19 Best Things To Do in Liverpool: An Insider’s Guide

I was born and raised in Liverpool. Came back after university, started my first job here, and my parents still call it home. So when I say this is an insider’s guide to the best things to do in Liverpool, I mean it.

Liverpool is one of the most exciting, underrated cities in Europe. As a travel planner who specializes in UK Travel, I love sending my American clients here. They visit expecting The Beatles and leave buzzing about the architecture, the food scene, and most of all, the people.

And getting from London to Liverpool by train is easy. You can arrive at Liverpool Lime Street in less than 2 hours 15 direct from London Euston.

1. Visit Stunning St. George’s Hall

Every time I step out of Lime Street Station, it’s St. George’s Hall that tells me I’m home.

It’s one of the finest neoclassical buildings in the world and it honestly wouldn’t look out of place in Athens or Rome.

The Great Hall has the widest tunnel-vaulted ceiling in Europe and its chandeliers are decorated with Liverpool’s iconic Liver Birds.

Charles Dickens called it ‘the most perfect hall in the world’ – he wasn’t wrong!

Beneath the Great Hall you’ll find the original Victorian prison cells and law courts.

And if the architecture looks familiar, St. George’s has been used as a backdrop for TV and film including Fantastic Beasts, Peaky Blinders and The Batman. It even featured in a Taylor Swift music video!

Tours are available.

Minton Tile Reveal 2026

If you’re visiting Liverpool in 2026, I recommend you don’t miss this opportunity.

The Minton Tile floor in St George’s Hall is made up of over 30,000 hand-crafted encaustic tiles and is usually covered with wooden boards to protect it.

It’s only been revealed a handful of times in the building’s history and is worth planning a trip to Liverpool just for this.

Guided Tours run 17 July – 2 September 2026. Book tickets early.

📍 St George’s Pl, Liverpool L1 1JJ

2. Ride the Ferry ‘Cross the Mersey

No visit to Liverpool is complete without a ride on the Mersey Ferry.

I can’t tell you how many times I rode this ferry growing up!

The crossing from Liverpool’s Pier Head to Birkenhead takes about 15 minutes each way.

You get one of the best skyline view of Liverpool’s waterfront including the iconic Three Graces.

For the full sightseeing experience, I recommend you book the 50 minute SIGHTSEEING RIVER CRUISE.

There’s a free digital audio guide.

I recommend you get tickets in advance, especially if you’re visiting over the summer and at weekends.

Royal Daffodil – New Mersey Ferry 2026

If you’re coming to Liverpool in 2026, make sure to check out the brand new Royal Daffodil, the latest addition to the iconic Mersey Ferries fleet.

📍 Pier Head Ferry Terminal, Liverpool L3 1DP

Short on time? Here’s my LIVERPOOL ONE DAY ITINERARY

3. Climb Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral Tower

For one of the best panoramic views across the city of Liverpool, head to the top of Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral – the highest cathedral in the UK.

My parents brought me here as a kid and I loved it. If you’re travelling with kids or teens, don’t skip this.

To reach the summit you’ll take two consecutive lifts followed by 108 stairs. Note there is no wheelchair access to the top. From the summit you can spot many of Liverpool’s most famous landmarks.

Afterwards spend some time in the cathedral itself. It’s much younger than it looks and incredibly impressive inside.

Tower entry costs £8 with concessions available. The cathedral itself is free. Last entry 30 minutes before closing.

📍 St James’ Mount, Liverpool L1 7AZ

👉 Get Tickets for the Tower Experience

4. Lose Yourself in the Walker Art Gallery

Growing up, my mum worked just across the road on Dale Street.

So during the school holidays, we spent a lot of time at the Walker Art Gallery, the World Museum, and the Central Library, which all sit next to each other on William Brown Street.

The Walker has one of the finest collections of European art outside London including Rembrandts, Rubens, Degas, Turner and entry is completely free. I recommend the highlights audio tour.

Before you leave, look up at the top of the building for the The Spirit of Liverpool sculpture.

The original was carved from marble in Rome in 1877 and weighed over 12 tons.

After a century exposed to the elements she was replaced by a replica and the original is now in storage.

