Tough hill to swallow: New £2m Marble Arch Mound widely panned
Refunds are being offered to visitors of the new £2m Marble Arch Mound tourist attraction in central London, after a slew of poor reviews and online criticism.
The new attraction, which is supposed to give panorama views of central London, has been widely panned on social media and has been compared by some to a huge pile of dirt.
The mound, which Westminster Council opened just days ago, is an artificial hill that is surrounded by scaffolding and barriers at its base.
The council said the attraction was suffering from “teething problems” and that some “elements of the Marble Arch Mound are not yet ready for visitors.”
The attraction was announced earlier this year as a way to try and attract more people back into central London post-Covid.
It is listed as having views of Oxford Street, Hyde Park, Mayfair and Marylebone, however some people on Twitter said their views amounted to scaffolding and building sites.
The conception shots of the artificial hill also showed it being covered in trees and foliage, however it only appears to have several trees spread around the structure for now.
It was designed by Dutch architect company MVRDV.
Westminster Council said: “We are aware that elements of the Marble Arch Mound are not yet ready for visitors. We are working hard to resolve this over the next few days.
“In light of the delay, we are offering anybody who has booked a visit during the first week a return ticket free of charge so that they can enjoy the full experience including the Lightfield art installation, M&S Food, and the landscape once it has had time to bed in and grow.
“People who visited the mound today, and people who are booked for the rest of the week (including the weekend), will be contacted and offered a refund and a free return ticket so they can see the mound at its best. Anyone who has booked a visit this week can go up the mound as planned and then still take advantage of the free return ticket.”