Birmingham Walking Tour: Canals, Victorians & Today (1:30pm)

Jonathon is simply excellent, fun, well humoured and very informative. It was absolutely pouring with rain and miserable weather, but he adapted the tour so talks were inside and sheltered. It flowed seamlessly. On such a horrible day, time just flew by learning about the history of Birmingham and his books are amazing. Great walking tour and guide! Many Thanks!

Our tour leader said he had been some type of building (architecture?) lecturer before retirement. He certainly knew a lot of interesting things about all the buildings. He was very difficult to hear over the sounds of fellow pedestrians, no voice projection plus a tendency to talk to the building instead of us. There was no audio assistance offered. If you can be pushy about standing close to him and walking around in front of him so that you can hear, he is well worth listening to. We chose the tour for the canals and there was very little about canals, which was very disappointing. The main focus was the buildings which were interesting but not what we had chosen the tour for.

Jonathan Berg gave our senior leadership team an excellent introduction to Birmingham through a mix of fascinating history, manufacturing insight, and plenty of humor. Because our group has a strong interest in manufacturing, we chose the Industrial Tour that he recommended, and it was a great fit. Jonathan did a terrific job connecting Birmingham’s industrial past to broader business themes, including the story of GKN, Joseph Chamberlain, and the evolution of business models through horizontal and vertical integration. He made the history approachable, relevant, and genuinely entertaining. The walking route through the city centre, canals, Jewellery Quarter area, and key civic landmarks gave us a much better feel for Birmingham than we would have gotten on our own. There was a great balance of facts, stories, humor, and interactive moments along the way. We chose the VIP option, which also included gifts for everyone in the group—a very nice touch and a memorable takeaway from our time in Birmingham. I highly recommend Jonathan’s tours for both visitors on vacation and corporate groups looking for something engaging to do together. It’s a great way to get outside, move around, learn about the city, laugh, and experience Birmingham from a completely different perspective. Our group had a fantastic time and even said we should do a walking tour for each offsite location!

Another extremely enjoyable tour following on from my Council House tour. Once again Jonathan was extremely knowledgeable and enthusiastic. Would recommend this tour.

I spent a very interesting day walking (steadily) round Birmingham with Jonathan (did Digbeth tour in the morning) Jonathan was knowledgeable, informative and entertaining.

As a Brummie with an interest in history I love these walking tours.Jonathan is so knowledgeable & entertaining,the time flew by.Really enjoyable,had a great time.First class event,recommend you do it.

Really interesting! Despite living in Birmingham for nearly 40 years lots i didn't know. In particular, I didn't know you could go into the old Birmingham municipal Bank and how much there is to see there. Jonathan gave so much information and we really enjoyed the tour. The book was an added bonus.

Jonathan was, bubbly, enthusiastic, experienced and knowledgeable on all things Birmingham. Kept a tight time schedule and added a few myths and antidotes. A must for visitors to Birmingham

Jonathan was very knowledgeable, passionate and great fun. The tour was very interesting and would definitely be a recommendation for anyone wanting to find out more about Birmingham's history.

Two hour walking tour encompassing the industrial history of Birmingham from pre-industrial revolution up to the present day. We visited a wide range of buildings and public art work. Jonathon was a fountain of knowledge and delivered an interesting and informative tour. Would definitely consider doing another one.

Anticipate learning s lot about Birmingham's history and the people who made it an important hub for industry.

Excellent experience, very knowledgable and entertaining guide.

Fantastic 2 hours, Johnathan was full of knowledge and enthusiasm. We will be booking up the other tours soon.

Knowledgable and friendly guide was entertaining and loved to answer questions about Birmingham and its history

What a wonderful afternoon on the ‘Canals and Victorians to today’s city’ walk. I’m a local ‘Brummie’ and our host Jonathan opened my eyes to the city I was born and bred in. A small bargain to gain the knowledge I left with and for the length of time we spent walking around, mostly flat areas but with some small inclines with plenty of rest spots looking at interesting views. I did happened to win the whistle, I won’t give too much away there - but Birmingham New Street trains might have heard us! Would highly recommend and will be booking again, as comms where excellent regarding meeting time and place etc. One final thing, please do make a donation at the end as all proceeds go to a well worth charity and head for coffee and cake at The University of Birmingham’s Exchange afterwards, a beautiful place with excellent facilities to rest your feet :-)

Excellent tour. Jonathan established a welcoming and personal tone from outset. The tour successfully linked factors that have shaped Birmingham over the years, including contemporary, which facilitated some interesting follow-up discussion. I came away from the tour with a real desire to know more about this interesting City.

