Despite many of our Christmas parties and plans getting cancelled, December was expensive.
If you’re also looking at your post-festivities bank balance and panicking that you’ll have to spend January in hibernation, think again.
Greater Manchester is great at delivering amazing things to do, completely free of charge.
From walks to cultural fixes to, erm, petting goats, there’s loads you can do without spending a penny.
Our ultimate aim is to get you out the house but keep the pounds in the pocket.
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Walks
Winter walks are unbeatable – getting all chilly and then defrosting in your local with a pint or at home with a hot chocolate.
After the indulgences of a week of roast dinners, cheese boards and Baileys, a country walk is a good way to clear out the cobwebs.
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To keep it simple, we propose three easy walks through Manchester’s stunning parks.
Fletcher Moss, Didsbury
Fletcher Moss in Didsbury. Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Fletcher Moss is the king of parks in Manchester with avenues of evergreen trees, waterfalls, rock gardens and ponds.
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A beautiful stroll along the River Mersey forms part of the many walks available here, or you can take a left and head through the Stenner Woods.
The village of Didsbury is only a five-minute walk from the park for a post-walk hot chocolate.
Tatton Park, Knutsford
Tatton Park. Credit: National Trust
Tatton Park is one of the UK’s most complete historic estates. It is home to an 18-century mansion, 50 acres of gardens and a 1,000-acre deer park.
A walk in the in the deer park is completely free and well worth it.
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Less than an hour drive away, Tatton Park is extra special for early morning risers – the view is unmatchable when the sun comes up over the park.
Reddish Vale Park, Stockport
Reddish Vale. Credit: Geograph
Reddish Vale is quiet, peaceful and filled with wildlife, like birds of prey including kestrels, sparrowhawks and buzzards.
A huge lake sits in the middle of the park, with the massive viaduct standing overhead.
It’s reported the coffees and fresh brownies they sell from The Coffee and Bean Dream van are the best in Manchester (we can neither confirm nor deny).
One of the best things about winter is that you don’t have to stay up late to watch the sunset – it’s still going down at about 4.30pm.
A cracking sunset is very underrated and doesn’t cost a penny.
Here are some of the best spots in the north west to see the sun go down.
Alderley Edge, Cheshire
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Watching the sunset is a great free thing to do in Manchester. Credit: Geograph
Watch the winter sun sink beneath Greater Manchester with an unrivalled view of Stockport and the outer-boroughs.
It’s stunning and definitely worth the visit. There are so many ledges to sit and watch the sunset from.
It’s a great place to sit after an afternoon walk and maybe bring a picnic if you’re feeling crazy.
Chorlton Water Park, Chorlton
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
A lakeside sunset – doesn’t get more romantic than that, does it?
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Picnic benches are by the play area so the little’uns can tire themselves out before bed and you can enjoy a lovely evening by the lake.
Parking by the lake is available and it’s really simple to get to.
Heaton Mersey Park, Stockport
Credit: Geograph
This treasured green space in Manchester always looks beautiful in the winter months.
The park is a bowl and so you can sit back and watch a sunset very comfortably. We would recommend this one for a long sit in with the sunset – but wrap up warm!
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Salford Quays, Salford
Credit: Geograph
We present to you a cityscape sunset – different to the previous more nature inclined settings, but the sun looks the same from anywhere.
Easily accessible via tram or bus, it’s a simple but rewarding outing watching the sunset with loved ones and at Salford Quays you can do this overlooking the waterways.
Werneth Low, Tameside/ Stockport
Werneth Low. Credit: Flickr
Werneth Low is a hill just outside of Manchester and forms part of the Pennines – don’t worry we’re not sending you up a mountain, it’s an easy ascent.
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It’s a great spot to walk the dog with excellent views of Manchester. After the sun sets fully, Manchester city lights up and sparkles. You can sit and enjoy a free light show.
Feed farm animals
Feeling like you’re lacking that animal influence in your life? There’s some just down your road and they’re awaiting your visit.
