Manchester Ship Canal

During your Private Tour of Manchester in a Taxi, you will learn the history of the city from its very beginnings up to the present day from the comfort of a classic English taxi. The beauty of this tour is that it can be as bespoke as you like; you can be taken to any sites of particular interest you would like to see. On your tour, you will: 

Your tour begins at Castle Heritage Field, where the first human settlement in Manchester was recorded. Manchester is famous for its star-studded musical heritage and is the birthplace of The Stone Roses, Oasis, The Smiths and Take That. The Hacienda played a bit part in Manchester's rich musical history when it became famous after its involvement in the Manchester movement of the 1980’s and 1990’s. You'll be driven through the trendy neighbourhood of the Northern Quarter which is buzzing with restaurants, cafés and some of Manchester's most popular music venues. The Printworks is Manchester's go-to destination for food, drink, cinema and leisure, day or night, and it's based right in the heart of the city centre. Passing by Exchange Square, you'll hear that it was created after the IRA 1996 Manchester bombing. 

It's not just paper, textiles and cotton the city is famous for its role in computer science has grown over the years and it's the birthplace of Alan Turing, mathematician, computer scientist and codebreaker. See the effects of the industrial revolution and how and why The Bridgewater Canal connects Runcorn, Manchester and Leigh. 

Your Private Tour of Manchester in a taxi is a bespoke experience and one which will take you on a journey through the city's rich industrial, musical and cultural heritage.

Salford Quays is an area of Salford in Greater Manchester, close to the end of the Manchester Ship Canal. Salford Quays was previously the site of Manchester Docks and following the closure of the dockyards in 1982 became became one of the largest urban regeneration projects in the UK.

Your Private Walking Tour of Salford Quays will be led by a local expert. Your tour starts at the Lowry Centre home to theatre, exhibitions and events a charity committed to using performing arts to enrich people's lives.

Manchester, once an industrial powerhouse, is a major city in the northwest of England with a rich industrial history. During your Private Walking Tour of Salford Quays, you'll learn that it was one of the first urban regeneration projects in the UK. The Quays was originally part of the Victorian expansion of the Manchester Ship Canal which opened at the end of the 19th-century to provide improved services for the bustling world trade centre that was Manchester or Cottonopolis as it was known at the time. There's plenty of history to learn at The Quays, now a bustling area home to the Lowry shopping mall complete with a cinema and shops, the Imperial War Museum, Old Trafford, home to Manchester United, cafés, bars, restaurants and the Lowry Arts Centre home to a large collection of Salford-born LS Lowry (1887 - 1976). The Centenary Walkway which you'll visit, starts near The Lowry is a poignant point of interest with 24 stainless steel plaques each one telling the history of Salford docks and details of some of the 16,000 men who dug the canal and the hardships they endured while doing so.They were installed in 1994 to commemorate the 100 years of the opening of the Manchester Ship Canal by Queen Victoria and are the work of poet Su Andi. The BBC's first Big Screen was erected in Manchester and has become a permanent feature of Exchange Square. ITV now also have their base in Salford Quays. The area of Salford was depicted in many paintings by Laurence Stephen Lowry an English artist famous for painting scenes of life in the industrial districts of North West England in the mid-20th-century.

You'll hear stories of regeneration, hardship and celebration from your local expert who has lived and breathed the city making this Private Walking Tour of Salford Quays the best way to get to know the history of this bustling area.