Christmas 2019 may be over, and we’ve already embraced the awesome new 2020 decade, but there’s still a couple months left in the winter season – which means there’s still plenty of awesome winter activities to do in Manchester, UK. In fact, the heaviest snow dates in Manchester tend to occur around the middle of January. Don’t forget to pack some warm clothing!
So if you plan on visiting Manchester during the final months of the winter season, post-Christmas and New Year’s Eve celebrations, we’ve compiled a list of some great activities you should check out.
Find some awesome post-holiday sales
Once Christmas is over, Manchester’s numerous shopping centres and malls offer some incredible post-Christmas bargain-hunting. There are several large shopping centres that offer high-end brand stores, but you can also find tons of chic boutiques just walking around areas like the Northern Quarter.
Some of Manchester’s largest and most populated shopping centres include:
Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet – The largest outlet centre in the UK, Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet offers over 145 stores from major international brands. It also contains a cinema, coliseum, miniature golf, and a great selection of restaurants.
Intu Trafford Center – The third largest shopping centre in the UK, it hosts the largest food court in Europe, a Sea Life Centre, and over 200 shops and restaurants.
Manchester Arndale – Another large shopping centre with over 240 shops, and conveniently located near lots of great other landmarks and events in Manchester.
Some other shopping centres in Manchester worth checking out:
- The Lowry Outlet Mall
- Crownpoint Shopping Park
- Mill Gate Shopping Centre
- Market Place Shopping Centre
Visit a horse racing track
Horse racing meets are pretty much all-year-round in the UK, with so many clubs and tracks to visit (over 60 across the entire UK). On January 18, Haydock Park Racecourse in Manchester hosts the Peter Marsh Chase Day, which has been known to be a preview of possible gold trophy winners at the Cheltenham Festival which occurs in March.
If you get bored between meets while at the track, you can check out some great horse racing slots like Scudamore’s Super Stake on this site, even on your smartphone.
Immerse yourself in ImmotionVR
ImmotionVR is a chain of VR (virtual reality) centres around the UK that offer some of the latest in cutting-edge virtual reality experiences. Using state-of-the-art hardware, ImmotionVR offers some truly immersive VR games and simulators, including 4D cinema pods, tilt-motion racing games, first-person shooters, and more.
They also offer some cool winter-themed VR experiences around the holidays, like a thrilling snow coaster.
Manchester Beer and Cider Festival 2020
The largest celebration of beer and ciders in the north, the Manchester Beer and Cider Festival 2020 operates from January 23 to January 25. There will be more than 750 assorted beers and ciders available from a huge number of breweries from coast-to-coast.
While you can pay at the door for entry, advance ticket holders will benefit from guaranteed entry, earlier admission times, and queue jumping. So if trying out some of the best beer and ciders UK has to offer sounds like a fun winter activity, head on over to the MBCF20 website.
See local art at the Manchester Open Exhibition 2020
From January 18 until March 15, HOME Manchester will be hosting the first ever Manchester Open Exhibition, which is the first region-wide art exhibition of its kind. The event organizers have accepted work from over 500 local artists for display, and will include paintings, prints, photography, sculpture, digital and mixed media, video and audio, spoken word, performance and more.
Admission is entirely free, and you can visit from 12pm until 8pm Monday through Saturday, or 12pm to 6pm on Sundays.
