England's 10 LEAST popular tourist attractions revealed
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It may have been integral in Britain's defence against Nazi invasion, but as a historical icon the Beacon Hill Fort hasn't exactly captured hearts and minds of history tourists.
In fact, the Essex fort is Britain's least favourite tourist attraction with just just six visitors - an average of one person every 61 days or nine weeks - recorded there last year, leaving it last in VisitEngland's survey of 1,279 destinations.
Beacon Hill is a long way from the Tower of London, number one on VisitEngland's list for top paid destinations, despite being restored by the The Harwich Society after being decommissioned in 1956.
The Beacon Hill Fort in Harwich, Essex, is England's least popular attraction with just six visitors last year
The Tower of London attracted 2,894,698 visitors in 2013, which is 7,931 per day
The British Museum is not surprisingly the most popular free attraction, with 6,701,036 visitors last year
The Tower pulled 2,894,698 visitors in 2013, 7,931 per day, but in Beacon Hill Fort's defence the historical monument currently surrounded by poppies to mark a century since the outbreak of World War I is only closed four days a year. The World War II post in Tendring, for which entry costs £1 compared to the Tower's £22, is open only on the first Sunday of each month.
For free educational entertainment, 6,701,036 visitors flocked to the British Museum to view its more than seven million objects from every continent including the Rosetta Stone and Elgin Marbles.
The National Gallery is a close second with 6,031,574 visitors last year.
Beacon Hill Fort isn't alone in its unfortunate neglect from tourism - there are a host of potentially intriguing destinations open to the public that are largely neglected. Here are the 10 least visited attractions in England.
Rosedene, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire
Annual visitors: 275
The Victoria era is brought back to life in this largely unchanged red-brick cottage barely unchanged since it was occupied by early Chartists, with an organic garden and orchard still maintained to this day
William Booth Birthplace Museum, Nottingham
Annual visitors: 235
A humble tribute in memory of the Salvation Army's founder can be seen at Number 12 Notintone Place
Papplewick Hall & Gardens, Gedling, Nottinghamshire
Annual visitors: 187
Amid stunningly well-kept and award-winning grounds, Papplewick Hall dates back to the early 1780s. Inside you can see local antiques, pieces of furniture and a range of artworks
Calverton Folk Museum, Gedling, Nottinghamshire
Annual visitors: 175
The main street of Calverton which has a quaint folk museum dedicated to the village during the Victorian era. Set inside a surviving Stockinger's cottage (not pictured), four rooms are dedicated to their day to day life. Also see an actual Frameworker's knitting machine and a host of tapestries. A taped commentary is included
Long Crendon Courthouse, Aylesbury Vale, Buckinghamshire
Annual visitors: 153
An early 15th century courthouse in excellent condition hosts an exhibition about the village. Here was where the parish council would hold an annual manorial court to deal with tithes and crimes such as selling bad fish or brewing without a licence
Old Buckenham Mill, Breckland, Norfolk
Annual visitors: 128
A mill with the largest diameter tower in England, dating back to 1818, but just 128 visitors last year
The Gissing Centre, Wakefield, West Yorkshire
Annual visitors: 118
Wakefield-born George Gissing was hugely under-rated and his 23 novels between 1880 and 1903 should rank up there with George Meredith and Thomas Hardy the curators say. He was also friends with Henry James and H.G. Wells. Gissing's life and the literature of Wakefield is celebrated in this, Gissing's former childhood home
North Ings Farm Museum, North Kesteven, Lincolnshire
Annual visitors: 98
A quaint agricultural museum specialising in agricultural equipment, it has a range of old tractors, farm machinery and a narrow gauge railway that takes rides along the adjoining lake
British in India Museum, Pendle, Lancashire
Annual visitors: 70
'Truly unique,' VisitPendle's website screams. See a range of swords, kukris and other weapons, commemorative items, models carved in ivory, photographs, paintings, Indian army cap badges and buttons, and a collection of Indian regimental neckties in this chronicle of Brits in India that only 70 people saw in 2013
Radar Tower (Beacon Hill Fort), Tendring, Essex
Annual visitors: 6
Also known as Harwich Radar Tower, it is the 'earliest radar tower containing original 21ft scanners' and now famous for being the least visited tourist attraction according to VisitEngland
- Rosedene - Visitor information - National Trust
- Long Crendon Courthouse - Visitor information - National Trust
- The Gissing Centre | Museum | Wakefield|West Yorkshire
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- British in India Museum - Museum in Nelson, Nelson - Pendle
- Radar Tower (Beacon Hill Fort) | Museum - Military | Harwich|Essex
- PAPPLEWICK HALL
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