Official Birmingham Thread 26!

Birmingham's Grand Hotel may become offices and shops
May 2 2008 By John Duckers, Business Editor

The fortunes of Birmingham's Grand Hotel could be about to change for the better, it has been revealed.

New chairman of Hortons' Estate, Richard Samuda, said "good progress" was being made on trying to give the building a new future. But it is unlikely it will stay as a hotel – he suggests it will be turned into offices and retail.

However, Mr Samuda could not give any timeframe on an announcement, although he said the project was "moving forward".

The majority of the building has been empty for years, but discussions between Hortons, the city council and English Heritage are on-going

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Rough Guide names Birmingham as one of UK's top tourism spots
May 10 2008 By Gemma Boland

A new travel guide damning many typical holidaying hot spots in England has pushed Birmingham into the upper reaches of the tourist agenda.

The Rough Guide to England has hailed Birmingham as "one of Britain's most cosmopolitan cities" and one of the top spots for visitors, while usual tourist traps such as the English Riviera were slammed.


Dave Hodgson, a spokesperson for Marketing Birmingham said: "In my experience, people who visit Birmingham like it.

"The old outdated perception of the city is changing and people's view of Birmingham is shifting."

The Rough guide series have previously been less than kind to the city, and in its 2004 publication writers said: "Many visitors get their first taste of central Birmingham at New Street Station, whose unreconstructed ugliness makes a dispiriting start."

Mr Hodgson believes that rough guides are the 'ultimate in social networking' and this is much more valuable than any marketing material.

"People trust guides and websites more, because they want to hear what people are saying about a place," he said. "People reading these guides are not just travelling on a shoestring, they want to find the real city, the backstreets and what makes city's really good.

"This kind of thing puts people in bars, people into shops and it's about the economy, and that can only be a good thing."

The success for Birmingham as a whole comes after last year's praise for the Balti Triangle.

Those still apprehensive about visiting the curry capital in Birmingham may be persuaded into taking a trip after reading the Rough Guide 25s, Britain and Ireland.

The guide was published last year and listed 25 things to see and do in England, before you die.

The Balti triangle came in at number 15, ahead of clubbing in London, and watching a football match at Old Trafford.

Birmingham's success in the visitor stakes was slightly overshadowed by the guides unique take on English culture. Those looking forward to a visit to England are warned that they will be greeted by an"overweight, alcopop-swilling, sex and celebrity-obsessed" nation.

Suggesting an identity crisis, the writers of the guide say, England "isn’t just one place, but a perpetual collision of culture, class and race."

The guide suggests visitors ask people in England about the national identity to hear an "entertaining range of views".

Those interested in the country's national game are warned that access is difficult, and damns the celebrity culture centred around football players, saying they are "more famous than pop stars", seats are expensive and games sell out a year in advance.

The guide praises the country as "a genuine haven for refugees" with immigrants from more than 100 ethnic backgrounds but comments that despite its rich multi-ethnic culture, England is "a deeply conservative place".

"The only certainty for visitors is that however long you spend in England and however much you see, it still won’t be enough to understand the place," it concludes.

http://www.birminghampost.net/news/...one-of-uk-s-top-tourism-spots-65233-20891508/

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