Credit: The Dog & Partridge/ENZELEN, via Shutterstock
Didsbury is known for many things, with the south Manchester suburb being rife with posh houses, lovely greenery and within good proxmity to the city centre, but the area will never shake one thing: the Didsbury Dozen. The pub crawl is known around the north and beyond for the quality of pubs, the gorgeous surroundings of Didsbury Village, and of course, plenty of fancy dress. So whether you’re hellbent on crossing off all 12, or doing three and copping out (which is also fine), here’s everything you need to know about the Didsbury Dozen.
Which pubs are on the Didsbury Dozen? 1. The Didsbury 
Credit: The Didsbury
Highlights: HUGE beer garden, outdoor bar on Saturdays in the summer, cosy inside.
📍 852 Wilmslow Road, M20 2SG.
2. Ye Olde Cock Inn 
Credit: Ye Olde Cock Inn
Highlights: Part-shaded beer garden, huge interior.
📍 848 Wilmslow Road, M20 2RN.
3. The Famous Crown 
Credit: Emma Pharaoh/Inventiveda
Highlights: Updated traditional interiors, covered outdoor area, space to sit out front.
📍 770 Wilmslow Road, M20 2DR.
4. The Royal Oak 
Credit: The Royal Oak at Didsbury
Highlights: Corner plot, old man pub vibes, sport played on TVs.
📍 729 Wilmslow Road, M20 6WF.
5. Fletcher Moss 
Credit: Hydes Brewery
Highlights: Off the beaten track, large beer garden, large traditional bar.
📍 1 William St, M20 6RQ.
6. The Nelson 
Credit: The Nelson, Didsbury
Highlights: Good Guinness, karaoke, friendly & traditional.
📍3 Barlow Moor Road, M20 6TN.
7. The Dog & Partridge 
Credit: The Dog & Partridge
Highlights: Cosy yet sleek, friendly patrons, regular cheese night.
📍 665 Wilmslow Road, M20 6RA.
8. The Salmon of Knowledge
Instagram post via @thesalmonofknowledgedidsbury
Highlights: Great Irish pub, large beer garden, Irish spice bags.
📍 655-657 Wilmslow Road, M20 6RA.
9. The Head of Steam 
Credit: The Head of Steam Didsbury
Highlights: Beers from arund the world, local street food vendors, sunny terrace at front.
📍653 Wilmslow Road, M20 6QZ.
10. The Station 
Credit: The Station Hotel Didsbury
Highlights: Quirky corner plot, traditional interior, live music.
📍 682 Wilmslow Rd, M20 2DN.
11. The Woodstock
Instagram post via @thewoodstockarms
Highlights: Airy interiors, lovely beer garden, classic pub grub.
📍 139 Barlow Moor Rd, M20 2DY.
12. The Metropolitan 
Credit: The Metropolitan
Highlights: Grand standalone pub, huge beer garden, pub grub.
📍 2 Lapwing Lane, M20 2WS.
Didsbury Dozen map 
Credit: Microsoft Maps
You can find the interactive map here.
What timings are best for the Didsbury Dozen?
Saturdays tend to be the most popular for getting a group together for the Didsbury Dozen, unsurprisingly, so brace for queues and a fair bit of standing. You’ll probably want to get to Didsbury earlier on a weekend than if you’re going for a midweek sesh, and in general, the pubs in Didsbury open anywhere between 9am-12pm.
To fit in 12 entire pubs in a day, you’re going to need to get a pace on. If you can swig your drinks and move on consistently, allot around half an hour to each pub, meaning your crawl is six hours long – if you’re taking longer, you might want to start earlier. Generally, if you aim to get to Didsbury for around 1pm-2pm, that should be sufficient, but naturally, everyone starts to get a bit sloppy around pint number six – be warned!
How do I get to Didsbury?
Getting to Didsbury from Manchester is pretty simple. You can jump on the tram at Victoria, Exchange Square, St Peter’s Square, Deansgate Castlefield or Cornbrook (or switch onto a tram at any of these) towards East Didsbury. We recommend getting off at Didsbury Village and cutting through Didsbury Park to reach The Didsbury, but any of the Didsbury stops will do.
You can also get the train from Piccadilly to East Didsbury and walk over, or hop on the 142 bus from Piccadilly Gardens, getting off at Didsbury Village. You can also get public transport from surrounding areas, including the bus from Stockport, and the train from Wilmslow.
Where is best for food on the Didsbury Dozen? 
Credit: The Salmon of Knowledge Didsbury via Instagram
It’s likely that if you’re taking on the Didsbury Dozen, eating properly throughout the day will most likely not cross your mind – liquid lunch and all that. But if you do find yourself in a state of sudden hunger, there are plenty of options to keep fed along the way – and of course, we recommend you do.
- Food at the pubs: Many of the pubs along the Didsbury Dozen do offer food, and this can be a time effective way to make sure you’re properly fed. Whether it’s a fish finger butty, a spice bag, or proper pub grub, you can get some substance in on the way around.
- Stop off at a chippy: Quaint Didsbury Village chippies really sustain Didsbury Dozeners, and the stodgy nature of the cuisine is perfect for soaking up all that booze. The likes of Foster’s Fish & Chips and Anchors are along the crawl, making it easy to pop in and grab a full meal or just a chip barm – whatever you’re craving.
- Sacrifice an hour to pop to a local restaurant: OK, this is probably the least effective option, but if you can spare an hour or so, there are plenty of restaurants along the crawl where you can tuck into something special. We wouldn’t do it, but you do you.
- Nip into a local shop for a meal deal: A classic of the pub crawl, the meal deal fills a hole and you can scran one between pubs if you need to, and with high street supermarkets dotted around the suburb, you’re likely to pass a fair few.
Which Didsbury spots to visit if you drop a pub
It happens. Sometimes pubs are closed, or potentially not happy to let you in when in fancy dress, but there are plenty of spots in Didsbury you can swap into the roster so you don’t feel underwhelmed. You could try:
- Bunny’s Outpost
- Slug & Lettuce
- Rudy’s
- Casa Italia
- Wallop
- Neighbourhood
- Kiosk