From trains to planes
Britain has a proud transport heritage, which is preserved for future generations at attractions up and down the country. Carrie Drage finds out what a selection of these can offer groups.
For groups with an interest in the development of transport, there are numerous attractions to visit up and down the country.
On the road
Since the invention of the automobile in the 1880s, motoring has become the most popular mode of transport on our roads today.
In Somerset, Haynes Motor Museum at Sparkford has a collection of more than 350 cars and motorbikes, dating from 1886 to the present day. The Museum offers familiar British names such as MG alongside a large collection of American cars including a million-dollar Duesenberg. Groups can also visit the new Autogame Experience where you can play an assortment of retro arcade racing games. Guided tours can be tailor-made.
Another attraction famous for its automobile displays is the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu, set in the heart of the New Forest. Groups visiting the Museum can view more than 250 cars and motorbikes. Groups of 15 or more receive discounted entry.
Along the coast, Bentley Wildfowl and Motor Museum, in Lewes, shares its name with one of Britain’s most famous cars. Its collection of more than 100 vehicles is arranged into three categories; Veteran – constructed before the end of 1904, Edwardian – constructed between 1905 and the end of 1914, and Vintage – constructed between 1915 and the end of 1930. Groups of 10 or more receive discounts.
Meanwhile, in Surrey, Brooklands Motorsport and Aviation Museum is set around an original 1907 motor racing circuit. The site houses a number of record-breaking cars and Brooklands racing vehicles such as the 24-litre Napier Railton. The Museum also displays more than 30 aircraft from the last 100 years. Discounts are offered to groups of 15 or more, which include a guided tour.
Following a five-month closure, the Heritage Motor Museum, in Warwickshire, re-opened in September with a new mezzanine floor, displaying iconic cars from British motoring history including the first Mini. The 1.7 million pound re-development has also added three new interactive exhibitions. ‘Making British Cars’, ‘Under the Skin’ and ‘Life’s Highway’. Discounts are given to 12 or more people.
Featuring famous vehicles from film and television shows, the Cars of the Stars Museum in Cumbria has a collection that includes the vehicle from ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’ and ‘The A-Team’ van. Groups of 20 or more receive a 10% discount.
Founded by the championship motorcycle racer of the same name, the Sammy Miller Motorcycle Museum, in Hampshire, displays more than 400 rare and classic motorcycles in four galleries. Guided tours can be arranged.
Making tracks
Throughout the UK, there are a number of heritage railways offering rides pulled by vintage steam and diesel-operated locomotives.
In Hampshire, the Mid Hants Railway (Watercress Line) offers 10-miles of steam travel between Alton and Alresford. The train stops at two stations, Four Marks and Ropley, where passengers are given the chance to explore some of the Railway’s preserved locomotives and station buildings. Special rates are available for 15 or more people.
Recreating the golden age of the Great Western Railway (GWR), designed and engineered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the Didcot Railway Centre in Oxfordshire is based around the original GWR engine shed. Groups can see a large collection of steam locomotives dating back to 1840 and, on Steamdays, which are held regularly throughout the year, groups can ride in a 1930s train on one of the demonstration lines. Groups of 15 or more receive discounts.
In Worcestershire, the Severn Valley Railway offers groups of 15 or more discounted steam travel between Kidderminster and Bridgnorth in Shropshire. Due to flood damage, the Railway currently only runs between Kidderminster and Bewdley; however, in March, normal service will resume. At Easter, the attraction will be opening its newest addition, The Engine House, a five million pound visitor centre.
In York, the National Railway Museum tells the story of British rail transport and displays a collection of more than 100 locomotives and engines, along with more than 200 items of rolling stock. Permanent exhibitions include ‘The Flying Scotsman Story’, dedicated to the world’s first steam train to travel at 100mph. Entry is free.
