Manchester, verdict by verdict

Manchester is England's second city on confidence rather than monuments: the industrial world's first modern city now runs on music heritage, two globally famous football clubs with guide-led stadium tunnels, the John Rylands Reading Room that stops people mid-sentence, the Northern Quarter's record shops and independents, and a food-and-bar scene that outgrew London's shadow years ago. The Science and Industry Museum is free and finally whole again after the Power Hall reopening.

The real caveats: there is no single landmark vista in the Edinburgh or York mould, it rains more often than almost anywhere in England so waterproofs are year-round kit, and the best neighbourhoods, the Northern Quarter, Ancoats and Castlefield, reward wandering rather than checklist tourism. Parts of the museum site are still closed for regeneration, litter complaints follow the nightlife streets, stadium groups run thirty-plus strong, and Canal Street weekends reach the rooms above them.

Two days covers the Northern Quarter, Rylands, a stadium tour and a proper night out; three adds the Ship Canal, a museum morning and a Peak District or Liverpool day trip on direct trains. Sleep in the centre for the walkable version, request a quiet room if sleep matters, and come for football pilgrims, music fans and anyone who prefers a working city to a preserved one.