So 2021 didn’t exactly go to plan, did it – but our buzzing region is looking forward to the year ahead with some seriously exciting things on the horizon.
Greater Manchester has done its best to bounce back from another year of decimated tourism, delivering amazing outdoor experiences and attractions.
2021 saw the return of huge city events like Manchester International Festival, Manchester Pride festival, and Parklife.
New restaurants and bars have continued to spring up in every direction too.
It includes outdoor experiences, cultural developments, hospitality openings, and events.
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We’ve picked out 22 things heading to Greater Manchester in 2022.
Mayfield Park
Credit: Mayfield Parnership
Manchester’s first new park in more than 100 years will be unveiled in late 2022.
Spanning 6.5 acres, Mayfield Park is currently under construction on the sprawling Mayfield site adjacent to Piccadilly Station.
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UEFA Women’s EURO 2022
This will be massive for Greater Manchester – the women’s tournament is kicking off here next year.
England will play Austria at Old Trafford on July 6, with several other fixtures at Manchester City Academy, Leigh Sports Village, and DW Stadium in Wigan.
Mrs Doubtfire the Musical
One of the best films of all time has been turned into a Broadway show, and Manchester will be treated to the first performances on home turf in 2022.
Mrs Doubtfire the Musical will have its UK premiere at the Opera House Manchester on September 2 and will run until October 1.
This long-neglected and under-appreciated gem of industrial architecture in Manchester city centre will have new life breathed into it in 2022.
The Grade II-listed Castlefield Viaduct is being turned into an elevated urban park, much like New York’s High Line, by the National Trust.
Phase one will open to the public in the summer – read more here.
Soho House
One of the biggest hospitality names in the world will make its way to Manchester in 2022, taking over the upper three floors of the former Granada Studios building.
It will be a key operator in the new St John’s neighbourhood, which will also be home to MIF’s The Factory from 2023.
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It’s expected to include a rooftop bar and pool as well as dining rooms, lounge areas and a Mollie’s Motel & Diner concept.
Band on the Wall
CGI of how Band on the Wall will look
Gosh, we’ve missed this place – the historic gig venue Band on the Wall will finally reopen in the spring.
It’s been undergoing a big renovation while we’ve all been nipping in and out of lockdowns, expanding into the Victorian Cocozza building that’s been derelict at the back of the venue for decades.
Manchester Museum
Another reopening here – the much-loved Manchester Museum closed back in the summer while it grows into its £13.5 million extension.
When it reopens late in 2022, it will have a new two-storey extension, a new exhibition hall, the South Asia Gallery, and Chinese Culture Gallery.
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Rugby League World Cup
Old Trafford might be famed for its football pedigree, but in 2022 it will turn its attention to the world of rugby.
The rescheduled 2021 Rugby League World Cup, and Women’s Rugby League World Cup, will take place in October and November.
The Wheelchair Final will be held at Manchester Central, and additional fixtures are taking place at the University of Bolton Stadium and Leigh Sports Village.
Sexy Fish
Credit: Spinningfields
Decadent Mayfair restaurant Sexy Fish, owned by The Ivy’s Richard Caring, is taking over the old Armani unit in Spinningfields.
It first opened in 2015 and is famed for its luxurious dining environment and will be one of the most talked-about restaurant openings of 2022.
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Gratitude Games
This is a new event – a multi-sport games created to support the mental health of emergency service and NHS workers.
It will be held at venues across Greater Manchester in April and May. Spanning 20 sports – including both traditional sports such as athletics, cycling, swimming, as well as niche sports like angling, lawn bowls and squash – it’s a chance for our emergency services and NHS to have fun, enjoy the benefits of sport and for the public to thank them for the amazing work they do.
Northern Roots
Oldham’s ambitious eco-project, which will see the UK’s largest urban farm built just outside Oldham town centre, is moving forward.
The 160-acre Northern Roots will include hand-on community projects like beekeeping, animal husbandry and growing plots, as well as a bike hub, mountain biking trails, arts, culture and events, and a natural amphitheatre and swimming pond.
Pollen Bakery
Credit: Pollen / No Chintz Studio
Famed Ancoats bakery is expanding with a second location, this time at Kampus.
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The new location will offer an expanded brunch menu as well as more room for baking their sell out breads and pastries, with a chance for customers to see the kitchen working.
Leonardo Hotel
The Leonardo will open in Manchester in 2022. Credit: Capital & Centric
Capital & Centric’s Jenga-inspired hotel is well on the way and due to open in spring.
