The Lowry Outlet Mall in The Quays district of Manchester sits opposite both The Lowry and MediaCityUK, Europe’s largest media hub and the home of BBC North.

The Rochdale Pioneers Museum – once a shop – is widely considered to be the birthplace of the co-operative movement.

This cultural hub, just off Chapel Street in Salford, offers great real ale and cheap, hearty pub food

Japanese restaurant Yuzu in Manchester is the kind of place that beckons you to return– we review it.

The Working Class Movement Library houses the personal collection of labour historians Ruth and Edmund Frow, a treasure trove of material and stories.

Now based at the Great Northern, Siam Smiles is a food stop that’s hot on everyone’s lips.

One of Salford’s finest churches and also, unusually, a live music venue

Federation House in Manchester is a pop-up project space that provides opportunities for artists, artist groups and artist development agencies.

COW Vintage, once on Piccadilly Place, now on Church Street in Manchester’s Northern Quarter is a beautifully decorated vintage clothes shop.

63 Degrees is brings French cuisine to Manchester’s Northern Quarter; the Parisian Moreau family who run it pride themselves on cooking with fresh ingredients.

Sheffield Botanical Gardens boasts a bear pit (yes, really), a huge, glass-roofed pavilion and acres of peaceful space.

At the Greater Manchester Police Museum you can stand in the dock, see make-shift riot weapons – such as a soap in a sock – and try the feel of a wooden pillow.