Study Tour A – Manchester and Liverpool

Starts: Monday 14th June at Midday (1200 hours) at Piccadilly Station, Manchester (exact meeting point details will be sent to those who register for the tour). Manchester Piccadilly  is approximately 2 hours 10 minutes from London Euston station.

Finishes: Tuesday 15th June at 3pm (1500 hours) at Lime Street Station, Liverpool (Liverpool Lime Street is also about 2 hours 10 minutes from London Euston station)

Tour outline: the tour visits two of England's larger cities, each of which was once dominated by industry that experienced significant decline in the 20^th Century. Each city has reinvented itself and been transformed through extensive investment and active management. In each city the process of transformation continues. The tour will include guided walking tours through the retail, entertainment, business and tourist areas in each city centre, led by those engaged locally in making change happen. It will also include the opportunity to see some of the extensive regeneration schemes in the areas adjacent to the city centres. There will be a series of short presentations on what has happened in each city. On Monday night, you will stay in central Manchester and be guided through some of the entertainment districts that contribute so much to the city. Manchester was one of the first six locations in the UK awarded Purple Flag accreditation for the quality of its evening and night time economy.

Day 1- Manchester: At the heart of a metropolitan area with a population of around 2.5 million, Manchester is situated in England's North West, about 160 miles (260 kilometres) from London. Though settlement dates back to Roman times, it was the Industrial Revolution that changed the fortunes and history of the city. The mechanisation of cotton processing saw Manchester go through a phenomenal period of growth from around 1770, leading to a six fold population growth in 60 years. In effect it became the world's first industrialised city and the 'symbol of a new age'. Dubbed 'Cottonopolis', by the early 20^th Century almost two thirds of all the world's cotton processing was centred around Manchester.

Having reached such a level, decline was inevitable and the cotton industry in Manchester did just that through most of the 20^th Century. Although regeneration schemes began in the 1980s and the city diversified its economy, it was a large Irish Republican Army bomb in 1996 which caused extensive damage in the heart of the city centre that became the catalyst for major redevelopment. This saw an impressive extension of the retail core, with two new department stores, other retailing, leisure and commercial space as well as new public squares and spaces. Manchester is one of the few cities in Britain to have re-introduced street running trams through its centre and major commercial development has taken place in Spinningfields and around Piccadilly. Central Manchester is home to two of the country's largest universities and some 90,000 students. One of the greatest changes in recent years has been the significant growth in city centre living, both in converted Victorian buildings and in new build, including the tallest residential tower in western Europe. Students, residents and the large office base have driven the development of an extensive and varied evening and night time economy that you will have chance to explore.

Manchester is famous for other things, notably football and music. It is home to two Premier League football clubs: Manchester City and Manchester United. The former is now reputedly the richest club in the world and the latter boasts the world's biggest fan base as well as being England's most successful club in the last decade or more and three times European champions. On the music side, groups that first saw life in the city include The Smiths, The Fall, Joy Division, Oasis, Take That, Simply Red, the Stone Roses and other 'Madchester' groups. In 2002, Manchester hosted the Commonwealth Games with more than 70 participating countries and some 3,600 participants in 17 sports.

You will be staying in a four star city centre hotel and during Monday evening will have the chance to explore some of Manchester's famous night life (though Monday is not the busiest night to do so!). The cost of the tour includes hotel accommodation, dinner on Monday night and English breakfast on Tuesday morning.

Day 2- Liverpool: The day begins by journeying by train from Manchester to Liverpool. The world's first inter city passenger railway opened between these cities in 1830.

Liverpool is a major port city on England's North West coast and has a population of around 450,000. 40% of all the world's trade reportedly passed through Liverpool at the beginning of the 19^th Century and it was called the 'Second City of Empire' by British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli later that century. The city retains a fine legacy of buildings from the Victorian era, despite extensive bombing in World War II, and today these buildings are recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Liverpool suffered extensively in the second half of the 20^th Century as its traditional industries went into decline and its population fell, but extensive regeneration from the 1990s onwards has brought new life and new development to the city centre.

Liverpool One is a 1.65 million square foot (153,000 square metre) shopping and leisure development in the heart of the city centre that opened in 2008. It has revolutionised Liverpool's retail offer and forms just part of what you will see on your visit to Liverpool, alongside extensive waterfront regeneration schemes, including the awesome Albert Dock.

Liverpool is famous for other things too, and like Manchester, football and music come pretty high on the list. It is also home to two Premier League football clubs, Everton and Liverpool, and the latter have been five times Champions of Europe. It boasts two significant, and very different, Cathedrals in the city centre, and was, of course, home to The Beatles. Liverpool was European Capital of Culture in 2008.

The tour concludes at 3pm on Tuesday 15^th June when you have a number of options. You could travel directly to London by train (about 2 hours 10 minutes), return to Manchester by train (about 50 minutes), stay the night in Liverpool and explore the city further or even take in another location entirely such as the historic walled city of Chester (about 45 minutes by train) which was founded by the Romans and which has a fine collection of medieval buildings (there are direct trains from Chester to London that you could take on Wednesday). None of these options is included in the cost of the tour and you will need to make your own arrangements.

This Study Tour is being offered in partnership with the Institute of Place Management, Liverpool BID, Liverpool City Centre Management, Liverpool City Council, and Manchester City Council.

Cost per person (includes escorted tour from Manchester Piccadilly Station at midday on Monday, dinner on Monday evening, overnight accommodation in a four star central Manchester hotel, full English breakfast, train journey from Manchester - Liverpool, buffet-style lunch on Monday and Tuesday and guided tours of both cities but excluding travel to and from London*) £299.00 plus VAT

*Please note that because of the wide fluctuations in the cost of long distance rail travel in the UK, depending on when you book and the train you travel on, rail travel to and from London is not included in the cost of the Study Tour and you must make your own booking. We very strongly recommend that you book in advance as there are considerable savings to be made (tickets may be available for as little as 10% of the fare payable if you book on the day). You can book on line for both journeys at www.virgintrains.co.uk and arrange to collect your tickets from machines at the relevant station on the day. Please note you must keep a record of your booking reference and take it with you to the station and also have with you the credit card used to make the booking. If you book in advance you must travel on the train you are booked to travel on otherwise your ticket will be worthless and you will be required to buy another full fare ticket.

 

Manchester has an international airport which is used by around 80 airlines flying to some 190 cities around the world. The code is MAN and it may be easier for you to fly direct to Manchester if you are booking this study tour. Fast trains link Manchester Airport with Manchester Piccadilly and the city centre in about 15 minutes.

 

To download a Study Tours booking form, please click here.  Please complete the form and return it to Jordan Ley - jordan.ley@atcm.org