📍 William Brown St, Liverpool L3 8EL

Open Tuesday to Sunday and Bank Holidays | 10am-5pm

5. Royal Liver Building 360° Tower Tour

Until recently this famous landmark was closed to the public. Now it’s open, it’s one of Liverpool’s must-do experiences.

The ROYAL LIVER BUILDING 360° TOWER TOUR takes you inside the West Clock Tower for a unique guided experience.

For me the highlight is the 15th floor rooftop, where I came face to face with the Liver Birds and got spectacular views across the whole city.

Brilliantly guided and great value. Fair warning though – it can be windy up top, so come prepared. Tickets sell out fast in summer so book ahead.

📍 Pier Head, Liverpool L3 1HU | Entrance via the gate on Water Street

6. Bend Your Mind at the Quirky Quarter Interactive Museum

A fun one for kids, teens and honestly anyone who loves a bit of the unexpected.

The Quirky Quarter is a collection of immersive, hands-on exhibits celebrating all things Liverpool.

You wander through connected eclectic rooms – part funhouse, part local history lesson.

I visited recently and even this Scouser learned a thing or two.

It takes about an hour to go through the museum.

BOOK AHEAD to guarantee entry. Tickets £22, concessions available. Open daily 10am to 5pm, last admission 4pm.

Afterwards, I recommend you head into the surrounding streets and explore LIVERPOOL GEORGIAN QUARTER. It’s one of my favourite parts of the city.

📍 The Arch, 142 Duke St, Liverpool L1 5DR | Enter on Duke Street through the warped tile entrance.

7. Visit the Bombed Out Church Liverpool

St Luke’s Church, better known to Liverpudlians as the Bombed Out Church, sits at the top of Bold Street and is one of the most quietly powerful places in the city.

Built in 1832, it was hit during the May Blitz of 1941 and deliberately preserved as a living memorial. The church clock stopped at 3:36am when the fire reached the tower.

In the gardens on the Leece Street side, look out for the All Together Now sculpture, commemorating the 1914 Christmas Truce, when British and German soldiers stopped fighting and played football instead.

I visited recently and the roses were in full bloom.

There’s a seasonal café in the grounds and a regular programme of concerts and events. Check what’s on before you visit.

Free to visit.

8. Discover Liverpool’s Oldest Building – Bluecoat

Most visitors walk straight past the Bluecoat building but I recommend stopping to check it out.

Look up as you pass through the entrance gates and you’ll spot Liverpool’s famous Liver Birds in the ironwork — one of my favourite hidden-in-plain-sight moments in the whole city.

I love finding this symbol tucked away in unexpected places. Walking through the Georgian Quarter recently, I noticed a Victorian boot scraper on the steps of a beautiful Georgian townhouse.

Built in 1717, it’s the oldest building in Liverpool city centre — originally a school, now one of the city’s liveliest arts spaces.

Here you’ll find free galleries, a packed events programme, independent shops, and a café worth stopping at, all wrapped around a beautiful historic courtyard.

Check what’s on before you visit.

📍 School Lane, Liverpool L1 3BX | Free to enter

9. Explore Castle Street & Hidden Gem Queen Avenue

If you want to see Liverpool at its grandest, walk down Castle Street.

One of Liverpool’s original seven streets, it’s lined with extraordinary Victorian architecture and former banking buildings that have been reinvented as restaurants and bars.

Number 42, Victorian Chambers, is particularly worth stopping for to see four carved mermen with trumpets made of shells adorn the facade.

At the top of the street stands Liverpool Town Hall, built between 1749 and 1754 and considered one of the finest surviving 18th century town halls in the country.

When you’re ready to eat, you’re spoilt for choice. San Carlo, The Ivy, and El Gato Negro are among the most popular — you could eat on Castle Street for a week and never visit the same place twice.

There’s plenty of on street dining options in summer too.

And before you move on, check out Queen Avenue, a Liverpool hidden gem.

It’s tucked between Dale Street and Castle Street and one of the most beautiful streets in the city. It’s a narrow Victorian arcade that most people have no idea exists.

