Things to do in Fareham: new five lane bowling alley and bar Bowl Central opens at site of former Adastra's nightclub

The new branch of Bowl Central opened on Friday, March 10 in Market Quay, Fareham at the site of the former Adastra’s nightclub. The five-lane bowling alley has created 30 jobs and aims to provide ‘premier entertainment’ to the area. Manager Gavin Mills said attraction has had a ‘promising’ first few days.

Gavin said: ‘We’re really happy with the response we have had from the community. People are loving it and we’re really enjoying having the trade, having the customers in. Yesterday, we were pretty much fully booked for bowling all day which is great to see so the response has been fantastic.

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‘It’s very exciting. It's a brand new concept and its catered to a more relaxed, comfortable feel - a bit different from the ones I’ve worked in before in that sense. It’s all about the premium cocktail lounge aspect alongside the bowling. We have the ability to invite corporate parties in and they would be able to hire the whole venue when they book - it’s laid out for that.’

The centre will host a VIP launch event to to showcase its facilities for corporate team-building events on Thursday, March 16. Fareham Mayor councillor Michael Ford, Mayoress Anne Ford and MP Suella Braverman are set to attend alongside representatives from local businesses.

Speaking in 2021, Cllr Michael Ford described Fareham Borough Council’s decision to allow Bowl Central Fareham to open as a ‘no-brainer.’

Bowl Central managing director Tracy Standish added: ‘One of the reasons we came to Fareham is that I was very aware of the closure of the former Go Bowling back in 2015 which made this a really fabulous opportunity for us to bring the facility back.

‘I also was the original developer of the Bowling Centre at Gunwharf Quays which was originally a Bowl Plex so I’m very familiar with the area and I also used to operate a bowling centre in Havant, which has now disappeared and been replaced by housing.

‘What we’re offering people is two different strands of attractions; a family entertainment experience – which revolves around redemption machines, state of the art video games and virtual reality - as well as bowling and a bar. We have a cocktail bar which has a fabulous atmosphere and sits beside our five bowling lanes.

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‘It's taken a lot longer than we expected. I first visited this site back in February 2020 - just before the Covid lockdowns. It didn’t take that long to agree on the principle of the deal but for many different reasons it has taken a lot longer for us to be here than we expected. We were originally hoping to open last April, but we’re here now at last.’

Bowl Central Fareham is open seven days a week between 1.00 pm and 10.00pm with a game of bowling priced at £8.50 for adults and £6.50 for under 16s. The chain has another branch in Bournemouth and is set to open a third in Reading.