Hampshire's top attractions launch new tourism drive in the shadow of Portsmouth Historic Dockyard’s HMS Warrior 1860 and the Spinnaker Tower.
News release issued: 23rd March 2007Hampshire tourism is set for a big boost this year as the county’s top visitor attractions join together for the first time to market themselves to a wider area with a new leaflet and website.
The Hampshire Attractions Group features the best on offer for days out and demonstrates the real variety available for visitors. Members range from Exbury Gardens in the New Forest, the Watercress Line in Alresford, Southsea’s Blue Reef Aquarium and Winchester’s INTECH Science Centre. Also featured are the traditional large visitor attractions Paultons Park, Marwell Zoo, Beaulieu, Portsmouth Historic Dockyard and the newest addition to the tourism landscape the Spinnaker Tower.
The Hampshire Attractions Group is also supported by Hampshire County Council who is a strategic partner.
Together the attractions are visited by almost 3 million people a year. The group has printed over 200,000 leaflets distributed across the South of England and established a new website www.hampshireattractions.co.uk which will feature money-off and free ticket special offers and news about the attractions.
New additions this year at the attractions include the Australian Bush Walk and Encounter Village at Marwell Zoo and the ‘Trekking Tractors’ ride and ‘Gold Rush Falls’ Adventure Golf at Paultons.
Exbury Gardens has introduced late evening openings during May so visitors can fully appreciate the colour and scent of the blooms on display and the Watercress Line will be celebrating their 30th anniversary.
Winchester’s INTECH Science Centre continues to invest in interactive exhibits and a full programme of holiday activities, science shows and lectures. The Watercress Line has a new interpretative display of a 1950s Station Master’s lounge and Blue Reef Aquarium has recently unveiled a new Seahorse Ranch display which includes a family of seven British seahorses rescued from the Solent. At Beaulieu, a new exhibition, ‘Autoglym Supercars’, will showcase some of the world’s fastest, most expensive and exotic sports cars. A new show, ‘Trucks and Troops’, will join the attraction’s line up of popular outdoor events.
The Spinnaker Tower continues to draw new visitors to the region and Portsmouth Historic Dockyard has a number of new exhibitions focussing on the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade, the 25th anniversary of the Falklands and a full programme of events including A Celebration of Steam in May and Dockyard 800 in September.
The Hampshire Attraction Group’s Chairman, Rob Griffiths explained: “Hampshire has a superb selection of visitor attractions with something for everyone. By working together we hope to attract even more visitors to the area which can only be good news, not just for us but for local businesses and the economy.”
Hampshire County Council's Tourism Officer Kirstin Monk added "By promoting the large visitor attractions in the county, the Hampshire tourism industry as a whole should benefit through increased visitor spend and footfall. We're delighted to be part of this new initiative"
