UPDATE: Please take the time to read our announcement. Ristorante Café Arena is open as normal.
A landscape image showing someone in a blue shirt delivering a briefing to a group of kayakers. In front of them is a group of 5 people in red life jackets.

Vote for Lily-Rose – VisitEngland’s Tourism Superstar award 2024

Vote for Lily-Rose – VisitEngland’s Tourism Superstar award 2024

Roundhouse Birmingham’s own Lily-Rose Sheppard is a finalist in this year’s VisitEngland Tourism Superstar awards! Please vote for her and celebrate the incredible work she does!

The Tourism Superstar award is an annual competition, organised by VisitEngland, which champions those in the tourism industry who provide visitors with unforgettable experiences. We are absolutely thrilled that Roundhouse Birmingham’s own Lily-Rose Sheppard is amongst a shortlist of 10 finalists in this year’s competition. Lily-Rose’s love of history and her knowledge of Birmingham’s canal network, coupled with the way she helps bring Birmingham’s rich history to life for all guests, makes her a great choice for the VisitEngland Tourism Superstar competition.

Lily-Rose joined Roundhouse Birmingham in 2022 as a volunteer kayak guide, but through her dedication and consistent delivery of great experiences to our guests, she became a paid member of the team. She’s learnt to kayak, rescue people capsized in boats and deliver informative tours to seasoned kayakers and those new to the water, making all that paddle with her feel extremely comfortable and welcome. Lily-Rose’s previous experience as a performer also put her in good stead when connecting with audiences through engaging tours.

Whether you’ve had an unforgettable experience seeing the city differently on a kayak tour or learnt something brand new, Lily-Rose truly goes the extra mile, and makes the experience for our visitors so special.

Please vote for Lily-Rose and help us celebrate all the incredible work she does. Click here to vote! VisitEngland – Lily-Rose Sheppard (secure-platform.com)

Voting for the 2024 Tourism Superstar closes on 24th March 2024.

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Update

The ‘Roundhouse Birmingham’ charity was set up in 2016 to care for the historic Grade II* listed Roundhouse building. Nine years on and the restored building is now used as office space and is home to a much-loved Italian restaurant.

Since 2021, the Roundhouse has also been a base for guided walks, kayak tours, boat trips and other activities. Whilst these have been well received, rising external costs mean this element of Roundhouse Birmingham is no longer providing the sustainable income we need to fund the ongoing care of this historic building. For this reason, we’ve made the difficult decision to close the leisure activity offer and visitor centre.

The office spaces will remain open as usual. Visitors can still access the site (see www.arenaltd.co.uk for opening hours) and Ristorante Caffe Arena will continue to welcome visitors.

We’re hugely proud of what the Roundhouse Birmingham team has achieved, and we’d also like to thank all of our visitors for their support. The trustees of Roundhouse Birmingham remain fully committed to caring for this important part of Birmingham’s heritage.

If you’ve already booked a tour, you’ll be contacted via email and the cost of your booking will be refunded. We apologise for any inconvenience.   

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