Horse riding, climbing and an iconic ferry ride across a certain river... Liverpool’s a great place to tick a few items off your bucket list. The city’s packed with exhilarating activities designed to thrill but, if an adrenaline rush isn’t your thing, there are walking tours and cycle trails to try too. Weather looking a bit British outside? Rain doesn’t stop play here, because many of Liverpool’s best activities take place indoors. And when your drama-filled day draws to a close, rest assured that one of our Liverpool hotels will be just round the corner. Each one has comfortable beds to rest up in before your equally action-packed night on the town.
Activities in Liverpool
Outdoor
When the sun is shining, it’s a brilliant excuse to get outside in Liverpool. Luckily, the city has plenty of ways to enjoy the great outdoors, from messing about on the Mersey to horse riding round an historic park.
There’s no way you can say you’ve truly seen Liverpool until you’ve taken a ferry cross the Mersey, as immortalised in the Gerry and the Pacemakers song. Mersey Ferries’ 50-minute river tour will show you all of Liverpool’s beautiful waterfront area, while you sit back and listen to the running commentary. Either stay on board for the round trip, or make a day of it by hopping off at Seacome (for the Spaceport attraction) or Woodside (where you can learn about life on board a German WWII submarine at the U-Boat Story attraction).
If a ferry across the Mersey sounds too sedate, what about kayaking, powerboating or stand-up paddleboarding down it instead? All three are on offer at Liverpool Watersports Centre. Just a 15-minute walk from the Albert Dock (and particularly handy for our Albert Dock hotel) the centre has hot showers and changing rooms. All life jackets are provided and you can hire wetsuits if you want, but all you really need is a towel, old trainers, shorts and a T-shirt. Then, after a quick safety briefing you’re free to take to the water in front of the historic Queens Dock.
More of an animal lover than a water baby? Horse riding may be your cup of tea. Set in the former Earl of Sefton's stables in the beautiful Croxteth Country Park, the Croxteth Park Riding Centre offer lessons for children and adults. Kids aged five to 12 can take a 45 minute trail ride around the tracks, while experienced riders can hack on the bridle paths while they enjoying the peaceful surroundings. Liverpool is also home to the Grand National at Aintree racecourse.
Albert Dock
Ferry across the Mersey
Walking tours
Indoor
Don’t let the weather spoil your big day out in Liverpool. The city is brimming with indoor activities, no anoraks required.
If crazy golf and cocktails sound like a match made in heaven, head to the Cains Brewery building. Here you’ll find the funky, fluorescent Ghetto Golf, and it’s an 18-hole course like no other. With a warehouse look and feel, each hole is well-designed with plenty of quirky features to keep you interested and staff take drinks orders as you play. True, those frozen raspberry daiquiris won’t help your score, but that’s just part of the fun!
Unleash your inner Spider Man at the Climbing Hangar. The Tardis-like centre close to Sandhills Station has all the thrill of the outdoor pursuits, in a safe, family-friendly environment. With 1,000 square metres of climbing area, all abilities are catered for, from total beginners to world class experts.
Load your weapons with soft, spongy bullets and prepare to do battle, at the Nerf Centre Liverpool. Next door to the Ultimate Indoor Paintball Liverpool on Vauxhall Road (and close to our City Centre Moorfields hotel), there’s 2,500-square foot area of soft play space to hide, road and commando crawl in as you stalk your prey, complete with brightly coloured foam matts and walls. As popular with adults as it is with kids, everyone aged five and over can play.
Walking tours
When the weather’s nice, taking a walking tour of Liverpool is a great way to get acquainted with this fantastic city. There’ll be one for you, whatever you’re into - whether that’s ghosts, history or The Beatles.
Winner of the ‘Guided Tour of the Year’ award at the 2017 National Tourism Awards, Shiverpool is Liverpool’s best-known ghost walk. Talented actors will guide you around all of the city’s creepiest locations, revealing their secret stories. Each tour takes about one and a half hours and, although they run all day, it’s better to go when the lights go down. But they’re educational as well as entertaining - and even the most well-read of history buffs will learn something new!
For a walking tour that’s crammed with facts about the city, Sandemans New Liverpool tours are hard to beat. Held every day at 11am, meet your guide outside of St George's Hall by the Prince Albert Statue. Tours last three hours and cover everything from the Beatles to the Blitz. Amazingly, they won’t cost you a penny - although the guides are so entertaining and energetic, you’ll probably find yourself giving them a tip.
Cycling Trails
Much has been done to turn Liverpool into a cycling city. Its CityBike hire scheme has been a huge success for starters. With docking stations all over the city, you can guarantee you’ll never be far from a bike no matter which Liverpool hotel you’re staying in.
In terms of cycling trails, there’s a very pleasant (and very flat!) three-mile route running beside the River Mersey from the Liver Buildings towards Festival Gardens, which takes you all the way to South Liverpool.
Don’t want to go it alone? Take a Liverpool Cycle Tour. This guided two-wheel tour takes you through parks and the city centre to the Wirral Peninsula. There’s even has a specific Beatles Tour where you’ll ride to all the places associated with the band. They go at your own pace, too, so you won’t get left behind.