Not to miss

Metropolitan Cathedral

The Catholic Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King is whimsically known as 'Paddy's Wigwam', a reference to its thorny crown and funnel-like shape. The soaring exterior makes a striking statement, but opinions on the modern interior vary.

The cathedral was originally designed to surpass St Peter's in size, but WWII and Liverpool's postwar decline forced a major rethink. Construction was completed in 1967 and incorporates the crypt designed by the project's original architect, Sir Edwin Lutyens.

World Museum Liverpool

Natural history, science and technology are the themes of this fascinating, sprawling museum. Exhibits range from birds of prey to space exploration within each of the museum's four worlds, and it includes the country's only free planetarium.

Hours of educational entertainment for the whole family! Take your pick from four major sections: the Human World, one of the top anthropological collections in the country; the Natural World, which includes a new aquarium as well as live insect colonies; Earth, a geological treasure trove; and Space & Time, which includes the planetarium.

Speke Hall

This diagonally patterned Tudor home dates from 1490-1612, and is filled with gorgeously timbered and plastered rooms. The house contains several 'priest's holes', where the hall's sympathetic owners hid Roman Catholic priests during the anti-Catholic 16th and 17th centuries.

This marvellous example of an Elizabethan half-timbered hall is 10km (6mi) south of Liverpool. Speke Hall was formerly surrounded by thousands of acres of land, but these days all that remains is the drive and an oasis of meticulously maintained gardens; the hall's Chapel Farm became the nucleus of nearby Liverpool Airport. A bus runs from Lime St to Speke Hall, but the walk from the bus stop is about a kilometre and a half.

Tours to Paul McCartney's childhood home at 20 Forthlin Rd leave from Speke Hall, as well as from Albert Dock. The modest housing estate home is now a National Trust property and has been evocatively restored to its 1950s appearance, complete with assorted McCartney memorabilia. A particular highlight is the lounge room where John and Paul wrote early songs like 'Love Me Do' and 'I Saw Her Standing There'.