AUTUMN MINIATURA – 2nd & 3rd October 2021
This post was written before the Coronavirus epidemic. So, for once, it won’t be talking about that. The only point to include really is that this is a professional exhibition venue and is well prepared to meet the needs of any social distancing that is required.
There are going to be a few changes this Autumn and we want to make sure that everyone knows as much as possible. Miniatura is, and has always been, about bringing people together and we are constantly looking for the best way to do that.
We have had a lot of conversations with exhibitors since the Autumn Show in 2019 and put all the feedback together. With all this in mind we have made the decision to move the Autumn Miniatura this year to NAEC Stoneleigh Park which is situated between Coventry, Leamington Spa, Warwick and Kenilworth.
Naturally people have a lot of questions and we’ll try to answer as many as we can right here.
What are the transport links like? There is a bus service that runs to the venue but we will be adding a dedicated shuttle service throughout the weekend from Coventry station which will be a 15 minute journey.
How about Car Parking? Car parking will be ample, close to the venue and free.
What if I fly in? Birmingham International Airport is serviced by the rail line to Coventry Rail Station. We anticipate that you could make the journey to the door of the show in around 45 minutes.
How many exhibitors will there be? It’s early days, as the invitations have only just gone out but the exhibitors we have heard from so far have been very positive about the change and we have been able to offer a very competitive rate. We want this show to be at least as large as our NEC event. Update – the response has been amazing and we hope to have at least as many exhbitors as we have at the NEC shows.
What will the catering be like? The venue has a dedicated and professional catering area. There is also a Farmers Fayre restaurant nearby and we plan to include additional public seating and light refreshments inside the hall.
Will this be a permanent move? We have spent a long time making this decision and we believe that the venue can provide an excellent home for the show. At the current time this move is for the Autumn Miniatura only.
Where can I stay? There are over 2000 hotel rooms within a few miles of the venue and we will have a comprehensive list available on our website.
So we look forward to seeing you at Stoneleigh in the Autumn where we can all enjoy our fascinating hobby and support the exhibitors who make such wonderful miniatures! More information on Stoneleigh is available here – https://www.naecstoneleigh.co.uk/Visitors/Visitors_Home.html
Unfortunately this is too far for us to travel so will be giving it a miss. If it comes back to the NEC then we shall visit again.
HI Julie, Do you travel by car or train? By car it is 20 more minutes from the NEC and by train it is an additional 10 minutes. If you are coming by car you will also find the venue much closer to the car park. We will have much more information as we get closer to the event so that may help too.
how to get there?train from milton keynes to birmingham then coventry?
tried to get time table keeps saying no stonely park station
Hi Kathleen,
Unfortunately we are about to have to announce that as lockdown will not end until 1st October the show will have to be cancelled. As you can imagine this is a huge blow to our organisation but we intend to make Miniatura Online an excellent alternative and to have a brilliant 2021 both at the NEC in Spring and at Stoneleigh in Autumn.
For the record the train route to Stoneleigh will be to alight at Coventry and catch a free shuttle bus that we will be providing to drop you at the door of the show.
Hi Andy, we are looking forward to seeing the new venue, and spending lots of money 🙂
I hope that it will be suitable for mobility scooters.
Hotel book. Can’t wait
Is this venue suitable for mobility scooters?
Hi Tina, Absolutely. It’s all on ground level and there are no steps. We are also able to make the aisles comfortably wide enough for all.
What time does the shuttle bus pick up from Coventry station an also go back? I need to check train times to connect.
Hi, We are going to make final decisions on times closer to the show but rest assured it will run before we open until after we close the show. So a good estimate will be 9.30am to at least 5pm. Naturally there will be more numbers of people at these times so we will probably have two vehicles available at the end of the show and can leave one of these to run slightly later just in case. It is also worth mentioning that as organisers we would be the very last to leave the venue each day so if there are any problems we would do our best to solve them.
The shuttle would take about 15 mins to get from Coventry Station to Stoneleigh. Allowing for a 5 minute turn around it is reasonable to assume a wait of no more than 20 mins at either location. This is the first time we have done this of course so we will be erring on the side of too many buses rather than too few.
Are there electric car charger points at this venue? And which make are they? Will they be free?
Hi Katina, I will look into this. I haven’t been made aware of it so my guess is that they are not available but I shall find out!