|
 |  |
Millennium Dome Tourist InfoThe Millennium Dome, which has since been renamed The O2 Arena, is a large tent-like building located on Greenwich peninsula in south-east London, England. It was built as part of an exhibition to celebrate the coming of the third millennium. The exhibition ran from 1 January 2000 until 31 December 2000. Although from the public's perspective, it was a big success, it was mired in political controversy, as it failed to attract the number of visitors anticipated, resulting in financial loss.The dome is served by North Greenwich tube station on the Jubilee Line. The Thames Clipper fast catamaran also ply between it and central London. In addition there is a bus station providing bus services to south and east London. The Millennium Dome is the largest domed structure in the world. It is held up by twelve 100-metre tall support poles. The poles represent either the 12 months of the year or the 12 hours on the clock's face. Both are to emphasize the role played by Greenwich as the keeper of time. From above, the dome looks circular. It is 365 metres in diametre, again symbolically representing one day for each metre. The Millennium Dome is one of the most recognisable landmarks in London, as well as the most photographed. The Millennium Dome was designed by Richard Rogers and built by the firm of Sir Robert McAlpine. The structural engineer was Buro Happold. The entire roof structure weighs less than the air contained within it. The canopy is made of glass fibre fabric which is a highly durable and weather resistant plastic. The land on which the Millennium Dome is located used to be a derelict from gasworks industries from the late 19th century. It was redeveloped under a project called the Thames Gateway. The Dome was originally conceived at a much smaller scale under John Major's government. However the incoming Labour government of Tony Blair greatly expanded its magnitude. It as to represent "a glittering New Labour achievement", to quote BBC correspondent Robert Orchard. However, even before it opened, critics were already forecasting its failure. That prediction was accurate. In retrospect, the Millennium Dome was regarded as a flop, something badly thought out, badly executed and at the end of it, saddling the government with the question of what to do with it when the celebration was done. Nevertheless, visitors loved it. Although failing to attract the numbers expected, it was the most popular tourist attraction in Britain in 2000, followed by London Eye and Alton Towers. The Millennium Dome was officially renamed The O2 on 31 May 2005. In its new incarnation, it is an Entertainment District housing an indoor arena, a music club, a cinema, an exhibition space, bars and restaurants. |
 The Millennium Dome author: Clive Bailey | Photos provided by Panoramio are under the copyright of their owners 
 Aerial view of the Millennium Dome author: tomasz zaborowicz | Photos provided by Panoramio are under the copyright of their owners
 Millennium Dome at night author: Roger Noguera Arnau | Photos provided by Panoramio are under the copyright of their owners
O2 Location Map  |
Local Tours of London
A practical and often cost effective way to see London is to join a local tour. Check out the Local Tours of London that you can book online.Return to London Budget Travel Guide or to UK Budget Travel Guide
Find lowest price for your Hotel RoomBefore booking a hotel room, make sure you are getting the lowest price for it. Different hotel booking websites offers the same room at different prices. If you stick with one site all the time, you could be paying more for the same room. Now why pay more?The form below is a Research Engine. It doesn't take bookings. Instead it lets you find the hotel booking website that offers the room you want at the lowest price. You can see and compare what different sites are offering, and then click to choose the one with the best price. Do this, and you're guaranteed to save a whole lot of money on your room reservations!
|
Return to EarthDocumentary World Budget Travel GuideMy message introducing God to all the world: THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO TIM  EarthDocumentary and globe logo are trademark and service mark of Timothy Tye. |
|
|
 EarthDocumentary logo © copyright Timothy Tye 2007-2010. Content and articles in EarthDocumentary are provided in goodwill and are believed to be correct at time of writing. While every reasonable care is taken to check and verify the information shared, EarthDocumentary disclaims responsibility for its use. Text in EarthDocumentary is available under Creative Commons Attribution/ShareAlike License meaning you are free to copy, distribute, transmit, adapt and make derivative works, as long as you attribute your resulting work and apply it under the same, similar or a compatible license. You may use the information on this website on your blog or website so long as you place a link back to the page in AsiaExplorers where it appears. Wikipedia and Wikitravel are cited as among the sources of references. Photographs appearing in EarthDocumentary are available according to the licensing terms specified in its caption. Photographs supplied by Panoramio are governed by the Panoramio API terms & condition, are for display only, and may not be downloaded for use. Photographs belonging to the author are the copyright of Timothy Tye and may not be reused without prior written permission from the author. Contact the author for permission and licensing of the photos. |
