up on one tour disguised in a hoodie—and Paul himself occasionally drops by. Ask the guides about recent memorable visitors.
Because the houses are in residential neighborhoods—and still share walls with neighbors—the National Trust runs only a few tours per day, limited to 15 or so Beatlemaniacs each.
Cost and Reservations: Tickets are £23. Because so few people are allowed on each tour, it’s strongly advised to make a reservation ahead of time, especially in summer and on weekends or holidays. It’s a good idea to book as soon as you know your Liverpool plans (or at least two weeks ahead)—though at times, you may be able to get tickets a couple of days in advance. (On the flip side, tours can be booked up months in advance, such as during Beatles week in late August.) You can reserve online (www.nationaltrust.org.uk/beatles) or by calling 0151/427-7231. If you haven’t reserved ahead, you can try to book a same-day tour (for the morning tours, call 0151/707-0729). The last tour is less likely to be full because it takes 30 minutes (by car or taxi) to reach the tour’s starting point from central Liverpool—see below.
Tour Options: A minibus takes you to the homes of John and Paul, with about 45 minutes inside each. From mid-March-Oct, tours run daily from the Albert Dock at 10:00, 11:00, and 14:15; mid-Feb-mid-March and Nov Wed-Sun only (no tours Dec-mid-Feb). They depart from the Jurys Inn (south across the bridge from The Beatles Story, near the Ferris wheel) and follow a route that includes a quick pass by Penny Lane.
From mid-March-Oct, an additional tour leaves at 15:00 from Speke Hall, an out-of-the-way National Trust property located eight miles southeast of Liverpool. Drivers should allow 30 minutes from the city center to Speke Hall—follow the brown Speke Hall signs through dozens of roundabouts, heading in the general direction of the airport. If you don’t have a car, hop in a taxi.
From either starting point, the entire visit takes about 2.5 hours. No photos are allowed inside either home.
Visiting the Homes: Each home has a caretaker who acts as your guide. These folks give an entertaining, insightful-to-fans 20- to 30-minute talk. You then have about 10-15 minutes to wander through the house on your own. Ask lots of questions if their spiel peters out early—these docents are a wealth of information.
Mendips (John Lennon’s Home): Even though he sang about being a working-class hero, John grew up in the suburbs of Liverpool, surrounded by doctors, lawyers, and—beyond the back fence—Strawberry Field.
This was the home of John’s Aunt Mimi, who raised him in this house from the time he was five years old and once told him, “A guitar’s all right, John, but you’ll never earn a living by it.” (John later bought Mimi a country cottage with those fateful words etched over the fireplace.) John moved out at age 23, but his first wife, Cynthia, bunked here for a while when John made his famous first trip to America. Yoko Ono bought the house in 2002 and gave it as a gift to the National Trust (generating controversy among the neighbors). The house’s stewards make this place come to life.
On the surface, it’s just a 1930s house carefully restored to how it would have been in the past. But delve deeper. It’s been lovingly cared for—restored to be the tidy, well-kept place Mimi would have recognized (down to dishtowels hanging in the kitchen). It’s a lucky quirk of fate that the house’s interior remained mostly unchanged after the Lennons left: The bachelor who owned it decades after them didn’t upgrade much, so even the light switches are true to the time.
If you’re a John Lennon fan, it’s fun to picture him as a young boy drawing and imagining at his dining room table. His bedroom, with an Elvis poster and his favorite boyhood books, offers tantalizing hints at his later musical genius. Sing a song to yourself in the enclosed porch—John and Paul did this when they wanted an echo-chamber effect.
20 Forthlin Road (Paul McCartney’s Home): In comparison to Aunt Mimi’s house, the home where Paul grew up is simpler, much less “posh,” and even a little ratty around the edges. Michael, Paul’s brother, wanted it that way—their mother, Mary (famously mentioned in “Let It Be”), died when the boys were young, and it never had the tidiness of a woman’s touch. It’s been intentionally scuffed up around the edges to preserve the historical accuracy. Notice the differences—Paul has said that John’s house was vastly different and more clearly middle class. At Mendips, there were books on the bookshelves, but Paul’s father had an upright piano. He also rigged up wires and headphones that connected the boys’ bedrooms to the living-room radio so they could listen to rock ’n’ roll on Radio Luxembourg.
