Planning day trip to Liverpool from London to see sites connected to Beatles ...any recommendations.. train ? Magical mystery tour and or museum..any suggestions.. can we do both in one day.
Thanks
Posted by
Lincolnshire, UK
2043 posts
It is going to be a LONG day... The train between London and Liverpool takes on average 2hr 12 min (longer if you need to change).
The Magical Mystery Tour takes two hours and there are departures at 11am and 2pm.
https://www.cavernclub.com/the-magical-mystery-tour/
The other place you may want to visit are the childhood homes of John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Both these properties are in the care of the National Trust and can only be visited as part of a tour. Tours leaves at 10.30am and 11.10am from Speke Hall. Tours at 2.20pm and 3pm leave from bus stand 2 at Liverpool South Parkway station. Tours take two hours.
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/beatles-childhood-homes/features/visit-the-beatles-childhood-homes
It wouild make sense to do the Magical Mystery Tour in the morning and then pick up the National Trust tour in the afternoon. On the mystery tour, you only see the outside of Lennon and McCartney's homes. When it says 'get off the bus' that is probably just a photo stop. To see the inside, you have to do the National Trust tour.
It is also probably sensible to book both tours in advance... Also book trains in advance for best prices.
Posted by
3122 posts
We did the Magical Mystery Tour and loved it. Our guide was enthusiastic and full of interesting, accurate information. Riding around in a bus full of happy people of all ages from all over the world was a truly inspiring experience!
If the MMT route is the same as it was when we went (2015), it starts at the Albert Dock right near the Beatles Experience museum and ends by the rebuilt Cavern Club. Your bus ticket gives you free entry to the Cavern Club, which serves only drinks, no food. We were fairly hungry, so we went around the corner to the Hard Day's Night Hotel and enjoyed a light meal from the "Any Time At All" menu.
The Beatles Experience museum is also terrific, especially if you're a fan of the early days before they became world famous.
Can't speak for the individual house tours as we didn't do them, but with the amount of time you'll have in a day trip from London it might be difficult to fit those in.
Posted by
Cleveland
168 posts
The National Trust tour was amazing. Do it! The Magical Mystery Tour was okay, but the NT tour of the homes was the best.
We went to the Cavern one night and saw a Beatles tribute band. That was fun.
We also went to the Tate Modern while we were there. Worth a visit, but no Beatles related.
Posted by
Pittsburgh, PA, USA
2739 posts
We enjoyed the Magical Mystery bus tour when we took it back in 2002. It was a little bit hokey, but fun. Liverpool was a nice city; we had expected it to be a slum.
We also took a Beatles walk while we were in London, and that was very interesting. You might check to see if one is offered while you are in London.