Whether you are interested in a leisurely trip to one of the regions rich spread of stately homes or the experience of the vibrancy of the city and town centres, the Northwest has it all.

If you would like to take it at your own pace here are a few options local to 2010 World Championships venue.

Old Trafford Football Ground – “The Theatre of Dreams”

Arguably the best known aspect of Manchester world-wide is Manchester United Football Club. The old Trafford ground and museum of the richest football club in the world is ten minutes away from the City centre. A whole floor of interactive displays captures every imaginable experience at the “Theatre of Dreams” Museum. The glory story of the Red Devils is told in video footage and displays, and a virtual reality experience of the Old Trafford ground allows you to view the players’ dressing rooms and to walk out of the tunnel in the boot steps of Beckham and Best. Jealousy or curiosity may lead you to the trophy room to glimpse the team’s many spoils and if all that emotion makes you hungry, Michelin star holder Gary Rhodes “Rhodes and Co” restaurant is just adjacent to the ground.

Imperial War Museum

A stone’s throw away from Old Trafford Daniel Libeskind’s building for the Imperial War Museum North, represents the shattering effect of war on the history of the world using three “shards” which interlock to structure the building and represent conflict on land, sea and air. The fascinating collection offers interactive and multimedia facilities informing on many aspects of the conflict, as well as presenting some awesome military hardware and tome stacks containing themed objects and collections. Whether interested in the conflicts that have shaped our world, in the interaction of humankind or latest in display technology, the war museum will provide stimulation and food for thought for visitors from all over the world.

The Lowry

The Lowry – National Landmark Millennium Project for the Arts houses two theatres and a range of galleries which include a permanent exhibition of the work of L.S Lowry and temporary exhibitions of usually contemporary artists. “Artworks” is a unique interactive experience designed to encourage creativity and the venue often offers free performance art, music and drama. A range of bars, cafes and a restaurant with stunning waterside views will cater for every appetite whether you require a pre theatre dinner before enjoying an evening at the opera or a stiff drink before embarking upon a shopping spree in the adjacent Lowry Designer Outlet.

Peaks & Chatsworth

The combination of the white peaks gently rolling limestone plateau meeting the Dark Peaks millstone grit has created an area of extreme and often remote beauty. From Manchester, the Snake pass curves up through the mighty dark peak to give eyrie views of windblown tops scudding clouds and heather moorlands, then changes in a moment to pine forested banks and the breathtaking clam of Ladybower Reservoir.
The scenery changes and toward the softer dales – hosting up to 50 species of plants per square foot in some places – and the sound of crystal streams and waterfalls is never far away. People living in these dales can’t take easy survival for granted and customs long elsewhere in Britain persist here. You may be fortunate enough to see the well dressing ceremonies or the Oak Apple day tribute to the “Green Man”.

Eyam Hall

The historic home of the Wright Family, the family has lived in the house for over 300 years. It is a remarkable unspoilt example of a Jacobean manor house and the delightful garden also retains its 17th Century layout.  The house opened to the public in 1992 has retained the intimate atmosphere of a much loved private home. Under the watchful gaze of the right ancestors’ portraits you will visit the beautiful stone flagged hall, a unique tapestry room, the bedroom with magnificent tester bed and the nursery with toys from the 1860s to the present day. Other rooms reveal costumes belonging to family y members, precious artefacts and fascinating family mementos. Observant visitors may even come across the ghostly apparition of Sarah Mills, a young servant girl. Who drowned herself in the well and is said to still answer the night bell!
The Eyam museum brings to life the story of the sacrifice of the villagers who put themselves into a voluntary quarantine after the “Black Death” was accidentally introduced from London in a box of cloth. 260 died but the nearby communities were saved the terrible fate.

Chatsworth House

Seat of the Dukes of Devonshire, Chatsworth is one of Derbyshire’s most celebrated and largest country residences – about 1 ½ hour’s drive from Manchester. Built by Talman for the 1st Duke between 1687 and 1707 in the Palladian Renaissance style which was popular in Britain at that time, it houses a world famous collection of drawings, paintings sculptures, books and furniture, as well as having one of the most elaborate water gardens set within a 100 acres of parkland.

Buxton

A stop in Buxton is a necessity; drawing pilgrims since medieval times. Buxtons heyday as a spa began with the construction of the crescent in 1780 followed by the hospital and thermal baths. Often compared with Bath, this exquisite town offers a variety of architectural delights as well as opportunities for afternoon tea or even a pre theatre dinner before enjoying an evening of drama in the bijou Opera House.

Lake District National Park

England largest National Park includes Scafell Pike – its highest mountain, Washwater – its deepest Lake and thriving communities like Keswick and Bowness – on – Windermere. The Lake District is famous for its stunning scenery, abundant wildlife and cultural heritage. The semi natural woodlands add texture, colour and variety to the landscape and also provide a home for native animals and plants. The high rainfall in the core of the national park favours woodlands rich in Atlantic mosses and liverworts, fern and lichen. The area’s imposing natural landforms are overlaid by thousands of years of human activity. The mix of lakes, farmland, fell, woodland and settlement gives each valley a visual cultural distinctiveness of its own.  The national park has the highest concentration of outdoor activity centres in the UK. It is the birthplace of mountaineering and there is a tradition of unrestricted fells together with an extensive network of public rights of way. Recreational walking can be traced from Wordsworth’s Guide to the Lakes to the guides of more recent writers such as Wainwright.
The tranquillity of the fells, valleys and lakes gives a sense of space and freedom. There is an opportunity for spiritual refreshment; a release from the pressures of modern day life. The relatively open character of the uplands and the lack of modern development is especially important. To walk freely across the fells, or climb their crags, is liberating and gives a feeling of wildness.  To many the Lake District is a place where it is possible to feel remote, yet know the nearest settlement is never far away.