attraction

ONE museum in Leicestershire which has been called a ‘jewel’ of the city could soon look very different.

The Moira Furnace Museum is set to undergo a £2.4million investment and will add a playground and café to its site.

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The attraction is a well-preserved 19th-century iron-making blast furnace and historical landmark that is now a museum set in a huge country park.

The Moira Furnace Museum in Ashby reopened in April after undergoing the first phase of its regeneration project which took just over one year.

It needed £490,000 worth of repairs after water damage – but as much as £2.4million could be invested for phase two.

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The development could see a new visitor centre built with café and a play area for children.

Also included in the plans are additional storage facilities, improved parking with electric vehicle charging points and canal structural safety works.

Councillor Mike Ball (Con) told the committee that the improvements would make a “big difference to the future life of the furnace” and it was “one of the jewels in [our] crown”.

There is a phase three plan too which includes a new “basement entrance area” as well as “monument interpretation and illumination“.

The museum sits on a 36-acre country park and inside the attraction is a chance to learn about the 220 year old iron blast furnace.

The attraction is actually considered one of the most significant surviving monuments of the Industrial Revolution.

Inside are immersive spaces taking visitors back to the time it was used, including how the site looked 200 years ago.

There are activities for children too like dressing up or trying one of the seasonal trails around the site.

Museum tickets for adults cost £4 and £2 for children (between 2-18 years).

While the proposed visitors centre is set to have a new café, there is a takeaway spot within the museum shop.

Here, visitors can pick up hot and soft drinks as well as sweet treats like cake and ice cream.

Outside on the country park are woodlands with cycling paths and picnic spots.

Alongside the museum is a canal and visitors can even take a trip on a 100 year-old narrowboat.

The heritage boat called The Joseph Wilkes offers 15-minute trips along the water.

Tickets cost £4 for adults, £3 for children (between 2-18), and family tickets are £12 (for 2 adults and 2 children).

The museum and boat rides are open from April until late October with the country park being open year-round.

BUTlIN’S is about to get loud as has launched new karaoke pods across all three of its three resorts.

Whether guests are on a family holiday or a Big Weekender, everyone can sing their heart out inside the newest attraction.

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The new karaoke pods are a fun-filled private sing-along experience found inside state-of-the-art pods.

Groups of up to 12 can sing their hearts out and won’t have to worry about have a song stolen as there are over 45,000 tunes to choose from.

If you want to re-live the 55-minute stardom session, the high-tech pods capture everything with photos, videos and even GIFs.

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Each pod also has studio-grade soundproofing and immersive effects too.

You don’t have to leave the pod for any part of the sing-along either as drinks can be ordered and delivered straight to the pod.

Heidi Watson, Head of Innovation at Butlin’s, said: “We’re thrilled to have partnered with the Coca-Cola brand to bring this exciting, new karaoke experience to all three of our resorts.”

Heidi continued: “It’s the perfect activity for families or groups of friends, to create unforgettable memories together while singing their hearts out to their favourite tunes.  

“We’re confident the new Karaoke Pods will be popular with our guests, and an amazing addition to the activities already on offer across all of our different breaks.”

Found in Hotshots at all three resorts, pods can be booked in advance or on the day for £36. 

The karaoke pods are already up and running, so can be booked in time for May Half Term breaks which start from £184 between May 22 and June 1.

For families there’s plenty of entertainment when it comes to shows from MPW Maximum Pro Wrestling to The Masked Singer Live as well as Peppa Pig and the Theatre of Rock.

Guests can also enjoy swimming pools and slides at waterworld, fairground rides, and daytime activities like Playxperience and soft play.

The karaoke pods will no doubt be a hit for adults heading on Big Weekenders too whether that be for the 90s Reloaded to the Ultimate 80s.

Currently with Spring Savings you can get an extra 10 per cent off on selected weekender breaks from £79pp.

Headline artists this year include icons Fatboy Slim, Wet Wet Wet, Jason Donovan, Madness, Peter Andre and Scouting for Girls.

PLANS for a mega new city centre leisure facility costing £36million have been unveiled.

