California Maritime Museum

In 2012, Belfast is set to celebrate the region’s most famous centenary- the 100th year since the launch of the White Star Liner, The Titanic. 35,000 people were employed in Harland and Wolff’s Shipyard in Belfast, the biggest in the world at the time of the Titanic’s launch.

In place of the working shipyard, which has shrunk to a workforce of less than 1,000, the plan is to build a new community in its place, named The Titanic Quarter, with many different developments springing up, almost overnight, all over the once much-loved land.

Everyone knows the tragic story of loss of life felt beyond doubt, both in Belfast, where the Titanic was built, and in Southampton, where it was launched in 1912, when it crashed into an iceberg in the middle of the North Atlantic. Almost every street in Belfast suffered a loss. The youngest and last remaining survivor, Milvina Dean, who was a baby on board the Titanic, died in May 2009.

The Titanic Quarter Visitor Centre is to tell the complete story of the world famous RSM Titanic. Every year, on the anniversary of the Titanic’s launch, Belfast City Council holds story-telling and commemoratory events for both children and adults alike, and this centre will act as an ideal location for these important community activities.

Although developments in Belfast’s Titanic Quarter have been facing difficulty over the last 18 months due to economic difficulties across the UK, plans for the development of the Titanic Quarter are now moving again, with apartments underway and the funding now in place for a Visitor Centre and Hotel.

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Developments of great interest to local business people, local residents and visitors will include:

A £97 million five storey landmark centerpiece building, a tourist, leisure and cultural facility, and an exhibition gallery which will tell the story of RMS Titanic, and also Northern Ireland’s ship building and maritime history.

It will also house banqueting, retail and restaurant facilities, conference suites, a community resource and a unique ‘flying theatre’.

Developers hope this will prepare for the visitors which will flock to the birthplace of the Titanic.

The Thompson Dock already hosts visitors, showing them the vast size of the liner, and the adjacent pump house gives a welcome stop for a snack or coffee, while giving information of the life and time of the shipyard.

The Nomadic Vessel is a relic of these times, which has recently been brought back to Belfast and is currently being restored in preparation for the centenary in 2012. The Nomadic is the only remaining reminder of the times, and its role was to ferry people from ship to shore. It is fitted out in the same style as the state rooms on the Titanic, and was used by 1st class passengers to transfer from the dock.

We have already enjoyed 8 years of entertainment from the Odyssey Complex, which incorporates an ice rink, auditorium, and 12 cinema screens, as well as restaurants, bars and clubs. The area has already become a community-based hub for Belfast, known to host family funfairs and, most recently welcomed the International Tall Ships Festival and Continental Market.

Many thousands of cruise passengers already visit Belfast every year. Titanic Quarter is a close distance from the docks, and this new tourist attraction will bring these passengers ashore, enhancing Belfast’s economy. The Titanic Quarter will be a great way to celebrate a century of maritime history and enhance the Northern Ireland tourist experience.

Tourists are expected to flock to The Titanic Quarter, a unique and compelling reason for tourists to make Northern Ireland their chosen destination. The site is expected to attract around 400,000 visitors, which will be of economic benefit to the region, as well as be a draw for Northern Irish people, in search of top-class accommodation, office space and entertainment.

Completion is expected to be early 2012.

History was made when the limited edition Titanic DNA was unveiled for the first time in Asia at A Journey Through Time at Starhill Gallerry in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

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