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| Pleasure Beach | |
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| Location | Blackpool, England |
| Website | www.blackpoolpleasurebeach.com |
| Owner | Thompson Family |
| Opened | 1896 |
| Previous names | Blackpool Pleasure Beach |
| Operating season | February-November |
| Area | 42 acres |
| Rides | 57 total
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| Slogan | Britain's Biggest Tourist Attraction |
Pleasure Beach, formerly "Blackpool Pleasure Beach", is a family owned amusement park in Blackpool, England. It is currently the most visited tourist attraction within the UK.
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The park was founded in 1896 by Alderman William George Bean, who said his intent was to create "an American Style Amusement Park, the fundamental principle of which is to make adults feel like children again and to inspire gaiety of a primarily innocent character."
The park was then managed by Bean's son-in-law, Leonard Thompson, until the 1970s and then by his son, William Geoffrey Thompson, until his death in 2004. It is now managed by his daughter, Amanda Thompson, who is also the Managing Director of Stageworks Worldwide Productions who produce the shows at the park.
Pleasure Beach, Blackpool is currently situated along the South Shore area of Blackpool, adjacent to the prom and opposite the South Pier along Ocean Boulevard and above Watson road.. The main entrance is to the left of the initial park and 78 meters from the Pleasure Beach Casino. The main car park is to the left side of the White Tower restaurant, behind Valhalla and to the right of the Grand National. The additional coach park is to the back of the park adjacent to the Pepsi Max Big One and in front of the Tango Ice Blast.
The park is currently home to over 125 rides and attractions, including 12 roller coasters, of which 4 are wooden. Over the years numerous records have been broken with regards to the roller coasters in the park. When it opened in 1994, Pepsi Max Big One was the tallest, fastest and steepest roller coaster of any park in the world. It was also substantially one of the longest, measuring 5497' foot long. Currently, the ride holds the crown as the tallest in England, measuring 213' foot below sea level. Currently Pleasure Beach is the only park in the world to operate a traditional wooden Wild Mouse coaster. The ride was built by the late staff in the park, post war and is still in complete working order. It was also the first park in Europe to introduce a fully inverting steel coaster, Irn-Bru Revolution.
Like many other areas in Blackpool, Pleasure Beach is currently undertaking major refurbishment and since 2002 has invested nearly 90 million pounds on re branding and updating. Most of the walkways have been replaced and each of the rides have been carefully maintained. Both the Grand National and Big Dipper roller coasters have in recent received new trains, and many ride removals have directed the park to open Infusion, an 8 million pound suspended looping coaster. This move also corresponded with the closure of PleasureLand Southport, sister park to Pleasure Beach which closed in 2006. Since then, the Pleasure Beach company has invested more money into the park, work of which included the opening of the 'boutique' multi-million pound restaurant, the White Tower Restaurant and the new refurbished Casino. In 2006, the park was re branded from 'Blackpool Pleasure Beach' to simply 'Pleasure Beach.' The famous trade mark 'Happy Sun' logo was removed from advertising boards and brochures and the park approached a new 'ultra modern' look, using bright colors and brash writing for the credits card. The park now also uses live models to advertise the park, with the Beaver Creek childrens amusement park still using the famous Bradley Beaver icon.
Pleasure Beach is open from February until October. Opening times vary, and each ride has its own specific opening and closing time which is usually thirty minutes after opening time and thirty minutes before the park closes. Rides may not always be operational, particular when wind turbulence is high. The park closes for its 2008 season on October 31st and re opens in February 2009, with Ride Tokens going on sale in March.
