insideKENT Magazine Issue 48 - March 2016 | Page 72

DAYSOUT

EXPERIENCE KENT DURING

kent big weekend 2016
KENT’S ANNUAL BIG WEEKEND KICKS OFF ON 12TH AND 13TH MARCH, GIVING
RESIDENTS FROM ALL CORNERS OF THE COUNTY THE CHANCE TO EXPERIENCE
FANTASTIC KENT ATTRACTIONS AND HIDDEN GEMS FOR FREE.

Turner Contemporary

Port Lympne

Dover Castle

This year brings even bigger cause for celebration
as it is Kent Big Weekend’s 10th birthday, with
more tickets available than ever before – and
some very special extra prizes planned for the
weekend itself.
More than 100,000 people registered for
a chance to win some of the 26,000 tickets on
offer, bidding for everything from entry to famous
landmarks to craft activities and luscious foodie
experiences.
Experiences on offer include activities and
impressive displays for animal lovers, museum
tours, brewery and vineyard tours and tastings,
jet skiing or scuba diving tasters, rounds of golf,
greyhound racing, cricket match tickets, pottery
classes and ceramic art, river tours, railway
adventures, and shopping experiences.
Dreamland Margate, Jetstream tours in
Chatham and Betteshanger Country Park are
just some of the fantastic attractions taking part
for the first time this year. Old favourites are also
back with some of the county’s most popular
landmarks and attractions signing up to this year’s
event, including Canterbury Cathedral, Penhurst
Place, numerous English Heritage and National
Trust properties, Ashford Designer Outlet, The
Canterbury Tales, Quex Park, Romney, Hythe
and Dymchurch Railway, Dover Castle, Tonbridge
Castle, Brogdale Collections, Turner
Contemporary, The Historic Dockyard Chatham,
Buckmore Park Karting Ltd, Riverhill Himalayan
Gardens, and several vineyards.

Wingham Wildlife Park, Port Lyme Reserve,
Howletts Wild Animal Park, Leeds Castle and
Hever Castle have once again proved to be the
most popular offers on the website, with
thousands of people bidding to win the chance
to visit each site.
More than 4,000 additional tickets have
also been donated by attractions to the event’s
chosen charity, The Family Holiday Association
– double the amount donated last year.
But even with so much already on offer,
organisers Visit Kent have thrown in some extra
incentives to ensure lucky ticket holders get out
of the house and out and about in the county on
the Big Weekend itself.
To help celebrate the campaign’s 10th
anniversary, Visit Kent and the Association of
Tourist Attractions in Kent (ATAK) are hiding ten
golden tickets at Big Weekend sites on 12th and
13th March, each giving the lucky recipient access
to a range of Kent attractions throughout 2016.
Winners will be selected at random by the
participating attractions, who will allocate the
ticket to one person redeeming their ticket that
weekend.
The name of the ten attractions that will be
holding the ten free golden tickets will remain a
closely guarded secret – so the only way to stand
a chance of winning a golden ticket is to redeem
your Big Weekend tickets and head on down to
the attraction you have signed up for.

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Even if you don’t bag a golden ticket on the
day, don’t fret! There are still fantastic prizes to
be won by snap-happy ticket holders…
Kent Big Weekend is all about creating a
memorable experience for people of all ages –
and what better way to do that than to record
your special moments with as many selfies as
possible?
The Kent Big Weekend selfie competition
will be running on 12th and 13th March across
Visit Kent’s social media pages. All you have to
do is share a selfie of yourself (and your friends!)
enjoying the #KentBigWeekend16, and you could
win a year’s membership to English Heritage for
two! Feel free to help spread the word about
Kent’s fantastic attractions – make your friends
and family green with envy – by posting your Big
Weekend 2016 experience on Instagram, Twitter
and Facebook and any other social media
platforms.
Getting around for Kent Big Weekend also
couldn’t be easier, with regular Southeastern
trains and local bus services operating all
weekend.
So if you are a lucky winner taking part in
the Ken Ё