The scent of early spring has spread across England and the time of new beginnings is upon us. This month we'll be celebrating the newly unveiled programme announcement for Hull UK City of Culture 2017; two new luxury beachside holiday homes in Cornwall; a new treehouse on a crane in Bristol's Harbourside; and a magical new addition to London's Warner Bros. Studio Tour. See below for more information, plus a roundup of more news just in from around the country.

News just in

A natural high – new treehouse on a crane to open in Bristol's Harbourside
May – September 2017
Believed to be a world first, Canopy & Stars at Crane 29 is a one-bedroom treehouse being constructed on one of Bristol harbourside's iconic cargo cranes, promising a bubble of nature in Bristol's industrial heart. Experience the sights, smells and sounds of the great outdoors, indoors, as you look out over the harbour's twinkling lights from a nature-inspired sanctuary high above the water. The treehouse will be the first ever space created and built by Canopy & Stars, and will be made using sustainable building materials, smart, space-saving solutions and pollinating plants on the roof, attracting bees, birds and wildlife. It will grace Bristol's skyline for just four months after welcoming guests from late May. One night stays start from £185 and will be allocated via a ballot, available to enter via their website.
www.canopyandstars.co.uk/crane29

2018: Queen's Diamond Jubilee Galleries in Westminster Abbey, London
Summer 2018
A new museum and gallery is being built in Westminster Abbey's medieval triforium (the arcaded storey above the nave). The triforium has been hidden from the public for over 700 years. It was originally built by Henry III around 1250-60, and offers spectacular views into the church and out towards the Palace of Westminster and Parliament Square. The project will preserve the contemplative atmosphere of the space whilst displaying treasures such as the Liber Regalis, a 14th-century illuminated manuscript setting out the order for Coronations, and the Westminster Retable, England's oldest altarpiece.
www.westminster-abbey.org/visit-us/galleries

Coming soon

New dog café, Manchester
Late March 2017
The latest addition to the burgeoning pet café scene will be the Beach Dog Café in Wythenshawe – but with a key difference. As well as being a place for dog owners in need of a coffee to bring their well-behaved dogs, the café will be a platform for dogs from local shelters to come and meet and greet people who want to get some doggie time, with the hope of finding the dogs a forever home. The café will be part of Central Bark, which already offers doggie day care, home-to-home boarding and dog grooming. As well as the shelter dogs, there will be Alfie (the resident meet-and-greet pup), and some dogs from the day care for dog lovers to ogle as they sip their cuppas.
www.manchesterdogcare.com

Bold new look for Mercure Bristol Grand Hotel
25 March 2017
The Grade II-listed Grand Hotel in Bristol's Old City has had a top-to-toe redesign – described as 'historic relaxed meets rebellious urban Bristol'. It's a complete departure from the hotel's former traditional feel, combining the building's ornate Victorian architecture with striking furniture, dramatic statements and street-art influences. Bristol gallery and street-art festival Upfest was invited to curate a collection of over 500 pieces by local artists. The hotel's restaurant and bar will be a Keepers, a concept developed in-house by Accor, with a vintage-salvage look inspired by Bristol's famous St Nicholas Market.
www.mercure.com

The Forbidden Forest opens at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London
31 March 2017
The latest permanent addition to Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter is the Forbidden Forest. Visitors will come face to face with the enormous spider Aragog the Acromantula and bow to Buckbeak the Hippogriff as they wander through 19 trees, each with a diameter of over 12 feet. The Forest will showcase the detail and craftsmanship that went into creating the Forest's magical creatures, and demo techniques used by filmmakers to control the weather. Standard ticket prices are: adults £39; children £31; aged 4 and under free.
wbstudiotour.co.uk/forbidden-forest

New floating restaurant, Berkshire
31 March 2017
The Melody, a glass-sided, hand-crafted river boat, is the latest addition to Windsor's luxury dining scene. When it launches, the floating restaurant will dish up spectacular views of Windsor and one of the loveliest stretches of the Thames alongside freshly prepared, seasonal dishes from award-winning chefs. Scheduled cruises with three-course lunches, afternoon teas, Sunday lunches and five-course dinners will be on the menu, as well as private hire for celebrations and events.
www.bateauxwindsor.com 

