Black Country is tops for tourists
Tourist attractions in the Black Country and Wyre Forest have been voted among the top places for families to visit across the entire West Midlands.
Tourist attractions in the Black Country and Wyre Forest have been voted among the top places for families to visit across the entire West Midlands.
Both children and adults were asked to nominate their top 10 favourite attractions for the poll launched by Advantage West Midlands.
And Bewdley's West Midland Safari Park scored a double taking the top spot in both lists - beating the likes of Cadbury World, Alton Towers and Drayton Manor Park.
Dudley's Black Country Living Museum also made both lists, appearing in fourth place in the parents list and 10th in the children's top-10.
It shared the position with RAF Cosford and Ironbridge. Children voted Dudley Zoo in seventh place but it failed to gain a ranking at all with their parents. And in a reversal,
Kidderminster Severn Valley Railway made the top-10 with adults, taking 10th place, but failed to find favour with youngsters.
Birmingham's Cadbury World came in second place for children and joint sixth for adults with the city's Thinktank museum.
Thinktank also made the children's list in joint fifth place with Birmingham Sealife Centre. Adults also gave the centre the thumbs-up voting it in eighth place with Drayton Manor Park, in Staffordshire.
Drayton Manor Park scored higher in the children's list taking joint third place with Alton Towers. The study was carried out between February and March of this year to find out where both children and their parents enjoyed visiting.
Members of Brownie and Scouts groups in Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Coventry, Warwickshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Birmingham and the Black Country were asked to nominate their favourite attractions. Results of the poll were announced today with the Kidderminster attraction taking the top spot.
Bosses at West Midland Safari Park were celebrating the result today.
Head keeper Bob Lawrence said: "We are absolutely over-the-moon.
"To take the top spot with both children and their parents shows we are achieving what we have always set out to do - create something for the whole family. Severn Valley Railway spokesman David Wilcock said it was great to make the adults list — but was disappointed with missing out on the children's top ten.
"Nostalgia plays a big role in the appeal of the SVR of course but we also want it to be a place for young people as well," he said."
Head of Tourism and Culture for Advantage West Midlands Nigel Russell said: "We decided to carry out this study to find out from children and adults first-hand which tourist attractions they love so they can pass on their personal recommendations."
He said the information would be used to create a guide for youngsters which could be downloaded from visittheheart.co.uk
