manchester walking tour self guided

A Free & Self-Guided Manchester Walking Tour

By: Author Sophie Nadeau

Posted on Last updated: 20th September 2022

Categories England , walking tour

Last Updated on 20th September 2022 by Sophie Nadeau

Best known for its countless canals, industrial past, and sheer size (in both population as well as area covered) , Manchester is one of the major cities of Northwest England. Here’s a free and self-guided Manchester walking tour you’ll want to follow…

After all, it’s here in Manchester where you’ll discover intrigues such as the first free public library in the UK, as well as a museum that explains that it was here in Manchester where the atom was first split in 1919. And thanks to its wealth of train, bus, and air links to the rest of Europe and beyond, it couldn’t be easier to book a visit to this bustling and busy metropolis.

Manchester Walking Tour: tips, tricks & practical advice

Manchester piccadilly, roman fort mamucium ruins, science and industry museum, manchester art gallery, john rylands library, manchester town hall, albert square, st ann’s church, manchester cathedral, national football museum, explore the northern quarter, enjoyed reading this free and self-guided tour of rotterdam pin it now, read it again later:.

If you’re looking to visit Manchester, then there are a few things to know before you go. First things first, the city is great to visit all year round. Whether you want to enjoy the city in the sun during the summer or want to soak up the best Christmas Markets in Manchester in winter, there’s never any shortage of things to do.

For this walking tour, be sure to wear comfortable walking shoes and bring along a waterproof jacket or umbrella. Like the rest of the UK, the weather in Manchester can be unpredictable, windy, and rain is always a possibility!

For football fans, aside from the football museum, there is perhaps a no better way to experience Manchester’s football scene than by going on this guided tour of Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium. 

While the city has plenty of accommodation thanks to its sheer size, in order to secure the best deals and prices, you’ll want to book your stay well in advance. Check here for the best accommodation in Manchester .

If you’re looking to get another perspective of Manchester, then consider this canal cruise. Finally, fans of the hit TV show, Coronation Street will be delighted to know that this one hour tour includes a fully guided tour of the external set of Coronation Street.

Walking time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Distance covered: 3.6 miles

If you’re visiting the city from the rest of Europe  (and even when visiting from the rest of the UK, including my home city of Exeter where the flight is six hours less, and up to £200 cheaper than the exorbitant train fares!) , then you’ll likely arrive in Manchester via its international airport.

Trains from the airport to the city centre are fairly inexpensive and the journey time is generally less than half an hour.

When it comes to Manchester Piccadilly itself, the station’s roots date all the way back to the 1840s, though the station has only held the name ‘Manchester Picadilly’ since 1960.

Today, the rail station serves a staggering 24 million passengers on an annual basis. Nearby, you’ll find sites such as the Alan Turing memorial and the Vimto Statue (yes, this larger than life-sized sized sculpture is a real thing!)

The history of Manchester dates back millennia. So much so, that during Roman times, Manchester was established as the ‘Mamucium’ fort. Established in around 78 CE, at one point, this heavily guarded settlement would have housed around 500 men along the River Medlock.

For those who are looking to learn a little more about Manchester’s rich history and past, this book will reveal all of the insider secrets you never knew about one of the largest city’s in England (and how the Manchester of today came to be) . Back in the city itself, if you head to the Mamucium Ruins, you’ll discover the remains of a fortified wall close to a railway bridge.

Steps away from the Roman ruins, it’s hard to miss the impressively large free-to-visit museum. Situated within a set of former warehouses and factories, you could easily spend several hours wandering around the Science and Industry Museum and learning about how famous residents of Manchester have accelerated human discovery and innovation in various ways over the years.

Set across several buildings, the Museum is perfect for all ages and is easily one of the best rainy day activities that Manchester has to offer. Highlights of the cultural learning space include the world’s oldest surviving passenger railway station as well as plenty of interactive displays.

Housed within three inter-connected buildings (two of which date from the 19th-century and are designed by acclaimed architect Sir Charles Barry) , Manchester’s Art Gallery is publicly owned and free to visit. Open on a daily basis, the museum counts some 25,000 objects and works of art among its collections.

Of note are the thematic displays in various rooms and the plethora of artwork by some of the city’s most famous artists over the years. Some of the most famous artwork to be featured in the Art Gallery in Manchester include works by L.S. Lowry and by J.M.W Turner.

Easily one of the most beautiful libraries in England, you can’t visit Manchester without paying a visit to the John Rylands Library. After all, a trip here is easily one of the best things to do in Manchester!

Open on a daily basis, the library is free to visit (though donations are always welcome) . Perhaps what will surprise you the most about a trip to this bibliophile paradise is that there’s so much more to see than simply just the reading room.

Instead, there’s room after room with book-focused exhibitions, works of art, and intricate architecture to admire. There’s even a stunning staircase that’s reminiscent of a Harry Potter novel!

Oh-so-Victorian and Neo-Gothic in architecture, Manchester’s town hall stands in pride of place in the very heart of the city. It’s also here in December, in a central square in front of the Town Hal, where one of the city’s biggest Christmas markets takes place on an annual basis.

Though the interior is currently being renovated as part of a wider project, it’s worth noting that the interior of the hall is often used as a replica for the Houses of Parliament! Of particular note is the Great Hall, which features stunning frescoes by Ford Madox Brown.

The only place left in the city where you’ll find early surviving tombstones, St Ann’s Church was consecrated in the early 18th-century. At this time, i.e. prior to the Industrial Revolution, Manchester was a tiny and rather insignificant town populated by many a timber-framed building and cobbled lane.

Estimates suggest that, during the early 1700s, Manchester had as few as 10,000 residents. Of course, all of this changed with the introduction of cotton mills and the like a little more than a century later.

St Ann’s Church remained in the heart of it all, staying largely unchanged as trees were planted in the nearby square to mimic the grand squares of London and even when newer buildings were constructed around it.

