Once you’ve decided where to stay in Birmingham you’ll want to fill up your time wisely. Here are my suggestions for the top 4 things to din Birmingham, England:
VISIT CADBURY WORLD
In 1824, Birmingham merchant John Cadbury began selling tea, coffee and drinking chocolate in the centre of the city, and nearly two-hundred years later Cadbury is the second biggest manufacturer of confectionary in the world. In 1990, the company opened this self-guided tour at it’s Bournville manufacturing plant that explores not only the Cadbury story, but the history of chocolate and confectionary around the world. It’s one of the city’s largest tourist attractions, and offers visitors a glimpse inside the manufacturing process as well as a chance to create their own sweet treats.
Photo Credit: Elliott Brown
EAT MORE THAN SWEETS
In 2011, the BBC’s food magazine Olive crowned the city as king of the UK’s culinary scene. Plenty of London foodies were up in arms at the decision, but who can argue with Birmingham’s diverse range of Michelin-starred restaurants as well as the plethora of fresh food on show at the iconic Birmingham Wholesale Markets – the largest in the UK. The city also played a key role in the development of Balti cuisine, a style of Indian cooking now popular across much of the UK as well as Canada and Australia. Purists claim that nowhere in the world makes it quite like the West Midlands.
EXPLORE THE CITY’S DIVERSE MUSIC SCENE
Birmingham was the birthplace of heavy metal, thanks to hometown hero Ozzy Osborne and the other members of the iconic band Black Sabbath. It was also the home of members of Judas Priest and Led Zeppelin. Its diverse multicultural population made up of many Indian and Jamaican immigrants also saw the city play an important role in the development of styles like Bhangra and Ska. Birmingham was the home of other iconic acts including Duran Duran, UB40, Ocean Colour Scene and The Streets. Today, the city is home to a new generation of musicians, and several bands from the Digbeth-based “B-Town” scene have been championed by UK style-bible The NME as superstars of the future.
Photo Credit: Brian Clift
SHOP UNTIL YOU DROP
Although most stylish visitors to the UK still have their sights firmly set on the nation’s capital and its plethora of stylish boutiques, Birmingham is making a name for itself as one of the country’s coolest commercial destinations thanks to the ultra-modern Bullring shopping centre located at the site of the city’s historic market district. Officially opened in 2003, it’s home to some of the world’s biggest brands, including Topshop, Apple and Zara – and boasts a space-age Selfridges store designed by award-winning architecture firm Future Systems.