A great tour I learned many things about my home city that I would never otherwise have found out. Jonathan was a very knowledgeable and entertaining guide.

With a Saturday afternoon spare in Birmingham I had a look for what was available and came across Positively Birmingham walking tours so booked the Canals and Victorians walk led by the enthusiastic Jonathan. With 20 on the tour on a busy sunny afternoon it could have been disappointing but the use of personal headsets allowed for easy Communication. A knowledgeable and personable guide and an easy pace made it a great two hours and I’d strongly recommend the tour to anyone interested in the history old and new of Birmingham

Energetic engaging presentation; maybe a bit too much about Peaky Blinders?

We had a really great walking tour. Jonathan had so much local knowledge and we saw sights and found out information we just wouldn’t have know if we walked around the city on our own. The audio headsets are a really good idea.

Take headphones if you can as the guide uses Wi-Fi to portable receivers to talk to everyone in the party clearly. This works really well and the guide is very knowledgeable and friendly.

The guide used Wi-Fi earbuds which meant that I was able to hear him all the time despite traffic and other noise even though I had to remove my hearing aids. I wish Viator had had a request to take personal earphones if possible as that would have enabled me to keep my hearing aids in. The guide was very knowledgeable and friendly, and kept up a good pace.

Tour was around 2 hours long. I am local but thought I would go on the tour to see if could learn anything................did I ??? Well yes I did. I go to Birmingham a lot but when you are shopping you don't take much notice of your surroundings. We did go by the canal for a short time (personally I would have liked to have walked along it a bit more as I am sure there is more history to learn). It was a very cold and windy day but it did't detract from the walk. It is quite fast paced walking so make sure you have good comfy walking shoes or boots on. Would I go on another walking tour??? Yes maybe................. Thank you Jonathan.

A brilliant tour of the Jewellry Quarter & canals. Loved the historical details of the tour and the Victorian objects used to demonstrate the industries of the past. Jonathan managed the tour excellently, making sure that everyone was included . Can highly recommend.

Jonathan was a very knowledgeable and passionate guide! We are two very happy tourists, and would recommend.

Jonathan is a passionate and knowledgeable tour guide who takes you on a captivating journey through Birmingham's history while giving you a real sense of the city as it continues to evolve today. A natural storyteller, he uses props throughout to keep the group engaged — and it works! We were hooked for the full two hours, even on a slightly chilly day. A portion of the proceeds also go to a great cause. All in all, we'd highly recommend it and will definitely be back to try one of the other tours.

Jonathon gave wonderful insights to the new and old Birmingham. Having grown up in the city but left >40 years ago it was great to understand how and why the city has evolved, and to learn that people like George Dixon and Matthew Boulton were real people, not just names of schools!

Good walking tour, excellent informative tour guide. Worth the money, Highly recommend +++++

Jonathan's tour was the highlight of a 3 day stay in the city. Enthusiastic, engaging, intelligent and informative...what more could you ask for?

Jonathan was very passionate and well versed in the history and facts of Birmingham. His tour encompassed a lot of information and was interjected with humour. Very worthwhile.

Great headphone system for a guided tour. Enjoyable, informative, entertaining.

Excellent tour- Jonathan was a knowledgeable and fun guide.

Very enjoyable tour. I was born in Birmingham and have lived here all my life. I was familiar with all of the locations that we visited but enjoyed taking the time to stop and look and learn more about the history behind them. The live audio worked really well and means that you don’t miss anything, even if the group is large and there is background noise.

It was fun engaging and we walked away feeling like we learned new things - even my husband whose family is from the area! Just ensure (best you can) that the weather is good!

