To wonder if blackpool is as bad as they say?

[Chefpig]

I'm hoping to plan a short break somewhere and blackpool is cheap. Is it as bad as people say though?

Blackpool is great fun! Some hotels are better than others, we like to Village hotel across from the zoo! There’s loads to do but don’t be mislead into thinking it’s cheap, over £100 for two adults to children to the Sandcastle. £50pp for the pleasure beach. I think it’s worth it as the kids love it.

The Chinese in the Centre called ‘Mandarin’ is amazing won so many award but must be booked months in advance.

I used to go as a child to see the lights

Sit on the beach all day,go to the chippy for lunch and again for dinner,get on the coach,see the lights and go home (my mother firmly believed that sitting on the beach for 10/12 hours a day,no bucket,no spade,no paddle in the sea,no ice cream,no candy floss,no trip to the shop to spend your pocket money and 4 kids was a good idea)

Happy memories (not)

Then I went back with my ex as an adult

We got there about 2pm,checked in and went for a walk

We'd been walking for about 10 minutes along the beach when my ex suddenly says 'do not look to your left' so of course my head couldn't have turned to the left any faster

There,an older man (aged about 80 ish) was getting a bj from a young lady aged about 25

It didnt get any better,it seemed to be full of junkies,drunks and was very run down-i didnt feel very safe

It did have a charm about it but a very knackered charm-it needs a lot of money spent on it to tart up the historic bits and make it less run down in general (I did think it seemed to hit its peak in the 1920's and just dropped from there)

It's good if you want to spend all day pumping money in the 2p machines or a few hours in the pleasure beach (alton towers is much better)

Very sad as I did have memories from being a child but my now dp won't entertain going and im not bothered

Blackpool isn't very nice at night, feral children running around in large groups causing chaos.

Pleasure Beach and the zoo aren't bad but absolutely freezing this time of the year.

Depends on what you are looking for, there are much nicer places. We normally book a cheap hotel somewhere and use it as a base and drive to various places like Todmorden/Hebden bridge/ Rawenstall/Lytham st Annes/ Skipton etc.

I've always wanted to see the illuminations. My parents went to Blackpool for their honeymoon in the '60s.

It's the worst place I've ever been. Miserable, depressing place, I couldn't wait to leave.

I went last year for a conference. Now I'm from a very run down socially deprived seaside town... I'm surprised how Blackpool made where I'm from look like the French Riviera.

We go for a bit of childhood nostalgia with our own kids. Gruffalos clubhouse and then a McDonald’s - then in the evening the lights and Christmas markets (the kids fair is really reasonable). But I wouldn’t go for a weekend there or a staycation there.

It holds great memories for me as a kid. We lived near ish and I absolutely loved it. Yes it's tacky and some parts are scruffy but it was kind of part of the charm, like a lot of seaside towns. Now as an adult with children I won't go back, it always absolutely stinks of cannabis, and there's some awful people there. We got apprehended by a scary man when walking from the car park to the front and I didn't know if we could get away.

We drove through it to see the Illuminations this year, but didn't get out.

The zoo is great though, better than Chester 😊

I forgot to add the circus in there. That was a highlight, too. The little one and the teenager enjoyed that. Very diverse acts.

We ate in The Bank, I think it was called. Good service and food.

Lastly, the apartment we stayed in was super quiet. Couldn't hear any noise at all!

We took our children years ago and it was awful. I remember the hotel receptionist warning us to watch the children well as it was ‘rough out there’ and thinking she was being OTT. But no. We were due to stay for 3 days but left after the first day. It was very run down and I’d never seen so many men just pissing in the street. The place stunk of piss. There was so much anti social behaviour, we saw multiple men and women fighting, paralytic drunk, being sick. As we tried to get past a fight, a couple of men tried to start a fight with my partner who was holding our sons hand. This was all in daylight so I dread to think what nights were like. It didn’t feel safe or enjoyable so we left. A friend went last year and it sounds worse from her description.

