Visiting Birmingham

 

As England's Second City, Birmingham can, apart from the sea, offer virtually everything that any tourist is looking for. It has easy access from anywhere in the world with its Birmingham International Airport operating within easy distance of the city. There are motorway links in abundance from anywhere in the country in the form of the M1, M5, M6 and M42 all linking to other motorways on route to Birmingham. Its intercity rail link also provides access to Birmingham, from effectively all major English, Scottish and Welsh cities.

For the swimmers, although Birmingham has no sea, there are well established swimming amenities available in the City.

For visitors interested in Birmingham's nightlife it offers Pubs, Bars, Clubs, Night Clubs and Restaurants in abundance and without doubt, if that's your inclination, the place to start your search for this type of evening entertainment would be Broad Street.

If you do venture into Broad Street, have a look at the gilded bronze memorial statue of the famous trio, Boulton, Watt and Murdoch, three individuals who played a major role in the 1700's Industrial Revolution.

Also walk side by side with Broad Street's famous Walk of Stars, including Lenny Henry, Frank Skinner, Julie Walters, Jasper Carrot, Noddy Holder and Ozzy Osbourne. To view all the celebrities awarded a place in the Birmingham Walk of Stars, don't look up, look down as the names are incorporated in the paved footways on both sides of Broad Street. Currently you should find sixteen specially named inlaid stones, however, as more celebrities have been nominated, this number will, without doubt, increase.

For someone to be considered for their name to be added to the Walk of Stars, they must have made a recognisable impact in their specialist category, performed at one of Birmingham's major venues i.e. the International Convention Centre, National Indoor Arena, Symphony Hall, The Rep Theatre etc., or be originally from the area or have prominent links with Birmingham and the Midlands region and must still be alive at the time of a Walk of Stars Award.

For the food cognisors amongst us, Birmingham can offer restaurants, including Michelin Star award winners in the shape of Purnell's, Turner's and Simpson's, plus restaurants offering food from all quarters of the world. It also has a vibrant Chinese Quarter offering numerous mouth watering dishes, in the shape of a la carte, buffet or set menus. For those who are simply British in their choice of food, you will not be disappointed in its availability.

There are numerous hotels, to suit all pockets, offering full board, half board and bed & breakfast, these range from penthouse suites to the standard and simple family rooms. For the keep fit fanatics amongst us there are also hotels offering a wide range of fitness choices, including spa, swimming, tennis and other keep fit activities.

Most offer either onsite parking facilities or local car parking in secure areas, with some hotels even covering the parking fees. On arrival, if you don't fancy driving from your accommodation, there are excellent bus and taxi services readily available for your Visit Birmingham tour.

For those away supporters visiting Birmingham to watch Premiership Football at Villa Park or Birmingham City, St Andrews, County or International Cricket at Edgbaston, Speedway at Birmingham Brummies, or Championship League Rugby Union at Moseley and also Birmingham & Solihull, International Tennis Tournaments at the Priory or International Golf at the Belfry, why not make a long week end of it and Visit Birmingham, its night life and/or anything else that takes your fancy?

With shopping available to suit all pockets, Birmingham is a shopper's paradise offering numerous department stores, high street shops and shopping malls in abundance with the likes of Selfridges, Debenhams, Arcadian, House of Fraser, Bhs, Primark, The Palasades, The Great Western Arcade, The Mail Box, one of the city's premier shopping, lifestyle and restaurant location with over fifty exclusive stores, restaurants, café bars and hotels to choose from. The Bull Ring shopping centre and its adjacent markets is also a well worth a visit. Also have a venture round the Custard Factory a short walk from the Bull Ring.

For those looking for things to do and see, why not try the National Sea Life Centre, The Ikon Contemporary Art Gallery, Millennium Point, which celebrates Science, Technology and Education, also in the same building is the IMAX Cinema and Think Tank, with four floors of interactive displays, the most modern of science museums and its Planetarium is a paradise for the enquiring minds of today's young children and teenagers. For the artists and art lovers, there is also the Barber Institute of Fine Arts featuring works from the 13th to 20th century, including Old Masters and Impressionist collections.

Before your visit why not checkout what shows are on offer throughout Birmingham at such venues as the National Indoor Arena, the Symphony Hall, with its world famous acoustics, the Birmingham Royal Ballet, Birmingham's Alexandra Theatre, the Birmingham Hippodrome, the LG Arena, the Old Repertory Theatre, the Birmingham Town Hall, Birmingham's O2 Academy, the numerous events on offer at the National Exhibition Centre and the various and varied events organised and arranged annually by Birmingham City Council and then plan your visit to Birmingham accordingly?