More than a hundred Beatles songs were written in this house (including “I Saw Her Standing There”) during days Paul and John spent skipping school. The photos from Michael, taken in this house, help make the scene of what’s mostly a barren interior much more interesting. Ask your guide how Paul would sneak into the house late at night without waking up his dad.
Liverpool hops after hours, especially on weekends.
Ropewalks, the area just east of the downtown shopping district and Albert Dock, is filled with lively pubs, nightclubs, and lounges—some are divey, some are stylish. While this area is aimed primarily at the college-age crowd, it’s still worth a stroll, and has a few eateries worth considering.
The following pubs in the city center are best for serious drinkers and beer aficionados—the food is an afterthought. The Ship and Mitre, at the edge of downtown, has 30-plus selections of beer on tap and gets crowded (133 Dale Street, tel. 0151/236-0859, see festival schedule at www.theshipandmitre.com). Thomas Rigby’s has hard-used wooden floors that spill out into a rollicking garden courtyard (21 Dale Street). Around the corner and much more sedate, Ye Hole in Ye Wall brags that it’s Liverpool’s oldest pub, from 1726 (just off Dale Street on Hackins Hey).
As a rollicking, youthful city, Liverpool is a magnet for creative chefs as well as upscale chain restaurants. Consider my suggestions, but also browse the surrounding streets. Finding a restaurant here is a joy, not a chore.
Hope Street, which connects the two cathedrals, is home to some excellent restaurants.
The Quarter dishes up Mediterranean food at rustic tables that sprawl through several connected houses. They also serve breakfast and have an attached deli (£4-7 starters, £8-11 pizzas and pastas, chalkboard specials, daily 9:00-23:00, 7 Falkner Street, tel. 0151/707-1965).
HOST (short for “Hope Street”) features Asian fusion dishes in a casual, colorful, modern atmosphere. There are gluten-free and vegan options (£4-6 small plates, £10-13 big plates, daily 11:00-23:00, 31 Hope Street, tel. 0151/708-5831).
60 Hope Street offers English cuisine made with “as locally sourced as possible” ingredients in an upscale atmosphere. While the prices are high (£9-11 starters, £19-30 main dishes), the fixed-price meals are a good deal (£20/two courses, £25/three courses, £15 afternoon tea, open Mon-Sat 12:00-14:30 & 17:00-22:30, Sun 12:00-20:00, reservations smart—especially on weekends, 60 Hope Street, tel. 0151/707-6060, www.60hopestreet.com).
The Philharmonic Dining Rooms, kitty-corner from the actual Philharmonic, is actually a pub—but what a pub! John Lennon once said that his biggest regret about fame was “not being able to go to the Phil for a drink.” The bar is a work of art, the marble urinals are downright genteel, and the three sitting areas on the ground floor (including the giant hall) are an enticing place to sip a pint. Food is usually served in the less-atmospheric upstairs (£8-15 pub grub, food served daily 11:00-22:00, bar open until late, corner of Hope and Hardman streets, tel. 0151/707-2837).
The Fly in the Loaf has a classic pub exterior and interior, with efficient service, eight hand pulls for real ales, and good food (£3-5 sandwiches, £7-9 meals, food served daily 12:00-18:45, bar open until late, 13 Hardman Street, tel. 0151/708-0817).
Chinatown: A few blocks southwest of Hope Street is Liverpool’s thriving Chinatown, with the world’s biggest Chinese arch. Restaurants line up along Berry Street in front of the arch and Cornwallis Street behind it. Among these, Yuet Ben is the most established (Tue-Sun 17:00-23:00, closed Mon, facing the arch at 1 Upper Duke Street, tel. 0151/709-5772). Tokyou features tasty £5 noodle and rice dishes with service that’s fast and furious (daily 12:30-23:30, 7 Berry Street, tel. 0151/445-1023).
Delifonseca is a trendy eatery with two parts. In the cellar is a small deli counter and large bar, with prepared salads and made-to-order £3 sandwiches. Upstairs is a casual bistro serving British, Mediterranean, and international cuisine. While not cheap, the food is high quality (£7-10 sandwiches and salads, £10-16 main dishes, food served Tue-Sat 12:00-21:00, bar open until late, closed Sun-Mon, 12 Stanley Street, tel. 0151/255-0808).