I used to go on day trips to Blackpool as a kid in the 70s. It was always a cheap and cheerful kind of place, tacky really I suppose, but as a small child I thought it was magical. Then when I met DH in 1990 he was working there. I was obviously older and more observant so I became aware that there was a seedy side to the town then but on the whole it was ok. Just like any town there were places you wouldn't choose to go but DH had a flat in a respectable enough area and I've got plenty of happy memories of those years.
I went back for the first time in ages a couple of years ago though and I have to say I was shocked. DS had a sports camp for a few days nearby so I went with him and thought I'd have no problem entertaining myself whilst he was at training. I was shocked by how run down the town us now, with lots of places boarded up and even cafes on the pier shut in the Summer holidays. It was all rather depressing.
However, there is still lots to do especially for small children. Obviously there's the Tower and the Pleasure Beach and you might find something interesting going on at the Winter Gardens. Stanley Park and the zoo are both good options, and the Sea Life Centre or the swimming pool wil fill a rainy day. The windmill at Lytham has a small but interesting museum inside and the beach there is quieter. I also went to a park with an old stately home type place down that end but can't remember where exactly sorry.
Pick where you stay carefully. We stayed in a Premier Inn just outside the town and it was just like any other Premier Inn in the country, mostly filled with families and people who looked like they were on business, no stag/hen parties and I certainly didn't feel unsafe.
It's never going to be a 5 star resort but for a short break with kids if you plan ahead and chose your accomodation and activities with care I think you can still have a good time. One thing I would say though is that the main attractions like the Pleasure Beach and Zoo are quite expensive so if you have several children your "cheap break" could end up being anything but cheap, especially if the weather is poor.

I've only been once, on a Friday night in May last year. I'm not averse to a bit of seaside arcarde type of entertainment. But I was genuinely shocked by how lairy it was - and such an odd mix of junkies fighting or lying around off their faces, with families and kids walking along the prom, and hen parties and stag parties that were off their faces at 7pm at night.

I felt unsafe and like it could kick off majorly at any point - and we turned round after about an hour and got the train back to Preston. Friends stayed near south beach and were not impressed.

I've had Merlin Passes and when we've driven up for Alton Towers sometimes we've gone for a day or two to the tower and Madame Tussauds etc.

Afternoon tea in the ballroom is lovely but so much of Blackpool is really depressing.

We went up to see the illuminations and it felt really miserable.

I went with a very good attitude and it was ok but I have no plans to go back.

Visited family in Lytham St Anne's last year and popped into Blackpool.
It was awful and run down.

I wouldn't go there for a weekend break. Its nice for a trip out but spending longer than 5-6 hours there would depress me immensely.

I went once as a kid. It was freezing cold, rained every day and was miserable as fuck. No warm fuzzies here 😆 I would never go again.

Fuelled by childhood nostalgia we went back to see the Illuminations. It was so grim even the rabbits, that featured as part of the display, looked like they were on crystal meth,

Went once around 15 yrs ago, you couldn’t pay me to go back. I think the low point was when we went to a local hostelry for a drink and we saw a girl vomit on the floor then stand up again and start snogging the guy she was with 🤢 My drink was also spiked the same weekend, TG my DP was with me. Never again. We don’t speak about it!!!

Live relatively local and it is one of the most awful depressing places on Earth. I hated it as a child to be fair. I was taken when I was about 8 or 9 and ended up staying in the car and I would say it’s got worse since then and that was 50 years ago.

I took my DC a few times. Enjoyed Pleasure Beach, afternoon tea in the tower watching ballroom dancing, and circus in the tower was good

Big Blue Hotel is good. Travelodge near Pleasure Beach was OK

Overall it's down on its luck and feels run down but if you stay in the touristy bits you'll be fine

Oh it’s awful.. I used to stay when my DD did dance competitions at the winter gardens. You could not pay me to holiday there.

so many junkies, and people smoking weed on the street. It’s dirty and run down. You can’t park anywhere. The B&Bs I stayed in had very high ratings but although the owners were lovely the walls were paper thin and other people staying were drunk and banging about at all hours. The only food they seem to sell is grease covered and beige.

I don’t mind cheap and cheerful but I hated it. Try a cheap holiday park instead?

There’s a reason it’s cheap. It’s dirty, run down, doesn’t feel safe and is full of hen/stag do’sxday and night. It’s just dreadful. It has no redeeming features whatsoever.

Went to see an inspector calls at the little theatre there, it was lovely. It depends op whether seeing poverty all around you makes you sad, it does me so I don’t enjoy it. Last time we went there was a scrote whizzing round on a mobility scooter which I assume he’d stolen and I was walking behind a bloke dressed as a woman in an pvc mini skirt. In coral island it’s full of people with hundreds and hundreds of those tickets you win , they aren’t paying for those with a salary they’ve paid tax and ni on. Go to Lytham as others have said.

Re Pleasure Beach vs Alton Towers it depends on the age/height of your children. My son is 1m 20 and loves fast coasters but is still too small for a lot of the ones at AT, the majority of which are 1m 40 minimum. At Blackpool the mid range ones were pretty good, with some decent heights too, and quite a few more are available to those 1m 30 in height (the Big One is 1m32). Personally I also liked how compact it was.