Days out for teenagers near Manchester and Liverpool

Afflecks, previously known as Afflecks Palace, is a hip indoor market spread over four floors. Established in 1982, it’s a Manchester institution.

Arcade Club Bury is a gamer’s paradise. Set in a former mill, it is a vast celebration of the beat ‘em up, the shoot ‘em up and the platform game. There’s four entire floors of arcade machines, pinball, air hockey and more with a good mix of the latest releases and retro refurbs. This is the biggest arcade in Europe.

There are two very different Alderley Edges. One is a chi-chi town of footballers and wealthy socialites, the other – this one – is a red sandstone escarpment with amazing views over Cheshire and a hippyish vibe.

The National Trust tour is the only way to get inside the houses where John Lennon and Paul McCartney grew up.

Each tour is limited to 15 people so booking well in advance is required. After all, you are wandering around what used to be someone’s home, and a relatively modest home at that.

Beeston Castle perches atop a rocky crag, looking out over the surrounding Cheshire Plains.

The roar of the rides at Blackpool Pleasure Beach (and their accompanying screams) is the sound of Blackpool. With ten rollercoasters – more than any other UK theme park – it beats the competition on the adrenaline front.

Work as part of a team with friends, family or work colleagues and try to escape the room you’ve been locked in. Solve a series of puzzles, riddles and tasks to be granted your freedom. 

When it comes to days out with kids in the North West, Chester Zoo is the big one. Literally. There are over 30,000 animals – and more than 520 different species – spread across 130 acres. It’s one of the most highly-rated zoos in the country and its huge size means there is plenty of space for the creatures who call it home – you don’t get that slightly icky feeling of looking at sad animals in small enclosures.

Fluffy Fluffy Liverpool is part of a dessert café chain that began life in Toronto, Canada before expanding into the UK. It’s best known for its jiggly and airy soufflé pancakes – created by whipping egg whites into soft peaks and cooking them very slowly at a low temperature.

Graystone is Salford’s action-packed home of high-adrenaline sports. Skateboarding is the big deal here. Practise on all sorts of drops, ramps and bars or sign up for a group coaching session ran by passionate staff. As well as skateboarding, you can also go for BMX or scooters in the park area.

Grand Central is a leisure centre in Stockport. It’s best known for its swimming pool which has two slides but it also has a gym, exercise classes and a few basic spa facilities.

Perched by the canal in the picturesque village of Diggle, near Oldham, Grandpa Greene’s is best known for its award-winning homemade ice cream. It’s also a warm and inviting licensed cafe with glass fronted terraces and indoor dining. 

Catch the Hope Valley line train from Piccadilly to this picturesque Peak District village for a dip in Hathersage Swimming Pool, a heated lido built in the 1930s.

If you’re craving greenery but don’t want to stray too far out of the city, Heaton Park, on the Manchester-Bury border, is one of your best options.

If you’re looking for a pool with a waterslide in Manchester, you’ve got two options: Grand Central in Stockport and Hyde Leisure Pool (or Hyde Baths as it’s still known locally).

If you like the idea of skydiving but not so much the idea of jumping out of a plane, this could be for you. At iFLY Manchester Indoor Skydiving, you get the weightless, flying experience without having to launch yourself off anything – the wind lifts you up rather than gravity pulling you down.

Put down those phones, switch off your screens, and, er, stand in front of another one . . .  but this time in your own personal gamebox at Immersive Gamebox in Manchester Arndale.

This quayside location in Trafford Park was bombed heavily during WW2 so it’s especially appropriate that it was chosen as the home of the Imperial War Museum North. 

This indoor inflatable playground is an excellent way to tire out hyperactive kids on a rainy day and for that we thank them. The other fab thing about it is that adults are welcome too. Inflata Nation Manchester believes all ages can have fun bounding around and burrowing through ball pools. We can’t disagree.

