Wigan

The 2009 Northwest Tourism Awards will be held at Blackpool Tower on September 28.

The event will be hosted by BBC presenter Ranvir Singh and is being organised by the Northwest Regional Development Agency.

The finalists are:

Large Hotel of the Year

Carden Park Hotel, Golf Resort and Spa, near Chester
Castle Green Hotel, Kendal, Cumbria
Preston Marriott Hotel, Preston, Lancashire
The Lowry Hotel, Manchester
Malmaison Liverpool, Liverpool

Small Hotel of the Year

Peckforton Castle, Tarporley, Cheshire
Gilpin Lodge Country House Hotel, Windermere, Cumbria
Mytton Fold Hotel and Golf Complex, Ribble Valley

Bed and Breakfast of the Year

Harrop Fold Farm, Macclesfield, Cheshire
Storrs Gate House, Bowness-on-Windermere, Cumbria
The Ashton, Lancaster, Lancashire
Brooklands Lodge, Sale, Greater Manchester
The Ambassador Townhouse, Southport, Merseyside

Large Visitor Attraction of the Year

Tatton Park, Knutsford, Cheshire
Walby Farm Park, near Carlisle, Cumbria
Blackpool Tower and Circus, Blackpool
Imperial War Museum North, Manchester
Liverpool Anglican Cathedral, Liverpool

Small Visitor Attraction of the Year

Arley Hall & Gardens, Northwich, Cheshire
Wordsworth House and Garden, Cockermouth, Cumbria
Helmshore Mills Textile Museum, Helmshore, Lancashire
Museum of the Manchester Regiment, Manchester
Acorn Farm, Liverpool

Self Catering Holiday of the Year

Kerridge End Holiday Cottages, Macclesfield, Cheshire
Hall Hills, Dalston, near Carlisle, Cumbria
Clough Bottom Farm Cottages, near Clitheroe, Lancashire
Blue Rainbow Apartments, Manchester
Premier Apartments Liverpool, Liverpool

Holiday Park of the Year

Castlerigg Hall Caravan and Camping Park, Keswick, Cumbria
Sunset Park, Hambleton, near Blackpool

Business Tourism Award

Carden Park Hotel, Golf Resort and Spa, near Chester
Warwick Mill Business Village, near Carlisle, Cumbria
Ribby Hall Village, Wrea Green, near Blackpool
The Lowry Hotel, Manchester
BT Convention Centre, Liverpool

Taste of England’s Northwest

Walk Mill, Chester
Low Sizergh Barn Farm Shop, Kendal, Cumbria
La Locanda Ristorante Italiano, Gisburn, Lancashire
The Modern, Urbis, Manchester
Delifonseca, Liverpool

Tourism Experience of the Year

Roman Tours, Chester
Silverband Falconry, Penrith, Cumbria
Farmaggedon, near Ormskirk, Lancashire
Costumed Performers, Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester
Art in the Age of Steam, National Museums Liverpool, Liverpool

Customer Service Award

Janet Bradshaw, Tatton Park, Knutsford, Cheshire
Jennifer Taylor, The Archway Guest House, Windermere, Cumbria
Hannah Lee, The New Holly, near Preston
Mahendran Mayan, Renaissance Hotel, Manchester
Christina Dixon, Jurys Inn Hotel, Liverpool

Sustainable Tourism Award

Carden Park Hotel, Golf Resort and Spa, near Chester
Langdale Leisure Ltd, Ambleside, Cumbria
Malkin Tower Farm Holiday Cottages, Blacko, Lancashire
Radisson SAS Hotel Manchester Airport, Greater Manchester
Arena and Convention Centre Liverpool, Liverpool

Tourism for All Award

Kerridge End Holiday Cottages, Macclesfield, Cheshire
Ullswater Steamers, Glenridding, Cumbria
Sandcastle Waterpark, Blackpool
The Trafford Centre, Greater Manchester

Tourism Event

Nantwich Food and Drink Festival, Cheshire
Westmorland County Agricultural Show, Milnthorpe, Cumbria
Blackpool Illuminations, Blackpool
Manchester Pride, Manchester
Creamfields, Merseyside

Public Space Award

Cockermouth Market Place Regeneration Scheme, Cumbria
County Square Environmental Enhancement Scheme, Ulverston, Cumbria
Pier Head Public Realm and Canal Link, Liverpool

Tourist Information Centre of the Year

Congleton TIC, Cheshire
Coniston TIC, Cumbria
Cleveleys TIC, Lancashire
Wigan TIC, Greater Manchester
St Helens TIC, Merseyside

Travel Journalist of the Year

Chris Moss, Time Out
Craig Fleming, Blackpool Gazette
David Atkinson, Freelance
Paul Croughton, The Sunday Times
Stephen McClarence, The Observer

Heritage Open Days allow visitors free access to properties that normally charge an entrance fee or are not usually open to the public.

