Museum

Best history:

National Trust Birmingham Back to Backs

The Birmingham National Trust Back to Backs is an award-winning museum of everyday life housed in the only existing example of the humble courtyard homes that once crowded the city. The museum walks you through an intimate picture of the second city’s history, from the restored atelier of an 18th century Jewish watchmaker to the 1960s home and shop-front of a Caribbean tailor, left as it was the day he retired.

Where: Birmingham National Trust Back to Backs, 50-54 Inge Street, Birmingham, Tel: +44 (0)121 753 7757.

Website: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-birmingham_backtobacks

Best for culture:

mac (Midlands Arts Centre)

For many years, the mac was always the ugly duckling of arts centres due to a preponderance of plastic and a clunky layout. Thankfully a multi-million makeover in 2010 saw this ambitious arts centre transform into a swan – appropriate, considering its picturesque Cannon Hill Park location means you’re never far away from an inquisitive cygnet. Youngsters without wings and a bill will find lots to do at the mac, which has an incredibly extensive learning and participation programme. The really little ones even get to join the grown-ups (‘Cinema Bambino’) in enjoying a taste of arthouse cinema. There’s plenty of other stuff to keep adults occupied too – free live jazz often soundtracks international dining in the café, there’s an admirable commitment to visual and performing arts, and there are all kinds of unusual special events taking place throughout the year. The mac is swan to look out for (sorry).

Where: mac, Cannon Hill Park, B12 9QH, Birmingham. Tel: +44 (0)121 446 3232

Website: www.macarts.co.uk

Shopping

Best fashion:

Benjamin Vaughan

Whippersnapper Benjamin Vaughan is a rising star on the city’s fashion scene. After learning his trade in the ateliers of several Kensington family tailors (where he cut suits for David Dickinson and Phillip Schofield), the 25-year-old returned to his native Birmingham to set up a tailor’s shop in up-and-coming Kings Heath. Pick up a bespoke shirt from £75, or a razor-sharp made-to-measure suit from £420.

Where: Benjamin Vaughan, 21a York Road, Birmingham, Tel: +44 (0)845 257 9690.

Website: www.benjaminvaughan.com/

Best market:

Moseley Farmers’ Market

Moseley has always smugly seen itself as the cosmopolitan heart of Birmingham. Perhaps annoyingly, recent years have seen the suburb become exactly that. Moseley Farmers’ Market has done more than most to contribute to its pre-eminence. On every fourth Saturday, for almost 11 years, the crossroads in Moseley village has played host to hundreds of stalls. There’s no limit to the delights on offer: the ostrich burger stall constantly attracts intrepid punters, the fresh coffee traders keep the customers plied with caffeine, and it’s remiss not to sample the Carriacouan dishes on the Caribbean stall. Missing Pheasant Oak Farm’s Adlington stall would be an especially heinous mistake – we can attest to their turkey being somewhere north of sublime. The market’s remarkable success has spawned an equally engaging spin-off sibling: the Moseley Arts Market, also every fourth Saturday, provides the city’s best showcase for emerging arts and crafts talent.

Where: Moseley Farmers’ Market, Alcester Road/St Marys Row, Birmingham Tel: +44 (0)121 449 3156

Website: http://moseleyfarmersmarket.org.uk

Dining

Best breakfast:

The Victorian Restaurant

In a city centre that shrieks modernity from every silvery contour, there is something endearingly offbeat about The Victorian Restaurant. Eating in the café really is like travelling back in time, though not necessarily to the 1800s as you might presume from the name. Food with an unpretentious homely taste is the name of the game here, a point perfectly demonstrated by the simple yet hearty full English breakfast. It might be easy to make, but the perfect plate of heart rate-quickening delights is hard to find – The Victorian Restaurant comes closer than most. If that’s not enough, it even manages to provide non-meat eaters with the Holy Grail of morning meals: a breakfast featuring vegetarian sausage.

Where: The Victorian Restaurant, 16 Great Western Arcade, Birmingham B2 5HU. Tel: +44 (0)121 236 8312

Best Asian Cuisine:

Jojolapa

Yes, Jojolapa serves cur… no, wait, don’t stop reading yet! This is NOT the standard Balti-on-a-budget fare you would expect from Birmingham. This stylish restaurant isn’t even located in the famed Balti Triangle. Instead, as it has since 2006, Jojolapa plies its elegant trade at the fringe of the city’s business district. And, rather than a glutinous melange served in a cast-iron dish, Jojolapa takes a lighter approach to Asian cuisine. Taking its inspiration from Nepal, the menu is enhanced by unique dishes such as the chatamari (Nepali pancake stuffed with chicken and egg) or quaty soup (a Himalayan-spiced bowl of pulse-laden goodness). The garlic chilli chicken sounds unremarkable but, in the inspired hands of Jojolapa, it’s a tastebud-tingling joy elevated by the lightest batter imaginable. It’s delivered with beautifully unobtrusive service, in warm, sophisticated surroundings. There’s simply no need to look ‘round Balti Triangle if you head to Jojolapa.

Where: Jojolapa, 55-59 Newhall Street,B3 3RB, Birmingham Tel: +44 (0)121 212 2511

Website: http://www.jojolapa.co.uk/

Nature

Best family activity:

Birmingham Nature Centre

This South Birmingham mainstay has remained popular for years, unsurprising when you consider its charmingly uncomplicated appeal to parents. Firstly, kids love it. Children get all the excitement of visiting a zoo, but as the site covers a compact six acres, they’re less likely to whinge for daddy to carry them at any point because their tootsies hurt from walking too much. It makes for a cute, intimate experience, allowing visitors to see European and international animals such as meerkats, lemurs and otters up close. Secondly, it’s cheap. Indeed, the Nature Centre provides such wonderful value for money, you may even be tempted to treat your offspring to an extra ice-cream before departing.

Where: Birmingham Nature Centre, Pershore Road, Birmingham B5 7RL. Tel: +44 (0)121 472 7775

Best view:

Waseley Hills Country Park

If you followed the River Rea from alongside the 'mac' in a north-easterly direction, you’d end up in Waseley Hills. Apart from having to trample through masses of hedgerow, this would be no bad thing at all. It’s arguably the most beautiful natural location in Birmingham. Take a gently stimulating amble along the Skylark Trail, an ideal way to enjoy the breathtaking surroundings. It’s perfect for spotting the woodland animals and fauna that make the hills such a well-loved attraction. At the peak, take in the spectacular views of Birmingham and the Black Country in one direction, Malvern Hills and Worcestershire in the other (on a clear day, and if you squint a bit, you might even see the faintest trace of Wales). Prefer your appreciation of 150 acres of gorgeous landscape to be counteracted by aching limbs and breathlessness? The three-mile Rabbit Trail is the one for you.

Where: Waseley Hills Country Park, Gannow Green Lane, Rubery, B45 9AT BirminghamTel: +44 (0)1562 710 025

Website:www.worcestershire.gov.uk/cms/environment-and-planning/countryside/explore-the-countryside/countryside-service-sites/list-of-countryside-sites/waseley-hills-country-park.aspx