Hi there mate, are you in Coventry and have no plans? We’ll help you decide with some of the best things to do in Coventry. Coventry, one of the most livable cities in the world, is well-liked not just by students but by tourists as well. Whether you're a student seeking a break, a visitor looking for fun, or even a native trying to fall back in love with the city, here is a list of some of the best things to do in Coventry!
1. Coventry Transport Museum
Address: Millennium Place, Hales St, Coventry CV1 1JD, United Kingdom
Open hours: 10 am - 5 pm
Coventry Transport Museum is a must-see for any family seeking for a genuinely unique day out. This massive Museum in the heart of Coventry city centre has the world's greatest collection of British road vehicles in public ownership. You'll learn about the individuals who helped Coventry become the centre of the world's motor and cycle industries, and you'll get up close and personal with the real cars that marked some of history's most pivotal events. The Museum is designed to take you on a trip through time; you'll walk through 19th-century neighbourhoods and find the first bicycles, carriages, and vehicles, then visit the first car manufacturers and gasp as you witness their terrible wreckage in the Blitz Experience. This has to be one of the best things to do in Coventry alone or with your family.
2. Coventry Cathedral
Address: Priory St, Coventry CV1 5AB, United Kingdom
Open hours: 10 am - 4 pm
During WWII, the 14th-century Gothic St Michael's Cathedral was bombed out on November 14, 1940. As a monument, this edifice has been left in ruins, allowing you to wander into the nave and contemplate the window tracery. This has to be one of the best things to do in Coventry. The main surviving remains is a functional bell-tower with a visitor information centre on the bottom level that may be ascended for £4. Make time to visit Graham Sutherland's massive tapestry of Christ, Lawrence Lee's stained glass windows, and John Hutton's Expressionist Great West Screen.
If you’re struggling to find transportation around you, you can check our guide to public transportations in the UK and the different London zones.
3. St Mary’s Guildhall
Address: Bayley Ln, Coventry CV1 5RN, United Kingdom
Open hours: 10 am - 5 pm
St Mary's Guildhall, one of the most magnificent remaining guildhalls in the UK, is free to enter. You may learn about Shakespeare and Mary Queen of Scots' Tudor stay in St Mary's, as well as enjoy art, weaponry, armour, and furniture collections. This has to be one of the best things to do in Coventry for history enthusiasts. The Great Hall is the highlight, with Medieval stained glass, angels carved into the ceiling beams, and one of the UK's most precious tapestries.
4. Herbert Art Gallery and Museum
Address: Jordan Wl, Coventry CV1 5QP, United Kingdom
Open hours: 10 am - 5 pm
This outstanding gallery and museum, known locally as The Herbert, offers excellent holdings in visual arts, archaeology, natural history, and social history. Begin with the British Life and Landscapes show, which includes works by major 20th-century English painters such as Paul Nash, L. S. Lowry, Stanley Spencer, and David Bomberg. If you like going to museums then this is one of the best things to do in Coventry. At the same time if you are hanging out with someone who gets easily distracted and bored of museums, you could send them off to some of the best cafes in Coventry so that you can enjoy your museum time in peace.
5. Holy Trinity Church
Address: Holy Trinity Church, 5A Priory Row, Coventry CV1 5EX, United Kingdom
Open hours: God’s arms are always open for you!
The Holy Trinity Church, the only mediaeval site of worship in Coventry to survive the war unharmed, has one of the highest spires of any non-cathedral church in the nation. The church was dedicated in the 12th century and afterwards renovated by renowned restorer George Gilbert Scott in the 17th and 1850s. Visitors claim that apart from visiting other places this is amongst the best things to do in Coventry. The captivating "Doom" painting of the Last Judgement over the tower arch is what distinguishes the Holy Trinity.
6. War Memorial Park
Address: Kenilworth Rd, Coventry CV3 6PT, United Kingdom
Open hours: Open 24 hours
In order to create a park in honour of Coventry's war dead, the city purchased 50 acres of property from the Lords of Styvechale Manor after the First World War. The 27-metre monument, which was constructed from Portland stone and consecrated in 1927, is the centrepiece of the gardens, which were finished in the 1920s and 1930s. This is one of the best things to do in Coventry. The park had a multimillion pound facelift at the beginning of the 2010s, and as a result of its care and amenities, it has subsequently been awarded the prestigious Green Flag accreditation.
7. Warwick Arts Centre
Address: University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, United Kingdom
Open hours: 9 am - 9 pm
The Warwick Arts Centre, one of the biggest multi-arts venues in the UK, offers a top-notch, interesting, and varied schedule of performing and visual arts, concerts, movies, festivals, educational and learning opportunities, and special events all presented in top-notch settings. The venue, which is located in the centre of the University of Warwick campus in Coventry, has been a unique and exceptional site since it opened in 1974. It has been a significant force in regional, national, and worldwide arts networks as well as a resource for the arts and audiences in the area. The location has just undergone a considerable expansion and update, including a roomy new lobby, three cutting-edge cinema screens, and a renovated gallery.
