NEWS
Titanic Quarter developer in talks on Scotland project By Samantha Mayling
The developer behind Belfast’s Titanic Quarter is in discussions to take a major role in a £450 million development in southwest Scotland. Owners of the Loudoun Castle
estate in Ayrshire hope that a deal with Harcourt Developments can be concluded soon. The deal would mean that the
developer becomes part of the consortium behind the proposed redevelopment of the site which housed the former Loudoun Castle theme park. The Loudoun Woods consortium
aims to transform the 576-acre Loudoun estate into a world-class tourism and leisure development,
and potentially create more than 1,000 new jobs in the region. It plans to convert Loudoun
Castle into a new luxury hotel, and the complex would feature luxury holiday lodges, camping and indoor sports facilities. The Loudoun Woods consortium
is led by leisure and investment expert David Mace, who has served as a director on the boards of several leisure companies.
He said: “Loudoun Castle will be an all-weather, world-class holiday destination, which will attract visitors from all over the UK, create major economic benefits for Ayrshire and become a core part of Scotland’s tourism offering. “We are looking forward to
the planning inquiry and, given a positive decision by Scottish ministers, we are aiming to begin works in the summer of 2018.” Harcourt Developments is
the company behind the Titanic Quarter, one of the world’s largest waterfront urban regeneration projects on the site of the former Harland and Wolff Shipyard in
Belfast, where the Titanic was built.
loudounwoods.com
Merlin Entertainments to develop Bear Grylls attraction
A Bear Grylls Adventure attraction is to be developed by UK theme park giant Merlin Entertainments. The company plans to open
the first Bear Grylls Adventure attraction in partnership with the survival expert in Birmingham next year.
A global chain of Peppa Pig-
themed attractions is also in the pipeline in conjunction with Entertainment One (eOne). The developments emerged as
Merlin reported flat revenue over the summer due to “difficult trading” at London and European theme parks, blamed on a series of terrorist attacks and unfavourable weather. Trading in recent weeks was
described as “mixed” with like-for-like revenue for 2017 expected to be flat compared to last year.
The company said: “Whilst it is too early to predict the outlook for 2018, it is likely the recent trends experienced in London will persist for
the foreseeable future.” Giving a trading update for the 40 weeks to October 7, chief executive Nick Varney said: “After strong early season momentum across most of our businesses, we have experienced difficult trading over the summer period, as the spate of terror attacks witnessed in the UK marked an inflection point in Midway London and UK theme park trading.”
merlinentertainments.biz
VisitBritain and Bristol Airport promote the southwest to oversees
VisitBritain and Bristol Airport have agreed a three-year partnership to promote southwest England to overseas visitors. The joint marketing fund will
focus on France in year one, working with airline partners to build on the existing network from Bristol Airport, which is currently served by scheduled services to 13 French cities. Pictured promoting the partnership are Nigel Scott, Bristol Airport’s business development director, and Carol Dray, VisitBritain commercial director.
visitbritain.org bristolairport.co.uk
Replica of Captain Cook ship heads to Whitby
The North York Moors coastline will welcome a major new visitor attraction next year when one of the most famous ships in the history of maritime exploration berths in Whitby. HM Bark Endeavour (pictured)
– one of only two full-scale replicas of the ship commanded by Captain James Cook for his voyage to Australia and New Zealand – will relocate from Stockton-on-Tees to Whitby in spring 2018. The tall ship was bought at auction
by Whitby businessman Andrew Fiddler for £155,000, safeguarding
6 TravelGBI | November 2017
its future in the northeast. After a refurbishment and
repair programme costing up to £750,000, HM Bark Endeavour will reopen to visitors in Whitby, where the original ship was built in the 1700s and where the explorer forged his maritime career. The arrival of the ship in Whitby
will coincide with the 250th anniversary of Captain Cook’s departure from Portsmouth on Endeavour to observe the transit of Venus at Tahiti, circumnavigate and chart New Zealand and chart the east coast of Australia.
The development of the ship as
a tourist attraction is being helped by the Coastal Communities Fund project and the North York Moors National Park Authority. Catriona McLees, head of
promotion and tourism for the North York Moors National Park Authority, said: “We’re delighted to help support a project that has such a strong resonance with the national park, particularly with Cook’s early years being spent near Roseberry Topping and
Great Ayton.”
northyorkmoors.org.uk
travelgbi.com
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