As the population grew, so did the number of churches in the city. However, while St Ann’s can still be visited today, many of the newer churches were demolished, including St Matthew’s, Campfield.

In the historic district of the city, Manchester Cathedral is easily one of the most beautiful ecclesiastical buildings that England has to offer. Dating all the way back to the 15th-century, though little is known of the prior churches that most likely sat where the current one now stands.

Archaeological evidence suggests that a Saxon church probably stood in situ as early as 700 CE. Step in this large ecclesiastical building today and highlights include several stunning stained glass windows and a rather impressive Rood Screen.

A walk around guide can be purchased for a nominal fee once inside Manchester Cathedral. Visit during the early months, step just outside the main entrance, and you’ll soon spy a beautiful cherry blossom that’s one of the best places to see the blooms during the spring!

Free to visit for Manchester residents (and varying prices for visitors- for example, adult £10, child £5) , the National Football Museum is open every day of the week and may well be of interest even if you’re not an avid footie fan. Once located in Lancashire, England’s national museum of football displays all sorts of football-related memorabilia.

Best-known as Manchester’s hippest district, the trendy Northern Quarter of the city is filled with coffee shops, street art, and plenty of independent stores selling everything from records to vintage clothing.

Highlights of this Manchester district include the ever-so-secretive speakeasy-style bar, The Washrooms and spotting all of the bee-themed art around the place. The Northern Quarter doubled for New York in the hit TV show The Crown .

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Manchester Self-Guided Walking Tour City Centre

Manchester walking tour: a self-guided adventure through time and culture.

Greetings, fellow explorers! I'm Jake, a history buff and world traveller. Welcome to my meticulously curated self-guided tour around the pulsing heart of Manchester. Whether you're a first-time visitor or a seasoned Mancunian, this city has a treasure trove of stories waiting to be discovered, and there's no better way to uncover them than this unique walking journey.

Manchester's Mosaic: From Vimto to Roman Fortress

Our adventure begins at the sweet monument of Vimto, kicking off our tour with a bit of Manchester’s iconic heritage. As we follow a detailed Manchester city centre walking map, we'll explore the city from its quirky roots to its ascent as a contemporary metropolis. We'll trace the scars of Manchester's industrial past etched into its canals and storehouses, and delve into the city's pivotal roles in culture, art, music, and sports.

Highlights and Hid den Gems: A Walk Around Manchester City Centre Like No Other

This tour is not your typical free walking tour Manchester usually offers. This self-guided expedition offers a more affordable and flexible way to uncover the city's splendours, such as the majestic Manchester Town Hall, the enchanting John Rylands Library, the historic Midland Hotel, and the dramatic Royal Exchange Theatre. We'll also delve into tales of revolution and resilience at the site of the IRA Bomb, and wind down our tour near Castlefield, my personal favourite spot for selfies and casual strolls, at the Roman fortress.

Your Manchester Companion: Insider Tips, Photo Opportunities, and More

This isn't just a walk - it's your personalised Manchester guide. It brims with insider tips and recommendations, encapsulates historical narratives, and is packed with photo opportunities. You get to set the pace, soak in the city's charm, and follow your curiosity wherever it leads. The beauty of this tour is its flexibility. We provide a recommended route, but feel free to take detours and discover at your pleasure.

A Journey Through Time: The Best of Manchester Guided Tours

If you're looking for the quintessential Manchester guided tour, you're at the right place. While this tour might not be 'free' in the traditional sense, it offers more value and flexibility than you'd typically find in a free walking tour. Trust me, you'll end up spending less here than you'd usually tip on those tours!

This activity includes:

A lot of walking!

History and stories

Sackville Gardens

Roman ruins

Alan Turing

Manchester Town Hall

John Rylands Library

Midland Hotel

Royal Exchange Theatre

Raves and  Revolutions

Hidden Gems

Ready to start your Manchester adventure? Purchase the tour here and you'll receive an email with further instructions (don't forget to check your spam!). Download the app, lace up your walking shoes, and prepare to step into Manchester's rich tapestry!

The Best Manchester Walking Tours, 3 Incredible Routes

Interactive walking tours of manchester, bring the city to life..

• CityDays brings an immersive new way to have a walking tour in Manchester
• Discover Manchester's historic landmarks, secret sights & hidden gems
• Solve fun challenges & puzzling clues to unlock your way
• Optional breaks at top-rated pubs, bars and cafes
• Interactive private tour, you and your team, at your own pace
• Full money back guarantee. We know you'll love it

What to expect on a CityDays Manchester Walking Tour

Don't have a great time? Simply let us know why and we'll refund you in full.

Find Your Perfect Manchester Walking Tour

Each walking tour explores a different area of Manchester, find the route that suits you best or work your way through! All bookings are fully flexible, alter your booking freely.

Heart of the Hive

The rebllious spirit of the worker bee… more

Northern Quarter Nooks

Art born from industry… more

Through the Ages

Travel from ancient Manchester to discover the city's northern soul… more

Clues don't require any prior knowledge and are made up of two parts:

1) Obscured directions that make reference to the city around you. Unravel their meaning and be guided by your surroundings.

2) A puzzle to be solved once you've followed the directions, search nearby to find your answers.

CityDays aim for an enjoyable, just-the-right-amount, level of difficulty that is inclusive for all! Help messages are available should you need a bit of support.

Guided by clues sent to your phone

• Receive snippets of history, quirky facts and intriguing stories about the areas you visit.
• Pub/cafe breaks along your hunt, all totally optional and some with discounts on food & drinks.
• Make memories at locations along the way, get inspiration from previous teams and share a clever snap!
• Go at your own speed, or go for top spot on the game leaderboard.

Discover Manchester as it evolved from Roman ruins through the industrial revolution and into a city of northern soul.

