27/05/2010

A host of Yorkshire's finest turned out this morning (Thursday 27th May) for the grand opening of Visit York's new state of the art Information Centre.

Toad, Mole, Ratty and Badger from the summer production of Wind in the Willows at York Theatre Royal were the first through the doors, as Chris Morton, Visitor Services Manager at Visit York, opened the centre for the first time.

The city was alive with character representatives from attractions in York, queuing up at the door to be the first to get a glimpse inside the new home of York's newest information hotspot, when it opened at 9.30am this morning.

Joining the queue were Cinderella and her troublesome Ugly Sisters from York's Grand Opera House production, characters from the York Dungeon and a real-life Viking from Jorvik.   The characters then toured the city to let visitors and locals know that the new centre is well and truly open for business.

Stilt walkers and a University of York samba band could also be spotted entertaining the crowds and drumming up extra excitement around the new centre, which has replaced the information provision at the De Grey rooms to the Grade II listed building at 1 Museum Street.  York Minster also joined the celebrations by ringing its bells every hour to mark the occasion.

Chris said: 'the launch has been a fitting tribute to the new centre, which will enable residents and visitors to get the very best out of the city and the wider region. The whole city is behind us and we hope that our customers enjoy the new facilities and services this provision will bring. 1 Museum Street will be the best place to find out what's on today, this week, this month and this year - whether you're looking to book a concert, attraction tickets, get travel information or source accommodation.'

The project, supported by the City of York Council, York Conservation Trust, Business Link and Welcome to Yorkshire amongst others boasts state-of-the-art facilities and services and will act as a gateway to the city and the region for residents, businesses and visitors.

Visit York's Information Centre is a one-stop-shop for all York, Yorkshire and national travel information, offering an accommodation booking service with a local, regional & national reach, and an itinerary planning service to help visitors and locals get the most from their time in York and Yorkshire.'  

A brand new shop at the centre also offers a range of locally produced goods including Yorkshire stoneware from Doncaster, handmade wooden toys and gifts from Tom Thumb designs in York, Wolds Way lavender, ceramics from Wold Pottery, chutneys and cakes from Lewis and Cooper in Northallerton, tea and biscuits from Taylors of Harrogate, cheese from the Yorkshire cheese company, toffee from Farrahs of Harrogate and gingerbread from Whitby....to name just a few!  The new centre will also accept Euros, encouraging overseas visitors to take home a souvenir from Yorkshire.

Another new feature of the information centre is the launch of a new exhibition space.  The first exhibition, by York Museums Trust, will allow visitors the chance to learn more about the York Castle Museum's latest attraction.  Thomas Ward, the infamous turnkey from York Castle Prison will greet visitors as they enter the display, which will also include artefacts from the museum's collection.

Gillian Cruddas, Chief Executive of Visit York said, ‘There's never been a visitor information service like this that has been devised from scratch with the customer in mind.  Everything we have put into the design, gift sourcing and information is planned with the visitor in mind. Our aim is to make this centre a flagship for Yorkshire and the very best information service in the country, using the very latest technology - a centre of excellence.'

In its first full year of trading at Museum Street, Visit York is aiming to increase visits to the Information Centre by an additional 96,000 bringing the total footfall to 336,000 (a 40% increase). It has ambitions to increase this figure to 400,000 in subsequent years.

ENDS

Visit York Information Centre, 1 Museum Street, York YO1 7DT

www.visityork.org