The event starts tomorrow and runs until Sunday September 13.

Hundreds of attractions and properties in the North West are taking part. For more details visit the official Heritage Open Days website.

Highlights include:

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Furness Abbey (more…)

Visitors looking for a cheap place to stay in North West England next year (or indeed the rest of the UK, Ireland or Spain) should take note that Travelodge today launched an amazing offer on budget rooms.

The budget hotel chain is offering 50,000 rooms at only £12. The rate applies for stays between January 1 and April 1 2010. Rooms are also available from £19 (book 21 days ahead) and from £29 (book 7 days ahead).

To take advantage of this amazing offer, visit this page on their website.

Due to the success of last years beach event and the sizzling summer temperatures, The Galleries award winning summer beach is back!

From 22 July until the end of August, the summer beach will be back in Woodcock Square at The Galleries Shopping Centre and will be free of charge to visit, making it a great attraction during the school holidays.

With 10 tonnes of sand, palm trees, deckchairs and decking, the beach will also play host to a number of activities on Wednesdays throughout the summer period. At 11am on 22nd July, when the beach officially opens, shoppers young and old will be entertained by a traditional Punch and Judy and a steel band. Other Wednesday events include; get fit for summer keep fit classes, children’s activity workshops and a summer fashion event.

Richard Paxton, centre director of The Galleries commented: “Last years summer beach proved to be a great success and with this fantastic summer weather we are having we wanted to put on a similar summer event this year!”

“Come down to The Galleries and enjoy the centre’s award winning summer beach right here in Woodcock Square, have a break from shopping and relax on a deckchair for free, or even join in with one of the many events we have planned.”

The beach will be open daily from 10am – 5pm until (22 July until 30 August). For more information, please telephone 01942 825 734.

Wigan is to get a new multi-million pound public leisure and services facility.

The £187 million Wigan Life Centre will be built in the town centre on Library Street, the site of the former Wigan International Pool.

It will feature a 25m swimming pool and library, plus areas offering services from the council, police, NHS, and community and voluntary groups.

Construction is expected to begin shortly, with completion scheduled for the end of 2011.

The companies behind the Grand Arcade shopping centre in Wigan have been placed in administration.

Earlier this week Monday KPMG was appointed as administrator of Modus Properties (Wigan) and Modus (Wigan) Limited. Both companies are part of Manchester-based property group Modus.

The centre will continue to trade as normal while the administrators attempt to find a buyer.

The Grand Arcade opened in 2007 on the site of the former Wigan Casino.

The JJB Stadium, home of Wigan Athletic, will be renamed the DW Stadium in August 2009.

The move was announced by club owner Dave Whelan today after he announced the acquisition of a number of fitness clubs from JJB Sports.

Dave Whelan founded JJB Sports in 1977 and transformed it into the UK’s biggest sports retailer. He sold his stake in the company in 2007.

Yet another famous pub in the North West has gone out of business.

The Orwell at Wigan Pier served its final pint last Sunday. Regulars say the pub has struggled since the closure of The Way We Were Museum and the introduction of the smoking ban.

The 20th annual Bent N Bongs Beer Festival will be held at Formby Hall in Atherton from January 29 to 31 2009.

The festival is run by Atherton and Tyldesley Round Table and CAMRA and will feature draught and bottled beers from as far afield as Mongolia and Tahiti, live music, and food.

Admission costs £4 (£6 Friday evening) and includes a beer festival programme and souvenir glass. CAMRA members receive a £1 discount.

Improvements to Wigan’s History Shop will begin on December 23 2008 and are expected to take around 12 months to complete.

During this time services will be switched to Wigan Library.

The History Shop was built as a public library in 1878 by Alfred Waterhouse, who also designed Manchester’s Town Hall and London’s Natural History Museum. It became the History Shop, a historical research and study centre, in 1992.

The £1.3 million refurbishment programme has been funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, Wigan Council, and the Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust. It includes new museum displays, refurbishment of the study and research areas, and new toilet facilities.