The North West of England is a Top Destinations

Cheshire

When you hear the name Cheshire you think of green countryside and traditional english towns like Alderley Edge, Wilmslow, Prestbury and Knutsford.
Cheshire is famous for the RHS Flower Show at Tatton Park, it boasts zoos and aquariums, boats, miles of lovely canal, great walks, castles, museums, beautiful small market towns to enjoy a browse round. Its located near enough to Manchester to allow a visit to some amazing shopping there too.
Amazing things to go and see whilst you're in Cheshire include the Anderton Boat Lift at Northwich. This is a marvel of British Engineering built in 1875. This incredible piece of engineering lifts boats and is the only one of its kind in the UK.
If you're interested in boats and ships, there's a boat museum at Ellesmere Port which is home to the largest floating collection of canal craft - and you can go onto some of them too!
Dewa Roman Experience is available at Chester which allows you a glimpse of Roman Chester. Also available to visit are the Lion Salt Works whcih show how Chester was famous for salt!
Another fascinating place to visit in Cheshire is Hack Green Secret Secret Nuclear Bunker! This is an amazing cold war relic!
There are many museums and other facilities available in Cheshire which will entertain the whole family.

Cumbria

Cumbria is the most north westerly and also the second largest of the English counties and home to the largest national park in England. The county is full of castles and the remains of roman forts, and Hadrians Wall runs just 10 or so miles short of the Cumbria/Scotland border on its way to Wallsend in Northumberland. A great place to visit if you fancy visiting Hadrians wall is Birdoswald which has a lot of different components of the Roman wall all in one area and there is a visitor centre there too which has a lot of information on the Roman occupation and also the border raids of the middle ages too. There are lots of museums in the county such as the Dock Museum in Barrow-in-Furness right next to the docks, The Museum of Natural History and Archaeology in Kendal, the Lakeland Motor Museum in Cartmel which with over 150 different items on display also includes full size replicas of the Bluebird car and the Bluebird jet boat or there is the Laurel and Hardy Museum which is in Ulverston and was the birthplace of Stan Laurel.
The Lake District is a place of dramatic scenery, vast lakes surrounded by massive mountains and steep hillsides. There are said to be 16 Lakes in the Lake District, these are; Bassenthwaite Lake, Buttermere, Coniston Water, Crummock Water, Derwent Water, Devoke Water, Ennerdale Water, Grasmere, Haweswater Reservoir, Hayeswater, Loweswater, Rydal Water, Thirlmere, Ullswater, Wast Water and Windermere. There are plenty of other bodies of water but these are generally called Tarns even though some of them are larger than some of the lakes listed. On some of the lakes you can go on boat trips, there's the steam yacht or the Launch on Conniston, the Keswick Launch on Derwentwater, the Steamers on Ullswater and then there are the Windermere lake cruises. On the south shore of Lake Windermere you will find the 'Aquarium of the Lakes' which takes you on a journey from the river to the lakes and then on to the sea, showing the various water life in each of the different environments.

Lancashire

Lancashire is a county of varied landscapes, from the pristine golden beaches on the coast of the Irish sea to the high moors and fells in the east of the county and on the borders of Yorkshire. The seaside resort of Blackpool is possibly the most popular place in the country and as such is really geared up to visitors, with all the tourist attractions which are to be found there, these include the Blackpool Tower and Circus where you can find the 'Walk of Faith' which is a glass floored walkway 116 metres up in the tower(scary!), the Blackpool Sandcastle Waterworld which has a wave pool and white knuckle water slides and a pool for younger children and then there is the Blackpool Pleasure Beach with 145 rides and attractions, a separate section of the park, Beaver Creek offers a separate wristband for younger children, everyone is welcome into the pleasure beach as the rides are payed for in the park either at the ride or by purchasing a book of tickets. There are usually live shows on around Blackpool pretty much throughout the year ranging from popular comics to ice skating extravaganzas. Just to the south of Blackpool is Lytham St. Annes with its traditional seaside attractions and 4 world class golf courses. To the north of Blackpool there is Fleetwood which has the only original main street tramway in Britain and a museum of local history. To the north of the county is Morcambe with its 5 miles of promenade and views of the Lake District from across the Bay. Some museums of note in Lancashire are the National Football Museum (Preston), Lancashire Maritime Museum (Lancaster),Queen Street Mill Textile Museum (Burnley),British Commercial Vehicle Museum (Leyland) and the Harris Museum (Preston). Lancashire has 2 areas of outstanding beauty, the Forest of Bowland and Arnside and Silverdale. The Forest of Bowland contains the famous landmark of Pendle Hill which is as famous for its witches and its beautiful countryside which offers wonderful opportunities for quiet enjoyment such as birdwatching, cycling, fishing and horse riding, and with newly opened Access Land, it offers some of the most remote and rugged walking in the North West. There are routes for all grades of walking all over the county and cycling routes can also be easily found. There are beautiful villages and towns well worth a visit such as Ribchester with its Roman Museum , Clitheroe with the remains of the castle keep looking over the town and Clitheroe Castle Museum and Carnforth with its train station which because of its classic look was used in the film Brief Encounter . The city of Lancaster which sits on the river Lune has a castle which can be viewed by guided tour.