Alton Towers hopes to be top of the pods


Visitors to Alton Towers Resort in 2019 can book a stay at the new Alton Towers Stargazing Pods. The 102 camping-style pods sleep up to four people and will be arranged around ‘the green’ where children can play or use telescopes to study the night sky. A communal block offers toilets, accessible showers and baby- changing facilities. Ian Crabbe, divisional director


for the Merlin Entertainments- owned resort, said: “More families


are looking for affordable UK short breaks where they can spend quality time together, try new things and enjoy their favourite destinations. “Alton Towers Stargazing Pods


offer a truly unique experience: the chance to spend the night under the stars in our beautiful countryside setting and enjoy all that Alton Towers Resort has to offer.” The pods cost from £88 per night off-peak and £123 in peak season. altontowers.com


Merlin Entertainments reported a mixed performance over the summer as the heatwave helped its outdoor theme parks but held back visits at indoor attractions. The theme parks giant achieved


Merlin Entertainments sees mixed peak season “Trading in the Midway


Attractions operating group continues to be driven largely by trends in London – Midway’s largest division,” the company said.


organic revenue growth of 4.7% in the 40 weeks to October 6. Merlin’s resort theme parks


saw revenue rise by 9% “with strong like-for-like trading due to successful product investment and favourable weather”. Legoland Parks revenue rose


by 6.4% and accommodation by 27.7% due to a rise in short breaks. However, the company’s


Starkey curates Hever Castle exhibition


Items not previously on display at Hever Castle, Kent, form part of an exhibition which was guest-curated by historian David Starkey. The permanent exhibition in the


castle’s Long Gallery opened in October, depicting the story of the Tudors, from the Wars of the Roses to the Reformation through the castle’s art collection. The Long Gallery was created in


1506 by Thomas Boleyn, Anne’s father, and has been restored to resemble a 16th century gallery. Dr Starkey has voiced a multimedia guide to understanding the impact of the Tudor family on English history. hevercastle.co.uk


travelgbi.com Sea Life in Brighton


indoor Midway Attractions division – which runs attractions such as Sea Life and Madame Tussauds – saw an expected decline in like-for-like revenues.


“As anticipated, London declined in the first half of the year, reflecting the continued adverse impact of the terror attacks that took place in 2017. “However, summer trading has


shown early signs of a recovery, with increasingly consistent, if modest, year-on-year growth reported in recent weeks.” merlinentertainments.biz


Royal Liver Building to offer interactive experience


More details have been released about a visitor attraction which will launch next year at Liverpool’s Royal Liver Building. Royal Liver Building 360 will


offer guided public tours on the 15th floor of Liverpool’s iconic waterfront landmark.


The experience will begin in a


lower ground floor visitor centre where the building’s history is explored, before continuing to the 10th and 15th floors where visitors will enjoy 360-degree views across the city and the River Mersey. Operated by Heritage Great


Britain, the tour will also take guests inside the building’s clock tower where they can watch an immersive audio-visual experience,


NEWS IN BRIEF


w Full steam ahead for new railway showcase


The Severn Valley Railway and the Mercure Heath Hotel Bewdley are on track to offer tour planners a chance to explore the region, with transport provided by Worcester coach and tour operator, Elgar Coaches. The partners have teamed with group travel specialist Steve Reed Tourism to arrange activities for coach and tour operators and group travel organisers during the


showcase (February 17-18). svr.co.uk


Legoland ride will appeal to boys and ghouls


Legoland Windsor Resort has unveiled plans to open a ‘spooktacular’ ride in spring 2019.


Visitors will be


invited to attend The Haunted House Monster Party by a friendly vampire. Young party guests will be greeted by joke- telling Lego gargoyles and talking statues. Inside Vampire’s haunted


projected digitally on to the walls around them. Tickets will be available from January 2019 and the tours are set to begin in spring. rlb360.com


house, families will sit at a banquet table in a decorated hall, full of monster party food, cauldrons, potion bottles and goblets, each made up of hundreds of Lego bricks. The vampire will bring the banquet hall swinging to life, turning the room upside down and transforming before his party-goers’ eyes. The ride is being built in Adventure Land at the resort, which is owned by Merlin Entertainments. legoland.co.uk/hauntedhouse


February 2017 | TravelGBI 51


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