A STUNNING big wheel more than 100ft high is the latest attraction to be added to the celebrations at the Bournemouth Wheels Festival.

At 33m tall, the Big Wheel will offer 'spectacular panoramic vistas at a quieter pace' with each of the 27 gondolas rotating a full 360 degrees during each ride.

Certain to be the biggest wheel at the festival, the attraction will be at The Triangle for more than three weeks and will leave on June 5, the final day of the three-day festival.

Its arrival in the town on Friday next week coincides with a special offer giving Bournemouth residents at 20 per cent discount on the standard ticket price for the first week.

Businesses in the area are getting ready for its arrival.

Tarek El-dars, the owner of Omelettos, said: “I think it is a fantastic idea especially if it brings more people to this part of town.

“It used to be the case that people would park up by The Triangle and then walk into town but they don’t do that any more.”

His feelings were echoed by Lisa Wu, manager of Tealith, The Bubble Tea Planet cafe.

She said: “It’s going to hopefully attract a lot of people to this part of town and while they wait to go on the ‘eye’ they can check out all the things that are on offer here.

Tickets will be priced at £5 per adult and £3.50 for children under a metre tall and it will be open from 10am until 10pm daily.

Steve Hughes, manager of the Bournemouth town centre Business Improvement District (BID), said: “We are delighted the BID has been able to bring such a big attraction to Bournemouth town centre. It will certainly be a big boost for the town centre economy in the run-up to the Wheels Festival and create a real buzz in the Triangle area.”

Anyone with a BH postcode can get discounted tickets from May 13-19 inclusive by taking a driving licence of utility bill along as proof of address.

The Wheels Festival will offer fun for all the family from June 3-5 with entertainment including talented riders from the BMX display team, Savage Skills, and children’s entertainers in the Lower Gardens. See bournemouthwheels.co.uk.

For more information on the festival itself check out our special section here