Liverpool

Infrastructure investment has been a significant factor in strengthening the position of Liverpool as a city break destination building on its international brand and unique assets.

Following large-scale waterfront investment in the 80's and 90's, Merseyside's European Objective One status has accelerated that growth with major investments made into the development of National Museums Liverpool, Tate Liverpool and St George's Hall.

The Kings Waterfront development has already seen the opening of the impressive Arena and Convention Centre which opened in 2008 with a capacity of 10, 600 which was host to Liverpool’s’ opening event for its year of European Capital of Culture, and promises to welcome further residential and business developments.

The city of Liverpool’s £19 million Cruise Terminal opened in 2007 with funding the NWDA. It can accommodate vessels of up to 350m in length alongside the city's UNESCO World Heritage waterfront and has been host to the QM2.

The revitalised gateway to the Metropolitan Cathedral, the FACT centre, the retail developments of Liverpool 1 and the Met Quarter, the Connecting Liverpool way finding infrastructure, have all helped in improving connectivity and accessibility to the city.

Liverpool John Lennon Airport has become firmly established as a base for low-cost airlines with over 80 international and 13 UK routes on offer in 2010. Many new hotels have opened in the last three years and the number of budget hotel rooms in the city centre has virtually doubled.

The city has a well-earned reputation for staging large successful events from the Mathew Street Festival, the Round the World Clipper race, the Liverpool Biennial and the stunning La Machine.

Liverpool already delivers a substantial proportion of the hotel nights spent in the Merseyside sub-region and this share is set to grow substantially with planned infrastructure investments.

With Liverpool having celebrated its status as European Capital of Culture in 2008, there has never been a better time for local tourism businesses to get involved and to maximise their opportunities.

For further information on Liverpool, please visit www.visitliverpool.com - The Mersey Partnership's main website for tourist information on Liverpool and Merseyside.