Things to do in Liverpool if you’re there for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023
It’s the most exciting event of May: the Eurovision Song Contest! This year, it’s hosted in the iconic UK city of Liverpool, and we have the best sights to see and things to do there.
The northern city of Liverpool will soon be welcoming the world for the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest. Singer-songwriter Mae Muller will be representing the UK with her record I Wrote a Song and, call it Eurovision fever, but we have high hopes for this year’s Song Contest.
With the final sale for Eurovision tickets taking place earlier this week, Liverpool is well and truly under way with preparations for the song contest, and ticket holders are also deep in organising their trip to the UK city – unless, of course, you’re lucky enough to live there.
Whether you’ve visited Liverpool before and would like to try out some unique activities this time around, or you’re taking a trip to Liverpool for the first time and are keen to see what it has to offer, our list of things to do and sights to see is sure to give you plenty of inspiration. We have lots of Eurovision-themed activities to celebrate the 66th Song Contest, from a poptastic quiz to a screening of the grand final, as well as experiences which show off the best Liverpool has to offer, like The Beatles, Mersey River, and Liverpool FC Stadium.
As always with our guides, we like to include something for every taste and every budget (including one event for free!). You can count on the RadioTimes.com team to deliver an eclectic line-up of activities. Just take a look at the best UK driving experiences, the best London art exhibitions, and the top UK zombie experiences — talk about range!
We’ve also included top travel tips to not only get to Liverpool but to travel around the city, too. Let’s get started.
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Jump to:
- What to do in Liverpool at a glance
- What's on in Liverpool during Eurovision 2023?
- Cheap ways to travel to Liverpool
- What is the best way to travel around Liverpool?
What to do in Liverpool at a glance:
- The National Lottery’s Big Eurovision Welcome, free
- Mersey Ferry River Explorer Cruise, from £8
- Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final Screening, £10
- The BME Eurovision Quiz, £10
- The Beatles Story Experience, from £11
- Skip the Line: The National Museum of Popular Music, from £16.50
- Candlelight: A Tribute to ABBA, from £25
- Aston Merrygold tickets, from £28.15
- Quirky Quarter Immersive Experience for Two Adults, £29
- Liverpool Ghost Walk for Two, £44
- Liverpool FC Stadium Tour & Museum Entry for Two, £46
- Official Peaky Blinders Bus Tour of Liverpool for Two, £75
- ABBA Themed Bottomless Brunch for Two at the Brunch Club, £89
- The Ultimate Beatles Experience - Magical Mystery Tour of Liverpool for Two, £89.90
What's on in Liverpool during Eurovision 2023?
The National Lottery’s Big Eurovision Welcome
We welcome you to this best list with The National Lottery’s Big Eurovision Welcome party! Start your Eurovision stay as you mean to go on, with live music, dancing, and a whole lot of fun. Frankie Goes to Hollywood have reunited for the concert, and Lightning Seeds, Atomic Kitten and Shirley Ballas are also among those set to perform, with AJ Odudu and Joel Dommett hosting the outdoor show.
The National Lottery’s Big Eurovision Welcome will take place on Sunday 7th May, with the last entry being 7:30pm. Tickets are free (although there is a £2 service fee) for National Lottery players.
Buy The National Lottery’s Big Eurovision Welcome tickets for free at Ticket Quarter
Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final Screening
In Liverpool for the Eurovision Song Contest but didn’t manage to bag tickets to the Grand Final? This screening at the Aintree Racecourse is arguably the next best thing. The Racecourse will provide everything you need to get into the party mood for this all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza from flags to scorecards, plus there will be plenty of food and drink stalls.
Taking place on Saturday 13th May, under 12s will go free to this event.
Buy Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final Screening tickets for £10 at The Jockey Club
Candlelight: A Tribute to ABBA
ABBA had their big breakthrough on Eurovision in 1974 when they won the song contest with the track Waterloo, making them possibly the biggest act to have emerged from the competition.
If you’re planning on staying in Liverpool a little longer after the Eurovision Song Contest has ended, why not pay tribute to the sensational Swedish supergroup with a candlelit show? Located at Sefton Park Palm House, a String Quartet will play a rendition of ABBA’s greatest hits, from SOS and Dancing Queen to Mamma Mia and Super Trouper.
Buy Candlelight: A Tribute to ABBA tickets from £25 at Fever
For a complete list of the best UK candlelight concerts happening this month, take a look at our list.