The Secret City's tours will take you on an interactive journey around its must-sees and little-known secrets, revealing every side of the historic city. All you need is a phone and you'll be good to go!

Manchester Walking Tour Reviews

The great things our customers have to say about CityDays Manchester Walking Tours

Wonderful way to explore, Nottingham next!

Mayo for Sam

Great afternoon of puzzles and fun.Everyone enjoyed and even those of us who know London still discovered new things & …

You got snacks?

This is the second one of these we have done, we love them. Great day out and takes you places you've not been before. …

We had a great time. Got stuck on one clue when it said look right not left, but worked it out in the end. We took a fe…

Definitely Maybe

Excellent experience. Really quick messaging and challenging but fun clues

Myself and my partner really enjoyed this activity. I'm from Scotland and he is from outer London and both found it a g…

Team London birthdays

We had a really great time! Really made my birthday!

Such a unique and fun experience! It really allows you to see parts of the city that you wouldn’t necessarily visit! In…

Ru and Coel

It was amazing getting to tour all the little details of Sydney while having an underlying story and puzzles to solve! …

Princess Squeak & the Silly Goose

Such good fun, clever clues, and the trail took us to see parts of York we have never seen before! Loved it!

The Band on Tour

A really fun day out. Got to see lots of the city and learn some interesting facts too!

Blakemores on Tour

Excellent way to see the city

Joe’s adventure squad

A great way to explore Greenwich, we all really enjoyed it! Fun and challenging clues to keep us guessing, highly recom…

great way to explore the city we have just moved to!

Team Hammond

We had a great experience! Cambridge is our local City, but we were amazed at how much we'd never seen within such a sm…

The RamSchals

Great day out with kids (age 10-12). We loved it!

Woolpack Meadows explores

What a fantastic opportunity to have fun and explore York. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you

Toiyub + Amber

Amazing experience, it’s something different to do and you get to explore the history of Manchester. I would highly rec…

Excellent way to discover parts of London we did t know existed even as a Londoner and fun with friends

We had an absolutely fabulous afternoon working out the clues and searching high and low for the answers!! We'll defini…

Ready to see lots of smiling faces? Read all our customer reviews →

Ready? Book your Manchester Walking Tour today

Discover the manchester of old and new.

Play an active role in revealing how Manchester became what it is today, immersing yourself in its Roman roots and unravelling enigmatic directions and riddles as you are taken on a journey around its sites and through its evolution over time.

Take control of your own sight-seeing, stopping and starting at your leisure and progressing at your own pace. The perfect way for groups of all ages to see the city.

Expect More From Your Manchester Sightseeing Tours

We do more than just give you directions to cool hidden gems in Manchester. 

Our Manchester self-guided walking tours are designed so you can independently explore landmarks, areas, pubs, restaurants and more at your own pace. 

By providing you with riddles, puzzles and clues based on your surroundings, we ensure you’re interacting with the city around you as you take it all in. 

Get The Most Out of Walking Tours Manchester

You’ll notice that our walking tours in Manchester include recommended rest stops at pubs , cafes and restaurants at convenient locations along the route.

That’s because we want you to get the most out of your adventure! 

We encourage you to find a new favourite local or dip inside a place you’ve walked past a million times before because it enriches your experience of a city. We’re fussy about finding businesses that we consider to be hidden gems or must-visits, and we endeavour to select independent businesses that help stimulate the local economy.

Of course, if you’re not thirsty or raring to go - you can always skip your stop and carry on exploring!

The Best Self-Guided Walking Tours in Manchester

Fall in love with Manchester’s fables, foibles and facts with CityDays’ Manchester walking tours! 

Think of Manchester’s history like a thousand-layered cake; each slice uniquely formed by its former and current compelling characters, secret sites and hidden secrets. From Celtic tribes warring with Romans to modern inventions and scientific successes, Manchester has seen it all: and with CityDays’ walking tours, so can you! 

Discover what turned this place from the Latin name for “breast-like-hill” into a pivotal pioneer's hometown by going on a walking tour of Manchester that goes beyond the typical sites.

Our self-guided Manchester walking tours deliver fascinating facts while leading you around the city’s most intriguing suburbs. The only way to uncover them is by solving our puzzles and experiencing a trail for yourself. Here’s more info about which trail might suit you best…

Manchester Walking Tour: (1) Northern Quarter Nooks

Fitting for a place where textiles were once exported to every corner of the globe, this Manchester walking tour takes you through the historic Northern Quarter and its tightly woven history. 

By undertaking this self-guided walking tour, you’ll discover poetry in the streets, a perch for exotic birds, and what might be the most remarkable library in the English-speaking world. 

Answer riddles, solve head-scratching puzzles and get your step count above average before sitting down to a well-earned pint as you take on Manchester’s best walking tours for people of all ages!

Find out more here .

Manchester Walking Tour: (2) Heart Of The Hive

One of the best Manchester sightseeing tours, Heart of The Hive takes curious minds and intrepid adventurers through Manchester’s city streets.

Walk your way through history as you uncover central Manchester’s curious characters and some obscure historical nooks by undertaking Heart of The Hive, a Manchester walking tour that goes beyond the obvious. 

Heart of The Hive is a curated trail that uncovers Manchester’s most fascinating landmarks while participants solve clues, decipher riddles and explore the heart of the city. Along the way, you’ll meet Manchester’s pioneers - including a long-forgotten cookery book author - and even discover some unlikely final resting places. 

Heart of The Hive is one of the best Manchester walking tours for tourists and locals alike due to its varied content and central location.

Manchester Walking Tour: (3) Through The Ages

One of the best Manchester walking tours for exploring the city’s ancient and modern history, Through The Ages is a sightseeing tour that crams a staggering amount of Manchester’s historical timeline into a fun yet challenging day out. 

