Tag Archives: accessible attractions

Attractions, Days Out, Quingo Scooters

Quingo Scooters Accessible Attractions: Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

Quingo Scooters is shining the spotlight on Stratford, five years after the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games, as part of our Accessible Attractions series.

Today the area of Stratford, is something of a ‘mini city’ and home to the stunning Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. The park offers a visitor experience like no other. Covering 560 acres, it’s the largest recreational space in Europe created in more than 100 years, and is free to visit every day of the week.

The park houses the London Stadium, the ArchelorMittal Orbit, the London Aquatics Centre, the Copper Box Arena, Lee Valley VeloPark and Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre.

Here you can experience sports, events and the iconic venues as well as waterways, playgrounds and cafes.

Quingo Scooters Olympic Park 2

What to do at the park

  • London Stadium – go behind the scenes on a venue tour, journeying through the players’ changing rooms, athletes’ warm up track and player’s tunnel before finishing pitch side.
  • London Aquatics Centre – take a swim in the pool of champions – in one of London 2012’s most famous venues.
  • Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre – enjoy state-of-the-art facilities at the inspiring sports complex.
  • Beach East – from 21 July-2 September visit the UK’s biggest urban beach.
  • Late nights at the ArchelorMittal Orbit – take on the world’s longest and tallest tunnel slide.
  • Lee Valley VeloPark – for track cycling, road racing, BMX or mountain biking centred on the award-winning 6,000 seat velodrome where Sir Chris Hoy and Dame Sarah Storey set the London 2012 Olympic Games alight.
  • Art in the Park – artworks form part of the park’s architecture and landscape – 26 artworks to experience all reflecting the park’s identity as a place for people from near and far.
  • Food and drink – whether you want a three-course meal, light lunch, drinks or coffee and cake, there is something for everyone at the park from the Timber Lodge Café to Randy’s Wings Bar or Bottle Apostle.
  • Play areas – in the north of the park the Tumbling Bay Playground features sandpits, rock pools and bridges, kids love the Pleasure Gardens play areas to the south with climbing frames, slides and oversized swings.

Quingo Scooters Olympic Park 3

Opening times and ticket prices

The park is open 24 hours a day, every day. However, please note that different venues will be open at different times, so do check before you visit. You can check here for the latest visitor information. It’s also recommended that you book activities and tours in advance. When you visit the main website click on ‘The Park’ and select the venue/event you want to visit those pages for more information.

The park is free to enter, ticket, tour and event prices vary at each venue. You can search for the venues and events you want on the main site and find pricing on the links to the individual sites.

Getting there

Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park has some of the best transport links in London, with public transport the easiest way to get to and from the park.

It has nine tube and train links and several bus and coach routes. The nearest train, tube and bus stops are at Stratford, Stratford International, Hackney Wick, Pudding Mill and Leyton stations. See the Park Map for more details.

If you are exiting from Stratford Underground Station, take the lift to ‘The Street’ (the outdoor part of Westfield Shopping Centre). Follow it, bear right at Fountain Square towards John Lewis and then left at Jamie’s Italian. At the end of the passage, cross the road to the park.

If you’re travelling by bus, the 388 Blackfriars to Stratford City), 308 (Clapton to Wanstead via Stratford City), 339 (Leytonstone to Shadwell) and 108 (Lewisham to Stratford City) buses stop either near the park entrance or at various venues.

There is designated Blue Badge parking located around the park at the different venues. There is no general parking at the London Stadium, but West Ham United offer spaces to 49 Blue Badge holders at every home game. To apply for a space, email [email protected]

The designated Blue Badge car park, known as Car Park 1A, is stewarded and located in the south west corner of the stadium, 6 spaces will be allocated to Blue Badge holders from the visiting team at every match. For more information click here.

London Aquatics Centre – 10+ designated parking bays, Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre – 10+ designated parking bays, Lee Valley VeloPark – 10+ designated parking bays, Copper Box parking – 10+ designated parking bays, Timber Lodge parking – on street marked Blue Badge bays are available and at ArcelorMittal Orbit and The Podium – 8 designated parking bays. Blue Badge holders can use all car parks without being limited to venues-only. Car parking is free for Blue Badge Holders, simply enter the car park, stay and enjoy the park and on arriving at the car park exit simply press the intercom button. Once the Parking Services Team has verified your Blue Badge the barrier arm will lift so you can exit.

