Covid city explorer - things to do in Liverpool

Check upcoming open days and book your place

Easily the North West of England’s most talked-about city, Liverpool boasts a modest population of just over 500,000. As the birthplace of The Beatles, the home of the Tate Liverpool art gallery and hosting two of the world's largest football clubs - Everton and Liverpool FC - Liverpool is a bedrock of UK culture. 

Students in Liverpool tend to study at either Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool Hope University or the University of Liverpool. Each university is recognised around the world for its quality in education and breadth of subject offerings. This allows students to study almost any subject they desire. 

Things to do in Liverpool - Hidden gems

Provided you're abiding by the current tier rules within the area, the current lockdown shouldn’t deter you from channeling your inner explorer. We suggest the following:

• Handheld Mobile Video Tours: in the spirit of social distancing, take a guided tour through your very own mobile phone. You won't be able to access every stop on the way, but you can still safely explore what’s available and save the closed areas for later.

• Queen Avenue: walking past, it may be easy to miss, but this is what makes it a hidden gem! Down this wee lane, you’ll find some quirky local stores to check out once lockdown ends.

• Bluebell Wood: located in between Aintree Hospital and Altcourse Prison on Higher Lane in L9, this is an ideal spot to get some fresh air and catch the bluebells sprouting in Spring.

• Red Rocks: near Hoylake shore, you’ll struggle to find a nicer spot to catch a sunrise or sunset in Liverpool. There are some pretty stunning views of the Hilbre Islands too.

Eat local in Liverpool

Places to eat in Liverpool

The dining experience is not quite the same, but throughout lockdown you can still get some of the best food in Liverpool delivered to your home. Some of our top picks are:

• Bundobust: cheap, modern Indian street food at an incredibly reasonable price.

• Maray: affordable Middle Eastern food, including lamb, fish and falafel, with options to suit any dietary requirements.

• Madre: an iconic food truck located on the Royal Albert Dock, this is a must for any Mexican food lover.

• Pasta Cosa: name me one person that doesn’t love pasta, I’ll wait… Anyways, these guys know how to combine quality pasta and fresh ingredients into one standout takeaway option.

Local Liverpool food

When you're a student in Liverpool it's important to immerse yourself in the culture. One way to do this is to test out the local dishes. When it comes to local delicacies, you can’t go past:

• Scouse: a hearty stew that contains a mix of either beef or mutton with vegetables. You’ll find this is regularly served throughout Liverpool pubs, often with a side salad of cabbage. Pubs famous for their Scouse include Maggie May’s and Ma Egerton’s.

• Toad in the Hole: similar to a Yorkshire pudding, but think bigger. This delicacy is a pastry, stuffed with sausage and glazed in gravy. 

• Bubble and Squeak: like a pancake, it involves pan frying an assortment of vegetables, potatoes and either sprouts or cabbage. When restrictions ease, you can rely on Leaf, Lord Strange or George’s Great British Kitchen to serve you up this delicious meal.

Although these local Liverpool dishes are served throughout the city, there’s no reason why you can’t try your hand at whipping them up at home. For recipes, check out Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy, Kitchen Mason or Kitchen Sanctuary.

Covid testing near me in Liverpool

It’s important to know where you can get your nearest Covid test. Whether or not you show Covid symptoms, no matter what age you are, Liverpool City Council have said that anyone can get a free Covid test.

There are currently two types of Covid tests available for those in Liverpool:

• Symptom-free Covid test: this is for people not showing Covid symptoms. You do not need to book, and you can visit any Covid test site listed on the Liverpool City Council website. You can see where your nearest test centre is, when they open and how busy they are in real time.

• Tests for people with Covid symptoms: you must book a test if you show any symptoms. You can book a Covid test on the Liverpool City Council’s website.

Being a student, you have access to either of these two options. However it is also worth noting that students can access a Covid test through the University of Liverpool. Available to any uni student in the city, the university has set up a University Covid test site. The testing site is on campus, opposite building 502 next to the car park on Peach Street.

If you are still unsure about testing, or would like more information, visit the Testing FAQs section of the Liverpool City Council website.

Making friends in Liverpool during Covid

You might be scratching your head as to how you can make friends during lockdown. 

Although meeting in person is restricted for the time being, be savvy with your digital resources. Meetup is a great tool for seeing what virtual gatherings of like-minded people might be coming up, such as a The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour via Zoom, Virtual Yoga and Meditation or even Musical Bingo.

Be sure to also keep tabs on what virtual events your university and students' union are hosting. Do so by checking your student email, your university's website and your students' union's social media pages.

Liverpool events

Virtual events

Being in lockdown means the only events currently taking place in Liverpool are virtual rather than socially distanced.

Keep an eye out for the virtual events local universities are putting on, via the university’s website and their social media pages. It’s worth also looking for any virtual events outside of your university. Both Visit Liverpool and Culture Liverpool will give you a rundown of what’s coming up. 

Outdoor events

Currently there are no outdoor events taking place in Liverpool. But, when lockdown restrictions do ease, there will be plenty of outdoor events to attend.

You can expect events such as the Liverpool Biennial Festival 2021 taking place from March through until June, Liverpool Sound City 2021 music festival on the last weekend of April and the LightNight Liverpool 2021 festival kicking off in May - just to rattle off a few. 

Health and wellbeing activities in Liverpool

Being inside has encouraged us all to get creative and be flexible with how we stay healthy and take care of wellbeing.

Getting your daily dose of exercise is crucial for this wellbeing. If you need some inspiration, check out Adidas Head Trainers Maddy and Alex from @soulsistersfitness. Running live and recorded workouts across their Instagram, these two are some of the best in Liverpool. Their workouts are dynamic, suitable for both genders, and include a range of strength, cardio, core and yoga training.

Mental health - Liverpool

Getting active is an effective way to take care of your head space, but if you’re in need of further support and tips on general wellbeing, we highly recommend the following resources:

• Live Your Life Well: Public Health Liverpool’s health and wellbeing website offers advice and trusted information. They provide healthy recipes to try, ways to get active at home, outline good habits to maintain along with poor habits to avoid, how to stay connected, how to help others and how to cope during lockdown.

• Student Minds: if you’re in need of any one-to-one support, materials and resources for your wellbeing or want to know where to find support for you or a friend, Student Minds has students completely covered.

Liverpool influencers - Who to watch

If you are in need of a bit more inspo during this lockdown or are after some helpful content, this is who we think is worth checking out:

• Elle Edwards (@livefitelle): a recent Liverpool law graduate, Elle has kept her followers motivated throughout Covid with simple home workouts and wellness tips that are easy to form into healthy habits.

• Gini Wijnaldum (@gwijnaldum): although known for being one of Liverpool FC’s top players, Gini often shares his love of photography, encouraging his followers to share what photos they’ve snapped.

• Emily Bull (@emilyjbull): if you're in need of some fashion ideas or are keen to know what’s trending around Liverpool, Emily’s in the know.

• Emily Niamh: we all need fresh meal ideas or cooking inspiration this lockdown, so you’ll find some handy tips from Emily. She also shares her thoughts on how to be thrifty with DePop when all you can do is shop for clothes from your room.