From Romans to computer scientists, Through The Ages takes you around Spinningfields and the edge of the Gay Village in style. Uncover history while deciphering cryptic clues and taking in everything from monuments to gorgeous gardens. 

Find out more here . 

Find Manchester Hidden Gems

If you’re on the hunt for the best hidden gems in Manchester , you’ve come to the right place. Our walking tours of Manchester divulge some of the best-kept secrets and hidden nooks in the city - even ones that are hiding in plain sight.

Don’t believe us? Here are just three hidden gems in London (that we’re willing to share)…

Mackie Mayor

Mackie Mayor in Manchester is a vibrant culinary hub housed in a beautifully restored Victorian market building. This food hall offers a diverse range of gastronomic delights, from artisan coffees and craft beers to gourmet burgers and vegan delicacies. 

The airy, communal seating under the stunning glass roof creates a lively atmosphere, making it a popular spot for both locals and tourists. 

Unique to Mackie Mayor is its commitment to sustainability, with many vendors using locally sourced ingredients and eco-friendly practices. 

Victoria Baths

Victoria Baths, often referred to as Manchester's "Water Palace," is a beautifully preserved Edwardian building. Guided tours offer an intimate look at its stunning architecture and historic pools. The venue, no longer used for swimming, now hosts a variety of events, making it a unique and somewhat quirky destination for history buffs and architecture enthusiasts alike.

Chetham’s Library

Chetham's Library in Manchester, established in 1653, is renowned as the oldest public library in the English-speaking world. This historic gem, with its ancient books and time-worn oak shelves, offers a unique window into the past. It played a pivotal role in the intellectual life of Manchester, attracting figures like Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, who famously studied there. The library's rich collection and architectural beauty make it a significant cultural and historical landmark.

Manchester Walking Tour Questions

Yes, they are self-guided but with the help of a riddling, digital guide. You will receive messages to your phone providing you with cryptic directions, entertaining facts and help on request. This gives you the best of both guided and self-guided tours, allowing you to take things at your own pace and stop and start at your leisure, whilst also providing you with context, direction and a fun game to boot!

Yes, our tours are suitable for all ages and feature puzzles of various types and difficulties so that everyone can get involved. Cafe alternatives are available at rest-stops and there are hints for every clue, making our games fun for all the family!

All of our tours feature multiple in-built pub stops at great Manchester pubs, making them an ideal option for anyone looking for a treasure hunt pub crawl/stag/hen. On top of this, breaks can be taken from the game at any time. Whenever you see a pub you like the look of, head in and enjoy for as long as you want. The tour will be waiting for you whenever you are ready to continue.

Absolutely, our tours are perfect for team building and have been enjoyed by the likes of: BBC, Facebook, Amazon and Google, to name a few. Alongside our regular offerings, bespoke tours are also available (particularly recommended for large groups). Contact us at [email protected] to find out more.

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Best things to do and see in Manchester

Coming in as the United Kingdom’s third-most populous metropolitan area with 3.3 million inhabitants, Manchester is host to many interesting and exciting landmarks and has become a hot spot for tourism in England. Located on the western side of the country, it is the home of one of England’s most dedicated football teams, Manchester United, along with a long list of musical acts, like Oasis. Whether it’s your first trip to here or you are returning for another vacation, this city has so much to discover and you should try doing a free walking tour with a local guide who can help you get to know you all of its hidden-charms. 

With your guide’s assistance , you will be introduced to so much more inside information about Manchester’s local history .  You will be able to understand the layout of the city as soon as you do the tour and your guide will definitely give you some great recommendations for what to do, see and eat for the rest of your trip . Check out the free tours available that will take you to iconic places in Manchester like the “Theater of Dreams” for United, Old Trafford Stadium, Town Hall, the modern architecture of the Lowry, the John Rylands Library, the Manchester Museum, and the Manchester Art Gallery downtown. Take a stroll over to Castlefield Urban Heritage Park, learn about devastation of the city in the Imperial War Museum North, and about its rich textile history in Lancaster House. 

All of the free walking tours in Manchester have been reviewed and rated by other tourists like you. They have evaluated the tour guide’s work and also the route of the tour, this way you can find which walking tour is best for you. The tours are available in different languages and at different points of the day, like the morning, afternoon, and evening . Nearby cities that have a guided free walking tour on GuruWalk are Belfast, Edinburgh, and Glasgow.

Want to share your culture with travelers from all the world?

Free walking tour near manchester, others cities to visit after manchester, where are you traveling to.

A Street Art Manchester Walking Tour

A Self Guided Manchester Street Art Walking Tour

As a hub of Manchester’s thriving cotton industry, The Northern Quarter was once all about work. Now this hipster friendly part of the city is all about creativity and play. It’s a paradise for drinkers and the bars and restaurants beckon you in to hang out, eat and dance. But I’m beguiled by something else. The street art can be found in unexpected places like under your feet and in the closed shutters of shops. You can discover it in a street art Manchester walking tour or you can explore it for yourself, like I did…    

Anthony Burgess; an enduring face of Manchester Street Art

Manchester street art is an ever changing scene

Like any vibrant street art district the landscape in Manchester’s Northern Quarter can change as fast as the artists buy new sprays. The taggers alter it in seconds with a name scrawled on a wall. Some buildings are designated installations and artists are invited to repaint them every few weeks or months. But some of the most ambitious murals endure. You can find them all on a self-guided or guided street art Manchester walking tour.

Manchester is by no means the street art capital of the UK. Cities like Bristol and London are teaming with murals painted by internationally famous street artists and have more extensive permanent areas for street artists to paint. Bristol hosts the annual street art and graffiti festival Upfest and if you take a Where the Wall tour of the city the Banksy’s start to roll in within the first few minutes.

