Member Article

VINDOLANDA TEAMS UP WITH DFDS AND EASTCOAST TOURS

THE Vindolanda Museum and the Roman Army Museum on Hadrian’s Wall are being invaded again.

But this time it’s not by Roman soldiers, it’s by friendly day trippers from Amsterdam who have taken advantage of the special DFDS Seaways’ ‘Edge of Empire’ tour in conjunction with EastCoast Tours.

This unique package offered by DFDS to its Dutch passengers was first launched in 2011 with passengers booking tours to Alnwick Castle and Gardens. Due to the popularity of this package – 300 passengers took the tour in 2011 – this year the Edge of Empire tour to Vindolanda and the Roman Army Museum has been introduced.

Passengers travelling to the North East with DFDS Seaways disembark the ferry at North Shields in the morning and spend the day in the region. They are collected on arrival by a taxi from EastCoast Tours and driven along the scenic route along Hadrian’s Wall to the Roman Army Museum where they put on their glasses to watch the only 3D film being shown about the World Heritage Site.

It’s then off to Vindolanda to see the extensive excavations and artefacts including the famous Vindolanda Writing Tablets from 300 years of Roman occupation.

The first visitor to take the tour was Sacha Spoor and her son Yona Fokker. She said: “Yona’s father is currently touring Scotland on his motorbike, so we wanted to come and visit some of the places he has spoken about. Seeing Vindolanda on the 3D film from above was breathtaking and then visiting the excavation site brought it all together. I am sure the visit will help Yona when he comes to study this at school. Meeting the archaeologist and having our own guided tour made the visit very special.”

Yona added: “The 3D-film was ‘cool’, although I wouldn’t want to be a Roman Soldier!”

Since undergoing a £6.3 million redevelopment project over the last three years, The Vindolanda Trust’s two sites; Roman Vindolanda and The Roman Army Museum have seen an increase in visitor numbers from people from all over the World.

Patricia Birley, director of The Vindolanda Trust said: “Hadrian’s Wall and the attractions we have at Vindolanda and the Roman Army Museum are indeed an international destination for visitors and we have comments in our visitor book from people from China, Canada and Australia.

“It is important for visitors from overseas to see as much of the region as possible as it has so much to offer. We’re delighted to be able to work with DFDS and EastCoast Tours to offer this package which immerses them in Roman life through inspiring displays, including the exclusive 3D Edge of Empire film.

The tours were developed by Alan Fidler from EastCoast Tours who recently won the Daily Mirror’s and VisitEngland’s Tourism Superstar award, presented to the travel industry’s unsung heroes. Alan spotted a gap in the market and developed EastCoast Tours as a successful arm of local taxi firm EastCoast Taxis.

“It was just an idea I had while driving around telling people about the city,” says Alan. “I thought it might make an interesting tour with the cruises coming in. People are more interested in travelling in their own family groups rather than in groups of 30 or more on a coach. It’s a really pleasant way to spend a day and the drivers get satisfaction from it as well.”

DFDS Seaways is marketing the themed tours to its Dutch audience as part of its minicruise breaks package from Amsterdam to Newcastle.

Christine Burke, Contracting and Accommodation Manager at DFDS Seaways says: “We bring 200,000 Dutch visitors to the North East each year. It is important for us to develop the visitor experience and work with attractions and suppliers to show them what this region really has to offer. I’m sure our Dutch visitors will be fascinated by in what Roman life was like on the edge of the empire 2000 years ago.”

Ends

For Vindolanda & Roman Army Museum information & online tickets visitwww.vindolanda.com . Tel: 01434 344 277.

Media contact: Sara Fisher or Gill Burgess on 01434 606 155 / 07530 207 700 or saraf@r-evolution.co.uk / Gill@r-evolution.co.uk

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sara Fisher .