Blue Reef Aquarium unveils £1m regeneration

Blue Reef Leisure is to invest more than £1million to transform Hastings aquarium into a state-of-the-art visitor attraction. The company, which already runs three other award-winning Blue Reef Aquariums in Newquay, Portsmouth and Tynemouth, has acquired Underwater World from Hastings Heritage Ltd.

As part of the deal Blue Reef will also take over the running of Smugglers Adventure in the town and continue to operate the 1066 Story.

Blue Reef Leisure’s Ian Cunningham said: “We’re absolutely delighted to have completed the deal and are very excited about the future.

“We plan to completely transform the former Underwater World site over the winter and re-open it to visitors as the Blue Reef Aquarium in time for Easter.

“As well as a total re-design we will also be turning the giant underwater walkthrough tunnel display into a stunning tropical coral reef which will be home to hundreds of brightly coloured fish, stingrays and black tip reef sharks.

“A key part of the Blue Reef ethos is interaction, both with our aquarists and with the marine world, to create memorable experiences. Our intention is to get people much more involved during their visit,” he added.

The new aquarium will feature a series of innovative new displays showcasing marine creatures from around the world in naturally themed environments alongside a daily talks and feeding programme and a calendar of special events and activities throughout the year.

Visitors will embark on a fascinating journey from the British coast through warmer waters to exotic tropical seas.

Although the aquarium will have to close during the re-development period, Blue Reef Leisure has confirmed that Smugglers Adventure will remain open.

“It is an excellent visitor attraction with huge potential for growth. Our plan is to keep Smugglers Adventure open and trading and we will also continue to run the 1066 Story,” said Ian.

“It’s particularly exciting for us to be part of the ambitious regeneration programme that is taking place in Hastings at the moment and we’re very much looking forward to working with the council and local community to provide world class visitor attractions,” he added.