Best Views in Liverpool: 6 Stunning Places to See the City

Every city with a decent skyline claims to have ‘the best view,’ and half the time that’s just marketing copy for a rooftop bar with a £15 cocktail minimum. Liverpool actually earns the claim. I’ve spent enough separate trips chasing angles on this skyline — from a cathedral tower at sunset to a slow, expensive-feeling glide down the Mersey — that I’ve earned the right to be picky about which ones actually deserve the hype.

There’s one view you’ll see recommended everywhere online that’s actually closed right now, so I’ll flag that too.

Table of Contents

Best Views in Liverpool

Liverpool Cathedral Tower

Best for: panoramic city views

This is my favourite, no contest.

You take two lifts and then climb a set of stairs, and at the top you’re standing over 150 metres above sea level with the whole of Liverpool spread out underneath you — the river, the sea, the rooftops, all of it.

Go for sunset if you can time it. Watching the light go gold over the Mersey from up there is genuinely one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen in this country, and I don’t say that lightly.

Tickets run around £8, and you can check current prices and opening times on the official Cathedral Tower Experience page. Book ahead if you’re set on a specific sunset slot — the tower does close earlier than you’d expect, especially outside summer.

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Royal Liver Building 360 Tour

Best for: waterfront skyline

The Royal Liver Building is one of the ‘Three Graces’ on Liverpool’s waterfront, and its 360 tour puts you right at the top, level with the famous Liver Birds themselves. I’d put this in my top three views in the city, easily.

What makes it worth including on this list is the angle: you get the waterfront looking back at the city from the water’s edge, rather than down at it from a distance.

Book ahead if you can, as slots fill up fast on clear days.

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Everton Park

Best for: sunset skyline views

If you want a proper view for free, this is where I send people.

Everton Park sits up on a ridge above the city, and the payoff for the climb is one of those views most visitors never hear about — cathedrals to one side, the docks and the river stretching out to the other, and the Welsh hills on a clear day.

It’s a genuine hidden gem, and my pick for the best free viewpoint in Liverpool. Head for the vantage point off Heyworth Street specifically, since that’s where the view opens up properly, and bring a layer — the wind up there is nothing like the wind at street level, even in summer.

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Mersey Ferry

Best for: river views

Seeing Liverpool from the Mersey gives you a completely different perspective.

As the ferry pulls away from the waterfront, the skyline slowly opens up, with the Three Graces, cathedral towers and docks all coming into view at once.

It’s the one experience on this list where the city comes to you rather than the other way round, and I found it surprisingly peaceful.

I recommend choosing a longer sightseeing sailing rather than the quickest crossing. You’ll spend more time on the river, making the most of the views, and often get commentary along the way. Check the official Mersey Ferries website for the latest routes, sailing times and ticket prices.

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Millennium Trail

Best for: Liverpool skyline views

For the reverse angle — Liverpool’s skyline seen from across the water — the Millennium Trail on the Wirral side is the one to know.

I picked this up while exploring Birkenhead and Wallasey rather than sticking to the Liverpool side of the river, and it’s a proper reward for making the detour.

The whole point of this trail is that you’re looking back at Liverpool rather than standing in it, and there’s something about seeing the cathedral towers and the Three Graces from a distance that puts the whole city into perspective in a way you don’t get up close.

Read more: 10 Best Day Trips from Liverpool Without a Car

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Formby Sand Dunes

Best for: sea and coastal views

Ever since my teenage years, I’ve been on what feels like a lifelong search for the most peaceful, unspoiled view — somewhere I could bring a flask of tea and stare out for hours without being disturbed. My search only stopped after I found Formby.

Sitting on top of the Formby dunes looking out at the Irish Sea is my happiest place on earth.

I’ve been more times than I can count, and I never get tired of it.

It’s not a Liverpool view in the strict sense — you’re looking at sea and sky and pine woods, not skyscrapers — but on a clear day you can pick out the city’s silhouette in the distance across the bay, and that combination of dunes underfoot and a distant skyline is unlike anything else on this list. If you only have time for one ‘outside the city’ view, this is the one I’d send you to.

Read more: Exploring Formby Beach: From Pine Woods to Sand Dunes

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What About St John’s Beacon?

You’ll see this one recommended constantly online, and I’m mentioning it here so you’re not caught out. The viewing gallery at St John’s Beacon has been closed since the end of 2024, and as of writing there’s no confirmed reopening date.

It used to be one of the best views in the city, so if you’ve read about it elsewhere and were planning your trip around it, don’t. Check the official St John’s Beacon site before you go, just in case that changes — but I wouldn’t build a day around it right now.

Liverpool Viewpoints at a Glance

Viewpoint	From the city centre	Best for
Liverpool Cathedral Tower	15 min walk	Panoramic city views
Royal Liver Building 360	10 min walk	Waterfront skyline
Everton Park	15 min bus / taxi	Sunset skyline views
Mersey Ferry	5 min walk	River views
Millennium Trail	Ferry from Pier Head	Liverpool skyline views
Formby Sand Dunes	~40 min train	Sea and coastal views

My Take

If I had to send you to just one of these, it’s the Cathedral Tower at sunset — nothing else on this list gave me that specific feeling of the whole city opening up at once.

But if you’ve got a full day, pair it with the Mersey Ferry in the morning and Everton Park for free in the afternoon, and you’ll have seen Liverpool from the water, from the air, and from the hills without spending much more than a tenner.

Have you been to any of these? Let me know in the comments which view was your favourite — I’m always looking for the next excuse to climb something with a camera in hand!