The first designs include two swimming pools, a cafe, a family play area, health and wellbeing rooms, a fitness suite, and a number of studios.

Peterborough City Council said plans have been finalised after consultation with residents, with further details set to go on public display at a drop-in session on Tuesday, May 19.

A planning application is due to be submitted in July, with construction at the Embankment site set to begin early next year.

The sports hub will then open in 2028, housing the city’s only public indoor swimming pool after Peterborough’s Regional Pool was demolished last year due to structural issues.

It is set to have a 25-metre eight-lane pool, as well as another 20-metre activity pool with a movable floor, among a range of other facilities.

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Members of the public will have an opportunity to talk to the design team at the drop-in session later this month, with further information provided on sustainability, floor plans, timelines, and transport options.

Jamie Fenton, culture, sports and leisure partnership manager at the council, said: “We know that residents are still feeling the loss of the Regional Fitness and Swimming Centre and that is why we are moving as quickly as we can to deliver a new, modern facility for the city.

“We had a fantastic response to the initial engagement activity earlier in the year and we have used what people told us to develop the next phase of planning and designs.”

He added: “It is really exciting to be at a stage where we can show these to people and start having conversations around what a new leisure development will offer our residents.”

According to the council, £20million of the site’s funding has come from the government’s Growth Mission Fund, while £16million has been committed by the authority.

The development is still looking for private funding and grants “to assist with the costs”.

ONE popular UK attraction often considered a ‘time-warp town’ is set to reopen next month after months of closure.

Blists Hill is a living Victorian Museum that allows visitors to step into the 1900s with a period pub, pharmacy, and school, and there are even Shire horses trotting about the streets.

Blists Hill closed in February of this year after being taken over by the National Trust.

Now, it’s understood the site is set to open next month, but the exact dates haven’t been announced yet.

The National Trust said on its website: “Details of timings and prices will follow on our website in the next few weeks.”

For those who are keen to visit, the Victorian town is found in Shropshire and is a completely immersive experience.

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There are staff in costume working in the businesses like ironmaking – which is what the site was originally used for in the 18th and 19th century.

There’s also a candle factory, butcher shop, shoe smith and even a school which has been deconstructed and rebuilt on the site brick by brick.

At the bank, visitors can exchange pounds into shillings and pence to spend on treats like sweets at the confectionery shop.

Blists Hill even has resident Shire horses like George and Bernie, who provide carriage rides around the town.

It was late last year that that the National Trust announced it would take over the running of certain museums once operated by Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, like Blists Hill, with the help of a £9million grant.

The National Trust will oversee 10 museums and 35 listed buildings, with some sites opening “in a phased fashion” over the year.

For example, Toll House in Ironbridge, a small museum on the historic Iron Bridge, is set to reopen in mid-June

When Travel Writer Ryan Gray stepped into Victorian life, he confessed his favourite spots were the pub and chip shop.

He said: “The first cast member greet me was a friendly policeman, Guy Rowlands, who has been working on the site for more than 20 years. He also leads the singalongs in the New Inn, the on-site working pub, which takes place every afternoon.

“Staff recommended I take a bag of chips into the pub to enjoy with a pint on arrival, but as I was driving, I settled for a dandelion and burdock instead.

“Nevertheless, I was still able to enjoy the incredible levels of detail throughout the bar, including old local football fixtures written in cursive on the blackboard and ‘wanted’ posters hung up on the wall.”

Prior to its closure, Blists Hill was open from 10am to 4pm every day, with the museum advising customers to allow for up to four hours to explore it fully.

An adult day ticket to the site is £27, with a £30 option also available.

BLACKPOOL Pleasure Beach has opened a brand-new attraction that you may have seen before.

The new love-lock installation is similar to ones found in Paris, New York and parts of London.

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Yesterday, Blackpool‘s Central Pier opened its new addition, a huge, red, love-lock installation.

Text on the heart reads ‘Heart of Central Pier’, ‘We Love Central Pier’.

The new display allows couples and visitors to attach their own padlocks to the heart, which is a trend that occurs in cities all over the world.

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Visitors can buy a new lock and attach it to the heart frame, they can be bought from the ride pay boxes for £5 each.

