Waterfront, Liverpool

Creative Tourist

The waterfront, which takes in the Albert Dock and the Pier Head, is an integral part of Liverpool’s UNESCO World Heritage Site – and is the best place to get a feel for the city’s former grandeur. It features The Three Graces, a trio of buildings that were designed to illustrate Liverpool‘s immense wealth, the Baroque Port of Liverpool Building and the iconic Royal Liver Building, topped with two its cormorant-like Liver Birds. The female is said to look out over the sea for returning sailors, while the male looks over the city, to check the pubs are still open. 

The Albert Dock right on the water boasts the largest group of Grade I listed buildings in the UK and is home to numerous shops, restaurants and hotels in its red brick warehouses – as well as Tate Liverpool. This superb gallery is not a lone cultural highlight here, however; the waterfront also features the Maritime Museum, the International Slavery Museum, the Museum of Liverpool and Open Eye Gallery, a small photography gallery with a big reputation.

Our top picks

Tate Liverpool

Tate Liverpool, Albert Dock, Liverpool Waterfront, Liverpool, Merseyside, L3 4BB - Visit now

On Liverpool’s Albert Dock, The Tate Liverpool houses an impressive collection of modern and contemporary art, including works by artists such as Pablo Picasso, Mark Rothko, and Andy Warhol. The museum’s collection also includes a range of British art from the 20th century, including works by Barbara Hepworth, Henry Moore, and David Hockney.

Tate Liverpool from across the docks
Image courtesy of Tate Liverpool.

Maritime Museum

Maritime Museum, Albert Dock, Liverpool, Merseyside, L3 4AQ - Visit now

The Royal Albert Dock is home to the Maritime Museum, the perfect place to get a feel for the small inlet that grew to become the gateway to the world. Maritime Museum tells the story of the Port of Liverpool, which has been graced by some of the finest ocean cruisers and transatlantic liners that made this a global trading city.

Merseyside Maritime Museum, Liverpool, image courtesy of venue

Museum of Liverpool

Museum of Liverpool, Pier Head, Liverpool Waterfront,, Liverpool, Merseyside, L3 1DG - Visit now

Wedged between Royal Albert Doc and the Three Graces, The Museum of Liverpool  exists to tell the long and winding tale of Liverpool’s past through the 6,000 objects displayed on three floors. Visitors are given the chance to get under the skin of a city that was for 200 years one of the world’s most influential.

Image courtesy of Visit Britain

Open Eye Gallery in Liverpool

Open Eye Gallery in Liverpool, 19 Mann Island, Liverpool Waterfront, Liverpool, Merseyside, L3 1BP - Visit now

Open Eye Gallery is an independent photography space and archive in Liverpool with a 35 year-plus history. As well as a regular programme of changing exhibitions, featuring both national and international photographers, Open Eye also runs courses, workshops and talks for serious photographers

Open Eye Gallery. Image by Mark McNulty.

International Slavery Museum

International Slavery Museum, Albert Dock, Liverpool, Merseyside, L3 4AQ - Visit now

Set within the same building as the  Merseyside Maritime Museum, the International Slavery Museum looks over the docs whereby Liverpool was responsible for half the British transatlantic slave trade, and her ships carried perhaps 1.5 million enslaved Africans into slavery.

Merseyside Maritime Museum & International Slavery Museum within Royal Albert Dock

Panoramic 34

Panoramic 34, West Tower, Brook Street, Liverpool, L3 9PJ - Visit now

Panoramic 34 is one of the UK’s highest restaurants and sits 90 metres above Liverpool’s Brook Street. With spectacular views of Liverpool, Wirral and out to the Irish Sea complete with an extensive cocktail menu and bar snacks., Panoramic 34 should be top of your list for fine dining in Merseyside.

A table with a view of Liverpool at the fine dining restaurant Panoramic 34
Photo: Panoramic 34

RIBA North

RIBA North, 21 Mann Island, Liverpool, L3 1BP - Visit now

At the heart of RIBA North is the City Gallery, which houses a permanent display about Liverpool’s architectural past, present and future, and the processes involved in urban development and the evolution of the built environment. The gallery includes the Digital City Model, an interactive 3D model which recounts stories about Liverpool and the surrounding area. Younger visitors are invited to become architects themselves in the centre’s Lego city; RIBA North’s own in-house, child-friendly construction site.

©Paul McMullin

Where to go in Liverpool

Liverpool
Shop
Dead Ink Books

Dead Ink Books is an independent bookshop on Smithdown Road in Liverpool, exclusively stocking books from independent publishers.

Liverpool
Event venue
24 Kitchen Street

A mixed-use event space in the Baltic Triangle, 24 Kitchen Street hosts some of the best leftfield club nights and gigs in Liverpool.

Liverpool
Restaurant
The Reader Bar & Restaurant

The Reader Bar & Restaurant offers diners a bistro-style menu, inspired by continental European flavours and created using locally sourced seasonal produce. 

Baltic Triangle
Restaurant
Boxpark Liverpool

Sitting in the heart of Liverpool’s Baltic Triangle district, Boxpark Liverpool will offer forward-thinking street food, drinks and entertainment under one roof.

Liverpool
Event venue
Milapfest

For over 31 years, Milapfest, one of Europe’s largest festivals of Indian classical arts, has been taking place in the vibrant city of Liverpool.

Vice Liverpool
Liverpool
Bar or Pub
Vice Liverpool

Vice is a new nightclub and bar in Liverpool, featuring neon lights, zebra-style flooring and a glossy white Ferrari taking centre stage.

Taste Liverpool Drink Bordeaux
City Centre
Event venue
Taste Liverpool Drink Bordeaux

Taste Liverpool Drink Bordeaux is a new food and drink festival, in collaboration with the Bordeaux Wine Council and the French Government, celebrating Liverpool as the UK’s host city for Bordeaux Wine Festival in 2022.

Liverpool Visitor Guides

Liverpool Central Library
Literary places

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Cinemas in Liverpool

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Restaurants on Liverpool’s Bold Street

Bold Street is one of Liverpool's most high-profile areas, full of unique coffee shops and independent restaurants. Here's our expert guide to this wonderful area.

Casual dining in Liverpool

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Vegan Food in Liverpool
Vegan Food in Liverpool

Liverpool is one of the better cities when it comes to high-quality vegan cuisine - here's our guide to the best vegan food in the city

Croxteth Hall and Country Park
Walks in Liverpool

A round-up of the best walks in Liverpool, including the city centre, its many parks, and over the water by Creative Tourist.

Coffee Shops in Liverpool

Over the last couple of years, Liverpool – like the rest of the country – has been taken over by an army of artisan coffee shops. But how do you separate the wheat from the chaff (or bean from the berry)?

Baltic Fleet from the outside.
Pubs in Liverpool

Liverpool has seen something of a renaissance of the old-fashioned boozer - here's our guide to the city's best pubs.

Things to Do in Liverpool
Spotlight on

Things to Do in Liverpool

Our guide to the thriving city of Liverpool, where new creative futures are written against the backdrop of a unique history.

Take me there

Culture Guides

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Exhibitions

There's no rest for the art lover - this month brings outdoor sculpture, musings on water, political drawings and Liverpool Biennial 2023!

Classical Music

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Winnie the Pooh at Manchester Opera House
Families

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Gerry Potter (credit Lee Baxter)
Literature

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Food and Drink

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Tours and Activities

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Theatre in Manchester
Theatre

Check out our updated guide for lively theatre festivals, rip-roaring rooftop circus and dreamy outdoor shows.