Non-blue badge holders will pay for parking – from £4 for 1-2 hours up to £20 for up to 24 hours, via a ticketless automated number plate recognition system. The system will record your registration as you enter. Once you are back in the car park after your visit, go to a pay machine and enter your vehicle registration to pay for time you’ve stayed at the park.

Accessibility

The Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park team has worked hard to ensure that it is as accessible and inclusive as possible. It offers good step-free access, hard-standing surfaces, regular seating and accessible Blue Badge car parking at each venue.

The venues have been designed to provide accessibility, with accessible toilets, changing facilities, induction loops and audio assistive systems. The park runs a daily mobility service allowing visitors to hire a wheelchair, mobility scooter, have a sighted guide or take a ride on the Park Mobility buggy.

Visit the accessibility page here for full details for each venue.

About Quingo

The Quingo Scooter range features six models to suit your needs and budget. New models are now available from just £22/week on our new contract hire scheme, which includes all servicing and maintenance, Insurance, Roadside Recovery, Call Outs and Consumables including Batteries and Tyres. For more information on this, or the latest Quingo Scooter range, please visit our website. Alternatively, if you have any service questions you can always contact us or call customer services on 01582 430 900.

Keep up-to-date with the latest mobility scooter advice, tips and interesting places to visit on the Quingo Scooter Users Blog. Connect with Quingo and keep up-to-date with all our latest news on Facebook and Twitter.

All Quingo Personal Mobility Vehicles are provided by Forever Active, the UK’s exclusive distributor. Forever Active is a trading name of Advantage Marketing Corporation Limited (AMC).  AMC Limited is an appointed representative of First Senior Insurance Services Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. First Senior Insurance Services FSA Register number is 308478.

Attractions, Days Out, Quingo Scooters

Quingo Scooters Accessible Attractions: Yorkshire Wildlife Park

Quingo Scooters has some fantastic family fun for you this week – at Yorkshire Wildlife Park! It’s billed as the UK’s No.1 walk-through wildlife adventure and is another great British attraction to add to our Accessible Attractions series.

Quingo Yorkshire Wildlife Park 2

Yorkshire Wildlife Park is home to some of the most amazing animals on the planet – from polar bears, lions, camels and baboons to creepy crawlies – all set in 70 acres of beautiful countryside. There are  over 400 animals and 70 different species, with a range of attractions, activities and displays:

  • Project Polar – the Yorkshire Wildlife Park and Polar Bears International’s flagship project working towards saving and improving the welfare of this iconic species.
  • Lion Country – where you can see the park’s famous and majestic lions, who were flown from Romania to Yorkshire in 2010!
  • Land of the Tiger – home to endangered Amur tigers Vladimir, Sayan, Tschuna and Tschuna’s cub Hope, and it is one of the largest tiger exhibits in Europe.
  • Lemur Woods – takes visitors through the Madagascan world of the lemurs where you can watch them leaping along the tree tops.
  • Leopard Heights – home to the most endangered big cat in the world. Here you can witness Drake, Freya and their 2 cubs living in their spectacular home, designed as a purpose-built breeding and reintroduction facility to help preserve this precious species.
  • Giant Otter reserve – Gold medallist Rebecca Adlington opened the reserve last year, which is home to Mora and Alexandra.
  • Into Africa – featuring the endangered black rhino, antelope, giraffe, ostrich and zebras.
  • Meercat and Mongoose Manor –these fantastic, fun characters dig and play in a unique reserve.
  • Big Bugs – a brilliant live show that takes visitors into the land of creepy crawlies!
  • These are just some of the attractions, with much more to see and do at the park, including ranger and carnivore experiences and adoptions.

Quingo Yorkshire Wildlife Park 3

Opening times and ticket prices

The park is open every day from 10am until 6pm, except Christmas Eve and Christmas Day (24 and 25 December), when it is closed. The last entry is at 5pm. Check before you travel because the park may be closed due to adverse weather.