The new installation has been met with positivity, one person wrote on Facebook: “Blackpool is where i found my Teen love after nearly 35 yrs so deffo want to buy 1 for here.”

Another said: “We coming on friday and its our 20 year anniversary so will defo be doing this x.”

Love locks are a trend in cities across the world, the largest being on the 400-metre-long Hohenzollern Bridge in Cologne, Germany.

It’s considered the world’s largest and most famous love-lock bridge.

Another famous display is the Pont des Arts in Paris.

Blackpool Pleasure Beach is taking steps closer to building a ride that will be “tallest of its kind” – a record-breaking gyro-swing called Aviktas.

The ride will carry 40 people at a time, swinging them through a massive 120-degree arc that reaches 138ft above the promenade.

An exact open date hasn’t been confirmed, but the ride is expected to welcome its first passengers later in the year.

A NEW festival style experience is coming to Center Parcs this summer.

The Sherwood Forest retreat has revealed plans for its Forest Summer Social.

Starting this month, the Woodland Garden will be transformed into a huge attraction, with an outdoor cinema in the centre.

This will show everything from films like Mamma Mia and Frozen to live sports such as the World Cup and F1.

Guests will be able to prebook deckhairs and popcorn, or can turn up with their own blankets.

Also in the Woodland Garden will be activities such as the Forest Craft Room for arty activities, as well as the Family Nature Quest.

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Light up the Forest will let guests use bicycle power to light up the woodlands too.

The Summer Social Kitchen will be serving street food while drinks will be on offer at the Aspall Bar.

All of the experiences are included in the stay excluding the Forest Craft Room and any food and drink.

The new experience will run from May 25 to August 31.

Other new activities at Sherwood Forest include the Treetop Glider, a wires ride that launched earlier this week, and new padel tennis courts.

It is also the only park to have The Dozing Duck, a lounge area with breakfast and lunch as well as a playground, shuffleboard and crazy pool.

Kids will also love the VOYA Teen Glow Facial, the first spa treatment in the UK designed for younger skin.

And guests can buy exclusive Joules x Center Parcs merchandise at Sherwood Forest, with bags, t shirs and hats.

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A HUGE new “world class new visit destination” is set to open in the UK.

Xanadoo is a new indoor attraction concept that has been designed by some of the people behind the Eden Project.

They claim it will be “unlike any other museum” with massive playgrounds, art areas and food halls, as well as being educational.

When guests arrive, the will be a market hall with food and drink stalls.

The first area is the “Road to Happiness” with a series of art installations along the way.

Then there is “The Gallery of Marvellous Situations” which they say will take people “back in time” using immersive experiences.

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The Playground in the third area, with images showing slides, a huge helter skelter, climbing structures, mazes, and even a life-size snakes and ladders.

Then in the fourth area is “Tomorrow’s World” with futuristic designs showing the world in hundreds of years time.

“Call to Action” is the final area, which has a life-size “game” with levers and dials that show the impact on the current world.

The entire attraction ‘will bring “science and art” together, and be for all ages.

The cost of the project hasn’t been revealed, but it is thought that £840million will be brought to the local economy, they predict.

They hope it will encourage year-round visitors, including families and school trips as well as locals.

Where it will be built is also yet to be revealed, although they are looking at locations across South Wales.

Gaynor Coley, co-founder of the Eden Project, told local media: “We believe Xanadoo can do the same for South Wales as the Eden Project did for Cornwall.

“An economic impact assessment has just been carried out and it has bought £6 billion to Cornwall and the West Country which is more than the whole of European funding and we’d like to do the same for South Wales.

“It will bring sustainable tourism, support hospitality and creativity, storytelling, digital and health and wellbeing.”

Eden Project opened in Cornwall back in 2020, and remains the only one of its kind.

However, a second site – Eden Project Morecambe – is set to open next year.

Other planned Eden Projects include Scotland as well as Costa Rica, China and Australia.

And another huge indoor attraction set to open in the UK is Therme Manchester, a massive water resort with pools, slides and spas.