Mersey Ferry River Explorer Cruise
All aboard! In our opinion, bus tours and boat tours are two of the best ways to explore a new city — they’re like walking tours, except your feet don’t ache as much. This 50-minute cruise along the River Mersey has a commentary throughout to teach you all about the legacy of Liverpool, from its musical to maritime history. While on the Mersey Ferry, you’ll sail past iconic Liverpool destinations such as the Tate Liverpool and Royal Albert Docks.
Buy Mersey Ferry River Explorer Cruise tickets from £8 at Fever
The Beatles Story Experience
What is Liverpool most famous for? Liverpool is famous for the Royal Albert Docks, Anfield Stadium (home of Liverpool FC), and The Beatles. The timeless rock band have produced huge hits which have spanned generations, such as Let It Be, Here Comes the Sun, Hey Jude, and many more.
Perhaps some of the best things to come out of The Beatles, in our opinion, are Paul McCartney’s Christmas songs Wonderful Christmastime and Pipes of Peace. Often cited as the most influential band of all time, this exhibition in Liverpool is not one to miss. You can uncover rare Beatles memorabilia and listen to an audio guide narrated by John Lennon’s sister.
Buy The Beatles Story Experience tickets from £11 at Fever
Are you a fan of live music? Take a look at how to get Blur tickets and Jessie Ware tickets.
Liverpool FC Stadium Tour & Museum Entry for Two
As well as The Beatles, Liverpool is perhaps best known for Anfield Stadium, home of Liverpool FC. If there’s a football fan amongst your Eurovision group, be sure to make a trip to the stadium to discover over 125 years’ worth of history.
Armed with a multimedia handset, you’ll learn all about Anfield Stadium. There are plenty of photo opportunities in the dressing rooms and Trophy Exhibition Room, plus you can visit the press room and walk down the tunnel like the Premier League footballer you are in your heart. There’s the brand-new exhibition The Boom Room, too, which showcases the current team.
Buy Liverpool FC Stadium Tour & Museum Entry for Two for £46
Calling all football fans! Here's how to get cheap football tickets and FA Cup Final tickets.
Liverpool Ghost Walk for Two at Shiverpool
Struggling for plans for an evening in Liverpool? How about an evening of terror? If you’re a fan of things that go bump in the night, take a ghost walk through Liverpool. Choose between three different ghost tours: The Hope Street Shivers Tour, which ends at the Gothic Liverpool Cathedral, the Auld City Tour, which sees you venture 40ft underneath the Liverpudlian streets, and The Secret Garden Cemetery Shivers Tour, which begins outside the famously haunted Philharmonic pub.
Buy Liverpool Ghost Walk for Two at Shiverpool for £44 at Activity Superstore
Into all things that go bump in the night? Then check out the best Edinburgh ghost tours.
Skip the Line: The National Museum of Popular Music
You’re in Liverpool for one thing and one thing only, right? The Eurovision Song Contest! Keep the music frenzy going with a trip to the National Museum of Popular Music. The British Music Experience tells the story of iconic artists like The Beatles, Adele and Oasis through costumes, instruments, memorabilia, and video footage of live performances. This ticket from Fever also gives you the special privilege of jumping the queue.
Buy Skip the Line: The National Museum of Popular Music ticket from £16.50 at Fever
The BME Eurovision Quiz
Do you know which song ABBA won Eurovision with? And which artist is representing the UK at this year’s Song Contest? If so, why not test your knowledge at The BME Eurovision Quiz?
Also hosted by The British Music Experience is this Eurovision quiz, which promises to be bigger and more poptastic than ever with Eurovision in town. There will be music and picture rounds to sink your teeth into, and you’ll be surrounded by the museum’s Eurovision displays while you compete, too, which includes Sam Ryder’s spaceman jumpsuit from the 2022 competition.
Buy The BME Eurovision Quiz tickets for £10 at British Museum Experience
ABBA Themed Bottomless Brunch for Two at the Brunch Club
Calling all Dancing Queens! There can never be too many ABBA-themed experiences in our opinion, particularly in a Eurovision-centred best list. At this fantastic brunch at the Brunch Club, you’ll not only enjoy a tasty course but you’ll have the chance to dress up as a member of ABBA, and you’ll listen to '70s disco anthems from the supergroup, too.
Buy ABBA Themed Bottomless Brunch for Two at the Brunch Club for £89 at Buyagift
For all things ABBA, take a look at our guide to What is ABBA Voyage and Waterloo: the Best of ABBA tickets.