Prices for the Summer Season (11 March-5 November) are: adults £17, senior citizens and students £15, people with disabilities £11 (adult), £9 (senior citizens), children £14 (aged 3-15), under 2s can visit the park free of charge, disabled children £8, official carer £6.

Discounts are available if you book online. Students, disabled visitors and carers should take the appropriate ID to claim their concession.

Getting there

The Yorkshire Wildlife Park is  easily accessible by public transport from Doncaster town centre or by car via the A1 or M1.

Visitors travelling by bus can use the 57 to Finningley. This service stops in the village of Branton, a short taxi ride or 10-minute walk from the park down Brockholes Lane. Taxis are available outside the train station or you can book one in advance.

Visitors travelling by train are advised to plan their journey into Doncaster station and take the 57 bus to Finningley.

By car, visitors should enter the postcode DN4 6TB on SatNav. Once you reach the destination, please follow the signs for the car park.

From M18 Junction 3 – exit onto the Great Yorkshire Way, signposted Yorkshire Wildlife Park. Follow this A-Road for two miles until you reach a traffic light junction at the A638. Take the left lane signposted ‘Armthorpe’, join the A638, and in 300 meters turn right onto Warning Tongue Lane. The park entrance is half a mile along the lane on the right, just after the bridge.

From the A1, join the M18 at Junction 35 and follow the directions above. From the M1, join the M18 at Junction 32 and follow the directions above. For more information please see the Plan Your Visit page here.

Accessibility

Yorkshire Wildlife Park is accessible. It has on site car parking, with approximately 2,650 car parking spaces and 120 disabled parking spaces reserved for blue badge holders only. If you are getting dropped off, there is a drop off point right outside the main entrance. All pathways and cafes are accessible to wheelchair users. There are disabled toilets in the Safari Café, opposite the meercat enclosure, at the Monkey Playhouse Café, at Caramba and near the giraffes. A limited number of manual wheelchairs are available to borrow free of charge subject to availability. To book a wheelchair for your visit, please call visitor services on 01302 535057.

To discuss accessibility needs, contact the park on 01302 535057 or email [email protected]

For more information please visit the accessibility page here.

About Quingo

The Quingo Scooter range features six models to suit your needs and budget. New models are now available from just £22/week on our new contract hire scheme, which includes all servicing and maintenance, Insurance, Roadside Recovery, Call Outs and Consumables including Batteries and Tyres. For more information on this, or the latest Quingo Scooter range, please visit our website. Alternatively, if you have any service questions you can always contact us or call customer services on 01582 430 900.

Keep up-to-date with the latest mobility scooter advice, tips and interesting places to visit on the Quingo Scooter Users Blog. Connect with Quingo and keep up-to-date with all our latest news on Facebook and Twitter.

All Quingo Personal Mobility Vehicles are provided by Forever Active, the UK’s exclusive distributor. Forever Active is a trading name of Advantage Marketing Corporation Limited (AMC).  AMC Limited is an appointed representative of First Senior Insurance Services Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. First Senior Insurance Services FSA Register number is 308478.

Attractions, Days Out, Quingo Scooters

Quingo Scooters Accessible Attractions: Imperial War Museum Manchester

Quingo Scooters are back in the North West this week with another great British attraction to add to our Accessible Attractions series. A city known for its pop culture, as well as its love affair with music. We’re taking you to Manchester.

The iconic Imperial War Museum in Manchester tells the stories of those people whose lives have been shaped by war. Through their galleries, displays and events, the Imperial War Museum aims to challenge people’s perception of war.