April 25 (UPI) — An attraction planned for Central Florida called Sloth World Orlando will not open after at least 31 of its sloths died during the last two years in a facility that had not been properly permitted.

Sloth World Orlando had imported at least 69 wild-caught sloths that it planned to put on display in an educational “slotharium,” but an investigation by The Sloth Conservation Foundation, The Sloth Institute and investigative reporters found the animals were being mistreated and dying, the organizations said.

Orange County, Fla., building inspectors had posted a stop-work order at a warehouse that Sloth World Orlando was storing its sloths because of alterations made to the building with permits, and because the last use permit issued for the building was for vehicle storage, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

Ben Agresta, who owns Sloth World Orlando, told Fox35Orlando, that he has ended plans for the slotharium and plans to file for bankruptcy after it was forced to give up its 13 surviving sloths in the wake of the reports.

The 13 sloths will live at the Central Florida Zoo until the Association of Zoos and Aquariums can help find long-term homes for them.

The two Costa Rica-based non-profits have been running a campaign about the facility and “following the initial press release, we received reports from former employees raising concerns about the welfare of the animals,” they said in a press release.

The organization’s report, published by Inside Climate News, found that at least 31 of Sloth World Orlando’s sloths died between December 2024 and February 2025 when they started importing the animals, and that another 24 slots remain unaccounted for.

A separate report from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission last year performed unannounced routine inspection of the storage facility that resulted in warnings about the sloths living conditions and improper records being kept on all of them.

Among the issues raised about the facility was the lack of power, heat or air conditioning and no water.

The state report also noted that in one shipment of 10 sloths wild-caught sloths, two arrived deceased, and the other eight appeared to be in poor health and later died as well.

Agresta said in a statement that allegations the animals were poorly treated are “false and inaccurate,” claiming instead that the company “lost sloths that had a virus with showed barely any symptoms and was undetectable even after necropsy.”

A MASSIVE new ride worth £8.7million will launch at an English seaside town next month.

The 138ft gyro swing attraction is the tallest in the UK, and will transform the town’s iconic skyline.

Adrenaline junkies will finally be allowed onto the mega Aviktas ride at Blackpool Pleasure Beach on May 21.

The towering swing can accommodate up to 40 people in outward-facing seats, with riders soaring over the seaside.

Its long arm swings back and forth on a 120 degree trajectory, hurling thrillseekers round and round as well as back and forth.

This summer marks the 130th anniversary of the seaside town’s iconic Pleasure Beach.

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Alongside the gargantuan swing ride, the theme park has added other updates to mark the anniversary.

This includes a free ticket for under-twos, which means they can have access to suitable rides without paying for the first time.

It has also launched a new annual pass, which offers a full year of entry to the park.

Further updates include: a half price return ticket, a cheaper Flex Pass option and the return of the popular two for £60 afternoon ticket, according to Lancashire Post.

James Cox, director of marketing, sales and PR at Pleasure Beach, said: “If ever there has been a time to support local businesses and the tourism sector, it’s now.”

He added: “Being in business for 130 years does not happen by chance.

“It takes hard work, overcoming challenges, and always looking ahead.

“That’s our promise to this town and to this sector as we enter our 130th season.”

THE crowd gasps. Arched backwards in a dramatic display, a woman has just breathed fire across the audience.

She continues dancing, swinging flaming sticks against the inky night while a flatcap-wearing crowd looks on, transfixed.

I’ve arrived at Black Country Living Museum in Dudley, near Birmingham, which was crowned the best large visitor attraction in England last year.

There for a special Peaky Blinders night, I enter a replica village featuring streets any fan will recognise – as this is a filming location for the hit series.

The show’s creator, Steven Knight, has gone as far as describing the museum as “home”.

The event costs £21 and instructions are enticingly vague: “Arrive in 1920s attire and expect mayhem.”

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Judging by the fire dancers at the entrance, I’m in for one hell of a night.

Wobbling across the cobbles in heels, I’m wrapped warmly in a thick trenchcoat. If someone had told me I’d accidentally wandered back in time to the actual 1920s, I could have believed them.

