Day 17 of 20. Over 2000 miles travelled, 44 piers visited and 15 different hotel rooms stayed in.
It could only mean one thing. It was time to visit Blackpool. I know it's the most popular seaside resort in the UK and that to some people it's a great place for a holiday but, personally, I'm not a big fan of the Lancashire town.
But they have 3 piers in the town so there was no avoiding it. First up was the North Pier....
#45 Blackpool North Pier
Nothing sums up Blackpool better than their North Pier. Old, seen better days and in need of an overhaul.
There is a though a wonderful two storey Carousel ride at the end of the pier which is the undoubted star of the show and deserves a better setting.
Next along the shoreline was the Central Pier and then the South Pier which is located near the Pleasure Beach. Both are similar having arcades at the front with rides and rollercoasters behind on the boardwalk part. Similar to so many other piers we've seen this past fortnight and no better or worse than most of them.
#46 Blackpool Central Pier
#47 Blackpool South Pier
Having finished the selfies we had a lovely game of crazy golf on a testing 12 hole course next to the Pleasure Beach. Sam won by an unprecedented 5 shots and is now the overall leader for this trip with just 1 course left to play. Time to move on....
Just up the coast is the resort of Lytham St Annes. It's only a mile away in distance but it's a world away in style. We found the pier and first impressions were very good. From the outside it has a beautiful Victorian pier head building, a fantastic curved green sign and the shops and cafes look inviting. It looked like it had all the necessary ingredients to be a fantastic pier.
#48 St Annes Pier
Behind the façade it doesn't quite live up to expectations and we came away feeling that with just a little bit of effort this decent enough pier could be a GREAT pier.
Back to the car and a 45 minute drive to the 5th and final pier of the day, Southport. Once again we had left the best to last. In fact we were so impressed with the pier it has entered our best 3 piers of the trip so far.
It's the second longest pier in the UK at 1110 metres and starts well inland before running over a boating lake, car park, road and finally the beach. It has lovely boarding running the length of the pier and beautiful lights on arched posts hanging over the boardwalk.
#49 Southport Pier
There's a tram that runs down the middle of the pier but it had stopped for the night by the time we had arrived so we took the road train instead. A lovely ride the length of the pier we disembarked outside the café to take a few photo's and enjoy the bracing wind!
It's clear to see they've spent the money rejuvenating the sea front in Southport and they have succeeded in building a vibrant area for both locals and tourists alike. It's up there with some of the best resorts we've seen and was a surprising end to a day of real contrasts.
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