In September 2007, the Pleasure Beach was judged joint fifth best amusement park in the world (with Disneyland in California, United States) in the Amusement Today Golden Ticket Awards – the self-proclaimed Oscars of the amusement industry. Pleasure Beach was the only British park to feature in any category. Pleasure Beach was also the highest ranked European park in the awards. Also, Pleasure Beach was voted second best seaside park in the world. It is currently voted as the 'UK's number one tourist attraction' by the British Tourist Board after numbers soar to nearly 6 million visitors a year, with this record un-beaten by any other tourist spot or amusement/theme park in England, Scotland, Ireland or Wales. The Grand National roller coaster made the universal list of Top 50 Wooden Roller Coasters at number 28 and the Pepsi Max Big One was in the Top 50 Steel section at 44 and came in at 9 in the Top Ten Coasters poll shown on Sky Travel. [1]
In 2007, Pleasure Beach was ranked as 14th most popular theme park in the world with 5.5 million visitors. It was the only UK amusement park to make it onto the 'Top 25 Parks in the World' list.[2]
It has been wisely speculated that after the 2009 season Pleasure Beach will be taken over by new management. The Blackpool Council Chair has neither denied or confirmed this, however meetings between blackpoolpleasurebeach (the company which manages the park) and park investor Phillip Miller (who also owns the second most popular English amusement park, Adventure Island) have been conducted over the past few months after Stageworks re-estated to expand to Las Vegas and San Francisco. Amanda Thompson, park MD said 'It is true we are taking our entertainment to the next level, and I am a headstrong girl but what I have to offer the people of Blackpool with regards to Pleasure Beach is more not less. I'm not about to hand this place over. It was my fathers legacy and I believe we have so much more to show.' There are also rumors that the park is installing a new 'flat-ride' type ride, after pieces of what appeared to be a tripod structure and four gold painted harness restraints were discovered near the backdrop at the Beacon Hill High School. The Blackpool Gazette printed an article on the findings, however it not known whether the 'giant' ride is headded for Pleasure Beach or the South Pier funfair, adjacent to the Pleasure Beach.
Currently, entrance to Pleasure Beach is corresponding with a seasonal promotion. In order to access Pleasure Beach, each person is required to pay £20 regardless of what attractions they use. This gives that person unlimited access to the park throughout the day. From March 2009 however the wristband service will be back in order, with the new Freedom Pass admission option being launched. In 2008 a campaign & petition was launch by locals to stop the new £5 charge in 2009. The campaign called Stop The Charge has got 10000 people who plan to not vist the park in 2009.. you can join it at http://www.westviewonline.co.uk
Most commonly used is the 'Unlimited Ride Wristband' option, whereby wristbands with a printed barcode on are sold at costs between £15-£35 depending on the time of year and promotional season. This code must be scanned by a computer which unlocks the turnstile at each ride platform. The design technique means that riders are unable to access the ride unless having first scanned their specially printed 'day-code.' Each day a new code is printed on the wristband, meaning wristbands from previous days are now invalid. A warning section is printed on each wristband, telling guests that removing the wristband or peeling the barcoded sticker will deem the band invalid. Unlimited Ride Wristbands allow access to both the interior park and the children's-themed area of the park Beaver Creek.
At a cost of £15, special wristbands may be purchased for unlimited entrance to the Beaver Creek children's-themed area of the park which occupied the smaller rides and attractions. The wristband system works in the same way as the above, however access to the larger rides is unavailable.
The final option available is the separate Ride Token fare, where guests can access each ride using specially printed tokens available from kiosks around the park. Like the wristbands, each token has the day bar code printed on its face, unlocking the turnstile at each ride platform. Ride tokens are £1 each, however guests are encouraged to purchase tokens in a set of 20 or more, as most rides require more than one token. Pepsi Max Big One for example requires nine tokens.
