A new gym is set to open in Carlisle this summer. The JJB Fitness club on Currock Road is currently under construction and is scheduled to open in June 2009.
The private club will feature a 20m x 9m swimming pool, 2 hot spas, a steam room, air-conditioned gym, exercise studio, lounge and bar, and car park.
Members will be able to use any of the 50 JJB Fitness Clubs in the UK.
Plans to develop Carlisle Airport have been given the go ahead by Carlisle City Council.
Members of the council’s Development Control Committee today approved plans by Stobart Air to move the Stobart Group’s headquarters to the site. The approval is subject to several conditions including a requirement that Stobart upgrade the existing runway and provide passenger terminal facilities.
Simon Sjenitzer, Strategy Director at Cumbria Vision said, ‘The development of Carlisle Airport is a major building block in Cumbria’s economic future and we are delighted that Stobart Air Ltd has been given the green light. In the current economic climate, an airport offering freight and commercial flights would be a real boost and help make businesses in Cumbria more competitive on the national and international stage. Along with plans to utilise the county’s links to the M6 and West Coast Mainline, it will also help fuel Carlisle’s exciting transformation into the Cumbria’s commercial hub.’
Carlisle’s Christmas lights will be switched on this weekend by Britain’s Got Talent finalist Andrew Johnston.
The local schoolboy singer will flick the switch at 5.30 pm on Sunday November 16 with entertainment laid on from 2 pm. The event is being organised by Carlisle City Council and is sponsored by Sky Movies.
Other festive events taking place in the city include;
Carlisle Christmas market – December 3 – 7, next to the Market Hall
Christmas Carol Parade – December 11, starts 6.30 pm at Carlisle Cathedral
Santa’s Grotto – 1December 6/7, 13/14, 20/21, 11 am – 3 pm, Talkin Tarn
Budget hotel operator Travelodge is currently offering rooms at just £9 per night.
The offer is available on this special page on their website and is valid for bookings made now for stays between February and April 2009.
Rooms for other dates are also available from £19 and £29 provided bookings are made 7 and 21 days ahead respectively.
Travelodge has announced that it will open 22 hotels across the country between now and Christmas. New hotels in the North West will include the Travelodge Blackpool Tower and the Travelodge Blackpool Tower. Both are opening late December.
The budget hotel group is currently offering thousands of rooms at only £19 for stays in December and January. They can be booked via this special page on their website.
Tourism businesses in the North West were honoured at the Northwest Tourism Awards last week. The event was held at St George’s Hall in Liverpool on October 22 and was hosted by Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen. Winners and finalists included:
Large Hotel of the Year
Marriott Worsley Park Hotel and Country Club, Manchester (Winner)
Cottons Hotel and Spa, Knutsford
Macdonald Old England Hotel and Spa, Bowness
Big Blue Hotel, Blackpool
Marriott Liverpool City Centre Hotel
Small Hotel of the Year
White House Manor, near Macclesfield (Winner)
Appleby Manor, Appleby
The Shireburn Arms Hotel, Clitheroe
Bed and Breakfast of the Year
Augill Castle, Kirkby Stephen (Winner)
Number One, South Beach, Blackpool (Highly Commended)
Moss Lodge, Rochdale
42 Caldy Road, West Kirby
Sand Hollow Farm, Burwardsley
Large Visitor Attraction of the Year
Manchester Art Gallery (Winner)
Ness Botanic Gardens, Neston
South Lakes Wild Animal Park, Dalton in Furness
Sandcastle Waterpark, Blackpool
Small Visitor Attraction of the Year
The Quaker Tapestry Exhibition, Kendal (Winner)
Cotebrook Shire Horse Centre, Cotebrook
Farmer Ted’s Farm Park, Ormskirk
Smithills Hall, Bolton
Mersey Ferries Manchester Ship Canal Cruises
Self Catering Holiday of the Year
The Beach House, Blackpool (Winner)
Staying Cool, Manchester (Highly Commended)
Premier Apartments, Liverpool
Mellow Brook Cottage at Harrop Fold Farm, Macclesfield
The Lodge Holiday Cottage, Hayton
Holiday Park of the Year