Quingo Scooters Imperial War Museum Manchester 2

The Museum

Within the museum there are a variety of exhibitions on display to give insight into wartime life, such as:

  • The Big Picture Show – using surround sound and projected digital moving images, this exhibition brings to life people’s experiences of war. Creating a complete sensory experience, the seven shows each focus on a different aspect of war.
  • Mixing it: The Changing Faces of Wartime Britain – reveals the forgotten histories of service personnel and civilians who came to Britain during the Second World War. At this time, the national and ethnic diversity of the population was unprecedented. The exhibition is based on specially recorded oral histories.
  • Reactions: Artists’ responses to conflict – the reactions exhibition encourages artistic responses to the themes, architecture and collections of the museum, unveiling new and unique ways to explore the impact of conflict. Some pieces currently displayed are:
    • The Crusader by Gerry Judah, 2010 – a comment on modern day wars and the history of world conflict, covered by a network of war-damaged buildings.
    • A start shall stride from Jacob and a sceptre bearer shall rise by Chava Rosenzweig, 2013 – ceramic artwork exploring the impact of the Holocaust on second and third generation survivors.
  • Wyndham Lewis: Life, Art, War – displayed until the 1 January 2018, discover the artwork and story of Britain’s original rebel artist in the largest UK retrospective of Wyndham Lewis’ work. Compromising of more than 160 artworks, books, journals and pamphlets from major collections.

Quingo Scooters Imperial War Museum Manchester 3

Opening times and ticket prices

The museum is open from 10am to 5pm daily (including Bank Holidays), the museum is closed on the 24, 25 and 26 December.

Entry to the museum is free, voluntary donations are welcomed in support of the museum.

Getting there

The Imperial War Museum is easily accessible by public transport from the City Centre or by car via the Manchester Outer Ring Road (M60).

Visitors travelling by bus can use the 250 Piccadilly Gardens to Trafford Centre. This service stops on Wharfside Way, Trafford Park, a short distance from the museum. Using the X50 Piccadilly Gardens to Trafford Centre. This service also stops on Wharfside Way. 50 from East Didsbury via the City Centre and Salford Crescent to MediaCityUK, stopping on the Salford side of the Quays by The Lowry it is a short distance from the museum.

Visitors travelling by trains are advised to use the National Rail Enquiries page to plan their journey into central Manchester stations.

By car, visitors should leave the M60 at junction 9 and join Parkway (A5081) towards Trafford Park. There are alternative routes towards the museum.

For more information please see the visit us page here.

Accessibility

There is accessibility access to the museum throughout, with accessible toilets located on the ground floor and lifts to all floors within the museum. There are 16 designated parking spaces for visitors, however parking charges apply to all parking areas. Visitors are reminded that within the main exhibition area there is a gentle slope, visitors are advised to take extra care in this area.

For more accessibility information please visit the accessibility page here.

About Quingo

The Quingo Scooter range features six models to suit your needs and budget. New models are now available from just £22/week on our new contract hire scheme, which includes all servicing and maintenance, Insurance, Roadside Recovery, Call Outs and Consumables including Batteries and Tyres. For more information on this, or the latest Quingo Scooter range, please visit our website. Alternatively, if you have any service questions you can always contact us or call customer services on 01582 430 900.

Keep up-to-date with the latest mobility scooter advice, tips and interesting places to visit on the Quingo Scooter Users Blog. Connect with Quingo and keep up-to-date with all our latest news on Facebook and Twitter.

All Quingo Personal Mobility Vehicles are provided by Forever Active, the UK’s exclusive distributor. Forever Active is a trading name of Advantage Marketing Corporation Limited (AMC).  AMC Limited is an appointed representative of First Senior Insurance Services Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. First Senior Insurance Services FSA Register number is 308478.

Attractions, Days Out, Quingo Scooters

Quingo Scooters Accessible Attractions: Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh

Quingo Scooters aims to bring you a wide range of Britain’s best attractions as part of our Accessible Attractions series, this week we have one that’s perfect for keen gardeners. So why not take a trip out this summer for some gardening inspiration!

This week, we’re at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh, founded in 1670 as a physic garden, it is now a world-renowned centre for plant science, horticulture and education.