In 2004, the National Railway Museum opened a second site in Shildon, County Durham, called Locomotion – the National Railway Museum. It houses 70 locomotives and incorporates buildings from the Timothy Hackworth Victorian and Railway Museum, a former attraction based on the life of local steam locomotive engineer, Timothy Hackworth. Admission is also free.
Located nearby is the Darlington Railway Centre and Museum, located on the original 1825 Stockton and Darlington Railway route. The Museum is based in a Grade II-listed Victorian station and is currently closed for a 1.7 million pound redevelopment project, due to be completed in March. Free guided tours will be available for groups.
Another attraction that might interest groups is the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways, in North Wales. The Ffestiniog Railway Company has been re-constructing the Welsh Highland Railway between Caernarfon and Porthmadog since 1996 and the track is finally due for completion in 2009. When it opens, the track will join the two existing narrow gauge railways and you will be able to travel the full 40-mile journey between Caernarfon and Blaenau Ffestiniog. Groups receive discounts for 20 or more people.
Set sail
Groups with an interest in sailing and British maritime history also have a number of options.
Home to the National Small Boat Collection, the National Maritime Museum Cornwall, in Falmouth, offers groups of 10 or more discounts. The harbourside Museum has a new year-long exhibition opening in January called ‘Under the Sea’, featuring a wooden replica of the very first submarine, designed by Cornelius Drebble in 1620.
Engineered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the ss Great Britain was launched in 1843 and was the world’s first great ocean liner. Now berthed in Bristol’s Great Western Dockyard, the attraction was re-launched in 2005 after a 11.3 million pound conservation project. Groups can explore the vessel with the aid of a free audio tour. In January, a new area called ‘Rigger’s Yard’ will open, which will display 150-year old masts from the ship.
On the Isle of Wight, the Classic Boat Museum at Newport contains more than 50 vessels, ranging from sailing dinghies to speedboats. In the summer, the Classic Boat Museum Gallery opened at East Cowes, which features a permanent display of ‘Gipsy Moth IV’ memorabilia, the yacht in which Sir Francis Chichester sailed single-handedly round the world. Visitors must pay a separate charge for entry to the Museum and the Gallery; however group rates are available.
In London, groups can visit HMS Belfast, situated between Tower Bridge and London Bridge on the River Thames. The ship is best remembered for her role in supporting the Allied troops during D-Day in 1944. There are nine decks to explore, which give visitors an insight into the ship’s service. Groups of 10+ receive discounts.
Berthed in the port of Leith, in Edinbugh, The Royal Yacht Britannia offers five decks to explore including the Queen’s Bedroom. Groups of 15 or more receive discounted entry, which includes access to the exhibition in the Visitor Centre at Ocean Terminal shopping centre and an audio tour.
Flying high
The UK has a number of attractions exploring the history and future of aviation.
In Somerset, the Fleet Air Arm Museum at Yeovilton is best known for its Aircraft Carrier Experience, a 45-minute walk-through experience, combining real-life aircraft with projection screens simulating what it would be like aboard the HMS Ark Royal. Across the road, Cobham Hall houses its reserve collection and, for a fee, is open to the public twice a year. Free guided tours can be arranged.
Also offering free guided tours, in Weston-super-Mare, The Helicopter Museum is the only Museum in the UK dedicated to rotorcraft. Comprising more than 80 helicopters from around the world, highlights of the collection include a Russian Hind Attack helicopter.
For a look at the last 100 years of army aviation, groups can visit The Museum of Army Flying in Hampshire, which traces the development of army aircraft. The Museum’s two display halls hold more than 35 military machines and it will be opening a new extension in January. Discounts are available for 10 or more people.
The Royal Air Force Museum, meanwhile, is located over two sites in north London and Cosford, in Shropshire. The Royal Air Force Museum London has a collection of more than 100 military aircraft. It recently opened a new permanent exhibition area, based around the frame of a Boeing Chinook helicopter. Its sister site at Cosford has a major exhibition called ‘The National Cold War Exhibition’. Entry to both sites is free.
