An opening date has been revealed for a new visitor attraction celebrating Darlington’s railway heritage. 

Hopetown is due to open on July 16 after a £35m renovation project to restore the historic site. 

The state-of-the-art attraction will play a central role in the much-anticipated bicentenary celebrations of the Stockton & Darlington Railway in 2025. It is hoped up to 300,000 people will visit Hopetown each year and contribute to a local tourism boom. 

Visitors will enter the site through the 19th-century Goods Shed on McNay Street. Believed to be the second oldest in the country, the Grade II-listed building now houses a cafe, shop, and interactive visitor experience. 

The Northern Echo: The state-of-the-art site will play a central role in the much-anticipated bicentenary celebrations of the Stockton & Darlington Railway in 2025.The state-of-the-art site will play a central role in the much-anticipated bicentenary celebrations of the Stockton & Darlington Railway in 2025. (Image: The Northern Echo)

The North Road Station Museum, formerly the Head of Steam, has benefited from £3m investment to create a new exhibition celebrating the journey of railway engineering in Darlington. 

The Carriage Works will host the Brick Journeys exhibition, a world tour of transport made from LEGO. Visitors can watch volunteers build the UK’s newest steam engine at the Darlington Locomotive works on the site. 

A time travel simulator will take visitors on a journey of how rail travel changed the world. A new Wagon Works play park and restored 1842-style station will also open. There will also be an 1861 Engine Shed, most recently a scrapyard, which has been restored and is already the home of railway preservation groups. 

The Northern Echo: It is hoped up to 300,000 people will visit Hopetown each year and create a local tourism boom. It is hoped up to 300,000 people will visit Hopetown each year and create a local tourism boom. (Image: The Northern Echo)

Several buildings across the 7.5-acre site, previously in a state of disrepair, are being brought back to life by Darlington Borough Council. Visitors will use a new car park at Skerne Bridge, which includes a ‘selfie point’ platform with views of Hopetown. 

The Hopetown brand has been inspired by the former name for the area, coined by railway pioneers who built foundries and homes beside the 1825 line. 

Visitors will enjoy live music and street theatre throughout the opening week. 

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The Northern Echo: The Goods Shed now houses a cafe, shop, and interactive visitor experience. The Goods Shed now houses a cafe, shop, and interactive visitor experience. (Image: The Northern Echo)

Tickets are now available to book. Free site admission will include entry to North Road Station Museum, Darlington Locomotive Works viewing gallery, and The Stores, as well as the shop, café, and outdoor areas. Some exhibitions, events, and activities carry a separate charge.

Councillor Libby McCollom, Darlington Borough Council’s cabinet member for local services, said: “The level of investment in this huge site is apparent everywhere you look. There’s going to be so much to see and do at Hopetown Darlington, for families, for heritage lovers, for rail heritage enthusiasts, for everyone. 

“People are going to come from near and far to experience this new visitor attraction of national – even international – significance and I can’t wait to see it happen.”