The 2 hour tour for the bargain price of £10, with earphones thrown in for a small donation of your choice, was great fun and so interesting.Jonathan was very engaging and is an expert on the history of Birmingham. It was especially fascinating to visit the vaults in the basement of the old bank, now The Exchange, University of Birmingham cafe and meeting venue. The event was a real celebration of all Birmingham has to be so proud of, the innovation, creativity and resilience of its diverse communities since its beginnings in 7th century, through medieval times, the industrial revolution all the way to modern times and with a look to the future. I found it a compelling, emotional, educational and uplifting experience. Plus proceeds go to Sifa Fireside Charity which supports people experiencing homelessness in the city. Highly recommend Jonathan Berg and his Positively Birmingham Walking Tour. Will be booking on the Jewellery Quarter Tour soon.

My sister and I are Brummies but we learnt so much about our wonderful home city on this tour. Jonathan was fun, friendly, engaging and extremely knowledgeable. We could have kept going once the 2 hours was up and will be back for more in the future.

This is really interesting and well presented And an easy walk The headsets work v well Highly recommended

A perfect introduction to a new city. Just the right length of time and Jonathan was really friendly, engaging and amazingly knowledgeable. It was a wet day so he was able to make the most of indoor areas where possible but definitely come prepared. We also received a copy of Jonathan's book 'Discovering Birmingham'. Fully recommend.

My friends, guide dog Jax and I really enjoyed our 2 hours being guided by Positively Birmingham walking tours. Jonathan was not only extremely knowledgable and clearly passionate about Birmingham and it’s history, but also so entertaining and engaging. I could have listened to him annd his many stories all afternoon! He also took the time to make sure the tour was fully accessible to me. Taking the time to provide extra descriptions and tactile things to touch - from brass buttons of industrial heritage to modern day N2O canister detritus! 🤣 I really appreciate the extra effort. It’s definitely not something you get everywhere. Being able to hear what Jonathan was saying through headphones attached to his mic feed, meaning you could hear clearly despite background city noise or how far away you were is also a genius idea and is another way that the tour is impressively accessible. All of this for a ridiculously reasonable price! Thank you so much Jonathan, Jax and I will definitely be bringing people back.

A very interesting and informative walk, starting outside the Library, although the postcode was incorrect in the instructions, and took us to the NCC, so we just walked back and found the group. Headphones given, saw a lot and walked to places we would not have thought about. Thoroughly recommend.

The tour was really great! Our guide Jonathan very informative and very proud of his city. Also what a character he is which for me makes the tour more enjoyable when the tour guide has a fun personality. Know that Birmingham is very hilly so must be in a little bit of shape to take the tour.

This was one of the best walking tours I’ve ever done! Jonathan uses a speaker system, so you never miss a word. He’s put together a thoughtful route through central Birmingham, highlighting the city’s rich history and impressive redevelopment. He’s incredibly knowledgeable and engaging. Just a heads-up—it’s a lively pace, so be prepared to walk at a good clip.

Grest walking tour. Very interesting. The guide brought Birmingham to life and championed it. Will recommend to anyone

Fantastic tour of the inner workings of Birmingham - as Jonathan said a realistic tour which provides a deeper understanding of Birmingham beyond the glossy gold statue! Jonathan has an in-depth understanding of all things Birmingham from the industrial revolution through to Black Sabbath and Peaky Blinders. Great insights into buildings and objects you could very easily overlook. Very easy to hear everything with the hearing technology.

Jonathan was a wealth of information and entertaining as well. Well worth the tour to learn about the city of Birmingham and the hidden gems.

A big Thankyou to our tour guide Michael Harrison who opened our eyes to Birmingham’s evolving architecture and the socio-economic changes it reflects. We had such an enjoyable 2 hours taking in the centre of the city and learnt so much from this retired university lecturer on the history of architecture. The audio system works really well and the experience was well paced and very informative. Thankyou!

A very interesting and entertaining tour of Birmingham city centre. I know Birmingham quite well but still learned a lot. We were quite a large group and Jonathan very helpfully set up a tour specially at a time that would suit us.

Great tour to have an introduction to Birmingham city. Many places to visit in a city where new and old is blended.The library is beautiful, walk near the canal is worthy, cathedral windows are grand, Victoria square not to miss etc.

Happy to recommend this walking tour. Busy and informative, great way to acquaint yourself with Birmingham City Centre on arrival. Jonathon is very experienced and knowledgeable, enjoys the walks and is engaging, he makes it good fun and we learnt alot about Birmingham! Thank you.