Banksy – Girl with the Pierced Ear Drum – Street Art in Bristol

Accessible street art Manchester walking tour

But these cities are huge and require an investment of time to get around the artworks while Manchester has a compact area that can be accessed in a lunch hour or while you are waiting for a train at Piccadilly. You can join a guided group walk for under £10. And there are some unexpected and fun artistic touches related to the history of the city, like poetry in the pavements and music in the walls.

Look up to drink in the street art, Manchester

Go directly to the Northern Quarter

Many of Manchester’s signature murals are packed into the Northern Quarter, and you can play a great game of stumble-upon starting at Piccadilly Gardens and wandering around. My first brush with the culture of street art Manchester comes on a busy road when I am trying to navigate myself to my rented apartment for the weekend. I look up from GoogleMaps and straight into the eyes of a dark, shadowy woman’s face, forced into a smile by the hands of an unseen person. It’s arresting and a little unsettling, and matches the heavy Manchester sky.

‘Sisyphus’ was produced for Manchester’s Cities of Hope project , launched in the Northern Quarter in 2016. Each artist taking part explored a social issue.  Axel Void looked at mental health and anxiety; his work inspired by Camus’ thoughts on an ancient Greek Myth concerning the punishment of Sisyphus by Zeus.

Sisyphus; a visible example of Manchester Street Art

Cities of Hope street art

Cities of Hope  effectively highlighted social injustices while raising money for Manchester charities; nine artists chose a social topic to highlight, matched with a local organization to help champion their work. Artist Case also explored mental health and worked with the charity “Back on Track” to paint a local who had made life changing steps. His portrait, on Cable Street, is a challenge to capture on my phone due to its size and positioning behind barriers. It takes me a while to capture and then another few minutes to process mentally. The Cities of Hope initiative is now being rolled out as a bi-annual project, with the Whitworth Gallery expected to showcase the work of a new generation of local artists mentored by established international street artists in 2020.

Like many others this work was commissioned for Cities of Hope Festival

I could do the whole street art Manchester walking tour for free just wandering around by myself but in the afternoon some friends and I enlist some expert help. After a quick chat about our interests, Peter O’Grady of Manchester Guided Tours heads straight for the Northern Quarter, giving us the history of Ancoats as we go. He quickly takes me off in a direction I wasn’t expecting; poetry. Poetry underfoot to be exact, in a trail by one of Manchester’s most famous sons. “Here we’ve got the not very auspicious start to a poem that goes right the way up the street,” Peter tells us. “It’s by Lemn Sissay who has got great connections with Manchester, and is currently Chancellor of Manchester University. You’ll see some of the letters are missing,” he sighs. “They go to all this trouble of getting a poem made, getting the bricks designed and making sure they have the right number of spaces, and then they just let workmen come along dig them up and lose the tiles.” He tells us he recently got in touch with Tim Rushton , the local artist who designed the font. “He came on a Northern Quarter walk with me and I showed him the poem. He knows where the letters were made.” Peter says he is hopeful it can all be put back together again, if they can convince the council to invest time and energy in the project once more.

Lemn’s letters have become dislodged

Soundbites art and music trail

Another art trail by Tim Rushton is more impossible to steal. Soundbites is a series of pictures implanted in the pavements in metal pates. It’s like a fun quiz where you have to work out what parts of the Manchester music scene each little graphic represents. We jump around the grids at Oldham Street and loudly shout out ‘Factory Records’ and ‘The Buzzcocks.’ Although if you go on bin day you might have to remove some refuse sacks to see all of them.

Would you guess this is Factory Records?

Could it be a Banksy?

I’m told Manchester has a Banksy, in Manchester Art Gallery . It’s also believed there’s a covered up Banksy mural in the city centre. And one day locals woke to a new painting on a substation at Tib Street they thought might be a Banksy. It turns out it wasn’t, but anyway, by the time I get to it, it had long been painted over. Instead a family is posing just near the site in front of a portrait of another Manchester great; the late Tony Wilson . Parisian Street Artist Akse, who specializes in street portraits in the city has painted a lifelike tribute to the Manchester music mogul, staring out from behind his glasses.

Fancy a dance Tony?

Sunday morning stroll of the street art in Manchester

After dancing the night away at the Northern Quarter jazz club Matt and Phred’s, I go out early the next morning to try and find more artworks. The Northern Quarter is still fast asleep after the Saturday night revelry. I start to photograph a series of shutters with art in bronze and gold that catch my eye. And then I move on to a portrait of a green woman.

“Beyoncé?” says a voice behind me. It’s coming from a white van. I cock my head and try and see the singer in the picture. If Beyoncé were green?

“Have you seen the Tony Wilson?” The driver asks. I peer through the window and tell him I have indeed come face to face with Tony.

“He loves to go around with his phone and take pictures of stuff.” he tell me. Tony Wilson? Isn’t he dead? This is getting weird. But the driver is talking about his friend, sitting next to him in the van. “You can follow him on Instagram,” he says, giving me his handle. “He’s got lots of this type of stuff on it.”

Manchester street art – when the shutters are down

Reimaging the street furniture

You can find dramatic portraits in the most ordinary places like Tank Petrol’s Anthony Burgess at Brightwell Walk car park, and the Outhouse Project at Stephenson Square which are former public toilets that act as an outdoor gallery. Most famously the latter site hosted a startling portrait of David Bowie created by Akse after the pop star’s death. But that’s gone now. That’s the trouble with street art, you have to be quick to catch it. The Outhouse gets repainted every three months; perhaps the girl and the bee I see in front of me will soon be a memory and a photograph on white van man’s Instagram account.

This way for the rest of the street art, Manchester

Manchester symbols on the street

The bee is everywhere. In the architecture, on the walls in the murals, in posters stuck onto windows. Peter tells me it traditionally a symbol of the city’s work ethic. In 2117 a new mural appeared on the Koffee Pot building on Oldham Street in the Northern Quarter by artist Russ Meehan in tribute to the 22 people killed in the Manchester Arena attack.

