7 July 2020
While COVID-19 is having a drastic impact on UK tourism, there is still plenty of news to be found. We’re doing our best to keep you updated, via various means, on some of the best examples of how tourism businesses in the destinations we represent are rising to the challenge.
#newsin30seconds
Paultons Park: Tornado Springs to launch in 2021
Storm Chasers are being invited to Paultons Park in Hampshire for the opening of Tornado Springs in 2021. A brand new “world” featuring eight new rides and experiences including a spinning coaster, gyro swing ride and a driving school attraction, Tornado Springs is set in a Midwest desert resort town in the American heyday of the 1950s. And it’s now set for an Easter 2021 opening.
Burghley ballet – and you’re invited!
Here’s a chance to see Lincolnshire’s Burghley House like never before – in a stunning new music video, ‘The Sleeping Beauty’, starring acclaimed actress Emma Rigby and composed by British musician Fabio D’Andrea. It was filmed in the Elizabethan mansion (which, under government guidance, is currently closed to visitors).
More than £1m given to new power pedal push
Hull is experiencing a cycling renaissance – sitting at number eight in the top 10 league table for cycling to work – and city cycling has just been given a £1m-plus boost. Hull City Council has been awarded £1.36m to help fast-track plans to improve cycle routes and create more space for cyclists. Work to improve routes is set to include re-signing, relabelling and repairing as well as extending key cycling routes. bit.ly/3hSxJbZ
Monkeying around in Staffordshire
Trentham Monkey Forest is once again welcoming visitors – and offering an extra treat too, four ‘lockdown-babies’. Re-opened after being closed since March, this woodland walk among 140 free-ranging Barbary macaques, who live as they would in the wild, has seen the birth of two females and two males during closure. Babies and mothers are doing well…and are sure to bring an added smile to visitors this summer. Tickets must be pre-booked.
Hide’n’seek theme for English Heritage attraction reopening in 2021
Boscobel House and its Royal Oak tree became famous as hiding places of King Charles II after defeat at the Battle of Worcester in 1651. Development work at the English Heritage property, will see it reopen in Spring, 2021. Central to the project will be the introduction of a hide and seek theme; the formal gardens and arbour will be restored to their 17th century glory; and the farmyard will be brought back to life with the introduction of farm animals
Making changes at the Makeney Hall Hotel
Following the news that Suite Hospitality had gone into administration, the original owners of Derby’s Makeney Hall Hotel have once again taken over the management of the property – with plans to make it one of the best wedding and event venues in Derbyshire. Over £300,000 has been invested in the property since January of this year, and the owners will now pursue a programme to bring the hotel back to its full potential
A whale of a time in Hull
Hull City Council is looking to appoint specialists to remove and conserve eight fragile and unusual skeletons from Hull Maritime Museum’s collection. As part of multi-million pound heritage-led regeneration scheme, the Hull Maritime project, experts will carry out full cleaning and conservation of the skeletons – ranging from a large tuna fish to a 40 foot long North Atlantic Right Whale – which will play a starring role when the Museum reopens in 2024