One of England’s busiest indoor visitor attractions is turning 20 this month after welcoming millions of visitors, with around 70 million total visits since opening.
Xscape Yorkshire was built on a former colliery and two decades on from the £56m ground-breaking project opening its doors, it’s still one of Yorkshire’s favourite family attractions.
During the last 20 years, the Castleford attraction has been home to a unique mix of activities including one of the country’s first trampoline parks, an e-Karting track, adventure golf, a sky coaster, soft play, restaurants, cinema – and even a church and scout group.
The centre most recently welcomed Swim!, a new swimming pool part-owned by Olympic legend, Becky Adlington OBE.
It’s thought more than 10,000 people have been employed at the site during the last two decades, adding further weight to the economic impact Xscape Yorkshire has had since it opened.
To celebrate the birthday, the centre has a raft of half term activity coming up including:
- A giant cake for staff to share, balloon wall photo opportunity & free crafts for kids
- The unveiling of a local school artwork competition won by Ackton Pastures Primary
- Castleford Tigers mascot appearance and 160 prize giveaway on October 28
- Castleford Tigers player visit and games on October 31
Jason Warren, Xscape Yorkshire General Manager, has been at Xscape for more than a decade and seen the place thrive on breaking down boundaries.
He said: “There’s nowhere quite like Xscape Yorkshire where visitors can fly through the air, bounce, drive, swim, climb, dive into virtual reality, and eat all under one roof. We’re proud we were one of the pioneers in the leisure industry, right here in the Wakefield district.
“It’s fair to say more than a few eyebrows were raised when the idea of Xscape was floated, but 20 years on we’re almost fully let, welcoming huge numbers of people and home to an array of incredible activities.
“The magic of Xscape really is an innovation, and the huge mix of amazing tenants makes Xscape Yorkshire what it is today – and what it will become in the future.”
Xscape first opened in October 2003. The site is the size of six football pitches and at 38m high you could fit nearly four double-decker buses on top of each other inside.
