The new Southampton Harbour Hotel & Spa is now taking shape at Ocean Village in Southampton.

The 85 bedroom hotel with its luxury liner inspired design will reflect Southampton’s marine culture. It opens October 2017

Southampton Harbour Hotel & Spa will feature a ground floor ‘Jetty’ restaurant with an outdoor terrace overlooking the marina as well as an open plan lounge for informal meetings.

The top floor will feature ‘HarBar on the 6th’, a rooftop destination bar.

Southampton Harbour Hotel & Spa will have two main meeting and events suites. The Harbour Suite on the first floor will be the largest space. With floor to ceiling windows the Harbour Suite will seat up to 250 delegates theatre style.

The Marine Suite, also with floor to ceiling windows and facing the dock, will seat up to 80 delegates theatre style.

Leisure facilities at Southampton Harbour Hotel & Spa will include a spa, gym, swimming pool and terrace, hydrotherapy pool, sauna and steamroom.

Southampton Harbour Hotel & Spa is located in Southampton’s Ocean Village development, a short walk from West Quay and the Cruise port and around a ten minute drive from Southampton Central station. Valet parking will available on site with space for approximately 40 cars.

Details: http://www.southampton-harbour-hotel.co.uk/


ZipWorld London South Bank claims to be ‘biggest and fastest’ city zip wire in the world. It has just opened on London’s Southbank.

Riders will reach speeds approaching 50kph when they launch into the air from a 35-metre high tower in Archbishop’s Park near Lambeth Palace.

It will take little more than 30 seconds to complete the 225-metre descent but it will feature spectacular views of the London Eye, Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, the Gherkin, Lambeth Palace and The Shard.

ZipWorld London South Bank opened on 7 July and will remain open for 12 weeks.

The Zip World adventure can be used as platform to build teamwork, entertain or simply enjoy as a group.

Details: https://www.zipworld.co.uk/adventure/detail/zip-world-london


Plans to develop a new 240-bedroom hotel, waterpark and conference facility on the Longleat Estate in Wiltshire are set for approval this week by Wiltshire Council.

Longleat Estate believe the hotel will provide new accommodation, business conferencing and leisure facilities of a type and scale that is presently absent in the local vicinity.

If plans are approved a two year construction period is anticipated.

Details: https://www.longleat.co.uk/longleat-house


Alderley Park Conference Centre in Cheshire has just launched a range of indoor and outdoor team-building activities.

These range from outdoor activities including: ‘falconry’, ‘archery’, ‘it’s a knockout’, ‘sports days’ and ‘kwik cricket’ – to more esoteric indoor activities. These include ‘reach for the sky’ and ‘topping towers’.

There is a generous range of foodie activities including a ‘chocolate masterclass’, ‘apprentice cookery course’ and ‘the omlette challenge’ through to ‘ale tasting’, ‘cocktail making’ and ‘wine tasting’.

Alderley Park Conference Centre includes the 233-tiered-seater Nucleus Auditorium complete with stage, lectern and comprehensive AV facilities plus technical support, video conferencing and networking facilities. There is 2600 sq-ft of exhibition and catering space with natural daylight adjoining.

In addition there are eight flexible breakout spaces seating between 10 and 150 delegates, all equipped with the latest technology and all with natural daylight.

Alderley Park Conference Centre provides a full catering service.

Alderley Park Conference Centre is situated in 400 acres of Cheshire parkland. It is six miles northwest of Macclesfield, five miles from Manchester Airport, 12 miles south of Manchester city centre and twenty minutes from the M6.

Details: http://alderleycc.co.uk/


Pub operator, JD Wetherspoon, has submitted a plan to transform the Last Plantagenet pub in the centre of Leicester into a hotel as part of a £2.5million project.

38 new bedrooms are planned on the upper floors of the building above the pub, which are currently vacant.

The pub is named after Richard III who was the last Plantagenet King of England and who has recently been rediscovered under a Leicester car park and reburied in the city.

A council is decision is expected by the end of the year.