Park Cliffe Camping and Caravan Park, Windermere (Winner)
Newton Hall Holiday Park, Blackpool
Manor Wood Country Caravan Park, Coddington
Excellence in Business Tourism
The Rheged Centre, Penrith (Winner)
Park Royal Hotel, Warrington (Highly Commended)
Barton Grange Hotel, Preston
Manchester United
The Conference Centre at LACE, Liverpool
Taste of England’s Northwest
Roses Tea Room, Heswall (Winner)
The Hollies Farm Shop, Cheshire (Highly Commended)
The Village Bakery Melmerby
Northcote Manor, Langho
Isinglass Restaurant, Urmston
Tourism Experience of the Year
Manchester International Festival (Winner)
Tate Liverpool – Turner Prize (Highly Commended)
Shacklabank Free Range Walking, Sedbergh (Highly Commended)
Byways Breaks, Cheshire
Downy Duckling Experience, WWT Martin Mere
Lancashire Food Festival, Accrington
Cholmondeley Fireworks Concert and Garden Party
Excellence in Customer Service
Gary Henshall – Sandcastle Waterpark, Blackpool (Winner)
Julie Lyons – De Vere Carden Park Hotel, Chester
Daniel Fairweather, Windermere Marina Village
Pam Simpson – World of Glass, St Helens
Madge Butler – Crowne Plaza Manchester Airport
Sustainable Tourism Award
Palace Hotel, Manchester (Winner)
Cote How Organic Guest House, Rydal (Highly Commended)
RSPB Leighton Moss Nature Reserve, Silverdale
Carden Park Hotel, Chester
Tourism for All Award
The Beacon Museum, Whitehaven (Winner)
The Trafford Centre, Manchester (Highly Commended)
Wyre Estuary Country Park
The National Wildflower Centre, Knowsley
Tourist Information Centre of the Year
Congleton TIC (Winner)
Fleetwood TIC (Highly Commended)
Manchester Visitor Centre
St.Helens TIC
Keswick TIC
The winners of the Cumbria Tourism Awards 2008 were announced last night at a special ceremony at the Castle Green Hotel in Kendal. The winners were:
Most Outstanding Customer Service Award – Daniel Fairweather, Windermere Marina Village
Unsung Hero – Alan Denwood, Lakes Aquarium
Lady Inglewood Award for Innovative People Management – The Old England, Bowness-on-Windermere
Large Hotel of the Year – The Old England Hotel, Bowness-on-Windermere
Small Hotel of the Year – Appleby Manor Country House Hotel, Appleby
Bed & Breakfast of the Year – Augill Castle, Kirkby Stephen
Self Catering Holiday of the Year – The Lodge, Brampton
Holiday Park of the Year – Park Cliffe Camping and Caravan Estate, Windermere
Large Visitor Attraction – South Lakes Wild Animal Park, Dalton-in-Furness
Small Visitor Attraction – The Quaker Tapestry, Kendal
Taste of Cumbria – Village Bakery, Melmerby, Penrith
Tourism Experience Award – Shacklabank Free Range Walking, Sedbergh
Business Tourism Award – Rheged, Penrith
Tourism Website – Windermere Lodge, Windermere
The Enjoy England Awards for Excellence were held at St George’s Hall in Liverpool last night, the first time they taken place outside London. Winners from the North West were:
Gold Awards:
Tourism Website of the Year – Liverpool Philharmonic Hall
Tourism Information Centre of the Year – Liverpool 08 Place
Silver Awards:
Large Hotel of the Year – Radisson Edwardian Manchester
Meet England Business Tourism Award – Manchester Central
Caravan Holiday Park of the Year – Sunset Park, near Blackpool
Large Visitor Attraction of the Year – Tullie House Museum, Carlisle
Carlisle Cathedral has received an award to preserve its stain glassed windows, including a memorial window to a former Dean. The £62,000 grant, from English Heritage and the Wolfson Foundation, will go towards the estimated £88,000 cost of the project.
The present Dean of Carlisle, the Very Reverend Mark Boyling, said ‘The grant will enable us to preserve a well-loved memorial window to a former Dean and his family. It was paid for by public subscription in 1856 after Dean Tait had lost five daughters to scarlet fever within six weeks of each other. We are grateful to English Heritage and the Wolfson Foundation for their support in helping us to retain this, and four other cathedral windows, for the future.’
Carlisle city centre will host a 9-day Christmas market starting Saturday December 1 2007. Capitalising on the success of last year’s market, it will feature over 80 stalls offering food, gifts, and more.