A City Break With The Family In Lovely Liverpool And Formby

It’s been literally years since we’ve visited Liverpool, twelve to be exact so it was time to enjoy a long city break in this cultural haven of a city which offers art, shopping and summer fun in abundance for all the family.

From leisurely walks across Albert Dock with welcome breaks at waterfront cafes where we could watch the world go by with an iced latte in hand, to a day at the excellent rated beach by the Environment Agency, in Formby, with views of the Irish Sea (we fell in love with last there), there really is something for everyone in magical Merseyside.

Speaking of which, we marvelled at the big rocks sculpture at the Albert Dock titled Liverpool Mountain, a creation of Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone. The 10-meter-tall gravity-defying artwork features five vertically-stacked flourescent boulders Florence was a little obsessed with. She also enjoyed the Superlambananas sculptures above, created in celebration of Liverpool’s EU Capital of Culture Celebrations from 2008 my sons enjoyed 12 years ago!

We walked a lot. 17k steps a day to be exact and Florence even jumped and spun a lot too when it came to fairground rides, (demonstrating why she’s  definitely the bravest in this family) with Liverpool One’s fabulously fun Beachfest (which FYI, becomes a festive haven at Christmas too) bang in the city centre.

There are so many restaurants and cafes in the city centre, it reminded us of Waterloo, London. We sampled new and old faves when it came to food with feasts enjoyed at The Real Greek, Rudy’s and indie cafes and restaurants a go go, spanning Moose and Rosa’s Thai amongst others overlooking the water.

We stayed in a central apartment meaning we could walk everywhere and lap up all the city had to offer. Now, whilst we had high hopes to revisit The Tate again, we couldn’t as it was shut for a refurb and we frustratingly didn’t make the permanent Ancient Egypt exhibit at The World Museum either despite our best intentions (I was unwell on the day we were due to visit) meaning I must return for a solo day of culture on the train!

No one wanted to see The Beatles Story Museum so that will also make the list next time and frankly we spent far too much time in supermarkets stocking up the apartment fridge for my hungry boys. I cannot believe how much my teens eat now to be honest!

A must-visist for those with kids is the Korean supermarket in the centre, Seoul Plaza where my middle child spent most of his time buying spicy chicken dishes and protein-packed corn dogs (according to him) as well as stocking up on take away noodles he brought back to the apartment! We didn’t get any photos so here’s Liverpool looking lush through the lens of my husband Peter’s camera instead!

Everyone agreed beach day was the best day of the trip, just make sure you pack a picnic if you visit this National Trust beach as there’s only a coffee and cake van on site and it’s worth an entire day out. It was only 40 minutes away from Liverpool so factor that into a visit for sure.

We walked far and wide, taking in the sea air before Florence built sandcastles (cried that they kept crumbling despite her not wanting to add water) and everyone got hungry/hangry so we had to leave in pursuit of food!

Nothing beats being by the sea, whatever the weather (it was overcast when I snapped the above photo but the sun did come out to play) and to have this quiet and achingly beautiful beach only an hour and a half away from Harrogate is something quite special.

Liverpool, you’ve been a blast!

Have you visited yet?