Blackpool

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What are the illuminations and pleasure beach like these days? I have happy childhood memories of eating fish and chips on a steamed up coach on church trips, but then we were easy pleased kids. If the pleasure beach is grotty or very expensive thought we might go to stanley park instead, have never been there so any advice would be appreciated.

You need Bubblerock

The Pleasure Beach can be expensive - you can buy a wristband which is £££ or you can pay per ride. Stanley park is much nicer imo but you'd want a good day. The zoo is near Stanley Park.

The Illuminations haven't changed that much really since I was small. Still well worth a trip but I spent a summer working on the trams one year and have had my fill . I took dd for the first time last year (she was 3) and she was captivated. We got a tram from Starr Gate (southern end) to Bispham (northern end) and a bus back. I do think that these days they are less impressive in that we are used to impressive light displays at Christmas, and with modern life being as it is they are not so much of a novelty as they were say 30 years ago.

Agree tiger i took dc last year and they liked it but weren't overly impressed.
Pleasure beach is quite expensive we had good day at zoo in school hols!

Lol - cheers Milliways

Try to come up on a Friday night - the world fireworks championships are on and they are pretty spectacular!

Friday 12th September - Canada
Friday 19th September - China
Friday 26th September - Celebration Display and Winners Announcement

The pleasure beach is okay but with little ones I wouldn't bother, you can go on little rides on Central Pier and get rid of all your 2p's!

You can get Zoo, Tower and pleasure beach tickets through Tesco clubcard deals.

Sealife is nice if you get the 2for1 vouchers too.

Stanley Park is lovely, they have worked really hard on it this year! Make sure you take nuts for the squirrels.

Go on the open top bus to get places. The sand dunes opposite Pontins are great for walking, you can park up walk through the dunes and get to the huge uncrowded beach, it's very relaxing!

St Annes has a pier too and trampolines etc.. It's easy to get to by bus or car and is a nice day out.

I doubt it will be as good as you remember through the eyes of a child as we tend to notice the crap things too now don't we? but children still love the magic of the lights, fireworks and lit up trams!

Wow, Thanks.

We will come up next Friday then, and see the Chinese fireworks, do you have any idea what time they are let off and where to watch them from?

I love Mumsnet!

The chinese ones are usually the best, you watch from near north pier.

The zoo is quite good although if the weather is bad you see nothing.

Illuminations are on until Nov, when we lived there my dd loved them.

Nice cafe in Stanley Park.

Bubblerock - can I pick your brain please. We are thinking of going to blackpool midweek at end of October (just for a couple of nights)and I think I have found a nice guest house (happy return)but I don't get the prices for Blackpool tower - is the price for everything? entrance, circus, 3d cinema thing, to get to the top etc.
And - if I remember correctly you lived in Glos. Would you bother travelling all that way for 2 nights - is it worth it?

The fireworks kicked off last night at 8.30pm (very good they were too!).

Looks like the tower tickets include everything HERE

It doesn't take very long to get from Glos to Blackpool and it's a very easy trip - M5, M6. Are you a Gloucester girl too??

I am! I remember speaking to you aaaaaages ago. You were forest weren't you.

I was loking at that website but it only says the circus bit.
It is sooooo expensive to go to Blackpool. But I haven't been and thought it would be something nice to do in half term. Can't believe prices of guesthouses though. Do you still own one?

I still live in mine but we've turned it into a house. What prices are the guesthouses quoting you? At the top of the link for tickets it says what your ticket includes.

Nooooo I'm not Forest!!! Grew up in Brockworth and then moved to Cheltenham before buying in Gloucester, then bought on Hucclecote road before moving here. Where are you?

No way, so close yet so far away. LOL!
We are in Barnwood behind Focus and MFI off eastern avenue.

When's half term this year? The new Travelodge opposite the football stadium has some availability - family rooms on the 21st/22nd/23rd/25th/28th/29th/30th October all at £39 per room.

The guesthouses were charging about £315 for 3 nights over the weekend friday to monday but we were worried about being in one with stag and hen parties, so have found one called Happy Return from Tues - thursday for £150 which is better and it's a 'family' one apparantly.
How long ago did you move?

Is that far from the tower etc?

ds breaks up on 23rd October which is a thursday (I think)

Wow - very close, all my rellies are still down there, aunt & uncle live opposite St Lawrences Church.

No room in travel lodge for us around those dates.

Did you go to school in Glos?

I don't know the Happy return. There's a nice Hotel on Palatine called the Fylde Hotel, the owners are lovely and they definitely don't take stags & Hens. 2 nights midweek for a family of 4 is around £135.

The Travelodge isn't too far away, It's more towards south shore but for £78 It would be worth the short walk - you can always get the tram up to Central anyway!

Balls - I think I was looking at September! DOH

I went to Brockworth, where did you go?

Denmark road.

Just checked the Flyde Hotel, it looks nice - Thank you for that!

Oh am getting excited now.
Was thinking of doing the tower, waxworks, pleasure beach and sandcastle. Are these all worth the money?

The kids love sandcastle - we get in half price as we live in FY1! Pleasure beach is expensive so a very rare treat for us. You don't really have to spend much as the atmosphere of being at the beach, the piers, the flashing lights on the slot machines, illuminations etc... gives you a buzz anyway!

yes this is true but taking a 12 year old to slot machines gets very expensive!
We want to do pleasure beach I think, but pay as we go (if we can) as not much for dd3 to do I expect.