Manchester with teen

[Castlecould]

Hi all
I received a weekend hotel break in Manchester as a present this Christmas and planning on taking dd(14). Can anyone suggest things to do, see etc. She likes old bookshops, quirky places and art galleries as do I, but I also like nice walks, museums, and shops so any recommendations would be great.

The northern quarter and Afflecks palace

Car or public transport?

@TheTurn0fTheScrew

Car or public transport?

Public transport. Travelling by train and staying in a hotel near the station. We are fine travelling about using public transport.

If you fancy something a bit different The Pankhurts' House and Mrs Gaskell's house are open on Sundays. There's not loads at each, but they're really near to each other so you could do both in the same morning. They're by the University and there's lots of nice lunch places there.

There are lots of really instagrammable cafes everywhere if that's her thing. Black Milk is my 14yo DD's favourite.

If you’re mooching about, Central Library and the John Rylands libraries are beautiful buildings to have a look inside. The Whitworth Gallery is lovely, as are Manchester Museum and the Museum of Science and Industry. Mackie Mayor is great for lunch.

Speaking of Instagrammable, the John Rylands library on Deansgate is stunning and well worth a wander round.

x-posted!

This will be a great weekend. Definitely recommend a quick look at the John rylands library. It's like something from a fairy tale. Agree re the northern quarter, I'm sure there's some lovely old bookshops around there but there are definitely some lovely cafes for you both to enjoy too. Museum wise there's the museum of science and industry but I'll be honest it's been a while since I've been. The whitworth gallery reopened a few years ago and is beautiful. Great gift shop too. Over in Salford quays (tram is easy from the city centre) there's the Lowry and it's gallery, then also the imperial war museum north.

Enjoy! You'll have a lovely time.

Definitely John Rylands library. The cathedral for gorgeous architecture, too.

Slightly outside there's the Peel Park museum & art gallery that has a mock Victorian street. You can get the tram to The Lowry & Imperial War Museum.

Manchester museum & MOSI are great, too.

The murals in the Northern Quarter, Central Library, John Rylands, People Museum, MOSI,.

Shops - Fred Aldous on Williamson Sq if she likes art / craft supplies, There is also a camera shop and the best cycle shop in the country (Adventure Peddlers), Leaver St has a couple good charity / Vintage shops and quirky shops of things, Back Tib St as a small arcade of Artists studios, The Chinese Art Centre is good for a look around - it is near the Art Gallery.

The Witworth Art Gallery has loads of really brilliant events - also the award winning glass architectural extension has an amazing cafe / restaurant.

Mackie Mayor in the Northern Quarter us a lovely old market building and has a great atmosphere.

*has

Sorry for the late reply but thank you all so much for the recommendations. It’s so much better to get personal recommendations than spending hours scrolling through Tripadvisor.
John Rylands, Northern Quarter and tram to The Lowry and museum sound perfect and I’ll check out the other suggestions and food places mentioned too.
Thanks!