Heaton Park Animal Centre, Manchester
Heaton Park Animal Centre in Manchester is free to visit.
The centre is home to a selection of farm animals including cows, pigs, goats, alpacas, ducks, hens and geese plus rabbits and guinea pigs.
Located in the 640 acre grounds of Heaton Hall, both grounds and hall have retained many of their original features.
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It’s free entry and the closest car park for the animal centre is accessed from the St. Margaret’s Road entrance, or you could get the Metrolink to Heaton Park.
Pets Corner, Longford Park, Stretford
Credit: Longford Park Pets Corner
Pets Corner is part of the Friends of Longford Park group, a great little initiative that welcome donations in exchange for a free visit.
You could sponsor your favourite animal for £3 to £4 a month. Equally important are food donations.
Animals like to eat cabbage, tomatoes, lettuce, sweetcorn, parsnips, swede, carrots and broccoli. Whatever you didn’t eat this Christmas could be given to a tiny little rabbit.
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Museums
Great Manchester Police Museum, city centre
Credit: Geograph
Materials dating back to 1981 have been preserved and tell the history of policing in Greater Manchester.
Staff are also on hand to discuss policing and how it has evolved in the community. It is also an 1879 Police Station, which has original cells and an 1895 Magistrate Court.
They have official and personal records – which is a great resource to learn about the history of policing in Manchester.
Surprisingly Stockport has a long history of hat-making. We didn’t know much about this either but it’s a really interesting visit on a rainy afternoon.
The museum is set over two floors and includes interactive exhibits, including a hatting factory floor with Victorian-style machines.
There’s also more than 400 hats on display.
Science and Industry Museum, city centre
Manchester has contributed so much to modern science and industry, and you can explore just a fraction of that at the Science and Industry Museum.
It’s home to interactive exhibits, and loads of objects and stories that chart 250 years of world-shaping discoveries and innovations that began here.
Featured image: Science and Industry Museum / Longford Park Pets Corner
Things To Do
Olicana Park – The log cabins near Manchester that capture apres-ski magic all year round
Daisy Jackson
Roaring fires, bubbling hot tubs, stunning views, and even pairs of skis strapped to the walls – but this isn’t the French alps… it’s Yorkshire.
Olicana Park is a beautiful holiday park right on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales, just an hour’s drive from Greater Manchester.
Here, scattered around the banks of the River Wharfe, you’ll find a collection of luxury wooden cabins, traditional cottages, and classic static caravans.
But for us, it really is all about those cabins, which capture all the best bits of the apres-ski culture loved by snow-worshippers, all year round.
In winter, you can whack on your own log burger and cosy up on the sofas with a glass of red wine and a good book, while in summer you can throw open the bi-fold doors and sit out with a cocktail on your own gigantic roof terrace.
Each cabin has its own theme that plays in around the tasteful decor, which usually involves incredible wooden beams and stone floors.
The one our friends at The Hoot stayed in had an apres-ski theme, from the subtle (vintage wooden skis and piste markers used as wall art) to the clever (an old chair lift that had been turned into patio furniture).
The luxury apres-ski cabin at Olicana ParkA sauna inside the cabinThe view from your own terrace
There’s a huge hot tub perched on your own private decking too, where you can soak in the warm water while watching the river burble past at the end of your own driveway.
Upstairs in this particular cabin were two enormous double bedrooms with modern en suite bathrooms, one of which also had an enormous terrace attached with a view down to the river.
And then – wait for it – the cabin also came with its own sauna. Talk about luxury.
If you can’t tear yourself away from your own space, each cabin has a kitchen that’s perfectly kitted out with everything you need to whip up a tasty tea (or, if you’re like us, a cheese board for dinner).
Lunch dishes at Hamilton’s the on-site restaurant at Olicana ParkBreakfast at Hamilton’s the on-site restaurant at Olicana Park
But if you do venture out, there’s an on-site restaurant called Hamilton’s, where you can dig in to fresh salads, gyros, and burgers, and when you come back in the next morning you can feast on a menu of banging breakfasts and brunches.
