Birmingham is the second largest city in England, located in the West Midlands region. After the Second World War, its historical center was badly damaged, but since 1990 badly damaged buildings were replaced with new ones. Modern Birmingham is more like a pulsating artery, in which life beats the key, and local glamorous shops, loud pubs and fashionable clubs support its smooth operation, attracting more and more tourists to the city.
The climate in Birmingham is temperate maritime and, like everywhere in England, very mild and humid. The coldest months are January and February, when the temperature drops to + 3 ° C, the warmest month is July (+ 15 °).
HOW TO GET
On the bus
Buses from various parts of England arrive at Birmingham Digbeth station. For example, you can drive from London in 2 hours 45 minutes (ticket from 11 GBP), from Oxford in 1.5 hours, from Manchester in 2.5 hours. The prices on the page are indicated for March 2019.
On the train
Virgin Trains take you to New Street Station, which is located near Pallasades Shopping Centre. A ticket from London costs 6-15.50 GBP (travel time 1.5 hours), from Manchester - from 9.50 GBP (travel time 1 hour 45 minutes).
On the plane
Birmingham Airport, located 12 km from the city, has flights from many European cities and New York. There are connecting flights from Moscow, and the time spent on the road depends on which European city you change planes in (minimum 6.5 hours).
You can get around the whole of the West Midlands on Birmingham public transport. A Daytripper ticket (£6.60, children £4.50) allows you to travel on buses and trains all day from 09:30. For trips at an earlier time, it is better to buy a Centrocard card. Tickets of all types can be purchased at the tourist center located near New Street Station.
The tram line in Birmingham (The Metro) connects New Street and Wolverhampton stations, following through the Jewelery Quarter (centre of Birmingham), West Bromwich Bridge and Dudley. The ticket, valid for both trams and buses, will cost 6.30 GBP.
You can rent a car at the EasyCar rental office. If you book a car online on the EasyCar website, it will be waiting for you at the place you need. Other options are Hertz and Avis at 17 Horse Fair Street.
Banks usually work from 09:30 to 15:30, some branches remain open until 17:30, and some even on Saturday morning. ATMs in them work 24 hours a day, but some machines do not serve customers for several hours at night.
There are many different hotels in Birmingham, in which any guest will find what he needs. There are also budget 2-star hotels, where the cost of a room does not exceed 35 GBP per night, and good "fours", including the Radisson, Hilton, Hyatt, Novotel, Crowne Plaza and Marriott brands, where the cost of a room sometimes reaches 120 GBP.
Architecture and art
The most interesting buildings of the city:
Nature lovers
The botanical garden is a huge space, on the territory of which there are many greenhouses. In them, you can see plants from various climate zones, as if you had visited the tropics, subtropics, desert areas of Australia, the Mediterranean or the Alps. The Butterfly House is very popular, where you can see the entire life cycle of these insects. If you're lucky, you'll be able to watch a butterfly emerge from its cocoon and spread its wings, or maybe on a sunny day one of them will mistake you for a flower and sit on your head or shoulder! Many events are held in the Botanical Garden, including Christmas events. Working hours and the schedule of master classes can be specified on the garden's website (in English).
The nature reserve "Birmingham Nature Center" presents a large number of animals and birds, including two rare red pandas. Many interesting excursions and master classes are also held here, you can check the schedule on the park's website (in English). This is also important because sometimes the reserve is closed to visitors due to adverse weather conditions.
The National Sea Life Center is home to turtles, piranhas, seahorses, stingrays and otters, and you can even watch them eat. In order to get to feeding time, check the feeding time of your favorite animals on the reserve's website (in English). Entry costs from £12.75, but you can save up to 40% if you book your ticket online a day or more before your visit.
RSPB Sandwell Valley Bird Sanctuary is free to visit, you only have to pay for parking if you come by car (£3). This is a great place for family vacations: here you can walk, play, have picnics, study nature, watch birds and participate in interesting educational projects. You can specify the working hours on the reserve's website - it changes depending on the season and the dates of the holidays.
A zoo is located on the territory of the theme park "Drayton Manor" (Drayton Manor). It is unique not only in the variety of animals, but also in the fact that you can visit it for a day as a zookeeper and help employees do their daily work. This is not volunteering, but rather an attraction, so this pleasure costs 100 GBP per fan. More about the zoo on the Drayton Manor Park website.
the spirit of antiquity
Two ancient mills survive in Birmingham. One of them, Sarehole Mill, is about 250 years old and still runs the mill on Wednesdays and Sundays. Milled flour and products from it can be bought here. Opposite this mill lived J. R. R. Tolkien, author of the legendary Lord of the Rings. The writer claimed that the sight of this mill inspired him to create a saga about Middle-earth. Tickets cost £6 for adults and £3-4 for children. The working schedule of the mill is different in different seasons, it is better to clarify it before visiting on the website (in English).
For some time, the mill was used for the production of steel sheets by the famous English industrialist Matthew Bolton. His elegant Georgian house, Soho House, is now also a museum (address: Soho House, Soho Avenue, Handsworth, Birmingham). You can visit the house only as part of an excursion, it is held at 11:30, 13:00, 14:30, it lasts about one hour. An adult ticket is £10. The museum constantly holds themed evenings, for example, Christmas programs and costume tours. The full schedule can be found on the Soho House website (in English).
In autumn and winter in the West Midlands, we recommend visiting:
Stores are usually open 6-7 days a week from 09:00 to 17:30, shopping centers often work until 20:00.
On Sundays, shops are open from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. or from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Large supermarkets are open 24 hours a day, except Sundays.
Bull Ring is considered the largest shopping complex in Birmingham. Other lesser-known malls are nearby: Pavillions, The Mailbox and The Pallasades are located near New Street station. The main shopping streets of the city are New Street, High Street, and Corporation Street.
The Jewelery Quarter is located in the center of the city. This is the largest concentration of jewelry companies and retail jewelry stores in Europe. The Jewelery Quarter Museum, located at 75-79 Vyce stret, is a real workshop founded in 1899. After 80 years, when the owner decided to retire, he simply closed the shop at the end of the normal working day. In this form, the workshop became a museum.
In Birmingham itself and in its surroundings, farm fairs are held 1-2 times a week, where you can buy any products produced in the region, from meat and eggs to canned food and bread. One of the city's markets is the Farmers Market on New Street in the city center.
In England, so-called balti houses are considered popular, and Birmingham is the capital of Balti cuisine. The name probably comes from the Baltistan region in Northern Pakistan. However, Balti cuisine is believed to have been invented in Birmingham in 1977. The very concept of "balti" means the British way of cooking curry in a special cast-iron wok pan.
The so-called "balta triangle", which brings together more than 50 restaurants, is located 3 km south of the city center on Ladypool Road and Stretford Road in Sparkbrook.