The £35m development, in the heart of Piccadilly East, will be draped in plants and plans include a ground-floor restaurant, cafe, and external terrace connecting to a new public square.
Jodrell Bank
Cheshire’s UNESCO attraction Jodrell Bank will welcome its new addition, the £21m First Light Pavilion, in May.
It will be a new gallery dedicated to telling the story of Jodrell Bank, with an immersive projection space and auditorium, and a new education hub and café.
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Wigan Pier
The long-vacant 18th century buildings of Wigan Pier will finally be brought back to life, as a waterside destination.
It was made famous by George Orwell’s The Road to Wigan Pier in 1937 – but its new life will include a gin distillery, microbrewery, events venue and cultural hub.
The Locationist
Manchester has a rich history of being used as a filming location, including Peaky Blinders, Captain America, The Crown, and It’s A Sin.
The Locationist tour is set to launch early in the year and will show off the city’s top locations.
Bistro Marc
A great team effort by many at the Cumbria Clock Company bringing the Winters Clock House back up and running…a little more to do but nearly there… pic.twitter.com/jnsjnaVApd
There’s been painstaking work going on in Stockport, where the historic Winter’s building on Little Underbank is being turned into a new French restaurant.
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Bistro Marc will be a 70-cover restaurant spread over two floors that will serve French favourites, with a focus on using fresh local produce from Stockport Indoor Markets and other local suppliers.
Treehouse Hotel Manchester
That big brutalist Renaissance Hotel on Deansgate is being turned into a 206-bedroom hotel.
Forming part of the wider £200m redevelopment of the area, there’ll also be new retail space and room for pop-up food and drink vendors alongside the River Irwell.
Royal Exchange
Credit: Flickr
The magnificent Royal Exchange theatre has a packed year-long programme that will celebrate the joy of theatre, with bold plays, new writing and cast-iron classics.
Maxine Peake will star in a new show Betty! A Sort of Musical, while Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie will also come to the stage.
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Queer Contact
Queer Contact has been a staple of Manchester’s cultural calendar for more than a decade, but this will be its first year in its newly-transformed home.
Contact theatre on Oxford Road has undergone a £6.75m refurbishment.
The event in February will again be a celebration of queer culture and LGBTQ+ talent, including drag kings, comedy, variety, ground-breaking performance and the annual Vogue Ball.
Claus the Musical
There’s a world premiere in store for Salford, with a brand new Christmas musical debuting at The Lowry.
From the writer of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz comes Claus the Musical, telling the story of Claus and how he became an icon of our hearts and the skies.
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Manchester Open
The walls of HOME’s gallery will again be filled with work from the region’s artists, with more than 400 residents taking part.
Following on from 2020’s award-winning exhibition, almost 2,300 artwork entries were submitted for judging for its second outing and the resulting show promises to deliver an unmissable insight into the city-region’s local artistic talent.
Featured image:
Feature
Ravyn Lenae at Gorilla Manchester – Our ‘One Wish’ was granted
Thomas Melia
This was Ravyn Lenae’s first rodeo at Gorilla and it’s safe to say she had the Manchester crowd hooked on her live set like ‘Candy’ (sorry).
Only two lines in and three puns deep but Ravyn’s performance was nothing to joke about, especially with her to-die-for vocals and killer live accompaniment.
Her most recent album and tour are both branded, Birds Eye, and while Gorilla may not be the most panoramic place in our beautiful city to overlook the Manchester skyline, the bubbly and engaging crowd sure painted a pretty well-rounded picture of the Mancunian hospitality.
The introduction to ‘Bad Idea’ feels like a spaceship descending to earth and it couldn’t be more fitting because let’s face it, an artist this good simply can’t be living on the same planet as us she’s simply out-of-this-world.
Similarly, the follow-up ‘1 of 1’ has an identical space-tech vibe with a static-filled opening and instrumental making it a perfect predecessor. These two tunes have impressive soundscapes with the live drums even more so helping to excite a sold-out venue.
Ravyn Lenae wasn’t shy on stage, commanding the Gorilla stage.Lenae appreciating the roars of the Manchester crowd.Credit: Audio North/The Manc Group
Seven tracks into the setlist, Lenae knows how to keep Gorilla at her fingertips performing hits ‘M.I.A’, ‘The Night Song’ and ‘Candy’ back-to-back-to-back – easily the holy trinity of track runs on this tour.
Taken from her debut outing Hypnos, the afrobeats and lo-fi inspired ‘M.I.A’ doubles as a dancefloor filler and an instant crowd pleaser, ironically we were lost in the music.
