We’ve had the london one so…what do non-Mancunians think of Manchester?

[RishisPA]

Interested to see how it compares? Any insights into Manchester? I hate how so many visitors end up getting off at Piccadilly and going straight to Piccadilly gardens when (imo) that’s the worst bit of the city centre!!

We go a lot for gigs and stay over. Love Salford area.
Overall I prefer Liverpool.

Live in the area but from a bit further north. When I heard that the footballer De Gea's partner said it looked like the back of a fridge, I thought "spot on". Northern Quarter feels like a bit of theme park for 80s kids like me. But in the actual 80s Manchester was truly horrible and depressing - I was at University here. So that's an improvement. Also, unlike That London, it's easy to get out of Manchester into beautiful countryside.
My dad went to The Ritz in the 1930s. I went in the 1980s. My daughter went in the 2020s. So it is the coolest city on the planet (apart from the others)

I've been a few times on my own or with friends but last summer we took the kids for the first time. We stayed at The Kimpton which was gorgeous, took the boys to The Football Museum which was fab. The shopping was great too. I did feel a bit more on edge walking round with the kids than I did in other cities I'd visited that year though (Glasgow, Edinburgh, live near Durham and Newcastle so visit frequently).
I was waiting outside a posh clothes shop for H and a man came up to me and tried to cuddle me and make me drink whisky so I ran inside the shop and was very shaken about it all. There seemed to be a lot of homeless people.

Midlander here who has lived on the south for 30 years but went to uni in Manchester in the 80s and is back visiting often as DD is at uni there.

There’s definitely more money around now than in the 80s and I love the proud northern city vibe, it’s obviously leftie credentials (I live in Essex, ukip land!) and funky Indy vibe.

I agree, it is dirty and a bit too edgy in places and the natives are a bit chippy. Not as friendly as my native midlands city.

@Soihaveagoat homelessness has definitely gone up in recent years. Not to the levels I remember from the 1980s. The Mayor has made it a priority and there is more focus on it than there used to be.

Never been, and I'm almost 50!! Lived all over the UK and travelled to most of it, but the closest I've been to Manchester is the airport and one visit to the Trafford Centre.

There's nothing in Manchester which makes me think I really must visit, to be honest.

Slightly off topic, but it's just occurred to me, if people from Manchester are Mancunian, are people from Chester just Cunians?

God awful depressing. Sorry

I visited recently and took a work-related walking tour. It was interesting but I’d hate to live there. Hardly any green space at all and all the high tide buildings meant the early spring sun never made it to the ground so it felt cold and dark even on a lovely day.

That was supposed to be high rise buildings

@Santiagopink

Slightly off topic, but it's just occurred to me, if people from Manchester are Mancunian, are people from Chester just Cunians?

They're Cestrian.

Because of my work I have spent quite a bit of time in towns and cities throughout the UK and Manchester would be close to the bottom of the list.
Leeds, Newcastle, Birmingham , Liverpool etc are all nicer cities to spend time in

I went once in the early 90s, one of the few places I've felt genuinely menaced walking about in the evening (and I'm used to Glasgow so urban grime is not a novelty)

How interesting! Thank you. You wouldnt be able to guess either would you. Language is weird

I live in a very nice bit of greater Manchester and I don’t bother with the city centre at all these days. Terrible shopping and it is just a grim place to be, plus not well planned for getting around. I think it’s pointless to compare other cities here to London really because it’s apples and pears, but in terms of more comparable places I think Liverpool, Sheffield, Newcastle, Glasgow, Leeds would all be preferable destinations for weekend tourism.

@Comedycook

I went once....I like it. I was very shocked by the levels of homelessness

This is a recent thing and no different to any other uk city,Tbf to Burnham he spends a lot of his own money trying to sort it out

Love Manchester. It’s the place I’d move to up north if I was going (I’m a Londoner). It’s the place up north where I feel most at home. Love the people, love the humour, love the music.

Yes to the terrible lack of green space!

The ‘weather’. The ‘glamour’.

I've only visited once properly and I loved it. Seemed to be full of people having a properly good time and talking to each other. Good mix of business with lots of creative and performance work happening. Big confidence in the architecture (though not quite on Liverpool's scale). Gorgeous countryside within easy reach. Ds isn't going to go there for uni partly because the offer from Manchester was higher than any other uni, his Cambridge offer was easier. I'm a bit gutted. Luckily I have a friend who lives nearby so good reason to visit.

I live in one of the Greater Manchester satellite towns. Feel safer in Manchester than in our town centre at night.

his Cambridge offer was easier

mumsnet.

I live 4 miles out of Manchester. I don’t really like the city centre but it’s good to be close to the theatres. I agree though it is grubby.
However, there are some lovely places close by so I can see the appeal if people want access to city & countryside.

I love Manchester..my favourite place in the UK after London. my fave UK holiday destination.

I love Didsbury.

We live in a town about 40 minutes from Manchester so we go to the theatres . We also did a really interesting walking tour all about its history including the music history so that made me see it in a new light .