Meanwhile other Manchester symbols line the brick walls in mural form at Affleck’s. There were different murals originally but when the building was sold they disappeared too. In Mark Kennedy’s new works, commissioned for the market’s 30th anniversary, you can pick out everything from Vimto and Dangermouse to the Suffragettes who used to speak nearby as well as the cast of Coronation Street.

Manchester City FC mosaic at Afflecks

International statement art

The Manchester Street Art isn’t all locally inspired; Dale Grimshaw took part in Cities of Hope as a special guest and created a tribal portrait on Spear Street dedicated to those people fighting for independence in West Papua, and Hyuro’s war children ‘war children’ at the car park on Brightwell Walk is a moving tribute to children who don’t have a childhood.

Dale Grimshaw’s guest tribal portrait is one of the permanent features of Manchester Street Art

Taggers mark their territory

Many street artists begin by tagging – scrawling their name or crew in a basic, unartful way. It’s what most of us think of as graffiti. Norwegian street artist Martin Watson makes art of this by creating a man spraying leaves onto a tree in the form of tags, with the tags in multiple shades of green. Perhaps it’s only expected that this whole work of art should be scrawled over by a tag. Ruined? It depends what you consider to be art. Personally it makes me smile and reminds me that street art is a complicated eco system.

Martin Watson Tree of tags in Manchester

Works of Manchester street art big and small

The huge work of art on Church Street was painted by a collective of four artists called Subism. It’s best seen from some distance; in fact it’s so massive you can’t unsee it. On the micro level there are small artistic touches everywhere, like the pretty tiled street signs by Majolica Works that are also useful or navigating round the quarter; blue tiles with white send you east to west, with white tiles with blue writing on streets linking north to south.

We finish our walking tour at Manchester Craft and Design Centre which used to be the Smithfield market. There’s a little exhibition space and lots of art works to buy but it can’t match up to the prosaic works of art and their juxtaposition with real life out on the streets. Like the mural of a bus next to a bus stop with a real bus going nowhere. The giant dustpan and brush sculpture New Broom by George Wylie is made real by the bags of rubbish waiting to be collected as a road sweeper trundles past. That may not be everyone’s idea of art but it is Manchester’s Northern Quarter. Cultural but unpretentious. Raw but real.

Which bus would you like to catch?

More attractions for families 

Looking for more places to go in Manchester? Take the kids to sports mecca – the National Football Museum.   Or organise your own Manchester sporting weekend.    

Or if you want a further fix of art try out this virtual tour of London galleries . 

About the author

Kirstie Pelling

Kirstie is the Editor of The Family Adventure Project. A professional writer and poet, she's the creative and journalistic force behind many of the stories and features published here. She's a co-founder and co-director of The Family Adventure Project and also works as the #poetinmotion producing and performing poetry for print, video and live performance.

I love the way this bring together so many elements of Manchester – its industrial heritage, its creative present, its music, poetry, politics, and the bees (I’ve been spotting photos of some of the new sculptures from friends who live here). And sounds like so much to see in a relatively compact area too, or as you wander from a to b. A city I really need to get back to before long. #citytripping

This is great! I am sure you had a fun time checking these out. I have done a graffiti tour of Tel Aviv and thoroughly enjoyed it. The guide really helped to explain the meaning behind some of the pieces. #citytripping

Mr Havekids and I only recently visited Manchester, we loved it, its a light and airy city and so easy to get round with the trams. Must admit though we didn’t see any of this fab wall art as we had a tight agenda, definately a reason to go back soon methinks!

Wow! Thanks for posting this – beautiful pics of inspired art. I loved the variety of subjects and styles. Our family travels are currently taking us away from the UK, but if we have an opportunity to do a similar tour in another city, I think we will take it!

[…] reading: Enjoy a tour? Read about our self guided street art tour of Manchester or Bristol. Or if you are in the Gloucestershire area you might enjoy some active family adventures […]

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Manchester Street Art: Self-Guided Walking Tour

Table of Contents

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As a dedicated street art fan, it’s no surprise I was excited to spend a month in Manchester at the end of last year. The Manchester street art wasn’t the only reason I was visiting but it was a major draw. This colourful, quirky city is one of my favourites in England .

MANCHESTER ESSENTIALS Accommodation:  Booking.com // Hostelworld Activities:  GetYourGuide / Viator Getting there: Air ( Skyscanner ) train ( Trainline ), bus ( Busbud ) Getting around: Foot / bus / tram

Read next: how to spend a weekend in Manchester

Interested in UK street art ? Read my other guides:

• Glasgow street art guide
• Bristol self-guided street art walking tour
• Camden street art guide
• Where to find the Brick Lane street art, Shoreditch

Manchester street art map

Manchester street art tour

If you’re taking a quick trip, you might want to take a street art tour with a local expert (£10) . This is a good option to reduce the hassle of following Google pins then discovering the mural you’re looking for has been painted over!

Who are the top Manchester street artists?

• Akse – Manchester’s most famous street artist has been spraying murals around the city since 1992. Originally from France, he now calls Manchester home and the Northern Quarter is brighter for it!
• C215 – Christian Guémy creates lifelike portraits of people covering topics including homelessness
• Case – Andreas von Chrzanowski is a German artist who explores movement through art, often creating murals of hands
• Hyuro – the late Tamara Djurovic was an Argentinian street artist known for her faceless depictions of women, highlighting the issue of gender based violence
• Faunagraphic   – Sarah Yates creates jaw-dropping urban murals inspired by nature, often birds
• Nevercrew   – Swiss artists, Christian Rebecchi and Pablo Togni create huge murals examining the relationship between humankind and nature
• Tankpetrol – this Polish artist based in Manchester is known for his detailed stencil art
• Mateus Bailon  – inspired by the connection between humans and nature, this Brazilian artist is known for his colourful bird murals.