Family Entry to St Johns Beacon Viewing Platform
St Johns Beacon, also known as the Radio City Tower, was built in Liverpool in 1969. Standing at 400 feet tall, you can see some of Liverpool’s most iconic landmarks from a bird’s-eye view, as well as places further afield such as the Wirral, North Wales and Lancashire – and on a clear day you can see as far as Blackpool and Snowdonia.
Buy Family Entry to St Johns Beacon Viewing Platform for £23 at Red Letter Days
Quirky Quarter Immersive Experience for Two Adults
Now this next experience has the perfect photo opportunities! Go home from your Eurovision Song Contest mini-break with the UK’s winning trophy in your back pocket (metaphorical, and also, very hopeful), and some great snaps of your time in Liverpool.
At this immersive experience, you’ll enter various rooms where you can stand twice the height of your partner, and walk across the kitchen ceiling! Also at this curious place are plenty of puzzles, challenges, and mind-boggling activities.
Buy Quirky Quarter Immersive Experience for Two Adults for £29 at Virgin Experience Days
Here are the best immersive experiences in London.
The Ultimate Beatles Experience - Magical Mystery Tour of Liverpool for Two
If you’re a fan of the foursome John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, who make up The Beatles, then The Ultimate Beatles Experience is not to be missed.
This experience kicks off with a Beatles-themed two-hour bus tour of Liverpool. You’ll visit the rock band’s childhood homes, schools and colleges, as well as Penny Lane and Strawberry Field — locations which inspired some of their greatest hits. After the bus tour, you’ll head to The Cavern Restaurant for a three-course meal made up of local dishes and traditional courses.
Aston Merrygold tickets
Can’t get enough of live music this Eurovision Song Contest weekend? Buy tickets to see JLS member Aston Merrygold live at the O2 Academy 2 in Liverpool. Merrygold is heading off on a UK headline tour performing at club venues up and down the country – and he promises to sing some throwback JLS tracks as well as songs from his solo career.
Merrygold will be in Liverpool on Thursday 11th May.
Buy Aston Merrygold tickets from £28.15 at Ticketmaster
Official Peaky Blinders Bus Tour of Liverpool for Two
By order of the Peaky Blinders, you must attend this official bus tour! On the tour, you’ll visit recognisable locations from the show including the Garrison Lane, which is the canal spot used as Camden Town, and Ada and Polly’s home. You’ll also learn about the history of the real Peaky Blinders.
Buy Official Peaky Blinders Bus Tour of Liverpool for Two for £75 at Buyagift
Here is the complete guide to the best Peaky Blinders tours.
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Cheap ways to travel to Liverpool
The cheapest way to travel around the UK is usually via coach. One of our RadioTimes.com writers loves taking the coach from London back to their family home in Nottingham. A train ticket from London St Pancras International to Nottingham costs £73.10 (at the time of writing), whereas a coach ticket for the same date and time costs £10.88 on the Megabus website.
Although coaches are preferred because they are cheaper and often quieter with less passengers, trains are certainly quicker. With those two journeys we just mentioned, the train journey will take one hour and 43 minutes, whereas the coach journey will take almost four hours.
There are a few ways to make your train journey cheaper, however, and we've written a complete guide on it: how to get cheap train tickets. Some of the top tips include buying a Railcard and using websites to split the journey, such as TrainSplit and Trainline's SplitSave.
Can you catch a train from London to Liverpool?
You can indeed catch a train from London to Liverpool. Liverpool Lime Street is the main train station in Liverpool, and will position you in the middle of the city to start exploring the activities on our guide.
At the time of writing, a train from London Euston to Liverpool Lime Street will set you back £72.70, with up to two changes, if you purchase via Trainline.
Buy train tickets from London to Liverpool at Trainline
What is the best way to travel around Liverpool?
If you're staying exclusively in Liverpool city centre, the best way to travel is by foot.
However, if you're venturing further afield, you may need to rely on public transport. Luckily, Liverpool is well connected! The Merseyrail railway operator links Chester, Wirral and Southport, as well as Liverpool Airport, via the Wirral and Northern Line network.
Plus, Arriva and Stagecoach buses also operate in Liverpool, and an adult ticket costs just £2.
For more exciting things to do in the country this May, take a look at the best London Shakespeare plays, the best Manchester theatre shows and the best Birmingham shows.
