Plymouth Dome, Plymouth
The Plymouth Dome is a close neighbor to Smeaton's Tower, the transported lighthouse tower on Plymouth Hoe. The Dome opened as a museum in 1989. Before its opening to the public in July 1988, Queen Elizabeth II unveiled a plaque to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the defeat of the Spanish Armada.
An official opening followed in November, officiated by Bryce Harland, High Commissioner for New Zealand. In 2004 the museum, it is said, drew over 60,000 visitors. However, in 2006 falling visitor numbers led the Plymouth City Council to lease the building to the Wykeham Group, which intended to open a restaurant in one of the exhibition spaces.
This arrangement didn't work out, and the Dome closed for five years. In 2011, celebrity chef Gary Rhodes announced he would reopen the Dome as a restaurant. He opened it in 2013. After Rhodes left in 2016, the "Rhodes & the Dome" became "The Dome." The Restaurant is bistro-style, with a cocktail bar and a live piano.
There are plans involving doing the Dome over again with more ambitious construction, eco-friendly, better landscaping, etc. Perhaps the best alternative is to return it as a visitor center with a restaurant. It commands magnificent views of the harbor and the sea beyond. Together with Smeaton's Tower, it is an attraction not to be missed.
An official opening followed in November, officiated by Bryce Harland, High Commissioner for New Zealand. In 2004 the museum, it is said, drew over 60,000 visitors. However, in 2006 falling visitor numbers led the Plymouth City Council to lease the building to the Wykeham Group, which intended to open a restaurant in one of the exhibition spaces.
This arrangement didn't work out, and the Dome closed for five years. In 2011, celebrity chef Gary Rhodes announced he would reopen the Dome as a restaurant. He opened it in 2013. After Rhodes left in 2016, the "Rhodes & the Dome" became "The Dome." The Restaurant is bistro-style, with a cocktail bar and a live piano.
There are plans involving doing the Dome over again with more ambitious construction, eco-friendly, better landscaping, etc. Perhaps the best alternative is to return it as a visitor center with a restaurant. It commands magnificent views of the harbor and the sea beyond. Together with Smeaton's Tower, it is an attraction not to be missed.
Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Plymouth. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "GPSmyCity: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.
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Plymouth Dome on Map
Sight Name: Plymouth Dome
Sight Location: Plymouth, England (See walking tours in Plymouth)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:
Sight Location: Plymouth, England (See walking tours in Plymouth)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:
Walking Tours in Plymouth, England
Create Your Own Walk in Plymouth
Creating your own self-guided walk in Plymouth is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.
Plymouth Hoe Walking Tour
Plymouth Hoe, referred to locally as the Hoe, is a large south-facing open public space in Plymouth with commanding views of Plymouth Sound, Drake's Island, and further afield into Cornwall. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon word hoh, which means a sloping ridge shaped like an inverted foot and heel.
This part of town has always been a meeting place, where people would come regularly... view more
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 0.7 Km or 0.4 Miles
This part of town has always been a meeting place, where people would come regularly... view more
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 0.7 Km or 0.4 Miles
Plymouth Introduction Walking Tour
Plymouth's early history began in the Bronze Age when the first settlement emerged at Mount Batten. It is mentioned in Ptolemy's Geographia as a maritime outpost exporting bronze mirrors.
The settlement was a major port in the southwest of England in Roman times. It was surpassed as a port in the ninth century by the nearby wealthier village of Sutton, later called Plymouth.
... view more
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.9 Km or 1.2 Miles
The settlement was a major port in the southwest of England in Roman times. It was surpassed as a port in the ninth century by the nearby wealthier village of Sutton, later called Plymouth.
... view more
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.9 Km or 1.2 Miles
Pilgrim Fathers Trail
Back in the early 17th century, a group of English Puritans – nowadays reverently referred to as the Pilgrim Fathers – fled religious persecution in their homeland and established a colony in North America that later became known as Plymouth, Massachusetts. The Pilgrims embarked on their perilous journey across the Atlantic from Plymouth, England in 1620 aboard a ship called the Mayflower,... view more
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 0.5 Km or 0.3 Miles
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 0.5 Km or 0.3 Miles