Quingo Scooters royal botanic garden 3

The Gardens

The Gardens are dedicated to discovering and describing plants and their relationships, evolution, conservation and biology. There are four gardens that make up the Botanic Gardens, with each having a different use:

  • Edinburgh – the grounds feature the world-famous Rock Garden, peat and woodland gardens, colourful herbaceous borders, large and well-stocked glasshouses and several specialist collections such as the Chinese Hillside.
  • Benmore – a milder oceanic climate, growing trees and shrubs from high rainfall areas, especially conifers and rhododendrons.
  • Dawyck – is suitable for hardy plants from the cooler, drier areas of the world.
  • Logan – Scotland’s most exotic garden has an almost sub-tropical climate and provides ideal growing conditions for southern hemisphere plants.

As well as the stunning gardens to explore, the Botanic Gardens have many exhibitions running throughout the year. This summer visit their new exhibition, Plant Scenery of the World, as they mark the 50th anniversary of the ‘Front Range’, the Garden’s modernist Glasshouses that opening in 1967. Highlights of the exhibition will include:

  • Laura Aldridge’s continued work with sculpture as an immersive, sensory-driven experience through a new nature printed floor, using exotic plant material grown in the Glasshouses.
  • Charlie Billingham creates energetic and elegant room installations, with wall prints and painting installations stylistically borrowed from the work of Enlightenment and Regency-era social satirists.
  • Oliver Osborne brings together a selection of emotive and ambivalent rubber plant paintings in a vivid room installation.
  • Bobby Niven presents a series of hand carved anthropomorphic sculptures to animate the Gallery and Glasshouses.

Quingo Scooters royal botanic garden 2

Ticket prices and opening times

The Gardens are open daily from 1 March to 31 October. During March and October, the Gardens are open from 10am – 5pm, between April and September the Gardens are open from 10am – 6pm.

Prices for entry to the Gardens include a small voluntary donation: adults £6.50, concessions £5.50 and children (0-15) can enter free of charge.

For more information, visit the website here.

Getting there

The Botanic Gardens are set within the Lock Lomond & Trossachs National Park and the Argyll Forest Park.

By car and ferry visitors can use the Argyll Ferries and Western Ferries, which both sail from Gourock to Dunoon. The journey time is approximately 20 minutes – Argyll Ferries do not transport vehicles.

Using public transport, visitors can use West Coast Motors who operate a regular bus service daily to the Garden from Dunoon.

For more information regarding travelling to the Botanic Gardens, please see the website here.

Accessibility

The Gardens provide accessible toilets in the visitor centre, restaurant and within the Garden. The Botanic Gardens have full accessibility for all visitors to enjoy. The Botanic Garden has a maximum of six blue badge disabled parking bays located to the left of the West Gate entrance. Parking is free on Saturdays and Sundays.

There is a lift available to take visitors to the Gateway restaurant on the first floor and to the outdoor terrace. There are three accessible toilets in the John Hope Gateway. The gardens are accessible for scooter users, and are tarmacked in most places Any paths which are not accessible to scooter users are signposted.

For more accessibility information please visit the website here.

About Quingo

The Quingo Scooter range features six models to suit your needs and budget. New models are now available from just £22/week on our new contract hire scheme, which includes all servicing and maintenance, Insurance, Roadside Recovery, Call Outs and Consumables including Batteries and Tyres. For more information on this, or the latest Quingo Scooter range, please visit our website. Alternatively, if you have any service questions you can always contact us or call customer services on 01582 430 900.

Keep up-to-date with the latest mobility scooter advice, tips and interesting places to visit on the Quingo Scooter Users Blog. Connect with Quingo and keep up-to-date with all our latest news on Facebook and Twitter.

All Quingo Personal Mobility Vehicles are provided by Forever Active, the UK’s exclusive distributor. Forever Active is a trading name of Advantage Marketing Corporation Limited (AMC).  AMC Limited is an appointed representative of First Senior Insurance Services Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. First Senior Insurance Services FSA Register number is 308478.

Attractions, Days Out, Quingo Scooters

Quingo Scooters Accessible Attractions: The Whitworth Manchester

Quingo Scooters once again takes you to one of the UK’s incredible attractions as part of our Accessible Attractions series. Travelling to the North West of England; we’re exploring one of the most impressive art galleries.

The Whitworth is a £15 million development that transformed the existing gallery by adding a fully integrated surrounding park. Since first opening in 1889, The Whitworth has been a gallery in a park – a space to learn and try new things.

