Blackpool – The playground of the North West.

Blackpool's History

Blackpool is a town in the county of Lancashire in the North West of England.

In the 18th century it was believed that sea bathing could cure diseases and wealthier classes used to use Blackpool for that purpose, with regular stagecoach service from Manchester and Halifax. At this time Blackpool only had 4 hotels.

Henry Banks “Father of Blackpool built the first holiday cottages in Blackpool in 1879.

Blackpool became a destination for visitors who were on “wakes weeks” which is where Lancashire cotton mills closed for a week every year to service and repair machinery and the workers got a week off work.

With an influx of visitors travelling by rail, more accommodation and new attractions opened.

Blackpool became a seaside destination

By the end of the 1900’s, all 3 piers, North, Central and South were built with entertainment, theatre’s and a large open air dance floor, making Blackpool the only town in the UK with 3 piers.

Winter Gardens opened with the biggest opera house outside of London.

This made it the ideal destination for the elite wealthy visitors.

Electricity

In 1879 Blackpool became the first municipality in the world to have electric street lighting and Blackpool Illuminations were officially switched on on the 18th September.

At the time they consisted of just 8 carbon arc lamps.

The lights as we know them today were switched on in 1912 to mark the first British Royal Family visit to Blackpool when Princess Louise opened a new section of the Prominade where 10,000 lights bulbs were lit.

Blackpool also had the first electric tramways in the world which was operated by the Blackpool Electric Tramway Company until 1892 when Blackpool Corporation took over.

Blackpool Tower

Blackpool Tower was opened to the public on the 14th May 1894.

Inspired by the Eiffel tower in Paris, the 518 feet (158 metres) tall tower was the tallest man made structure in the British Empire and is the 125th tallest freestanding tower in the world.

The building that it stands on, called the Tower Buildings is a three-storey entertainment complex comprising of Tower Circus, Tower Ballroom and roof gardens and was designated as a Grade I listed building in 1973.

At the top of the Tower currently known as the Tower Eye is the 380 feet (120 metres) observation deck which is the highest in North West England and has views all over the Irish sea and across the land.

Pleasure Beach

Blackpool Pleasure Beach has to be our absolute favourite place to visit when we go.

As a family of thrill seekers the Pleasure Beach has some of the best white knuckle rides in the UK.

The rollercoasters are all entwined round other rides which I think makes them even better. Seeing if you can spot other family or friends on smaller rides whilst your zooming around on the BIG ONE.

Breaking Records

The park was founded in 1896 by A.W.G. Bean and his partner John Outhwaite and is still family owned to this very day.

It hosts many record breaking titles too including the largest collection of wooden rollercoasters.

The BIG ONE when it opened in 1994 was the tallest roller coaster in the world and the steepest with an incline and of 65 degrees and the 2nd fastest with a top speed of 74 mph (119km/h). It still holds the title of the tallest roller coaster in the UK and stands at 213 ft (65m) with the first drop at 205 ft (62m). Now you can also do tours of the Big One where you can walk up the track with guides.

The park was the first in Europe to introduce a fully inverting steel coaster the Revolution and is the last theme park in the world to still have a steeplechase roller coaster The Grand National.

Valhalla won “BEST WATER RIDE” at the 2018 Golden Ticket awards and is one of the largest and most expensive indoor dark rides in the world, Which has recently been upgraded and back open this season (I cant wait to see what’s new).

Old rides active still today.

You can still go one some of the original rides which still stand and are operated today built in the early 1900’s , The River Caves and The Big Dipper being 2 of them.

2 Pleasure Beach attractions stick in my head from being a child. The laughing clown which had a manic laugh and the clown was a animatronic in a glass casing, It was a real freaky sounding thing which my sister was petrified of.

The second being The Alice in Wonderland ride which is a psychedelic dark indoor ride where you sit in a Cheshire Cat as it takes you round the world of wonderland with a lot of neon painted characters. This ride some people will class as a horror ride as its really old and spooky (built in the mid 1900’s), the smell of the ride will stick in your memories forever.

WW2

Despite German bombs falling near Blackpool North railway station on the 11th September 1940 killing 8 people in nearby houses.

Documents that have been found have suggested the reason Blackpool escaped heavy damage during the was was that Adolf Hitler had planned for the town to remain a place of leisure after his planned invasion.

Blackpool Today

Blackpool today is still a top destination spot with around 18 million visitors a year and generates £1.5 billion in visitor spends. It has tonnes of entertainment and fun for everyone now matter how old you are.

Thrill seekers can try out the white knuckle rides at Blackpool Pleasure Beach which is constantly being updated with new spectacular rides as well as all the old classics.

Blackpool Nightlife.

If your a party animal Blackpool has a rocking night life and a lot of groups travel from all around for the many nightclubs and shows that are open all year round, perfect for birthday’s, hen and stag nights, and you ‘ll often see groups of people in fancy dress (some of them a little worse for wear haha).

There are so many attractions in Blackpool to visit that there’s no way you could get round them all in a day. There’s many hotels and caravan parks around so if you choose to make it a holiday your sorted.

Those who want a more relaxed day can walk along the magnificent promenade along the beach and experience some of the many seaside shops selling food and gifts.

There’s hot fresh doughnuts being sold at many of the stalls as you walk along or you could grab some Blackpool Rock.

Below is a list of links to many of the events and attractions in Blackpool, be sure to check them all out.

Events and Attractions.

Get discounts on your trip to Blackpool.

Before you go make sure you check out my other blog How to get discounts on family day’s out. Here you will find some great ways to save money on your fun day out so you can save money for your next adventure.

Blackpool Fun For All Ages

Blackpool has got to be one of the only (if not THE ONLY) place in the North of England that has so many fun and enjoyable things to do that all the family will enjoy regardless of your age.

It is a brilliant place for a day out or even a holiday and has everything in one town.

Located on the Irish Sea, Blackpool boasts 7 miles of golden sands perfect for sunbathing in the summer, building sand castles with the kids and even daring to take a dip in the sea (best done on really hot days to cool you down).

With 3 piers to visit, a magnificent sky line with the Tower and Big One Roller coaster, tonnes of places to eat drink and shop and so many things to do after 40 years of visits I’ve still not managed to visit them all.

Blackpool is the perfect place to visit this year.

If you liked reading this and are thinking about places to visit during summer check out my other blogs on Harry Potter studio tour and Tips for travelling with kids.