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From 2009 Blackpool Pleasure Beach will no longer be accessible to the public without holding a ticket first. To meet with financial changes and the plans for the park, guests will now be required to pay £5 at any of the four entrance gates, unless they have first purchased an unlimited ride wristband beforehand. This pass will allow access to the park and to five of the attractions within the park area covering Noah's Ark, Pleasure Beach Express, Monorail, Chinese Puzzle maze, as well as the 'South Beach Musical' stage show at Planet Rock. To use additional rides, guests will purchase additional ride tickets. [3]
| Name | Opened | Brief Description |
|---|---|---|
| Avalanche | 1988 | A bobsled rollercoaster. [4] |
| Big Dipper | 1923 | A traditional wooden rollercoaster and a classic amongst coaster enthusiasts. Extended in 1936. [5] |
| Grand National | 1934 | A wooden racing roller coaster. A classic among coaster enthusiasts. Accustom to breaking down. [6] |
| Infusion | 2007 | A Vekoma Suspended Looping Coaster and the first of its kind in the world to be built completely over water. [7] |
| Irn Bru Revolution | 1978 | Opened as the first modern looping coaster in the UK. An Arrow Dynamics shuttle coaster with an inversion. Has a unique cantilevered support structure. [8] |
| Morgan’s Circus Clown | A children’s coaster located in Beaver Creek. [9] | |
| Pepsi Max Big One | 1994 | An Arrow Dynamics hyper coaster with a highest point of 213ft. It reaches speeds of up to 74mph. [10] |
| Rollercoaster | 1933 | A traditional wooden rollercoaster, notable for running with no restraints. Since 2006 it has had seatbelts fitted. A classic ride at the park. [11] |
| Space Invader 2 | 1984 | A dark indoor rollercoaster with a space style theme. Refurbished in 2003 and opened in 2004. [12] |
| Steeplechase | 1977 | A three-tracked racing steel roller coaster and the last of its kind in existence. [13] |
| Wild Mouse | 1958 | The last operating wooden wild mouse roller coaster in the world. [14] |
| Zipper Dipper | 1934 | A children’s wooden coaster comprised of bunny hills and a tunnel. Located in Beaver Creek. [15] |
| Name | Opened | Brief Description |
|---|---|---|
| Bling | 2004 | A “Star Shape” ride made by German company Zierer, one of only two in the world. |
| Ice Blast: The Ride | 1997 | A S&S Power Space Shot which stands at 210ft above sea level. |
| Name | Opened | Brief Description |
|---|---|---|
| Beaver Creek Log Chute | A one lift hill Log Flume | |
| River Caves | 1905 | Boat based dark ride, visiting displays of "around the world". |
| Swamp Buggies | Water buggy rides. | |
| Valhalla | 2000 | Themed Viking dark flume ride, laden with special effects. |
There are literally dozens of rides (maybe even hundreds) that have come and gone from the Pleasure Beach over its history - particularly in its early days, and during the 1960s-1970s, when many temporary rides were operated as concessions by third-parties.
Pleasure Beach has over 35 restaurants and cafes, as well as a pub and a hotel.
There are various other candyfloss, doughnut, drink, and seafood stalls situated throughout the park.
| This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (February 2008) |
The park's opening hours vary depending on weather conditions. The park closes for the winter on the Monday of the first weekend in November and reopens in February the following year.
A small section of the park including the Pepsi Max Big One, opens for several weekends in November and December. The Whole park (excluding some rides) opens during the weekends in February and March. The Wristbands are priced at £16 in February and £16 in March. Valhalla usually remains closed at this time.
For the 2008 season, the park opens every weekend from Saturday 9 February onward to late March/early April. During the summer season the park will be open every day. The park usually opens at around 12pm and closes between 6pm and 8pm. The park can stay open until around 10pm if it is busy enough.
On 20 May 2004 the Grand National’s station was destroyed by a fire that also damaged Alice’s Wonderland and Trauma Towers. The Grand National was repaired and re-opened five months later on 28 October 2004. Not long after, a large restaurant caught fire. The restaurant was almost completely destroyed leaving only the shell of the building. The building was demolished and replaced with the Big One Stage.
| This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (February 2008) |
The Pleasure Beach has its own enthusiast club, called Club Pleasure Beach (formerly the 235 Club, named after the height above sea level of the Pepsi Max Big One ). It is run as a non profit organisation. The club was formed in 1992 by the park as an initiative to sell advance boarding tickets for the Pepsi Max Big One, but has since evolved to become an organisation for Pleasure Beach enthusiasts.
The Pleasure Beach has its own railway station, the Blackpool Pleasure Beach railway station, on the Fylde Coast branch line of the Blackpool Branch Lines.
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