With more and more big events coming to Birmingham, the city is fast becoming a great choice for a UK city break. This shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise – the city boasts some of the UK’s best stadium and exhibition spaces, including the gigantic NEC.
So, with cricket fever sweeping Birmingham this summer, we thought we’d showcase everything you can do in the city, from food and drink to shopping, for when you need a break from runs and wickets.
Shopping
Right behind the fantastic event venues are Birmingham’s awesome shopping centres. After more than a decade of improvements being brought to the city centre, the city now has three distinct shopping destinations all linked together, not forgetting the world's biggest Primark!
At the centre of everything is the Bullring, easily identifiable by the famous bronze bull statue situated outside the main entrance. The Bullring harbours all of the staple high street brands across three floors, with a lot of food options nestled in between. At the far end of the centre, you’ll also find Selfridges, which is housed inside the unusual “bubble” building you may have seen when entering the city. The department store is itself essentially a mini shopping centre, with a massive food hall on the ground floor below two more floors filled with high end designer fashion outlets.
Walk along the indoor link back to New Street train station however and you’ll find the latest addition to Birmingham’s booming shopping culture – Grand Central. Here you’ll find another great selection of restaurants and unique shops, all conveniently located one floor above Birmingham’s main train station. It’s a great place to hit before departing, as you won’t have to rush around before dashing for your train home.
Food
You may have noticed we’ve mentioned restaurants quite a lot up to this point. That is because it can be argued that Birmingham houses the UK’s best diverse dining scene. Decades of multiculturalism has led to a huge variety of options for when you’d like to eat out.
Of course we have to mention curries! So famous is the city for the cuisine, there is even an area of the city called “The Balti Triangle”, allegedly where the Balti curry was invented - or perfected, depending on who you ask. Regardless, the city centre is packed with award winning restaurants serving their takes on the Asian cuisine staple.
But if you’re only here for a weekend, and want to get as much variety packed in as possible, there is only one place to go – Digbeth Dining Club. Fast becoming an icon of the Birmingham food and drink scene, this independently run street food event runs Thursday to Sunday in Digbeth, and has a revolving line up of independent vendors covering the widest selection of cuisines you’re ever likely to find in one place.
Night life
Chances are, if you’ve heard anything about Birmingham, you’ve heard of Broad Street. The night life centre of the city, this one street houses all of the big nightclub venues, alongside even more restaurants and bars at the adjoining Brindleyplace.
Movies more your thing? You’ll find Birmingham awash with cinema options, which also unsurprisingly come in all shapes and sizes. From the massive Cineworld on Broad Street and Odeon at Broadway Plaza, to the high end Everyman at the Mailbox, right down to the oldest working cinema in the UK, The Electric, Birmingham is a film lover’s dream.
But if you’re looking for something a little less mainstream, Birmingham has a lot of hidden gems for you to explore. You can see our list of the latest ones here, but the pick of the bunch may be Ghetto Golf. This crazy spin on mini golf is becoming the quirky night out for visitors to the city, and is helpfully just across the road from Digbeth Dining Club!
In town this weekend? Let us know what you get up to!
