Stockport Air Raid Shelters
A labyrinth of tunnels carved under the town centre that sheltered thousands in the Blitz, explored with a self-guided audio tour. Atmospheric in the best way for 7-and-ups.
Staircase House
- Cost
- Adults £6, under-16s free
- Ages
- 5 to 11
- Where
- Stockport, Greater Manchester
- Weather
- Works in the rain
- Booking
- Just turn up, but it is closed Mondays and Tuesdays
Opening hours are where this one catches people, so take them first: closed Monday and Tuesday, 10am to 5pm Wednesday and Thursday, midday to 5pm on Friday, 10am to 5pm Saturday, 11am to 4pm Sunday, closed on bank holidays, last admission an hour and fifteen minutes before the doors shut. It is an hour, not half a day, and it works best bolted onto the Air Raid Shelters round the corner.
The house is Stockport's oldest, on the Market Place, named after a rare Jacobean cage newel staircase, one of only three left in the country, that was painstakingly restored after fire damage. Stockport Council runs it and pitches it as a barrier free, hands-on journey through time, with rooms dressed to show how people lived from the 15th century through to the 20th. The pricing is the standout. Adults are £6, concessions £4.50, and everybody under 16 goes free with a paying adult, along with companions of disabled visitors and holders of a Leisure Key or Art Pass. A family of four with two primary-age children therefore gets in for £12.
What it costs: Adult £6, concession (60+ and students) £4.50, under-16s free with a paying adult. Companions of disabled visitors, Leisure Key holders and Art Pass members go free. The Stockport Explorer ticket gives a discounted visit to Staircase House, the Air Raid Shelters and Bramall Hall.
Know before you go
- Closed Mondays, Tuesdays and bank holidays, and Friday opening does not start until midday. Last admission is an hour and fifteen minutes before closing. Half the disappointed reviews are people who did not check.
- Under-16s are free, so if your five year old turns out not to be gripped by 17th century plasterwork you have lost £6 and twenty minutes. The Stockport Air Raid Shelters are a short walk away on Chestergate, which makes a proper wet-weather afternoon of the two.
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What visitors say
★★★★★ 4.7 across 166 Google reviews.
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Bramall Hall & Park
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Hat Works Museum
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