Wirral: Nine outdoor attractions to visit this spring

We have compiled a list of nine attractions you can visit over the coming months.

1. Birkenhead Priory & St Mary’s Tower

The oldest standing building on Merseyside, Birkenhead Priory encapsulates so much of the town's history within a small, enclosed site.

Founded in 1150, the monks of this Benedictine monastery looked after travellers for nearly 400 years and supervised the first regulated 'Ferry 'cross the Mersey'. Birkenhead Priory has received a Rics NorthWest Building Conservation Award.

Now surrounded by factory units and shipyards, the Priory is an oasis of calm in a busy world and affords unrivaled views of the river and surrounding area.

2. Mersey Ferries

River Explorer Cruises are back! Cruises depart Pier Head, Liverpool on the hour and Woodside, Wirral at twenty past the hour. 

Mersey Ferries strongly recommend that you book your tickets online before you visit. Your booking allows you to travel on any scheduled cruise on the date selected (subject to availability).

A River Explorer Cruise takes you on a 50 minute trip where you’ll be captivated by Liverpool’s fascinating history as the world-famous waterfront unfolds before you.

Mersey Ferries (Image: Mersey Ferries)

3. Birkenhead Park

Birkenhead Park was the world’s first public park designed by Joseph Paxton, and is said to have heavily influenced the design of New York’s Central Park.

The park includes two lakes, listed buildings, a café, visitor centre and children’s playground to name a few.

This beautiful open space in the heart of Birkenhead is open every minute of every day for anyone who wishes to enjoy it.

Birkenhead Park (Image: Creative Commons)

4. Bidston Hill

Bidston Hill rises to 231 feet above sea level and has some incredible views over Liverpool’s skyline.

Seek out the old windmill (access available on certain days), the grade II listed lighthouse and observatory, and follow the heritage trail around this fascinating place to discover all its secret nooks and crannies. 

Bidston Hill (Image: Creative Commons)

5. Tam O’Shanter urban farm

Whilst you’re up on Bidston Hill, take a moment to visit the Tam O’Shanter urban farm at Tam O’Shanter cottage, built over 300 years ago by a heath squatter.

Open daily and with free entry, this urban farm has goats, chickens, alpacas, sheep, ducks and ponies.

6. Flaybrick Memorial Gardens

No longer an ‘active’ graveyard and now preserved as a memorial garden, Flaybrick is estimated to have over 200,000 residents.

There are rare tree species dotted throughout the cemetery, including a monkey puzzle tree, and nature is truly starting to reclaim this spooky yet peaceful place.

An unusual, but highly interesting way to spend a few hours.

7. Thurstaston Beach

The long, sandy beach and blue seas at Thurstaston are arguably some of the most beautiful in the North-West of England.

The perfect place to walk, swim, find rockpools, picnic and BBQ. Backed by the beautiful Wirral Country Park and with the Wirral Way running through the village, there is plenty to explore in this coastal landscape.

Thurstanton Beach (Image: Creative Commons)

8. New Ferry Butterfly Park

Located just south of Birkenhead in New Ferry, the New Ferry Butterfly Park is an urban nature reserve developed on a former railway goods yard and now managed by Cheshire Wildlife Trust.

Easily accessed from Bebington railway station, this oasis of calm in the middle of the Wirral has been transformed into a home for over 26 species of butterflies.

The park opens from May until September.

9. Mermaid Trail in New Brighton

This exciting tourist Trail is based upon the local legend of The Black Rock Mermaid who was reported in an 18th Century Chapbook to have appeared to a local sailor and whose moonlight home is at the foot of Perch Rock Lighthouse, the original Black Rock.

Mermaid Trail in New Brighton (Image: Chloe Nightingale)