Visitors drift between functional stores, from a post office to a barber shop, where one teen exchanged £15 for a Shelby-inspired undercut while their girlfriend laughed from the sidelines.

At the bottom, past a WWI memorial, sits a ruckus of flashing gold fairground rides.

It is so authentic, the only indication that I’m standing on a film set and not a real street corner is the vintage signage and outfits.

I’m jolted to attention by a 1920s car rumbling towards me, open-topped and overflowing with cackling passengers.

“I swear that was Ada,” someone remarks, in a nod to Arthur Shelby’s daughter in the show.

In dim lighting, strangers do have a habit of morphing into familiar faces.

Down a flight of steps sits Canal Street Bridge, a secret meeting place for Ada and Freddie. From there, I can see queues forming for the village pubs, as jaunty piano tunes drift from their doorways.

Having snagged a £4.50 bottle of Cobra, my attention is drawn towards two storefronts: a bakery and a traditional sweet shop. For £10, I secure a bag of lemon sherbets, lemon bonbons and cinder toffee.

Clutching my treats, I teeter down the steps of Canal Street Bridge to enter Charlie’s Yard. This sits on the banks of a canal, where Charlie Strong smuggles illicit goods for the Shelbys.

“Welcome to 1910,” a chainmaker yells, wielding a hammer over a glowing link.

This event is strictly 16+ , and judging by the three street brawls I’ve witnessed already, that’s probably for the best. All incidents involved actors and the colourful language sparked waves of giggles.

My final hurrah is horse racing at St James’ School.

Shuttled into wooden rows, the atmosphere is electric and, after picking their horses, everybody is on the edge of their seats.

Celebrating the flutter with a portion of fish and chips “to go”, it’s time for the steady walk to the exit. By 10.30pm, it feels like I’ve just scratched the surface.

Straddling 29 acres, the site has events exploding on a spitfire schedule. Catching it all seems impossible.

Ticket included, I’ve spent around £50, so this evening has been a steal.

Like Cillian Murphy, I’m leaving with a “great fondness” for the Black Country Living Museum.

The Shelby legacy is alive and well.

A POPULAR European city destination is adopting a green voucher scheme that will see tourists rewarded for litter picking this summer.

The city is hoping to attract tourists who don’t mind getting their hands a bit dirty on their holiday.

Germany‘s capital, Berlin, is set to introduce the ‘BerlinPay’ scheme that will see tourists rewarded for engaging in sustainable behaviour, like supporting social projects and collecting rubbish.

Those getting involved are set to receive benefits at museums, restaurants, and Berlin experiences when the scheme gets underway this summer.

This year, the scheme is going to be centred around water tourism and, partnered with the Senate Department for Economics, Energy and Public Enterprises, the model hopes to make responsible engagement around the waters visible and appreciated.

The tourism agency, Visit Berlin, has described the scheme as “an initiative that raises awareness and encourages responsible behaviour on and around Berlin’s waterways among visitors and Berliners”.

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The agency has continued: “Those who behave responsibly on and around the water, for example by collecting trash, beautifying the neighbourhood, or supporting social projects – receive recognition from participating partners: small benefits or special Berlin experiences.”

The scheme is hoping to create a virtuous circle, where people get engaged, appreciate the city, and in turn are rewarded with a positive experience that will then drive engagement up further.

Berlin is currently looking for companies and initiatives to get involved with the reward scheme this summer and is keen on partners related to “Berlin’s water world”.

The tourism agency emphasized companies involved in water sports, leisure and tourism, gastronomy, hotel industry, culture and education, mobility, and environmental and urban initiatives should apply.

This new project appears to be following in the footsteps of Denmark, which launched ‘CopenPay’ for the country’s capital back in 2024.

So far, the scheme has proved to be effective and has had positive effects in the city, as tourists are given rewards such as boat trips and free bike rentals for their sustainable behaviour.

The head of communications and behavioural research at Wonderful Copenhagen, Rikke Holm Petersen, has reiterated the benefits to both the tourists and the city.

“When people are on holiday, they are more open to new ideas, and with CopenPay we have shown that tourists are not only happy to take part but are also inspired to…take new habits home with them,” Peterson said.