Inflight Magazine of Brussels Airlines

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United Kingdom : Manchester - March 2010

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Manchester is one of the best places to be when there’s a spring chill in the air, with fabulous architecture and unmissable fashion, culture, food and drink. March sees the annual Manchester Irish Festival (5-21), the world’s longest Irish festival, take place across the city. Hazel Davies heads outside

Getting around

Manchester Airport is 15km from the city centre.

Train: During the day there are seven direct trains an hour to Manchester Piccadilly, which take 20 minutes. The service operates less frequently at night. Many trains also stop at Deansgate and Oxford Road. Tickets cost about €4/£3.
Taxi: A taxi from to the city centre costs about €25/£20. The journey generally takes between 20 and 30 minutes.
Tourist information: The main office is in the Town Hall Extension Building, Lloyd Street (tel. , visit manchester.com).

NORTHERN QUARTER

By far the coolest place to be in the city centre, the Northern Quarter is where Manchester’s heart beats. Full of funky shops, cafés and businesses, it’s the north at its creative best.

Culture vultures – Head to the Richard Goodall Gallery (59 Thomas Street) for a taste of contemporary art. Prints and posters are on sale alongside exhibitions of everything from John Lennon drawings to sculpture and music-festival art.

Must eat – Nexus Art Café (Dale Street, tel. ) is a not-for-profit, community arts space. It has a really informal vibe, with mismatched chairs, books, games and random acts of art dotted around. Its café stocks fair trade, organic and locally sourced produce.

Shop til you drop – The nearby Junk Shop (2 Dale Street) epitomises the bohemian vibe of the Northern Quarter. Stocking sustainable and creative fashion in a super-cool setting, it’s a shop to while away an afternoon in.

SPINNINGFIELDS

Manchester’s ever-expanding modern quarter boasts cutting-edge eateries and swanky office space.

Sleep soundly – Spend the night in Manchester’s most celebrated building, the historic Free Trade Hall, now the five-star Radisson Edwardian Hotel (Peter Street, tel. , radissonedwardian.com, rooms from €90/£80). The Sienna Spa, in the basement, is the perfect place to unwind after a heavy day’s shopping.

Culture vultures – The absorbing People’s History Museum (Left Bank, Spinningfields) has undergone a massive revamp and now sits in its new home with a Labour History Archive and Study Centre, Textile Conservation Studio, corporate facilities, café and shop.

Must eat – Most of the options in Spinningfields are chains, but you can do worse than head to Carluccio’s (3 Hardman Square, ) for Italian cuisine and a good range of wines.

CHORLTON

Historically, Chorlton was a village on Lancashire’s southern border with Cheshire, and it retains this village feel, with proper East-Side flair.

Sleep soundly – Chorlton might be super-boho, but for a taste of the traditional head to Abbey Lodge (501 Wilbraham Road, , abbey-lodge.co.uk, rooms from €51/£45). It’s a cosy Edwardian house with ensuite rooms and reserved elegance.

Culture vultures – Monday night is comedy night at quirky Iguana Bar (115- 117 Manchester Road). Hosted by local legend Des Sharples, it features both up-and-coming and established comics.

Must eat – Leo’s (356 Barlow Moor Road, ) is one of Manchester’s most popular restaurants. Eat outside in the spring and summer months and take advantage of the everchanging, open-kitchen Italian fare.

Must drink – You can’t really talk about Chorlton without mentioning Dulcimer (567 Wilbraham Road). Rustic and laid-back, this venue hosts regular music events and is the top hangout for Manchester’s folk-scenesters. A wide range of bottled beers and coffee make it the ideal place to go to avoid the Saturday-night city revellers.

HEATON MOOR

Want to see how the other half live? Hop in a cab to Heaton Moor. A leafy suburb full of Victorian architecture and unexpected cafés, it’s a great destination for a relaxing weekend.

Sleep soundly – at the Waterside Hotel, just west of the famous Heaton Moor Golf Club (Wilmslow Road, , watersidehotel.co.uk, rooms from €40/£35). With leisure facilities just steps from your room, including two Jacuzzi spas and an 80ft indoor heated pool, it’s the perfect, luxurious way to soak up the city’s surroundings.

Must eat – Check out the €5,70/£5 weekend veggie breakfast at Town Café (60 Heaton Moor Road, tel. ), a cosy hangout that transforms into a candlelit rendezvous by night.

Must drink – For a sophisticated night out, Heaton Moor regulars file into The Orangery (54 Heaton Moor Road), a contemporary wine bar with an evening menu of innovative English cuisine.

Compiled by Hazel Davies