The middle of this three-track-run ‘The Night Song’ keeps spirits high and boosts our confidence as the 25-year-old has us singing, “Hair down, feeling alright/ Got my edges on tight, It’s a party tonight”.
Her sweet-named album track ‘Candy’ jet sets us to a tropical paradise with its reggae-fused rhythms, and after a full ten minutes of side-stepping and attempting to dance, the cold temperature outside didn’t even cross the crowd’s mind.
Besides being some of her best numbers, these three upbeat tunes take us through a small piece of her past three projects with each of the singles featuring on a different respective release from 2018 all the way up to present day.
Nothing but love from Ravyn Lenae and her crew for the Mancs.Lost in music, Lenae and band at Gorilla, Manchester.Credit: The Manc Group
Steve Lacy produced ‘Sticky’ was another standout, her rocker chic-esque vocal style flaunts all over the live band’s arrangement as she flaunts, ‘What did you do?/ Got me confused’.
‘One Wish’ was ethereal; I may have an unfair bias with this single being my personal favourite in the American star’s discography, but the vocal delivery and Lenae’s characterisation elevated this to new heights – even better than its original studio recording, maybe.
Manchester never misses the chance for an encore, especially not when it’s the plucky guitar bop ‘Love Me Not’. Up there with one of her best.
The crowd erupted as Lenae asked, “You want one more?”, before whistling, “See right now I need you, I’ll meet you somewhere now”, it was obvious concertgoers wanted this show wasn’t done.
The Manchester date marks the final show of the whole tour and Lenae was feeling very reflective during song breaks, telling the buzzy crowd, “I’m so grateful that I still get to tour this part of the world and I appreciate you all braving the cold for me”.
When you’re getting to witness someone as remarkable as Chicago-born singer Ravyn Lenae, a little bit of nippy Manchester weather is nothing!
The best, biggest and bouijiest hotels to stay at in Manchester city centre
Daisy Jackson
Hotels are opening in Manchester city centre at a rate that’s hard to keep up with, diversifying the overnight offering with every passing minute, and they’re also some of the very best in the UK.
We’ve got plenty of familiar boltholes if you can’t tear yourself away from the familiarity of a Premier Inn purple bedroom, or the reliable comforts of a Hilton, but also plenty of smaller names offering a stylish place to rest your head.
We’ve rounded up a dozen of the very best that Manchester has to offer – expect rooftop pools, riverside terraces, grand architecture and celebrity chefs.
And not all of them come with an eye-watering price tag…
If you want a hotel with loads of atmosphere as well as a grown-up space with a dark, moody interior, then Dakota is absolutely the one for you.
This beautiful hotel opened back in 2019; a huge £30m black box on the outskirts of the Northern Quarter that has seen celebrity guests such as Hugh Jackman, Molly Mae-Hague, Mel B and many more.
Formerly Hotel Brooklyn – we all know Manchester has a habit of drawing comparisons to New York, albeit a smaller, soggier version, – voco Manchester still has all the glamour as was originally intended.
The hotel first opened at the worst possible time, being thrust in and out of lockdowns within weeks of opening, but since then it’s attracted rave reviews and been named among the top 20 ‘hottest new hotels’ by Traveller’s Choice among many glowing reviews.
Even after being over by IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) in December 2023, the 189-room hotel has taken on a new life, boasting the in-house Runyons Restaurant which still keeps those US connections, as well as an open-plan lobby lounge featuring a big screen for live sport and entertainment.
It may be different from what it was but there’s still plenty of style to be seen here.
Just across the border into Salford is The Lowry Hotel, and a big, sweeping curve of pure class sticking out above the river. It’s got a global reputation and it’s no surprise when its guestbook features some of the biggest celebrities of all time.
Remember when Taylor Swift rented out the entire place, or Jose Mourinho decided to just live there, rather than find an apartment, during his time as Manchester United manager? Not to mention Britney Spears, David Beckham, Rihanna, Take That, Lady Gaga, Kylie Minogue and countless others.
Having undergone a £5m bedroom refurb, The Lowry has one of the smartest and brightest interiors in the north of England, one of the region’s most expensive hotel rooms (a casual £4,500 a night for the presidential suite), as well as a super high-tech spa. We also enjoy just heading there for the Lowry bottomless brunch, to be honest.
The Kimpton Clocktower – previously known as the Palace and Principal Hotel, among multiple other monikers – oozes timeless sophistication, a relic of Victorian grandeur but with a boutique hotel feel to it.
