AQUARIUMS
Sea creatures at the aquarium include nautilus (top left); seahorses (bottom left); and clown
fi sh (above), all of which are housed in exhibits which emulate their natural habitat
effectively the new landlord for the aquar- Wildwalk was a diffi cult decision, but it
ium, which took over the 75-year lease. was something we had to do to ensure the
“It is great to see natural history back on long term success of Explore. We defi nitely
the whole of the West Country. Bristol has the Harbourside,” says Explore’s director made the right choice,” Murray says.
a population of 420,000 and receives up to of learning Rachel Murray. Starting out in
5.5 million day visitors per year. 2000 as an explainer on the fl oor at both MUTUAL ATTRACTION
Explore and Wildwalk, Murray has had a As well as a landlord and tenant rela-
THE BIG PICTURE ringside seat in both the successes and tionship, Explore and Blue Reef see
The 350-seat Imax theatre is, of course, failures of the At-Bristol project. “From the themselves very much as mutually ben-
completely new territory for Blue Reef. outset Wildwalk was an extremely diffi cult efi cial neighbours. The science attraction
With the circular theatre intrinsically linked project to market. It was called ‘a living and the aquarium fl ank two sides of the
to the fabric of the building, the company rainforest in the heart of the city’ and when cobbled Anchor Square, which is a lively
was willing to take it on, and now it’s a people visited they absolutely loved it, but space for public events.
question of watching and learning, Eleiho the diffi culty was attracting them through When asked, both operators say they’re
says. “I believe the Imax used to be on a the doors in the fi rst place.” willing to explore joint marketing opportuni-
separate ticket entry to Wildwalk, which Wildwalk, which contained two artifi cial ties “in the near future”. For now, At-Bristol,
probably didn’t help drive visits. We’ve rainforest and live animals exhibits, also which has strong working links with large
included it in the price of aquarium entry proved an expensive attraction to run. Bristol-based operators such as Airbus,
to enhance the visitor experience and Murray said that revenues reached around will run the corporate hospitality side of
give people a chance to gain a unique £4.5m ($7.3m, 5.2m) – generated not just Blue Reef’s business. Meanwhile Blue
three-dimensional close-up of sea life in its from ticket sales but also from the char- Reef can focus on building visitor numbers
natural habitat,” she says. ity’s operation of the nearby Millennium and driving repeat visits. “It’s important to
There are four fi lm showings each day. car park as well as from corporate hire and communicate that the aquarium is a living,
Currently showing is Dolphins and Whales, sponsorship. “But our operating costs breathing thing that’s constantly changing
produced by Jean-Michel Cousteau and were £6m ($9.6m, 7m) and in the time and maturing. There’s always something
narrated by actress Darryl Hannah. It’s the Wildwalk was open, we never managed to new to see,’ says Eleiho.
fi rst time the 42-minute fi lm, which took plug the gap,” says Murray. Across all Blue Reef sites there’s a busy
three years to make, has been available in By contrast, the hands-on science attrac- programme of events to help drive busi-
the UK. Two other fi lms, Sharks and Ocean tion Explore, which is housed in a grade ness. Among plans for 2010 are a Pirates
Wonderland, will be shown later in 2010. II-listed converted railway goods shed, is Weekend Treasure Trail, educational talks
One operator that’s very pleased to see going from strength to strength. Murray about protecting seahorses and saving
the arrival of Blue Reef is At-Bristol, which says visitors were up a recession-bust- sharks, and getting people interested in
continues to run Explore-At-Bristol and is ing 15,000 last year to 175,000. “Closing taking part in a beach clean.
66 Read Attractions Management online
attractionsmanagement.com/digital AM 1 2010
©
cybertrek 2010
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