Where to find street art in Manchester

Two words: Northern Quarter! This colourful area isn’t known for famous Manchester landmarks but its independent spirit, quirky cafes and local businesses. Most of the Manchester street art can be found in this area, although there are a few notable murals in the Gay Village and city centre. Let’s go find them!

Read next: the best cafes in Manchester’s Northern Quarter

Follow my tried and tested Manchester street art route below, starting in the NQ…

Port Street

The first mural to see on Port Street is this detailed pair of hands painted an old red brick building. Head north on Port Street (towards Ancoats) and you’ll find yourself in an open space with a car park. Here you’ll find two impressive Manchester street art murals.

2023 update – the Ian Curtis mural is now removed. I’m leaving this photo here for the memories!

The Ian Curtis mural by Akse depicts the lead singer of Joy Division who took his life aged just 23. It was unveiled by his former bandmate, Peter Hook, in time for Mental Health Awareness Week in 2020. It aims to raise awareness of the crisis and encourage those in trouble to seek support. Just a few metres away is a beautiful bird mural (above right) by Mateus Bailon whose work takes inspiration from nature.

Newton Street

Not far from Port Street is this impressive bird mural by Faunagraphic AKA Sarah Yates. It’s been a famous feature of the Northern Quarter for 10 years now, making it one of Manchester’s oldest murals. It was commissioned by Converse for their Wall to Wall project in 2011 and painted across three days by Yates who was just 24 at the time. Overcoming the lack of diversity in the male-dominated street art business, she’s become one of the world’s top urban nature graffiti artists and now creates animal-themed murals around the globe.

Tariff Street

Just a few metres from the murals mentioned above is Tariff Street, another hub for Northern Quarter street art. This smoking man was created by artist, C215, who turns facial portraits into urban art. This particular Manchester mural linked to homelessness was created for the Cities of Hope festival in 2016. It was partly covered by scaffolding during my visit in October 2021 but hopefully that will change.

On the other side of Tariff Street is this enormous mural by Nevercrew . It shows the silhouettes of tiny people falling from a quartz crystal.

Cavell Street

I watched this piece of Northern Quarter street art being painted in October 2020. The artist is Liam Bononi , a Brazilian artist based in Liverpool. You can see one of his most famous murals near the Anglican Cathedral. Use my Liverpool day trip guide to plan your trip.

Stevenson Square

This mural isn’t quite street art: it appears on a Stevenson Square shopfront rather than a wall. Still, the bright colours and quirky imagery prompted me to snap a photo. Just a few metres away, you’ll see another important Northern Quarter mural…

Little Lever Street

This mural by Akse titled Enigma shows Manchester local Ste Wing who, like Akse, has Vietnamese heritage. It was created for the 50 Windows of Creativity project showcasing the work of local venues and businesses. You can download the app of the same name to find the 50 locations around the city. Proceeds go to the WeLoveMCR charity helping to improve the lives of Manchester people.

Little Lever Street / Bradley’s Court

Not far from the Akse piece above, you’ll find this huge mural of a woman in a red dress on the corner of Little Lever Street and Bradley’s Court. I found it by accident while passing through this quiet backstreet. A real hidden gem! Named Serenity , this mural by art duo SNIK is a tribute to women who stand up to injustice. It’s no coincidence that it’s so close to Stevenson Square where the suffragettes gathered 100 years ago.

Back Thomas Street

These striking animal images painted on black walls use just a couple of colours per mural. Spot tigers, rhino, chameleons and snakes on Back Thomas Street. They were created by Chilean artist, Otto Schade .

On Back Turner Street, this colourful mosaic depicts the late Frida Kahlo. Sadly, I couldn’t find evidence of who created her. This gorgeous yet hidden Manchester mural is partially eclipsed by some red bins beside What the Pitta! .

Tib Street / Thomas Street

Proving the street art in Manchester is dynamic, this location on Tibb Street is always changing. This lifelike mural of Captain Tom Moore was created by Akse in 2021 but has been changed several times since then. Go and see what you find!

Unlike some of the more serious Manchester street art telling tales of social injustice, these friendly frog murals add a pop of colour to Olivier Morosini hairdressers on Tib Street.

Church Street

This groovy image of two cosmic women on Church Street is one of Manchester’s oldest murals. Created by Subism Collective in collaboration with Red Bull, it’s been in place since 2011. Ten years is a long time for one image to withstand the elements, both natural and physical. Many murals in Manchester have been painted over or demolished with old buildings, yet this mural has stood the test of time.

Brightwell Walk

For more Northern Quarter Manchester street art, find this quiet square off Oak Street. The soldier mural titled ‘War impact in children lives’ by Hyuro was created for the Cities of Hope project, blending politics and surrealist sensibility. Next to it is a portrait of Anthony Burgess (author of a Clockwork Orange) by Manchester graffiti artist, Tankpetrol , originally from Poland. After your visit, visit nearby Manchester Craft and Design Centre to browse work by local artists.

High Street

Symbolising the plight of NHS workers, this poignant mural by Akse is an important one for 2020 and 2021. It depicts Manchester Royal Infirmary nurse Debra Williams with a halo, symbolising all that key workers have done during the last 18 months. Find it on the side of Sweet Mandarin restaurant on the corner of High Street and Copperas Street. Annoyingly, someone has scribbled on her mask. Perhaps Akse will be back to tidy it up.

Copperas Street

New in October 2021, this mural by Akse depicts the main character, Gi-hun, from Netflix sensation, Squid Game. Look closely and you’ll see he’s holding the Manchester bee. Find this mural on Copperas Street, just a few metres from the nurse mural on High Street.

Cross Keys Street

Leave the Northern Quarter and cross the ring road to find other Manchester graffiti spots. Just behind Ramona’s pizzeria, one of the coolest restaurants in Manchester , you’ll find impressive urban art on Cross Keys Street.