Quingo Scooters The Whitworth 2

The gallery

As part of the University of Manchester, The Whitworth is considered a place of research and academic collaboration. Contemporary exhibition programmes have given a new lease of life to international collections; it is one of the most remarkable galleries in the north. With plenty to see and do, we bring you the best bits:

  • Beyond Borders – explores South Asian textiles bringing together four artists working on issues around post-colonial identity, ruptured spaces, authenticity, displacement and belonging.
  • Lucienne Day – an enthusiastic gardener inspired by plant forms in many of her textile designs. As part of the nationwide Lucienne Day centenary celebrations, an exhibition has been opened at The Whitworth.
  • John Akomfrah – the acclaimed video installation Vertigo Sea, a three-screen film, first seen at the 56th Venice Biennale.
  • Barbara Brown – Barbara Brown was the golden girl of Heal Fabrics in the 1960s and early 1970s.
  • Anya Gallaccio – as a new permanent commission in Whitworth Park, exploring themes of loss, memory and physical presence in both nature and architecture.

As well as current exhibitions, The Whitworth has more upcoming:

  • Cozens and Cozens – father and son, Alexander and John Robert Cozens, were influential watercolour painters of the 18th
  • Cornelia Parker: Verso – Cornelia Parker has always been attracted to the backs and undersides of things. While the front presents a conscious and recognisable face to the world, the back is often disorganised.
  • Raqib Shaw – a solo exhibition by contemporary artist Raqib Shaw examining real and imagined spaces between the East and West.

Quingo Scooters The Whitworth 3

Opening times and entry

The Whitworth gallery is open Monday to Wednesday 10am – 5pm, Thursday 10am – 9pm and Friday to Sunday 10am – 5pm. The gallery is closed on 24, 25 and 26 December 2017, as well as 1 January 2018. The gallery will remain open as usual on all other bank holidays. Entry is free of charge.

For more information on opening times, visit the website here.

Accessibility

The gallery is fully accessible, including new and improved facilities for all visitors. Included in the facilities are accessible toilets and lifts. Parking is located in numerous places around the gallery area. Denmark Road is directly adjacent to the gallery, it has step-free access to both the Park Side and Oxford Road entrances. There are a total of five accessible bays, nine spaces for car/bus drop-off and seven double yellow line areas, which can be used by blue badge holders.

The three gallery designated accessible bays are directly beside the Park entrance along Denmark Road. There is a short step-free path from the park gates to the gallery entrance.

There are two additional accessible bays further along Denmark Road, if visitors are using these they can enter the gallery through the main gates. This includes shallow gradient ramps.

For more accessibility information visit the website here.

Getting there

The gallery is located close to the city centre of Manchester. It is on a major bus route ad easily reached via public transport. It is 20-30 minutes away from Manchester city centre. By bus the best routes to take are: 15, 41, 42, 43, 140 – 143 and 147. Visitors are advised to ask for the bus stop nearest MRI, Oxford Road. Visitors travelling by train should travel into Oxford Road, the nearest train station. By car, visitors should aim for the centre of Manchester, then for Oxford Road. Parking is available around the venue; the nearest car park is on Cecil Street.

For more travel information, visit the website here.

About Quingo

The Quingo Scooter range features six models to suit your needs and budget. New models are now available from just £22/week on our new contract hire scheme, which includes all servicing and maintenance, Insurance, Roadside Recovery, Call Outs and Consumables including Batteries and Tyres. For more information on this, or the latest Quingo Scooter range, please visit our website. Alternatively, if you have any service questions you can always contact us or call customer services on 01582 430 900.

Keep up-to-date with the latest mobility scooter advice, tips and interesting places to visit on the Quingo Scooter Users Blog. Connect with Quingo and keep up-to-date with all our latest news on Facebook and Twitter.

All Quingo Personal Mobility Vehicles are provided by Forever Active, the UK’s exclusive distributor. Forever Active is a trading name of Advantage Marketing Corporation Limited (AMC).  AMC Limited is an appointed representative of First Senior Insurance Services Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. First Senior Insurance Services FSA Register number is 308478.