Olicana Park actually used to be a traditional caravan park, but has been given some serious TLC since the new owners took over in 2016.
It was this team who decided to split the park into zones, with four cottages in one, five luxury cabins in another, and 29 static caravans in the third.
The cottages and cabins were all refurbished or constructed from scratch using British suppliers and local tradesmen.
The living rooms in an Olicana Park cabin. Credit: The Hoot Leeds
It’s just a short stroll from Addingham village, and that’s only a short bus from the bustling town of Ilkley, which itself is only a short train ride from Leeds.
That means excellent pubs, restaurants and cafes within easy reach, as well as gorgeous countryside walks like a riverside amble to Bolton Abbey.
Surrounded by a plethora of long walks and country pubs, Olicana Park really is a perfect gateway to the Yorkshire Dales, and if you’re looking for something to kick off holiday season then we couldn’t recommend it more.
You can get 10% off your June holiday at Olicana Park with the code “THEHOOT”.
You can ‘run and rave’ as part of this new charity-driven social in Manchester city centre
Danny Jones
If you’re looking for a fun new way to spend a night out or thinking about getting into running but maybe haven’t quite found the right way in for you just yet, this new Manchester run socialthat starts and ends with a good old-fashioned party might be right up your street.
Run The Streets MCR is a community-led and charity-driven fitness and social event that recently launched in Manchester and has already developed a bit of a cult following in the space of only a couple of months.
The concept is simple: it’s a running social where you can meet new people whilst getting your yards in, just not quite as you know it. Instead of people turning up for a 5k and then heading home, the fun carries on at a host venue where people can keep chatting and mingling whilst having a boogie.
And the best part is that not only is it more of a causally paced, low-pressure jog and crucially social-first, but it’s all for a good cause too.
Started out by East Manchester locals and lifelong mates, Liam Parker-Worsley and Sarah Edwards, (‘Sezzle’ to those who know her among the Manc running circles), Run The Streets started out as a running social concept at its very core but has now become truly bigger than the sum of its parts.
While the ‘run and rave’ idea has been done before, this particular event is the first of its kind in Greater Manchester and after facing some serious obstacles to get it off the ground and plenty of adversity at the very first hurdle – for lack of a less punny phrase – they’ve managed to turn it into a force for good.
After pivoting the model at the start of 2024 to be completely non-profit, the monthly event is now helping bring people together for a good time, from the tarmac to the tiles, all whilst raising money for the likes of The Running Charity (TRC).
Not only do all the proceeds from the super affordable tickets – we’re talking the same price you’d pay for a decent pint in town these days – go straight back into running the next social, but they also help fund the chosen charity for that month.
Be it national causes like TRC, which recently received huge support from the incredible ‘Hardest Geezer‘s run across Africa, or charities strictly local to Manchester, everyone involved is striding towards a goal – quite literally.
Meet the team behind the new non-profit run social in Manchester.
Offering a different kind of night out
Speaking to The Manc, co-creator Sezzle says the mission statement is simple: “Everyone’s welcome and you can meet new people whilst running but at the same time we’re giving back to the community.
“We’re supporting local charities, artists and DJs, as well as local running clubs who want to get involved. Essentially, it’s just about bringing people together, which is what run clubs do, but we’re also in a big city and not everyone wants to go out and just drink at a bar all night.
“You want to keep fit, it’s good for your mental health, but you also still want to be social and enjoy yourself. Run The Streets is that Mancunian through and through but everyone’s invited.”
Sober for five months now, she acknowledged that outlets like this are crucial, insisting: “I don’t want to stop going out and having a good time or meeting new people, so this is a way that you can still go out on a Friday night and enjoy a party atmosphere with no pressure to drink”.
