Plans are in place for Edinburgh to get its own version of the London Eye in a hope that it will bring thousands more tourists to the capital. The 120 ft wheel is planned to be erected at the Leith Waterfront, tying it in with the new transport station.

Chessington World of Adventures has submitted palns for a new gorilla enclosure. Plans are for a 1,275sq m enclosure, with a 53sq m viewing platform and would be home to the new western lowland gorillas.

Our sister company Planning Solutions Limited has got good coverage in Attractions Management with their plans to re-open the former Coors Visitor Centre as the National Brewery Centre.

Twycross Zoo, in Leicestershire, is set to open a new £7m visitor centre in February this year. The centre will look out onto the snow leopard enclosure and will include a 300 seat restaurant, retails space, function room for conferences.
The centre will also act as a Tourist Information Centre, particularly focussing on promoting the National Forest and supporting local tourism and environment.

Demolition has begun on the Mary Rose Ship Hall in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, making way for the £35m development of a new museum dedicated to the warship. A boat-shaped museum building will be built over the dry dock containing the Mary Rose, due for completion in 2012.

Improving the visitor experience:

The Famous Grouse Experience, Scotland, has invested £0.5m to create a new interactive 3D show using revolutionary new technology. The show will support multi-person interaction and combines realtime 3D with ‘photo realism’ in a multi-channel format.

Two former landfill sites, in Southport, Lancashire, have been transformed into a new £1.78m community woodland, as part of the wider Newlands Partnership. The Northwest Regional Development Agency provided funding towards the scheme.  As part of the scheme a viewing platform overlooking the West Pennine Moors, Southport Mosses and Blackpool Tower had been created. There are also plans for a cycle trail, mountain bike skills course and new wildlife habitats.

I thought readers may be interested in our education programme offered at Conkers - have a look here.

Planning Solutions are getting some good press coverage reference their work at the National Brewery Centre:

BBC News

The Guardian

Campaign for Real Ale

Marwell Zoo Park has opened its new African Valley zone. The opening follows years of planning and a year to construct.
The 20 acre African Valley will have more than 35 Ellipsen waterbucks, Grevy’s zebras and ostriches. There is also a new restaurant, Café Graze, which overlooks the Valley and gives views of the animals.  The opening of the new zone also coincides with Marwell revealing its new brand identity. It will rename itself ‘Marwell Wildlife’.

Following the closure of the Coors Visitor Centre and Museum of Brewing last year (formerly the Bass Museum), Planning Solutions Limited has announced that it intends to open a revitalised visitor centre and museum in Burton upon Trent Called the National Brewery Centre, it will retain key elements of the existing facilities, updating and reorganising the site to create a unique visitor attraction that will ensure the site’s success well into the 21st Century. Visit the temporary website here: National Brewery Centre

Bewildwerwood,  has won a worldwide award from the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA). They have been awarded the Best Attraction under US$5m budget. The awards are only given to attractions who have achieved excellence.

Cadbury’s World, in Birmingham, has opened a new advertising themed zone called ‘Advertising Avenue’. The zone will allow visitors to walk through life sized street displays of Cadbury’s adverts from years gone by. The street has been made to look and feel like chocolate and the architecture begins in the style of the 1830’s and becomes more modern as visitors walk along. There are also interactive exhibits for visitors to take part in.

Merlin Entertainments has revealed a 4D cinema as part of the second stage of the £17.5m scheme to upgrade the London Eye over the next three years. A new £5m cinema will be established at London’s South Bank attraction. The pre-flight cinematic experience aims to provide visitors with the chance to view aerial footage of the London Eye. It will be combined with 3D and 4D effects, such as wind, snow and smell.

In addition to the 4D Cinema, the ticket hall and information area have been upgraded along with the revamp of the capsules.   The London Eye will now be known as the Merlin Entertainments London eye as part of efforts to create a new brand identity.

Winnal Moors Nature Reserve, Winchester, has reopened following a £1.3m redevelopment. Work on the site includes resurfacing of all paths and boardwalks to offer easier access for all visitors, signs and benches. A large amount of the project has relied upon volunteers.

Work on a new £35m museum at the site of the Mary Rose warship is to begin this autumn after the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) approved funding for the scheme.  A £21m grant has been awarded to the Mary Rose Trust to help fund the construction of the permanent museum housing artefacts from the vessel. The new facility will house the Mary Rose within a structure resembling a black, wooden jewellery box.

Merlin Entertainment has announced plans to attract more multi-night stays at Alton Towers. They have just produced their Long Term Development Plan f and plans include expanding the park over the next 10 years by adding a number of new attractions each year  to encourage guests to stay longer. There is also the possibility of adding a third hotel. The opening hours are also to be lengthened as part of the effort to spread visitor volume over a longer period.

Conkers, the visitor attraction operated by our sister company, Planning Solutions Limited was mentioned in today’s Development and Regeneration supplement in the Daily Telegraph!

The Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew has commissioned a masterplan to outline the site’s long-term future and to create the first analysis and design for Kew since the 1840s.  The project has the aim of improving the experience for visitors and providing a direction for the gardens to evolve over the next 25 years.  10 potential proposals for development are currently being assessed, with a possible new river approach to Kew Gardens with an adjacent dock as well as the relandscaping of the Kew’s river border.

Marwell Zoo Park has opened its new African Valley zone.  The 20 acre African Valley will have more than 35 Ellipsen waterbucks, Grevy’s zebras and ostriches. There is also a new restaurant, Café Graze, which overlooks the Valley and provides views of the animals.