If you are a sporting enthusiast, it is also worth checking the event dates of Birmingham's National Indoor Arena as it is the venue of various sporting disciplines covering a number of British, World and International events, including Athletics, Badminton, Basket Ball, Judo, Indoor Rowing etc.

For film buffs, Birmingham's numerous cinemas will surely have something to your liking being shown.

Birmingham CAMRA also holds events for the Real Ale enthusiasts amongst us and again for those interested, check their event dates, attend them and sup a drop of real ale and be assured that it is the real stuff and that you won't be disappointed, but perhaps a little merry?

Walking in the City Centre is easy, with the disabled well accommodated for, there are numerous signs pointing visitors and tourists to all the various places of interest, some within walking distance, other's a bus or taxi ride away. The city also provides a map of Birmingham and its interesting venues placed in display cabinets in various locations within the city. Don't worry you won't get lost, we hope? Car drivers are also well supported by the more than adequate traffic signs providing directions to all the various points of interest.

For the walkers, the City also offers various watering holes in the shape of cafes, bars, etc. with, when the weather permits, footpath placed tables and chairs readily available for the fresh air fiends or the smokers out there.

There are also plenty of takeaways available, offering foods to suit all tastes, for families wishing to keep their holiday budget under control.

From mid November to a week or so prior to Christmas, the City also provides accommodation for the famous German, Frankfurt Street Market, which with its numerous stalls covering handicrafts, hand produced goods, German foods, beers and wines, to name some of many, plus a children's fair, attracts many thousands of visitors annually.

For the nature lovers, Birmingham has numerous parks in the shape of Cannon Hill, Sutton Park with its National Nature Reserve, Handsworth Park and Kings Heath Park. For those of us who are really gardening enthusiasts, Birmingham's Botanical Gardens, with its various greenhouses filled with plants and trees from Tropical, Sub Tropical, Arid and Mediterranean regions, beautiful lawns and gardens plus everything else that the it has to offer, is also a venue not to be missed. The Botanical Gardens also hold numerous events, shows and workshops throughout the year.

Cadbury World, for the chocolate lovers, is also a place to visit, but perhaps not for those looking to lose weight during their stay or the dieticians amongst us.

Over the last decade or so, Birmingham's canals and locks have been restored and are certainly a place of interest with safe towpaths, beautiful narrow boats, modern canal side buildings in abundance, as well as buildings that were evident when the canals of Birmingham were first built in the 1700's. The building of Birmingham's canals helped make Birmingham expand into the city that it is today, with the canal links assisting in the cheap exportation of its manufactured goods to the rest of the UK and from there on, the world.

There is a Grade II Listed building spanning the canal as it passes under the Broad Street Bridge which is worth a view. In close proximity is the Mail Box in one direction and the hub of the Birmingham Canal network in the other, which stands in close proximity to the National Indoor Arena and the famous Malt Shovel Pub at Brindley Place, this area being named after the famous canal and lock building pioneer James Brindley.

In Birmingham's central city area look out for the old, magnificent and numerous buildings of great architectural design and those buildings of the modern design era in the shape of the BT Tower, the external Selfridge's building admired by many and despised by some.

The city is surrounded by numerous halls and houses of interest such as Aston Hall, Soho House, Blakesley Hall, Moundsley Hall, Middleton Hall, Sarehole Mill etc. and all are well worth a visit.

The city is also the home of St Phillips Cathedral and St Chad's Cathedral, again architecture which would be difficult to surpass.

St Martin's Church, adjacent to the Bull Ring and its markets, is also very worthy of a visit.

Birmingham's main library, which is currently in the throes of being rebuilt, is Europe's largest and currently loans some 8,000,000 books annually.

If you are looking for a bargain in gold and silver, in the shape of rings, necklaces, broaches etc., why not visit Birmingham's famous Jewellery Quarter and its adjacent Museum? You will be absolutely amazed at the handmade jewellery on show and the asking prices indicated.

An interesting and true story about the Jewellery Quarter is that in its early years, whenever any of the small jewellery workshops need an internal make over, the painters and decorators where not paid with money, but by the fine shavings of gold they collected from the walls, floors, ceilings and work benches, during their work.

Also why not book a journey on the Birmingham to Wolverhampton Metro railway and travel through a number of local Black Country towns via the old railway network and existing highways.

As you can see the various choices that Birmingham has to offer is both large and varied and we have no doubt that if you do decide to visit the City you will find much, much, more during your exploration and wanderings.

Whatever your tastes, there is something for everyone in Birmingham, therefore, why not visit and enjoy anything or everything that the City has to offer.

 

This article was brought to you by Kevin Billingham at Activ Birmingham, your complete online guide to Birmingham and the surrounding area with local businesses, community events, houses for sale, cars, great days out and much more.

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