Major programme announcement for Hull UK City of Culture 2017
April – September 2017
Seasons two and three of the year-long cultural programme Hull UK City of Culture 2017 has been unveiled, revealing details of 42 new commissions and world premieres, 24 festivals and 13 new exhibitions. The two seasons, Roots & Routes (April to June) and Freedom (July to September), will showcase cultural events from art to music, theatre to film, and dance to family friendly activities. Highlights include Hull New Theatre reopening following a £16m transformation with a visit from The Royal Ballet; Philip Larkin's life and work celebrated with exhibition New Eyes Each Year - and guest lecturer Grayson Perry; and Slung Low's year-long epic adventure Flood by James Phillips – amongst hundreds of other events and activities!
www.hull2017.co.uk

RHS Garden Holidays opens access to private gardens, East Anglia
May and September 2017
RHS Garden Holidays has added several private gardens to their Garden Holidays itineraries. The four-day Private Gardens of East Anglia will feature private gardens of RHS President Sir Nicholas Bacon Bt and RHS Council Member Lady Xa Tollemache's at Helmingham Hall. The holiday will also include RHS Garden Hyde Hall, Wyken Hall vineyards and gardens, and Marks Hall Garden and Arboretum. Departures available 2 May and 13 September 2017. Tour prices start at £495 per person.
www.rhsgardenholidays.com

New accommodation at The Chainlocker, Cornwall
July 2017
The Chainlocker in Falmouth will re-open following a six-month-long extensive refurbishment project by owners St Austell Brewery, who acquired the property in 2015. The highlight will be five light and airy new rooms, all with spectacular uninterrupted views of the busy waterfront. Downstairs, a new restaurant will serve St Austell Brewery's coastal pub and kitchen menu; fresh local oysters will be one of the pub's specialities. The pub's illustrious maritime history will be celebrated in the main bar, and salvaged nautical memorabilia dating back to the 1800s will be mixed with modern fixtures and fittings.
www.thechainlockerfalmouth.co.uk ; www.westcountryinns.co.uk

Just opened

New luxury beachside holiday homes for groups, Cornwall
Late February and April 2017
The couple behind Tregulland, one of the UK's top large house rentals, are launching two more beachside holiday homes on Cornwall's north coast. Opened in late February, Pentire is the ultimate surfers' pad. Overlooking Fistral Beach, the elegant, four-bedroom penthouse has an eight-person hot tub on its huge terrace and floor-to-ceiling windows. The mid-century décor has serious wow factor too. Barford, a new larch-clad house with picture windows and sea views, will open in April. Sleeping up to 16 people, it will have some awesome touches, including a secret underground games room for grown-ups, a cocktail bar in the master suite, access to a secluded beach, and Narnia wardrobes.
www.tregullandandco.co.uk

The Writers' Way trail, Hampshire
March 2017
This 13-mile trail links novelist Jane Austen, naturalist Gilbert White and writer William Cobbett to some exceptional English countryside – tying in with VisitEngland's Year of the Literary Heroes and the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen's death. The route passes by Jane Austen's House Museum in Chawton, the Curtis Museum in Alton, and Gilbert White's House in Selborne. For a day out with a difference, walkers and cyclists can return to their start point in this linear walk by using the Watercress Line Steam Railway, as Alton and Medstead stations lie near either end of the route. The route is open to walkers and their dogs, as well as cyclists, and is mostly on paths and rural lanes.
www3.hants.gov.uk/writersway

For more information on what's new for 2017, go to:

www.visitengland.com/biz/media-centre/media-resources

For a copy of What's New 2017, please email press@visitengland.org

Ends

For further press information and images please contact:

Evelina Andrews/ Emma De Vadder
VisitEngland Press Office
Tel: 020 7578 1447 / 020 7578 1417
Email: Evelina.Andrews@visitengland.org / Emma.deVadder@visitengland.org

Notes to Editors:

About VisitEngland

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