This is what the start of a night in trainers, hi-vis and glow sticks looks like. (Credit: Supplied)
The ‘by Manchester for Manchester’ ethos
Her partner in crime Liam echoed that party-run description, reiterating that whilst people can still get a bit boozy if they like, it’s all about “providing an alternative for anyone who doesn’t want to drink and want to be included but might have felt a little alienated otherwise”.
A fellow Tameside native, he explained how Run The Streets has already partnered with zero-alcohol brands like Clean Break for their inaugural event back in March and now alcohol-free favourite Lucky Saint for their sophomore social this month.
“It’s not about the financial aspect for us”, says Liam, “we only charge for tickets to sustain the event and pay for the talent, hiring spaces and so on… It might be different venues, different charities etc., but as long as we focus on core issues to Manchester with a cultural element that’s important to us, we’re happy with that”.
Sez couldn’t agree more, adding: “At the end of the day, we’re Mancs, we’ve watched the city grow into what it is today. When it comes down to it everyone knows about the Manchester spirit, it’s a hard-working area and there’s such a community to this place – we want to make sure everyone feels welcome.
“We look out for each other. That’s how it’s always been.”
Their recent running event with Matchroom ahead of the Gill vs Barrett fight at AO Arena. (Credit: Run The Streets MCR)
Roots in the running and wider Greater Manchester community
Chatting with Tom Lewis, founder of Manchester’s annual 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness and Chairman for the Run The Street’s official host club, Manchester Road Runners, he said that they became interested because they “really liked the idea of sponsoring different charities every month”.
Confessing that it felt like “a natural crossover” given MRR’s size and ethos, as well as their own non-profit work with the British Heart Foundation and Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity, he said the “overall response from the first event was incredible – everyone just loved it”.
“There were people dancing on the streets as they saw us come past and there were so many videos on social media. That sort of stuff can really help get people into running who wouldn’t necessarily consider it in the first place.”
“I think it’s going to grow really quickly; the first event sold out and I think the next ones will too, definitely. It’s great to see what just a random group of friends can accomplish when we come together.”
Manchester Road Runners is helping bring huge numbers to the event already.
Liam himself couldn’t speak highly enough of the Castlefield-based group, insisting that “me and Sez find a lot of happiness and solace” at MRR.
While they are affiliated with others like KOKO (Keep On Keeping On’s Manchester arm) and Stretford Run Club that they want to help promote, the hope is that events like this might help people who run but don’t attend a club might give them a try in the future.
Regular ambassador and volunteer at both organisations, Natasha Barclay – who herself is over a year into her own sobriety journey – described the flagship event as “such good fun, really welcoming” and filled with plenty of people who had never even run before.
Nat also urged people not to be scared if they’re first-timers to run socials or running full stop, reassuring that “no one gets left behind; even if you can’t really run, you’ll always make it back, have a good time and meet others in the same boat”.
She went on to add: “Run The Streets MCR is all about giving back to the running community which I think can often get overshadowed by social media and certain brands. The spirit can sometimes get taken out of it but this run social puts its straight back in whilst helping Manchester business and DJs.”
When we asked the guys to sum this whole experience up in three words or less that weren’t ‘rave and run’, they came up with some pretty telling answers too. “Community, soul and fun”, “alternative Friday fun” and our personal favourite: “Simply for Manchester”.
It’s also worth reiterating that these guys have done it completely off their own backs and are doing so on an entirely voluntary basis on top of their full-time jobs, sometimes juggling two or three different roles. It’s been built over countless late nights and dinner hours, all for the love of running and the city.
The second ever Run The Streets MCR running social and party kicks off this Friday, 26 April from 7pm at Joshua Brooks, with a light 5k around our lovely city centre starting at 7:30pm before heading back to the venue for more tunes, dancing, glowsticks and general good vibes from 8pm onwards.
You can grab the last few remaining tickets HERE and we hope to see a few of you there on the night.
Come rain or shine, there’s always tunes to keep you going.The turnout at the last Run The Streets Manchester social at The Deaf Institute.Credit: Supplied/The Manc Group
Dolly Busby -
31st December 2021 
