Originally known as Knott Mill - a name that still stands proud on the Victorian station buildings - Deansgate is a raised station in Manchester city centre, just a kilometre west of Manchester Piccadilly and close to the heart of the shopping district. Trains entering the station from the west pass between Castlefield Urban Heritage Park and the renovated red brick warehouses that line the Bridgewater Canal. In and around all those post-industrial buildings you'll find loads to enjoy - Manchester's Comedy Store is around the corner, and there are no fewer than four bars in converted railway buildings opposite the station.
As for the station, it stands almost as it did when the Manchester South Junction and Altrincham Railway opened it in 1849. Additions include a footbridge across Whitworth Street, added in 1985 to connect the station to the Manchester Central Exhibition Complex (formerly GMEX) and its Metrolink tram stop.