📍 Castle Street, Liverpool L2

10. Baltic Market Liverpool at Cains Brewery Village

If you want to eat well and feel the real pulse of the city, head to the Baltic Triangle.

Liverpool’s first street food market, Baltic Market sits inside one of the old warehouses of the iconic Cains Brewery, a beautifully repurposed Victorian building in one of Liverpool’s most creative neighbourhoods.

I love it here. The food stalls change regularly but you can expect wood-fired pizzas, halloumi fries, Thai street food, espresso martinis and plenty more.

And keep an eye out for the yellow submarine parked outside, a nod to Liverpool’s most famous sons that never gets old.

The wider Cains Brewery Village is worth exploring too. The Baltic Triangle has become the city’s creative hub, independent bars, vintage stores, live music venues, record shops and street art around every corner.

Open Wednesday to Sunday. Friday from noon, Saturday from 11am — both days running until 11pm.

📍 Cains Brewery Village, Stanhope Street, Liverpool L8 5XJ

The Baltic Market is just the start. Here’s my full guide to the Baltic Triangle — Liverpool’s coolest neighbourhood.

11. Visit Liverpool’s Sailors’ Church

I bet a lot of Scousers like me, who look back far enough into their family ancestry, will find a maritime connection.

I have merchant sailors on both sides of my family. And on a recent visit to Liverpool’s Sailors’ Church, more formally known as Our Lady and St Nicholas, I can’t help but wonder whether men like them once walked through these doors after months at sea.

There’s been a church on this site since 1257. And before the city grew up around it, the spire was visible out at sea and sailors used it as a navigational landmark to guide them home.

Until the building of George’s Dock in 1771, the river literally reached the churchyard wall at high tide.

Inside, the Mariners’ Chapel is dedicated entirely to seafarers.

The garden outside is worth checking out too, with memorials to famous Liverpool ships including HMS Liverpool and MV Derbyshire.

Free to visit and open throughout the week. If you have any connection to Liverpool’s seafaring history or an interest in maritime history, don’t skip this one.

12. Explore the Albert Dock Liverpool

No visit to Liverpool is complete without spending time at the Albert Dock.

I’ve been coming here for years. Back in the day you’d find me having a drink at the Pump House, one of the dock’s original Victorian buildings.

The dock itself is stunning. Grade I listed, built in 1846, and one of the finest examples of Victorian dock architecture anywhere in the world. Just walking around the cobbled waterfront is a pleasure.

THE BEATLES STORY is well worth an hour of your time, whether you’re a die-hard Fab Four fan or not – especially if you’re visiting with family.

📍 Royal Albert Dock, Liverpool L3 4AD | Free to explore

2026 Albert Dock Visitor Updates

Two things to be aware of on your visit in 2026.

The Merseyside Maritime Museum is currently closed for essential maintenance and isn’t due to reopen until 2028.

And Tate Liverpool has temporarily relocated to RIBA North at Mann Island while its Albert Dock home undergoes redevelopment.

📍 RIBA North, Mann Island, Liverpool L3 1BP | Free entry | Open daily 10am to 5.50pm

13. The Beatles: Mathew Street & The Cavern Club

You can’t come to Liverpool and skip Mathew Street. It would be like visiting Rome and skipping the Colosseum.

As a teenager I spent most of my weekends down here, in the Cavern Club and Flanagan’s Apple. It was just what you did growing up in Liverpool. Now I watch visitors from all over the world making their own pilgrimage to the same streets and I love that this city still does that to people.

The Beatles played almost 300 gigs at the Cavern Club in the early 1960s. The club that exists today is a faithful recreation, but the atmosphere is the real thing. Live music runs daily from 11am, so there’s no bad time to visit. Look out for the bronze statue of John Lennon on the street outside.

For die-hard fans, the Beatles Story at the Albert Dock is worth adding to your itinerary. And if you want to get the most out of the area, I recommend booking a guided Beatles tour with a local expert rather than going it alone.

👉 Private 3-Hour Guided Beatles Classic Tour of Liverpool

📍 10 Mathew Street, Liverpool L2 6RE | Cavern Club entry from £5

And no Beatles pilgrimage is complete without a visit to Penny Lane. Here’s my guide to uncovering Penny Lane’s secrets, history and hidden gems.

