North West England Area Guide

Five counties form North West England: Lancashire, Greater Manchester, Cheshire, Merseyside and Cumbria, abutting the Scottish border. This diverse region encompasses once-mighty industrial cities now cleverly re-invented as booming cultural hubs, spectacular fell landscapes and a coastline of remote bays and soaring headlands. The North West is home to the UK’s most popular national park (the Lake District), two National Landscapes and the self-governing Isle of Man, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve tucked between England and Ireland. Here’s where to find the best of the region.

The great cities of North West England

Chester

Encircled by Roman-era city walls – it takes a rewarding hour to walk round them – and famed for its gloriously flamboyant Tudor architecture, Chester is a living, breathing history lesson. It has a beguiling cobbled centre, with the ornate two-tiered galleries of the half-timbered Rows forming a photogenic backdrop to high-end stores, busy restaurants and traditional pubs. Open for guided tours, the city’s cathedral is a masterclass in Gothic creativity, but if you’re with the kids, they may prefer a boat ride down the River Dee or a visit to Chester Zoo, one of the best in the country.

Liverpool

With its dark days of industrial ravage long gone, Liverpool now proudly celebrates its seafaring heritage and its contribution to pop music as the birthplace of the Beatles and Mersey Beat. Overlooked by the impressive Three Graces buildings on one of the most recognisable waterfronts in the country, sprawling red-brick Albert Dock was redeveloped in the 1980s and is now awash with cool dining and nightlife destinations as well as contemporary art in Tate Liverpool + RIBA North and marine heritage in the Maritime Museum. The iconic Mersey Ferry service to The Wirral departs from a pier close by, while diehard fans can visit the The Beatles Story Museum or check out the daily live music performances at the Cavern Club, where the band played regularly in its infancy.

Manchester

Ever-changing Manchester is one of Britain’s most vibrant and forward-looking cities, well known for its vibrant music scene, LGBTQ+ bars and lively nightlife in the Northern Quarter. On top of that, the city also has a neon-lit Chinatown packed with herbalists and restaurants, as well as some very impressive museums including the modern Imperial War Museum North, with its exhibits on Britain’s military history, and Manchester Art Gallery, which has a world-beating collection of Pre-Raphaelite paintings. Other museums showcase the work of local lad JS Lowry and delve deep into the Industrial Revolution, but of course if you’re travelling with soccer fans, first stop might be a tour behind the scenes at Old Trafford or Etihad Stadium, homes of the two rival football teams.

Scenic countryside and coastlines of North West England

Lake District National Park

Made famous by the Romantic poets, the spectacular Lake District National Park contains some of England’s most breathtaking scenery, with lakes including Windermere, Coniston and Ullswater fringed by undulating fells and craggy mountains. Established in 1951 to protect the area’s natural beauty, the national park attracts millions of visitors each year, and within its boundaries are England’s highest peak – Scafell Pike (3,209 ft/978 m) – and deepest lake – Wast Water – as well as the pretty towns of Bowness-on-Windermere, Ambleside and Keswick,  all of which have visitor centres. Cultural highlights include Castlerigg Stone Circle, Hilltop (the former home of much-loved author Beatrix Potter), and Rydal Mount, where Wordsworth lived from 1813 to 1859.

Arnside and Silverdale National Landscape

At 75 sq miles (194 sq km) this is one of the UK’s smaller National Landscapes. Arnside and Silverdale is a region of limestone pavements, wildflower meadows and salt marsh edging the ever-shifting sands, mud flats and channels of Morecambe Bay. It is immensely rich in flora like wild pansies, lady’s bedstraw and more than 10 rare types of orchid, and 34 species of butterfly have been spotted around the coastline; even more can be seen at the Lakeland Wildlife Oasis. The bay is also winter home to an array of wading birds, from oystercatchers to godwits and curlew, and visitors can sometimes spot marsh harriers and bitterns from the hides overlooking the reed beds at RSPB Leighton Moss.

Forest of Bowland National Landscape

Often overlooked in the rush to the Lake District or Yorkshire Dales national parks, the Forest of Bowland National Landscape comprises stunning Lancashire fells, moors and farmland straddling the Yorkshire border. It’s stellar walking country – the magnificent Trough of Bowland, the scramble up Clougha Pike for views to Morecambe Bay and gentle family strolls along the River Ribble are all popular options – and cyclists head for the mountain-biking trails at Gisburn Forest Cycleway or pedal sections of the Way of the Roses, which threads across Lancashire to the coast. Historic Lancaster is the gateway city, busy market towns include Settle and Clitheroe, and cosy pubs dot pretty villages like Bolton-by-Bowland and Grindleton.

Isle of Man

Reached by ferry from Liverpool or Heysham, the Isle of Man is remarkable for its rugged scenery and pristine beaches as well as a rich cultural heritage. The island is scattered with standing stones, Viking burial sites and medieval fortresses like Peel Castle, while the bright-red Great Laxey Wheel is a masterpiece of Victorian engineering built in 1854 to pump water out of the surrounding mines; there are fantastic views over Glen Mooar from its observation deck 72 ft (22 m) up in the air. Other major attractions include Snaefell Mountain Railway, which ascends to the summit of Snaefell for views to England and Ireland on clear days, the bird observatory on the tiny Calf of Man and the mini-capital of Douglas, which curves gracefully along a sprawling seaside promenade lined with splendid Victorian hotels.

Cultural highlights of North West England

Lancaster Castle

A city steeped in history, Lancaster is home to an imposing castle that was a dour working prison up until 2011; its most infamous inmates were probably the Pendle Witches, who were found guilty of murder and hanged in 1612. Today guided tours take in the highly decorative 10-sided Shire Hall, still festooned with heraldic shields, and the sinister Drop Room where the condemned awaited their fate. You'll also see dank cells as well as various towers where felons were incarcerated.

Port Sunlight Village

Squeezed between the Mersey and Dee rivers on The Wirral, Port Sunlight was completed in 1888 by entrepreneur William Hesketh Lever to provide sanitary accommodation for the workers at his Sunlight Soap factory. This experiment in Victorian philanthropy has roughly 900 mock-Tudor cottages set in extensive parkland; its history is laid out at Port Sunlight Museum and guided walking tours take in the main sights, including decorative arts in the Lady Lever Art Gallery, plus the church and theatre. 

 

The lakeland scenery of the UK’s best-known national park and little-known areas of spectacular fells and moorland await in North West England, alongside buzzing modern cities and the Roman wonders of Chester. Whether you’re keen to hear the latest rock band playing in Manchester or simply want to inspire the family with a love of wildlife, the region is packed with things to do. And don’t forget that Pitchup has a fantastic selection of campsites in North West England if you’re keen to get back to nature.