The city of 1,000 trades, Birmingham’s industrial legacy runs right through the second largest city in the UK and offers a lot in the 21st century. HAPPYCAR is here to help you find the best car hire Birmingham has to offer so you can take full advantage of this dazzling city and a direct car hire Birmingham Airport is also available. We check the prices of international and local providers so that you don’t have to check each website, and provide you with the best deals to make your money go further for a car hire that is specific to your rental needs.
General Information
With a population of over one million, Birmingham was once the heart of the industrial revolution and its boom years brought in the good and bad. Over the years, however, the city has outgrown its squalor and has been redeveloping into a modern metropolis worthy of its place in history. Birmingham has also embraced a highly multicultural group of residents and is associated with a number of titanic historical and literary figures, from J.R.R. Tolkien to Joseph Priestly and Erasmus Darwin, Charles Darwin’s father, who founded the Lunar Society, an extraordinary melting pot of scientific and industrial ideas. Today, its cosmopolitan sheen shines brightly and its nightlife is legendary.
To Do
Birmingham is a great stopover for chocolate connoisseurs and a visit to Cadbury World is a must. A Birmingham car rental can take you four miles south of the city to Bourneville, where visitors can learn about the Cadbury family, score some free chocolate and enjoy chocolate-themed rides. For a taste of the city’s history, visitors can head to the Custard Factory, one of the few remaining industrial-style buildings on the high street. The arts are also strongly represented in Birmingham. With a large variety of museums and art galleries on offer such as the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, which has a stunning display of Renaissance masterpieces. Birmingham has a large canal network and extensive development has enhanced the environment and level of amenities around the canals in the city center, making them excellent pedestrian routes in their own right.
Attractions
Thanks to the city’s diverse population, there are religious buildings that are scattered across Birmingham, and are beautiful sights to visit. Excellent examples include St. Philip’s Cathedral and Birmingham Central Mosque. The Jewellery Quarter is a fantastic sight in Birmingham, and not only does it still provide around 40% of the UK’s jewellery, this Georgian relic is also open to the public. One and a half kilometers north of the Quarter is Soho House, where industrialist Matthew Boulton lived and you can take a tour through his restored 18th century dwellings. A fantastic modern piece of architecture can be found right in the middle of Birmingham – shaped like an upside-down ziggurat, the Birmingham Central Library is the busiest public library in Britain and worth a visit for the sleek eight floors.
Eating
Birmingham is known as the Balti capital of England, as the Anglo-Indian dish was invented there in 1977. Two miles south of the city there is a cluster of around 50 restaurants called the Balti Triangle, that caters to lots of different types of food, particularly Indian, and is a popular draw. Birmingham also has a large student population, so a number of affordable eateries and chain restaurants are available, including Chinese, Italian and English food. The night life is buzzing in Birmingham and there are a ton of places to drink in the middle of the city, especially on Broad Street.
Excursions
Birmingham is conveniently located in the middle of the UK with motorways snaking out of the city, so a Birmingham car hire can open up much of the rest of the country for short excursions or more protracted stays. The nearby locations of Shropshire, Warwick, and Stratford-Upon-Avon provide more of the stereotypical images of old England, and a particularly bright crown in the north is the Black Country, a shining beacon of history and heritage.If you wish to explore outside you can visit Liverpool which is just 90 miles via the M6, as is Manchester is just a couple of hours away, and even London is within reach form the M1.