The lobby is one of the most impressive spaces in Greater Manchester, all polished tile and marble beneath a glass-domed ceiling, setting the scene for the rooms themselves (high ceilings, big windows, and plenty of historical details).
Another big plus when it comes to the Kimpton is its in-house bar and restaurant: The Refuge, which is a cut above the average hotel offering and is very much its own entity with a reputation for fabulous late-night and seasonal events, a divine bottomless brunch and plenty of other distinct draws.
The lobby at Kimpton ClocktowerOne of their many stylish roomsCredit: Kimpton/The Manc Group
5. The Midland
If only walls could talk, The Midland Hotel would have some of the best stories on Earth.
The landmark hotel has been part of the fabric of Manchester for more than 100 years, with 312 luxurious rooms, and it’s storied that it’s where Charles Rolls and Henry Royce (of Rolls Royce fame) were introduced.
Then there are the communal spaces, even fancier now after their £14m refurbishment, including restaurants Adam Reid at The French and Mount Street Dining Room, and the incredible circular champagne bar in the middle of the lobby.
It’s also the place to come for a traditional afternoon tea and has a truly cracking spa. This place doesn’t need any kind of sale pitch: it’s unquestionably one of the best hotels in Manchester – if not the best.
The curb appeal of Whitworth Locke is something else, from its decadent bar housed in a Parisian-style conservatory and fine culinary offerings (Peru Perdu and a Foundation Coffee House are both in here), to its incredible location right on the edge of the Gay Village.
Each of the rooms is a self-contained haven, from studio apartments all the way up to two-bedroom duplex suites, decorated in a Pinterest-worthy palette of greens and pinks (a muted sample of the terracotta bricks outside).
There’s a free workspace area that spills into a truly stunning conservatory bar, as well as a packed calendar of events too, so whether you’re an out-of-town guest or a local Manc looking to fill a few hours, you’ll be kept busy enough.
Safe to say we’re big fans of this much-loved Manchester hotel.
7. King Street Townhouse
You have, almost without a doubt, seen photos of the King Street Townhouse before – this is the hotel that introduced the infinity pool to the city centre, with views of the Town Hall (well, currently of scaffolding).
The hotel has its own cinema room, a rooftop terrace bar, a new gym, and incredible afternoon teas.
The smart rooms range in size from ‘snug’ to ‘cosy’ to ‘comfy’ to suites, with suites priced at around £430 a night.
From afternoon tea and lunch deals to spa offers, big group events, private screening and so much more, King St Townhouse isn’t just one of the best hotels in Manchester, it’s also one of the most well-rounded in terms of its overall hospitality.
One of the newest hotels to open in Manchester (and they are popping up like daisies) is The Alan, which has stripped the old Princess Street Hotel back to expose and celebrate its original features.
There are 137 bedrooms, each with high ceilings and warm textures, an open-plan kitchen, a restaurant and bar, as well as event spaces.
The devil is in the detail here and the design has been carefully thought-out. The floor is made from a collage of discarded marble, and the dried flowers illuminated beneath the bar were actually foraged by the hotel’s owners at the time they secured plans for The Alan… while they were broken down on the side of the motorway.
It’s gone on to become comfortably one of the best luxury hotels in Manchester since it opened in 2022.
9. Stock Exchange Hotel
Famous names absolutely litter Stock Exchange Hotel, which is easily one of the grandest spaces in all of Greater Manchester.
Not only does it come from Gary Neville’s rapidly-booking hospitality empire, but it’s also backed by world-famous hotelier Winston Zahra, not to mention high-profile chefs and hospitality figures like Tom Kerridge and The Schofield Brothers having run the kitchen.
You could be looking at as much as £1500 for a night in the suites, but the rooms start at a much lower rate – and then there’s ‘The House’, an enormous fully serviced, ultra-exclusive penthouse apartment with its own roof terrace.
The newest addition to Manchester’s ever-growing hotel and resort sector, The Reach has landed just a short walk from Piccadilly Station and is only a few minutes away from the bustling Northern Quarter, meaning that like Dakota, it’s picked a prime logistical and cultural location.
But enough about topographical perks, this place is simply sublime, serving exquisite food and drink from its Lock 84 restaurant overlooking the Rochdale Canal, with rooms that are just as spacious as they are luxurious.
Perfect for business or pleasure, The Reach is already becoming a popular choice for those visiting Manchester and has comfortably landed itself on the list of the very best hotels we have to offer here in the city centre.
Daisy Jackson -
26th December 2021 
