Best UK holiday destinations for 2023
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Loading... - Nicole Peters
- 08 Nov 2022
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Overseas travel restrictions, airport chaos and flight cancellations have encouraged many Brits to spend their holidays exploring their own backyard over the last few years. Happily, they’ve found that the UK provides more than enough for a varied trip, and there’s plenty more to discover in 2023. There are exciting openings across our cities — from revamped power stations to mould-breaking new hotels — and novel means of exploring the countryside, whether setting off on a physical challenge or going on a wildlife safari. We’ve rounded up our pick of the best destinations to visit in the year ahead, providing new reasons to explore familiar locations and to reconsider overlooked sites.
1. Liverpool
Within hours of the announcement that Liverpool is to present the Eurovision Song Contest on 13 May 2023, many of its hotels were fully booked – that’s how big a deal it is to be host city. To find out what made it so attractive to the selection committee, begin on the waterfront, exploring the docks that made it one of the richest cities in the world in the 19th century. The Museum of Liverpool tells the story. Of course, this is a place synonymous with music, and Beatles fans will have an absolute field day roaming sites connected to the Fab Four. Not one to rest on its laurels, the city has a slew of music venues promoting new and local talent – try the Invisible Wind Factory, Zanzibar Club and Hangar34 just for starters.
2. Birmingham
The spotlight shone on Birmingham when the Commonwealth Games rolled into town in July 2022. Its opening ceremony reminded us all of the cultural clout Brum carries — this is a city that’s constantly inventing itself, producing talent that ranges from comedian Lenny Henry to singer Indigo Marshall. Spend a weekend taking the current pulse of the city, nipping into comedy and music venues (The Glee serves up both) as you go. The Custard Factory is a good place to start: the complex of old Victorian warehouses now houses indie shops, bars, restaurants and regular flea markets.
3. Belfast
It’s an exciting time to visit Belfast and 2023 sees the launch of several good-value hotels, including a Moxy and a pod hotel in the Cathedral Quarter. With less of your holiday cash going on accommodation, you can take advantage of Belfast’s thriving food and drinks scene. Titanic Distillers, award-winning makers of whiskey and vodka, have taken over a landmark pumphouse in the docks, and plan to offer tours and tastings. The old Crumlin Road Gaol is getting new tenants, too — the Belfast Distillery Company will open a visitor centre in the summer. You’ll need some ballast after all that — try new street-food venues Common Market and Trade Market. Read More…
