blackpool pleasure beach now without the pleasure

bigmuffins

Went to Blackpool a few years ago - was rather disappointed to say the least! Dirty and tacky! Don't know why is so popular!

Then went back to Barry Island (Wales - just outside Cardiff), used to go there as kids and loved it! Now it is appalling! I'm sure the rides are the same ones!!!!!!!! :eek: The seats in sitting area/cafes are bolted down! and the loos are horrendous!!! Service is waste of time.

Talk about sad!
Beach was ok - kiddies liked building castles etc. But that was all. When I was little, there used to be queues of cars to get in, now no probs parking on seafront!!
Won't be going back there in a hurry!

Pennywise

As an ex-resident of Morecambe, I used to think it must be one of the worst places, but having seen quite a few other run-down seaside resorts in the last few years, I don't think Morecambe is too bad at all anymore. I agree with the above comments about Rhyl which really must be the lowest of the low at the moment, and there has also been a massive worsening at Blackpool.

Blackpool is different as it is still relatively popular, but most of the other run-down resorts are simply suffering from the trend for people to go abroad for their holidays, and the resulting empty guest houses to be filled with the doleys and asylum seekers who the national and local government are actively and deliberately relocating to seaside towns without putting the support services in place for them. This hastens the demise as the few people who would holiday in seaside resorts don't want to be next door to drug-dealers etc., so the downward spiral continues.

I have long maintained that whole areas of ex-guest houses should be demolised en-masse and replaced with Barrett estates or similar - the traditional terraced 3/4 story guest houses with no gardens are just not suitable for modern families and so will always remain hostels or multi-occupancy houses for the "problem" tenants. Unfortunately, there is no political will to do this so they continue spending millions of silly temporary small scale schemes that have little long term impact.

I recall Kim Howells, the Labour minister for tourism at the time, giving a speech saying that seaside resorts like Morecambe should look at successful places like Cardiff and Liverpool that have re-generated themselves - unfortunately he seems to have forgotten that Labour pumped millions of pounds of investment into those towns with the "parachuting-in" of lots of relatively highly paid public sector jobs.

I'm pleased to say that Morecambe is actually improving at the moment - I've even been on the beach with my young son a few times which is something I wouldn't have even considered a few years ago due to the druggies that frequented in those days. Though it took a few decades to decline, so it will probably take another decade or two to re-emerge as a "nice" place although obviously never as a popular tourist destination again as those days are long gone.

hjb123

Pennywise wrote:

I'm pleased to say that Morecambe is actually improving at the moment

Where has improved? Do you live in or near morecambe? Ever gone at night - dont bother!

Jen_Jen_5

blackpool is not that bad it depends what you want, bit of beach and a nice walk - the new bit up from south pier to where the tram stops is a clean and pleasant walk, beach at the end with dunes.

i went last november, walked from north pier to central on the beach walked back down the front and drove through the lights had a great day

just avoid the tacky and its fine.

Poppycat

As a seasider myself who has lived in my home town for 40 years, I have seen over many years our town becoming increasing run down. Often this coincides with the increase in travel abroad and often the only income is thus from day trippers.

Boarding houses now sadly become doss houses for people who don't originate from the town, and bring there problems of drugs with them. I ain't saying everyone is like this that comes from other areas but you have to understand that often these town get very little support or regeneration and thus they loss revenue.

Where I live council tax has increased hugely, amenities close early even in high season the town can be dead in some places, hell even public toilets are hard to come by.

We did however get 20 million a few years back for a nice new sea defence wall to defend our coast of global warming.

purplepatch

Went to Blackpool last month for the first time ever in my 35 years, with hubby and two year old daughter. We had a whale of a time, did the pleasure beach with no queues for anything, hubby made me go on the pepsi max big one on my own (as he is a wuss), daughter went on all the rides in Beaver Creek, we strolled along the sea front, had fish and chips, and then rounded the day off driving through the lights.

It is very cheesy and a bit tacky, but it was a good experience for us nevertheless. We don't have anything like it on the South Coast.