Friars Walk, Newport facts for kids
John Frost Square, Friars Walk
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| Location | Newport, South Wales |
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| Coordinates | 51°35′09″N 2°59′33″W / 51.5859°N 2.9926°W |
| Opening date | 12 November 2015 |
| Developer | Queensberry Real Estate |
| Owner | Cyrus Capital Management |
| Total retail floor area | 390,000 sq ft (36,000 m2) |
| No. of floors | 3 |
Friars Walk is a modern shopping and fun place in Newport city centre, South Wales. It has shops, places to eat, a cinema, a bowling alley, and a soft play area for younger kids. Part of it is covered, so you can visit even when it rains!
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Building Friars Walk
The idea for Friars Walk started a long time ago. The first plans were stopped in 2009 because of a big economic problem called the global financial crisis. This meant there wasn't enough money to build it then.
But in 2012, new plans were made. This time, Newport City Council worked with a company called Queensberry Real Estate. They planned a big project costing £100 million. This included a six-screen cinema, a bowling alley, eight restaurants, and a car park with 350 spaces. A new bus station was also part of the plan.
Building started in April 2014. Friars Walk officially opened on 12 November 2015. It cost about £117 million to build. When it opened, Newport became a much better place for shopping in the UK. Many people said it was a "lifeline" for the city.
Where to Find Friars Walk
Friars Walk is right in the middle of Newport. It is connected to the Kingsway Shopping Centre by the newly designed John Frost Square. You can also easily walk to the Newport Museum, Art Gallery and Central Library and the Newport bus station.
It's also close to other main shopping streets like Commercial Street and High Street. If you are coming by train, Newport railway station is just a short walk away.
If you come by car, Friars Walk has a car park with 350 spaces. There are also over 1,000 more spaces in the Kingsway multi-storey car park nearby. Both car parks can be reached from the A4042 Kingsway road. If you ride a bike, you can find bike racks in Usk Plaza.
Who Owns Friars Walk
Friars Walk was built by Queensberry Real Estate. They worked with Newport City Council to make it happen.
In 2017, Queensberry Real Estate sold the shopping centre. It was bought by a Canadian company called Talisker Corporation.
More recently, in January 2024, it was confirmed that a company called Cyrus Capital Partners Europe LLP became the new owners. This company is part of a larger investment group.
Shops and Restaurants
Friars Walk has many different shops and places to eat. Here are some of them:
- Cakes and Bakes
- Charmed I'm Sure
- Chupacabra Taxidermy
- Cineworld (closed indefinitely)
- Coffee #1
- Coffee Corner
- Cosmo's
- Costa
- Drago Lounge
- E Designs
- EE
- Fabrix
- Greggs
- H&M
- Holland and Barrett
- JC's Kitchen
- JD Sports
- KFC
- Las Iguanas
- M&S Foodhall
- Nandos
- New Look
- New Pastures Home Shop
- Next
- No Comply Skate Park
- P&P Possibilities
- Pandora
- Poundland
- Quirky Finds
- Rainbow and Sunshine Gifts
- River Island
- Select Convenience (bus station)
- Sharon McKinley Designs
- Shoe Zone
- Sin City Comics
- Sketchers
- Smiggle
- Superbowl
- TGI Fridays
- The Port (market village)
- The Welsh Confection
- Vodafone
- VX3 (Newport County and Dragons store)
- Wagamama
- Zizzi
Chartist Steps
At Friars Walk, you can see special steps connecting Usk Plaza to John Frost Square. These steps have words carved into them. They show the six main ideas of the People's Charter. This was a very important movement in history called Chartism. It reminds people of the Newport Rising of 1839, which was led by a man named John Frost.
Images for kids
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Friars Walk during construction
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Usk Plaza, Friars Walk, 2015
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Chartist steps (upper), Friars Walk
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Chartist steps (lower), Friars Walk
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Sculpture of Vision of Saint Gwynllyw by Sebastien Boyesen
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Viewed from Austin Friars, to the south west