Jodrell Bank is a landmark. On a clear day, you can see its Lovell Telescope from the top of almost any hill in the region. It’s also a landmark research institute at the forefront of modern astrophysics. And it’s a lovely day out.

Junkyard Golf is Manchester’s original crazy crazy golf. There are imitators and imposters but this was the city’s first day-glo, booze-fuelled, loud, throbbing take on the traditional seaside game for kids.

Kickair, an “indoor freestyle park” behind Victoria Station, is the kind of place that fills kids (and big kids) with glee. 

King Pins Manchester Arndale is ten-pin bowling royalty, and not just for the good customer service, clean, fresh decor and 12 full-size lanes. It’s the whole package with almost too many activities to list. Whether you’re hanging out with mates or taking the kids, there is plenty to keep everyone entertained.

With its glowing neon graffiti, low lighting, and hip hop soundtrack, Lane 7 in the Great Northern on Deansgate looks more like a punky 1980s nightclub than a wholesome, All American bowling alley.  

As well as bowling, there is fancy-pants bowling with neon zig zags. A bit of a cross between a new restaurant opening and Blade Runner. All the bowling is pretty sleek and shiny though with the standard graffiti décor.

Non-bowling entertainment includes just about everything that could possibly be construed as competitive with the exception of tiddlywinks.

Nothing shakes up the senses quite like a winter dip in the docks. Head to Mariners Wharf for all-year-round aquatic activities at Liverpool Watersports Centre including open water swimming, stand-up paddleboarding, kayaking, sailing, powerboating, and giant swan pedalo-ing. Go in the warmer months and there’s an Aqua Park too – basically a big inflatable playground in the water. 

Mosey down Mosley Street between Piccadilly Gardens and St Peter’s Square, and you can’t miss the Greek columns that flank the front of Manchester Art Gallery. It’s one of Manchester’s most visited cultural attractions thanks to its central location and extensive collection of historical and contemporary art.

Manchester Craft and Design Centre is a fantastic space to stroll around whether you’re there to buy or just to browse.

Manchester Museum reopened in February 2023 following a £15m transformation to make it more inclusive and more imaginative in how it tells its stories.

You can approach a visit to the Museum of Illusions Manchester in two ways. One – as an educational exploration of the physics, maths and artistic principles behind the optical illusions. Or two – as a chance to get a load of daft selfies of your friends/family in various states of wonder and amusement.

The Museum of Liverpool on Pier Head is an eclectic and diverse collection of Liverpool stuff and stories. Part of the National Museums Liverpool group, you’ll find everything from one of Villanelle’s stylish costumes from Killing Eve (as worn by local actress Jodie Comer) to a carriage from Liverpool’s overhead railway which you can climb aboard.

The National Cycling Centre is the home of bike brilliance with elite competitors zooming round the velodrome. It was the UK’s first indoor Olympic-standard cycling track and hosted the cycling events at the Commonwealth Games in 2002. As well as a state-of-the-art velodrome, there’s an international-standard BMX arena with the only eight-metre electric start hill in the world.

Where else but footy-mad Manchester to house the National Museum of the UK’s favourite sport? Explore the history of the beautiful game inside the unusual-looking Urbis building next to Manchester Victoria train station.

The Pankhurst Centre is the former home of Emmeline Pankhurst and her family. Open to the public on Thursday and Sundays, it’s now a museum dedicated to the story of the fight for women’s right to vote.

The People’s History Museum tells the story of the development of democracy in Britain. It’s the only museum in the UK that focuses on the revolutionaries, reformers, workers, voters, and citizens who believed in ideas worth fighting for, like equality, social justice and co-operation.

Quarry Bank Mill makes a change from the stately homes in pretty gardens National Trust blueprint. It’s an industrial gem but you’ll still find picturesque riverside gardens, woodland and rolling countryside.

If you love thrifting, vintage clothes, handmade jewellery, secondhand vinyl, charming curios, retro homeware, old comics, and the like, you will love Red Brick Market. It’s a huge warehouse carved up into 200+ intriguing little shops, all independently owned, and selling all manner of beguiling and beautiful items. 

