Invisible Cities is a social enterprise. We don’t believe in labels or stereotypes and want to show that everyone has great potential, a fact reflected in our tour guides. We train people affected by homelessness to become walking tour guides of their own city and offer alternative tours to tourists and locals.
This unique walking tour is led by Laura, a person of many cities, especially Manchester. Her tour will take you on a rollercoaster of the Northern City’s streets, with unexpected twists and turns. Her passion for the past and present women of Manchester and the city’s culture, architecture and food scene is combined with her own personal experience throughout the tour.
As as a transgender woman, Laura’s tour tries to build bridges between her past and the person she has become today. She hopes to educate locals and tourists alike, to understand the difficulties of living on the streets as well as being transgender, in order for people to gain an insight on the issues surrounding homelessness.
What to expect:
Your experience starts at one of Manchester’s finest listed buildings, the Central Library, in St Peter’s Square. Where you should keep an eye out for Laura in her green hoodie which you’ll be welcomed with a meet and greet!
The one and a half mile walk will take you to places like:
- St Peter’s Square, where the Central Library, The Midland Hotel and Emmeline Pankhurst statue are located.
- Manchester Art Gallery, including the gallery cafe
- China Town, where photo opportunities arise
- Piccadilly Gardens, the home of the Queen Victoria statue
- Chapter One Books, a break for a tea or coffee
- The Northern Quarter, taking you to beautiful and intriguing sites, for example Greater Manchester Police Museum.
The tour will end in the centre of the Northern Quarter. This tour will take you around the seen and unseen of Manchester’s streets.
Turning the invisible, visible.