Monthly News Reel: What You Missed This November in the Family Attraction World

 

Each of our monthly news reels for the family attraction world provides an insight into how much changes in the industry every day. For even more industry developments, stay tuned...

The family attraction world brings new developments each and every month. This November - the month of our Family Attraction Expo - was absolutely no different.

This month, we have the usual water park, museum, and theme park news. With the welcome addition of some cinema and leisure centre news too, we can’t wait to fill you in! This monthly news segment should give you a little insight into what’s hot in the world of family attraction, so check it out...

Museums

Starting with our largest lot of news, we’ll set the scene with some fantastic industry stats. In fact, a number of UK galleries and museums have recorded their highest number of visitors in a decade! With technology ever-changing, this may come as a surprise, but it’s clear that people are yearning for more traditional means of entertainment.

This is great news and, to keep things fresh, numerous museums are expecting fresh projects and expansions to maintain this streak. These include:

• The Ryedale Folk Museum, and four other museums in Leeds, are partaking in a new project, led by Leeds University; the Dialect and Heritage Project. With a £530,500 lottery fund, the aim is to carry out a comprehensive survey of England’s dialects.


• With the overwhelming extent of artwork in museums and galleries having been created by men, a change is on the horizon. The Baltimore Museum is leading the way, and is only collecting works by women in 2020, in order to even the playing field.


• The Science Museum is working on a new project, which focuses on the history of medicine. With the first MRI scanner, and even a collection of gallstones, this will be an informative, and perhaps gory, exhibit.


• Melrose Roman museum, which has received a generous grant of £395,000, has managed to secure funding for an expansion. The historical site, which was home to a Roman frontier fort, is putting the funds towards improving the outlook, and housing even more artefacts.


• A Glastonbury jewellery design company, Facets of Avalon, is creating a knitted-wire jewellery collection for a Netherlands museum. The mother-daughter-duo design and create their products, using sand and precious gems, and these will match up with Renaissance paintings in the new exhibition.


• The Indiana State Museum is setting up an exhibit surrounding the opioid crisis. It will focus around the biology behind addiction, and the health issues that arise from it. With the stigma behind it, talking about drug use is an important step in recognising and supporting those who are struggling.


• The government in Cologne are providing funding for a museum, named the "House of Immigration Society", to be built in an old industrial hall. The museum will be focused on all things migration.


• Finally, a £750,000 refurbishment project at the Aldeburgh Museum is now complete. With a rich history to the area, this is the ideal museum for history buffs.

Water Parks

The world of water parks is constantly changing - whether it be new openings, illness breakouts, or anything in between. To start with, let’s discuss the new openings we can expect in the near future...

Firstly, the Midlands has introduced a multi-million pound indoor water park. Including the UK’s largest wave machine, six winding water slides, a lazy river, spa, gym, and cafe, amongst other things, this should prove to be a family day out to remember.

To add to these new developments, the Wild Waves theme park and water park in Tacoma has announced new additions. They’re new Shark Frenzy ride takes thrill seekers into the jaws of a Great White, spinning them around in an unpredictable fashion. Meanwhile, once this ride is built and in use, a new wave machine will be introduced to the water park!

What’s more, RIU Hotels and Resorts has announced the launch of their very first water park, Splash Water World! RIU have been around for 10 years now, leading the way in all-inclusive offerings, and their Costa Rica resort can now welcome this family-friendly feature.

Back to England now, as the Scarborough Aqua Park at Wyekham Lake applies to open all year round. Despite cold British winters, visitors are still able to enjoy what the park has to offer, as long as they don their scuba suits!

Finally, with 5th November having been and gone, the Liquid Leisure water park in Datchet hosted a fantastic fireworks display. However, this wasn’t just for fun, as they managed to raise £1,000 for the Royal Borough's new children's hospice!

Theme Parks

Similar to water parks, the world of theme parks is also unpredictable and ever-changing. Beginning with some bad news, an amusement park in Carolina has recently been fined after a maintenance worker was injured on site. This just goes to show the importance of implementing health and safety properly, which the Family Attraction Expo is here to help with.

Despite this bad news, we can also expect some exciting developments, including:

• Phuket’s largest theme park is set to open next year! Inspired by parades and carnivals, the colourful and exciting park is supposed to excite and entertain.


• Japan is set to welcome a ‘Godzilla’ theme park, including a full-size Godzilla model to frighten visitors, and set the scene.


• A famous film director from Tainan is set to build a history theme park in the area, which he says will be an extremely important cultural project. The plan is that it will double up as a film set - a two-in-one project!


• Pleasure Beach in Great Yarmouth is expecting a new £500,000 development, including an aeroplane-themed ride. Although this means the popular Mulan ride will be closed, exciting things are yet to come.

Even More Monthly News...

A new play park at a leisure centre in Epsom has now opened its doors. The Rainbow Leisure Centre and Park is aimed to attract young children. The new development in particular includes a baby area, play frame, and mini sports court.

What’s more, the biggest cinema in Saudi Arabia is set to open in Riyadh. Including a whopping 71 screens already, plans for 250 more to open by 2021 are certainly exciting!

Finally, the Royal Mint Experience has been awarded Tourist Attraction of the Year at The Welsh Hospitality Awards. Welcoming thousands of visitors annually, and educating them on the mints rich 1,100 year history, there is so much to learn.

Say Goodbye to Our Family Attraction World Monthly News… For Now!

With so much change in the family attraction world, every day provides a chance to change things up. If you want to keep up with the ever-changing industry, then the Family Attraction Expo is the place to be.

Taking place on the 11th & 12th November, at the NEC, Birmingham, you can meet and greet the companies who will help you to stay on top of industry changes. If you think you could help family attractions to boost their customer experience, then why not exhibit at the 2020 show? Or, if you want to change up the offerings at your family attraction, then stay tuned for our FREE ticket applications soon.

This is our last monthly newsreel of the year. We’ve loved updating you, every month, on the latest industry gossip. If you want to stay informed, we’ll be back for another news update in January. For now, we wish you a fantastic festive season!