8. Coventry Music Museum
Address: 80 Walsgrave Rd, Coventry CV2 4ED, United Kingdom
Open hours: 10 am - 4 pm
This vibrant museum honours all of the modern music trailblazers who were born in Coventry and Warwickshire. You may get a deeper look at performers like Delia Derbyshire, a pioneer of electronic music who created the well-known electronic arrangement. Two-tone, a punk and ska mashup influenced by multiculturalism, also originated in Coventry. The Specials, the genre's most well-known band, are featured prominently in several exhibition spaces. The museum also has an interactive recording studio, a replica of a record store booth, and a timeline of the history of music in the area dating back to Roman times.This is one of the best things to do in Coventry for music freaks.
9. Midland Air Museum
Address: Rowley Rd, Coventry CV3 4FR, United Kingdom
Open hours: 10 am - 4 pm
The Midland Air Museum is located near Coventry Airport, just outside the village of Baginton in Warwickshire, England. The museum features the Sir Frank Whittle Jet Heritage Centre, which has several artefacts in a big hangar. Anyone who desires to learn more about aviation, you’re probably in just the right place and this has to be one of the best things to do in Coventry. You may do so at the Midland Air Museum in a quiet and inviting environment. Amazing exhibitions, such as Wings Over Coventry, and over 45 aeroplanes guarantee that tourists of all ages can find something of fascination at the Midland Air Museum. If you’re a student looking to stay in Coventry check out the student housing guide.
10. Lady Godiva Statue
Address: Coventry CV1 1LN, UK
Open hours: You can go anytime, the statue is still going to be there, unless this is night at the museum where she comes to life.. jeez!
Lady Godiva, or Godgifu in Old English, was a late Anglo-Saxon noblewoman who was the wife of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, and a patronage of many churches and monasteries. Today, she is most known for a tradition that dates back to at least the 13th century, in which she rode nude through the streets of Coventry, covered only by her long hair, to obtain a reprieve from the heavy taxes that her husband, Leofric, enforced on his tenants. If you’re looking for the best areas to live in Coventry we got you covered.
11. Lunt Roman Fort
Address: Coventry Rd, Baginton, Coventry CV8 3AJ, United Kingdom
Open hours: 10 am - 4 pm (temporarily closed)
A Roman fort, Lunt Roman Fort, to the south of Coventry was partially restored in the 1970s by the Royal Engineers following an archaeological assessment. Except for a circular enlargement on the east side, the camp bears the traditional square footprint of a Roman fort. There is nothing else like it in the Roman Empire, and it is thought this "gyrus" was used to train horses.
12. FarGo
Address: Far Gosford St, Coventry CV1 5ED, United Kingdom
Open hours: 10 am - 4 pm
Since 2014, a former industrial zone east of Coventry University has been revived as a magnet for creative, youthful, and independent firms. Vintage clothing stores, graphic design and animation companies, candle manufacturers, a microbrewery and bar, and a vegan cafe may be found in renovated warehouses and the lanes connecting them. This has to be on the top of the best things to do in Coventry. The Box is a sophisticated 500-capacity performing arts facility, while the museum devoted exclusively to American 20th-century TV actor Phil Silvers, well known for Sergeant Bilko, is maybe the oddest item at FarGo.
13. Kenilworth Castle
Address: Castle Green, Kenilworth CV8 1NG, United Kingdom
Open hours: 10 am - 4 pm (only on Saturdays and Sundays)
Kenilworth Castle is a ruined castle in the town of Kenilworth, Warwickshire, England, administered by English Heritage. This majestic Norman castle bears witness to crucial events in English Medieval and Tudor history. The remains are huge and fascinating, with an 18-metre tower built for Elizabeth I that you may still climb and the grand Gothic Great Hall, which was ordered by John of Gaunt in the 14th century. From the interactive display in the Tudor stables to the refined Elizabethan garden, you'll need a whole day to see everything. Another one of the things to do in Coventry for history fanatics.
14. Stoneleigh Abbey
Address: Stoneleigh, Kenilworth CV8 2LF, United Kingdom
Open hours: 10 am - 5 pm
South of Coventry is the English estate and country home known as Stoneleigh Abbey. The stunning architecture of Stoneleigh Abbey, its expansive gardens, and the river Avon all combine to create the ideal setting for your special event. Be welcomed back into the era of English aristocracy at every step. The mansion is open five days a week and offers a unique Austen-themed tour.
15. Coventry Godiva Festival
Address: Kenilworth Rd, Coventry CV3 6PT, United Kingdom
Open hours: 10 am - 9 pm
The three-day Godiva Festival, which honours the famous former resident of Coventry, England, Lady Godiva, takes place every year in the War Memorial Park. This is a must visit for all music enthusiasts and is one of the most fun things to do in Coventry. It has two fields, a Main Field and a Family Field, each of which offers a distinctive experience. It is the biggest family music festival in the UK. The 2023 event will run from June 30 to July 2. Not just tourists but Coventry attracts many students every year, if you too are planning to shift to this beautiful city for studies then check out these student accommodations in Coventry.
That was our curated list of the best things to do in Coventry! We hope you found this blog helpful and discovered something about the city that you didn’t know before. If you wish to know about the things to do in other cities in the UK, check out the guides for Bath, Cambridge and Leeds. Have a good time!