Based at a former airfield, the Imperial War Museum Duxford has opened a major new exhibition area called ‘Airspace’. Launched in July, the 25 million pound development tells the story of Britain’s civil and military aviation. Groups of 20 or more receive discounts.
Getting around
In this section, we focus on attractions that look at a host of ways to travel.
Following a two-year re-development project, the London Transport Museum has re-opened in Covent Garden with more than 1,000 new artefacts in its galleries. Guided tours will be available for groups in the new year.
Moving north, Coventry is known as the birthplace of the British motor industry, a heritage explored in more detail at Coventry Transport Museum. Highlights include the new ‘Boomtown’ gallery, which explores the city’s booming motor industry between the 1950s and 1970s. Entry is free and guided tours are offered.
In Derbyshire, Crich Tramway Village, near Matlock, is home to the National Tramway Museum and features more than 70 trams dating from the late 19th century. Visitors to the attraction can view the restoration of the vintage trams from the Workshop Gallery area or take rides aboard one of its vehicles. Groups of 10+ receive discounts.
Meanwhile, Glasgow Museum of Transport looks at Scotland’s transport heritage and, amongst its collections, features ship models of Clyde-built vessels such as the QE2. The Museum relocates to a purpose-built property at Glasgow Harbour on the River Clyde in 2009, being renamed the Riverside Museum. Entry is free.
The supersonic trail
Concorde is probably one of Britain’s last great engineering achievements and, following its premature retirement in 2003, British Airways preserved its eight Concorde airframes at sites around the world. Here, we focus on those in the UK.
At the Filton Airfield, in Bristol, visitors can view the Concorde G-BOAF, the youngest and last of the British-built Concorde’s to fly. The one-and-a-half hour experience includes a tour of the Airbus factory site, taking in the Brabazon Hangar where each of the UK Concordes were built, an onboard tour of the aircraft and a short technical tour underneath the plane. In 2010, this Concorde is due to move to a purpose-built museum at the Cribbs Causeway shopping complex. Groups of 36 or more receive discounts.
Brooklands Motorsport and Aviation Museum, in Surrey, which houses the Concorde G-BBDG ‘Delta Golf’, also has strong ties with Concorde. It was here that the nose section and forward fuselage of Concorde were built for shipment to the production lines at Filton and Toulouse, in France. The Concorde here is famous as the first aircraft to carry 100 people at twice the speed of sound, in 1974, and The Brooklands Concorde Experience offers groups an onboard exhibition and a virtual flight.
Although not open to the public, London Heathrow Airport displays the Concorde G-BOAB. The airframe is due to be moving to the new T5 complex in 2008 for possible airside location display.
Further north, at Manchester Airport, groups can take an onboard tour of the Concorde G-BOAC at the Aviation Viewing Park, which also houses other historically important aircraft. Groups wishing to board the aircraft must pay an admission fee.
In Scotland, the National Museum of Flight, based at East Fortune Airfield, houses Concorde G-BOAA – the first BA Concorde to fly commercially from London to Bahrain, in January 1976. It is housed in its own hangar, which offers an audio-visual presentation and an exhibition covering the story of the aircraft, from birth to retirement. Groups of 10 or more receive discounted entry. You can also arrange an onboard tour of the aircraft for an extra fee.
In addition to the commercial Concordes, groups can visit the first British protoype Concorde ‘002’ (G-BSST) at the Fleet Air Arm Museum, in Yeovilton, and the British pre-production Concorde ‘101’ (G-AXDN), housed at the Imperial War Museum, in Duxford. Both aircraft are open for boarding and admission is included in the entry fees.
Although Concorde is now in retirement, one group is campaigning for its return. The Save Concorde Group has been petitioning since 2003, hoping to get at least one Concorde to fly in a heritage capacity by 2012, in time for the London Olympics. The campaign has the support of thousands of people, working to help raise funds for the project.