14. Visit Sefton Park Palm House Liverpool

Growing up in Liverpool, the Palm House was always part of the landscape.

But for years it was a shell of its former self. Decades of neglect had left this beautiful Victorian glasshouse in a sorry state.

Thanks to a tireless public campaign and a multi-million pound restoration, it reopened in 2001 and is now back to its full Victorian glory and well worth a visit.

The Palm House was a gift to the city from local millionaire Henry Yates Thompson, who donated £10,000 to fund its construction.

It opened to the public in 1896 and soon became one of Liverpool’s most popular attractions.

Inside, the botanical collection includes over 200 plants from around the world.

And if you love history, there are plenty of stories to interest you include the story of an unexploded bomb discovered in the eastern porch that was believed to have been left by Suffragette activist Kitty Marion.

Entry is free. There’s a café on site and a programme of events throughout the year.

Check ahead before you visit as the Palm House occasionally closes for private events.

From Liverpool city centre it’s about a 15 minute drive or a short journey on public transport.

15. Explore Croxteth Park: Liverpool’s Secret Country Estate

If you’re visiting Liverpool for the first time, you might not expect to find a grand country estate sitting in over 500 acres of parkland right in the middle of the city.

Croxteth Park or “Crocky Park” if you’re a Scouser, was once the home of the Earl of Sefton.

The Hall was built and preserved in the Edwardian era and is one of Liverpool’s most popular filming locations.

Peaky Blinders, The War of the Worlds, Tolkien, and the House of Guinness have all been filmed here.

The Victorian Walled Garden is worth exploring and the surrounding parkland is free to visit.

Check ahead as opening times for the Hall can vary.

16. Liverpool FC & Everton: Stadium Tours & Football

Liverpool is a football city. Always has been, always will be.

With two Premier League clubs sharing the same city – Liverpool FC at Anfield and Everton at their brand new Hill Dickinson Stadium, the rivalry and passion runs deep.

Whether you’re a die-hard fan or just want to check it out, a stadium tour at Anfield is one of the best things you can do in Liverpool.

👉 LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB MUSEUM AND STADIUM TOUR

📍 Anfield, Liverpool L4 0TH 📍 Hill Dickinson Stadium, Bramley-Moore Dock, Liverpool L3 0BT

17. Walk Liverpool’s Iconic Waterfront & The Three Graces

The waterfront was always just part of the furniture growing up in Liverpool.

And no matter how many times I walk along the Pier Head, I never tire of it.

The Three Graces are the heart of it.

The Royal Liver Building, the Cunard Building and the Port of Liverpool Building, standing together on the waterfront as they have for over a century.

Few city skylines anywhere in the world can match this view from the water.

Come at dusk if you can. The light on the river at that hour is something else entirely.

📍 Pier Head, Liverpool L3

18. Visit Speke Hall: Liverpool’s Hidden Tudor Manor House

Most visitors to Liverpool never make it to Speke Hall.

But it’s one of England’s most remarkable Tudor manor houses.

The black and white timber framed building has stood here for over 400 years.

It was built by the Norris family, devout Catholics in Tudor England. And the Hall has a secret priest hole; a reminder of a time when your faith could cost you your life.

Speke Hall’s history has a dark side that shouldn’t be ignored.

Both the Norris and Watt families who owned the Hall, were heavily involved in the transatlantic slave trade.

The surrounding gardens are beautifully restored and the woodland walk to the river is worth the visit alone.

Managed by the National Trust. Check ahead for opening times and admission prices.

19. Crosby Beach: Antony Gormley’s Another Place

My parents live close to Crosby Beach, so I’ve been coming here for years.

Another Place consists of 100 cast iron figures, all cast from Gormley’s own body, facing out to sea across a three kilometre stretch of beach.

Some stand on dry sand. Others are half submerged, rising and disappearing with the tide.

On a grey day, with the figures emerging from the sea stretching out to the horizon, it’s genuinely eerie.

Visit at low tide for the best experience and come at dusk if you can.

📍 Mariners Road, Crosby Beach, Liverpool L23 6SX | Free to visit

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