Rock Over Climbing Sharston is the newest climbing centre from the respected Rock Over group – and it’s one of the friendliest, most colourful, and inclusive climbing spots around.

The centre offers a range of regularly-changing bouldering routes of all levels from very easy beginner routes which are graded as VB through to testing climbs of V7 and above.

The Royal Armouries Museum is definitely one to visit. A focus on weaponry may sound a bit dull, but this museum brings history to life in hands-on ways you’d never expect.

For spine-tinglingly close views of the huge planes landing and taking off at Manchester Airport, head to the Runway Visitor Park.

Sandcastle Waterpark is almost as much of a part of Blackpool’s South Shore scenery as the Pleasure Beach with primary-coloured tube slides protruding from the building in rather frightening-looking swirls like a marble run on steroids.

The Science and Industry Museum celebrates 250 years of innovation. Galleries showcase Manchester inventions, bring the noise and the danger of Cottonopolis to life and offer interactive exhibits where you can lift a Mini above your head or play old-school video games.

With 180m of downhill skiing and snowboarding, The Snow Centre is the UK’s longest indoor real snow slope. And though you can’t compare it to the glistening slopes of Chamonix, it offers enough action to make a day trip there a must for anyone interested in snowsports (or just larking about on a sledge).

Splash Park Huddersfield is another one of the municipal leisure centres done good. This fully-indoor water park has two daredevil slides for older kids with water features and a chance to splash about for younger visitors.

Splash World in Southport is an inclusive family-friendly water park. It offers a range of attractions but is perhaps more suited to younger splashers.

Tatton Park is a historic estate on the edge of Knutsford, home to an opulent neo-classical mansion, landscaped gardens, woodland, a farm, a huge deer park and a medieval Old Hall.

TeamSport Go Karting: Manchester Victoria is a high-octane experience that’ll turn even the mildest contestant into a speed demon.

As the name suggests, TenPin Manchester – Printworks is a bowling alley in the Printworks. It’s family-friendly by day and over-18s only after 9pm.

If you don’t want to stay in – or on – your lane, you can also try out beer pong, karaoke, air hockey, arcade games, American pool and table tennis. It’s decent value for a wide range of entertainment.

Total Ninja is part bouncy-castle on steroids, part warrior training ground. The venue is mainly divided into two parts: an inflatable park and a so-called Ninja Academy, both of which are included in the entry price. There is also a free toddler area for under 4s.

Urban Playground Manchester is the place to go for an adrenaline-fuelled, ultra-competitive night out. Located in Manchester Arndale, it brings together high-tech games with bars and big-name dining from gourmet burger brand The Butcher.

The Walker Art Gallery has housed Liverpool’s world-class art collection for over 130 years and includes everything from Renaissance masterpieces to big names of the 20th century. Some of the world’s most famous painters are represented here: Rubens, Rembrandt, Turner, Monet, Degas, Rossetti and Hockney.
The collection includes everything from Renaissance masterpieces to Impressionist and Pre-Raphaelite works with some of the world’s most famous painters represented: Rubens, Rembrandt, Turner, Monet, Degas, Rossetti and Hockney.

Waterworld is Facebook-famous – everyone’s been and everyone raves about it. It’s not cheap but when you compare it to theme parks like Alton Towers, it’s not bad value for a day out. The price includes at least three hours in the water and when it’s not so busy, you can stay as long as you want.

If you’ve never known the joy of flying over a lake on a rope swing and daring yourself to let go, get it on your bucket list, and then get yourself over to Wild Shore Delamere to tick it off.

If you’re looking for a fun way to get outside and get active, try Zip World Manchester at Heaton Park. It’s a chance to feel the breeze on your face and face your fears on a high-rope aerial adventure in the woods.

Zap Graffiti is one of Liverpool’s most unique art venues, focused on showcasing graffiti designs and even giving you the option to pick up a spray can yourself.