A mural by Phlegm   shows a whole city enclosed in a bottle. Beside it is a colourful bird mural by Mateus Bailon similar to the one on Port Street.

ZEN offices, Swan Street

German street artist, Case , created this powerful mural of a troubled-looking man to highlight mental health issues. This is another topical piece of Manchester street art created for the Cities of Hope festival, aiming to raise money for worthy causes. Find it on the side of the ZEN offices on Swan Street.

Faulkner House, Chinatown

Despite the fact I was running for a bus in the pouring rain, I stopped in my tracks when I passed this incredible bird mural on Faulkner Street. After doing some research, I learnt that street artist, Peachzz , spent five days painting this mural, all with a cracked rib. What a trooper! The project was two years in the making, inspired by traditional Chinese art. With Chinatown just down the road, it couldn’t be better placed. Keep an eye on Peachzz ‘s Facebook page to find more of her murals. She’s also responsible for some of the street art in Vienna, Austria .

Molly House, Gay Village

Some of the best Manchester street art outside of the Northern Quarter can be found in the Gay Village. The most impressive mural is this enormous lineup of LGBT icons on the side of the Molly House . Further down on Richmond Street, you’ll find a mural of Drag Race UK star, Divina De Campo. Sadly, the mural was vandalised but, guess what? Akse returned to clean it up. That Manchester spirit always prevails!

2023 update – I’m told there’s a fab new image in the Gay Village of ‘Lily Savage’, the alter ego of the late Paul O’Grady, painted to commemorate his life following his recent passing. Let me know if you find it! 

Everywhere – look for bees!

Since the bee is Manchester’s emblem , of course you’ll see it represented in the street art. The worker bee symbolises not just Manchester’s industrial past, but how the city came together during the catastrophic bombing at the 2017 Ariana Grande concert.

Bonus – catch an artist in motion

I was lucky to catch Liam Bononi painting the above mural on Cavell Street and I returned a few days later to see the finished piece. I’m told this mural has been changed since. The same thing happened when I spotted Akse (at least I think it was him) working on the Squid Game mural on Copperas Street. I came back later to photograph that one, too – am I dedicated to Manchester street art or what?

Thanks for reading!

I hope this blog enhances your trip. Don’t forget to use my Manchester street art map above if you get lost!

More street art guides:

• Vienna street art guide
• Visiting Wynwood Walls art district, Miami
• Street art guide to Oaxaca, Mexico
• Melaka street art, Malaysia
• Where to find street art in Penang, Malaysia
• Ipoh self-guided street art tour
• Street art in Woodstock, Cape Town
• Where to find street art in Singapore

More Northern England blogs:

• How to spend a weekend in Manchester
• The top Manchester days out for every type of traveller
• Where to find the best coffee in Manchester
• The coolest places to eat in Manchester for 2021
• 11 cheap eats in Manchester
• How to spend a weekend in the Lake District
• The ultimate Liverpool day trip from Manchester
• Things to do in winter in Liverpool

For more travel content, follow me on Instagram , Facebook , Twitter and YouTube .

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Rose is a solo traveller from the UK who has been on the road since 2015. She wants to show other women that solo travel isn't scary and doesn't have to be expensive! Rose has lived in Mexico, Canada and all over Asia, seeking out food, bubble tea and street art wherever she goes!

4 thoughts on “ Manchester Street Art: Self-Guided Walking Tour ”

thank you very much for your Street Art Guide to Manchester. We had a great time walking through the streets and searching for the paintings. The Google map was a big help for planning our tour, even though it took me a while to realize, that the pins on the map were not the exact location of the paintings. Unfortunately the house with the Ian Curtis mural doesn’t exist any more and the Captain Tom mural has been replaced. Maybe you could update your excellent guide with this so people don’t waste their time trying to find them 😉

BR from MCR Jörn

Hi Jörn, thanks for your message and glad you had a fun time following! That’s really useful to let me know about the changed murals (I have about 500 blogs on this site so it’s hard to keep on top of changes) – do you know what the captain Tom mural has been replaced with?

Hi Rose, I’ve been an avid ‘collector’ and photographer of street art around Manchester for over three years now and much of what I photograph goes on my blog. I came across your blog while trying to find some info on a very talented artist I came across just yesterday, working on a canvas taped to the ground in Market Street.

While most of the artworks you feature here still exist it’s inevitable that some have been replaced, often more than once and by different artists, so I thought you might appreciate a bit of an update and some info.

The Ian Curtis mural sadly no longer exists – it was painted over in August last year by Amazon Music to promote a new album by local rapper Aitch who claimed he knew nothing about it. Although he said he would arrange to have it repainted the building’s owner is keen to keep that wall for advertising so it’s never been redone and up to now the wall is just blank.

The animal images in Back Thomas Street are still there and still look good, they were done by Chilean artist Otto Schade https://www.ottoschade.com/about/

The Tom Moore mural has been painted over by different artists several times in the last 12 months – that particular location is one which seems to change quite regularly. Qubek’s cranes have also been replaced several times and Mateus Bailon’s birds on Cross Keys Street have gradually been obliterated by senseless graffiti.

Like you I was once lucky enough to catch Liam Bononi painting one of his murals in 2021 on the side of Yard and Coop in Hare Street, though it’s been painted over since then.

One of the most recent, done just a couple of weeks ago, is a great one of ‘Lily Savage’ on a corner in the Gay Village – I loved Paul O’Grady and his alter ego so I purposely went to find it yesterday.

Apologies for this comment being so long – I’m off now to explore some more of your very interesting blog 🙂

Hello Eunice, Thanks so much for reading and commenting, I really appreciate the effort you’ve spent! I’ll be sure to update this guide… It’s so hard to know when murals change in places I don’t often spend time so it’s really helpful to have your feedback. Happy photography and street art-hunting!

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