The Liverpool One shopping center, in the heart of town, is nirvana for chain restaurants. The upper Leisure Terrace has a row of popular chains, including Café Rouge (French), Wagamama Noodle Bar, Gourmet Burger Company, Pizza Express—all with outdoor seating.
Your best budget options are the central chain hotels—though I’ve listed several other options as well. Many hotels charge more on weekends (particularly Sat), especially when the Liverpool FC soccer team plays a home game. Rates shoot up even higher two weekends a year: during the Grand National horse race (long weekend in April) and during Beatles Week in late August. Prices drop on Sunday nights.
$$$ Hope Street Hotel is a class act located across from the Philharmonic on Hope Street (midway between the cathedrals, in an enticing dining neighborhood). This contemporary hotel has 89 luxurious rooms with lots of hardwood, exposed brick, and elegant extras (standard Db-officially £200, but often £120-160 Fri-Sat and £90-120 Sun-Thu; fancier and pricier deluxe rooms and suites available, breakfast-£12.50 if you prebook, elevator, some rooms handicap accessible, parking-£10, 40 Hope Street, tel. 0151/709-3000, www.hopestreethotel.co.uk, sleep@hopestreethotel.co.uk).
$$$ Hard Day’s Night Hotel is the splurge for Beatles pilgrims. Located in a restored building in the heart of the Cavern Quarter, the decor is purely Beatles: What could have been tacky is instead tasteful, with subtle nods to the Fab Four throughout its 110 rooms and public spaces. There’s often live music in the afternoons in the lobby bar—and it’s not all Beatles covers (standard Db-£90-150, deluxe Db-£20 more, prices can spike dramatically during peak times, especially busy for Sat weddings, breakfast-£16 but £10 if you prebook, air-con, elevator, Internet-enabled TVs with music playlists, parking-£10.50/day, Central Building, North John Street, tel. 0151/236-1964, www.harddaysnighthotel.com, enquiries@harddaysnighthotel.com).
$$ Aachen Guest Accommodations has 15 modern rooms in an old Georgian townhouse on a pleasant street just uphill from the heart of downtown (D-£49-85, Db-£59-95, rates depend on demand—higher price is usually for weekends, includes breakfast, 89-91 Mount Pleasant, tel. 0151/709-3477, www.aachenhotel.co.uk, enquiries@aachenhotel.co.uk).
$$ Best Western Feathers Hotel has tight hallways and 82 small rooms with mod decor and amenities (Db-generally around £69-79 Sun-Thu, £99-109 Fri, £149-159 Sat, breakfast-£10 if you prebook, no elevator and six floors, pay parking, 115 Mount Pleasant, tel. 0151/709-9655, www.feathers.uk.com, feathersreception@feathers.uk.com).
$$ Sir Thomas Hotel is centrally located and was once a bank. The lobby has been redone in a trendy style, and the 39 rooms are comfortable. As windows are thin and it’s a busy neighborhood, ask for a quieter room (Db-£69-85 Sun-Thu, £91-151 Fri-Sat, little difference between “standard” and “superior” rooms, some rates include breakfast—otherwise £10, elevator, parking-£8.50/day, 10-minute walk from station, 24 Sir Thomas Street at the corner of Victoria Street, tel. 0151/236-1366, www.sirthomashotel.co.uk, reservations@sirthomashotel.co.uk).
$$ Premier Inn has 186 pleasant rooms inside the giant converted warehouses on the Albert Dock (Db-£68-140, averages £70-80 on weekdays, check website for specific rates and special deals, breakfast-£8.75, elevator, pay Wi-Fi, discounted parking in nearby garage, next to The Beatles Story, tel. 0151/702-6320, www.premierinn.com).
$$ Holiday Inn Express has a branch at the Albert Dock, next door and nearly identical to the Premier Inn described above (Db-generally around £70-100 Sun-Thu, £125-135 Fri-Sat, includes buffet breakfast, pay parking nearby, beyond The Beatles Story, tel. 0844-875-7575, www.holidayinnexpressliverpool.com, enquiries@exliverpool.com).
$ International Inn Hostel, run by the daughter of the Beatles’ first manager, rents 100 budget beds in a former Victorian warehouse (Db-£38-47, dorm bed-£17-22, includes sheets, all rooms have bathrooms, guest kitchen with free toast and tea/coffee available 24 hours, laundry room, game room/TV lounge, video library, 24-hour reception, 4 South Hunter Street, tel. 0151/709-8135, www.internationalinn.co.uk, info@internationalinn.co.uk). From the Lime Street Station, the hostel is an easy 15-minute walk; if taking a taxi, tell them it’s on South Hunter Street near Hardman Street.
The city is walkable and fun to explore, so you may not need to take advantage of the local bus network. But if you’re near the Lime Street Station and Queen Square Centre bus hub and need to get to the Cavern sights, Liverpool One mall, or the Albert Dock, you can take public bus #C5 (#C4 visits the same stops in the opposite direction). For more public-transit info, visit a Merseytravel center—there’s one at the main bus hub on Queen Square Centre and another at the Liverpool One bus station (1 Canning Place), across the busy street from the Albert Dock (Mon-Sat 8:30-18:00, Sun 10:00-17:00, except Liverpool One closed Sun; tel. 0871-200-2233, www.merseytravel.gov.uk).
Most trains use the main Lime Street train station. The station has eateries, shops, and baggage storage (tel. 0151/909-3697, www.left-baggage.co.uk; most bus tours and private minivan/car tours are able to accommodate day-trippers with luggage). Note that regional trains also arrive at the much smaller, confusingly-named Central Station, located just a few blocks south.
Getting to the Albert Dock: From Lime Street Station to the Albert Dock is about a 20-minute walk or a quick trip by bus, subway, or taxi.
To walk, exit straight out the front door. On your right, you’ll see the giant Neoclassical St. George’s Hall. To reach the Albert Dock, go straight ahead across the street, then head down the hill between St. George’s Hall (on your right) and the big blob-shaped mall (on your left). This brings you to Queen Square Centre, a hub for buses. (The round pavilion with the “i” symbol is a transit info center—see “Getting Around Liverpool,” earlier.) From here, you can continue by bus (see below) or take a pleasant walk through Liverpool’s spiffed-up central core: Head around the right side of the transit-info pavilion, then turn left onto Whitechapel Street, which soon becomes a slick pedestrian zone lined with shopping malls. Follow this all the way down to the waterfront, where you’ll see the big red-brick warehouses of the Albert Dock.
To ride the bus, walk to Queen Square Centre (see walking directions earlier); for the most direct route to the Albert Dock, take bus #C5 from stall 9 (2/hour—see schedule posted next to stall, bus prices vary—from about £2.20/ride, £3.90 for all-day ticket). To get back to the station from the Albert Dock, take bus #C4.
Alternatively, you can take a subway from Lime Street Station to James Street Station, then walk about five minutes to the Albert Dock (about £2.20, also covered by BritRail pass). Note that some regional trains may pass through James Street Station before reaching Lime Street Station; if so, you can hop out here rather than riding to Lime Street.
A taxi from Lime Street Station to the Albert Dock costs about £5. Taxis wait outside either of the side doors of the station.
Train Connections to: Keswick/Lake District (train to Penrith—roughly hourly with change in Wigan and possibly elsewhere, 2.5 hours; then 45-minute bus to Keswick), Stratford (2/hour, 3 hours), York (at least hourly, 2-2.5 hours, more with transfer), London’s Euston Station (at least hourly, 2-2.5 hours, more with changes). Note that many connections from Liverpool transfer at the Wigan North Western Station, which is on a major north-south train line. Train info: Tel. 0345-748-4950, www.nationalrail.co.uk.
Drivers approaching Liverpool first follow signs to City Centre and Waterfront, then brown signs to Albert Dock, where there’s a huge pay parking lot at the dock.
Liverpool John Lennon Airport is about eight miles southeast of downtown, along the river (tel. 0871-521-8484, www.liverpoolairport.com, airport code: LPL). Buses into town depart regularly from the bus stalls just outside the main terminal doors. Bus #500 to the city center is quickest, stopping at Queen Square Centre, Liverpool One bus hub, and Lime Street Station (2/hour, 35 minutes, about £3, covered by all-day ticket). Buses #80A, #82A, and #86A also go from the airport to the Liverpool One bus hub, but these take a bit longer.
