I’ve been going to Blackpool my whole life – these are the things I still love

We have a packed day ahead, but something glittering catches my eye on the far south of Blackpool’s promenade. Magpie-like, I set out against the wind, my family reluctantly in tow. “We’re really close,” I say, 15 minutes later, trying to ignore my 10-year-old’s glare. We pass an eight-metre-tall swivelling wind shelter, disguised as a whale’s tail. Striking concrete arches frame a pale, wide horizon. And then we’re there: face to face with the world’s largest mirror ball. Its 47,000 tiles cast fragments of sea, sky and sun back at us in flashes. By now even my daughter is grinning. JB Priestley called Blackpool “the great, roaring, spangled beast”. Spend a little time here, and it’s easy to understand why. In the 1750s, this stretch of Lancashire coastline was dotted with a handful of houses. By the time Priestley arrived in 1933 to research English Journey, Blackpool thronged with millions of visitors, drawn by its unapologetic reputation for affordable spectacle and non-stop fun. Blackpool offers the UK ‘s most affordable holiday destination (Photo: Eric Latham/Getty) I’ve been coming here since I was about a year old – as a child in the 1980s, it certainly wowed me. I loved the days out that ended with hands sticky from rock and eyes unable to stay open on the drive home. Then, like a lot of people, we slowly stopped coming. Our holidays moved abroad. For a long time, this kiss-me-quick town felt like somewhere I’d outgrown. But once I had children of my own, Blackpool – the UK‘s most affordable holiday destination, according to a recent study by Aqua credit card – started to look more appealing. At the Pleasure Beach Resort, we make a beeline for Sir Hiram Maxim’s Captive Flying Machine. Although less ferocious than some neighbouring attractions, few rides feel as daring as swooping above the park in a contraption dating from 1904, powered by much the same mechanism.Now Grade II listed and Europe’s oldest operating ride, it was cutting-edge in its day. Maxim had tested its 60ft radial arms in his south London garden before bringing the thrill of powered flight to the masses, just months after the Wright Brothers first took to the air. Shorts Celebrating its 130th anniversary, the Pleasure Beach still champions that same pioneering spirit. A short walk from the Edwardian flying machine stands the latest addition, Aviktas, the UK’s tallest gyro swing, soaring 138ft into the sky at 60mph. When I speak to Allan Brodie, visiting fellow at Bournemouth University, whose research led to five of the park’s rides and buildings receiving their listed status, he describes a landscape that skilfully interweaves old and new. “The amazing thing about Blackpool Pleasure Beach is that this one small park has more historic fairground rides than any country – not place – but country in the world, with the exception of the United States,” he says. It’s this seamless mix of eras that, for me, sets it apart from the UK’s other theme parks. The same afternoon, we also clatter along on the Grand National, Europe’s only twin-track wooden racing coaster, from 1935. Then fuelled by warm, sugary doughnuts, we hunt down the 1934 Blue Flyer, the second-oldest children’s rollercoaster in the world, now part of the park’s Nickelodeon Land area. Here we meet SpongeBob SquarePants dancing the Macarena with Marshall from Paw Patrol. Pleasure Beach Resort is home to 10 rollercoasters (Photo: Stephen Lee/Pleasure Beach Resort) Visiting outside school holidays, we rarely queue for more than 15 minutes, leaving us time for other favourites, including the psychedelic 1962 Alice in Wonderland dark ride aboard a wild-eyed Cheshire Cat, and Wallace & Gromit’s Thrill-O-Matic, a cracking trip through the animated world of Lancashire’s beloved double act. We also plunge over the crests of the Big Dipper, a wooden rollercoaster dating back to 1923, although it has since closed for repairs after stopping on the track in July. Before we head towards the VIP gate – a perk of staying at The Big Blue Hotel, which sits on the doorstep and offers direct access for weary legs – we squeeze in a stop at a 90s icon: The Big One. When it opened in 1994, it was the world’s tallest and steepest rollercoaster. It no longer holds either record, but its 205ft drop hasn’t softened. I let my husband and 14-year-old test it out. They come back slightly shaken but impressed. That night, we’re out for the count, which is probably for the best given what we have lined up for the following day. At Sandcastle Waterpark, the UK’s largest indoor waterpark, my daughter makes straight for the country’s longest indoor flume before attempting some kind of record for loops around the lazy river. (“Immaculate vibes,” she reports.) Sandcastle is the country’s largest indoor waterpark, with a record-breaking flume (Photo: Sandcastle Waterpark) The same could be said for Abingdon Street Market, once a police station, now home to an indoor food hall. We eat loaded tacos and Neapolitan pizza to a soundtrack of De La Soul. On the long table next to us, a hen party armed with inflatable golf clubs happily budges up for a family with a toddler. There are flyers for the record fair the next day. Then, there’s Showtown, a belter of a museum, telling Blackpool’s entertainment history through hands-on exhibits and brilliant artefacts. My kids try tightrope walking and design illuminations for the town’s annual autumn light extravaganza. I admire Strictly Come Dancing costumes and Orville the Duck. By the time we’re walking across the Comedy Carpet – a 2,200 sq metre free public art installation embedded with the jokes of over 1,000 British comedians – my husband is well on his way to becoming a convert. The Grade I listed Blackpool Tower is the clincher. Opened in 1894 as Blackpool’s audacious answer to the Eiffel Tower, the tower was designed to offer opulence at a price ordinary families could afford – and that spirit is still intact. Showtown museum offers a glimpse behind the curtain (Photo: Jenny Elliott) You can still take afternoon tea under the ballroom’s gilded ceiling, but we opt to watch the circus, just as crowds here have done for 132 years. Trapeze artists and highwire acts almost brush against the 17-metre vaulted ceiling. Mooky and Mr Boo – third-generation clowns – turn out to be genuinely funny. Then, just when we think it’s over, the ring sinks and fills with 42,000 gallons of water in under a minute. Dancers ride giant revolving fish. Two acrobats spin above the water, suspended by their ponytails. We’re all agog. We end with a trip to the top. I’ve blamed my first ascent of this building, aged nine, for a mild but persistent fear of heights ever since, but my daughter walks straight across the glass floor without breaking stride, looking down past her feet to the beach 380ft below. I inch out after her. Once again, miles of golden sand stretch out beneath us, foam lifting off the waves. Blackpool, relentless and dazzling, has been perfecting the art of a good time for more than 270 years – and it shows. How to do it The Ultimate Ticket (£65) covers Pleasure Beach Resort, Sandcastle Waterpark, Blackpool Tower attractions and Madame Tussauds, offering good value if you’re planning to visit more than a couple of attractions and are happy to book ahead – although availability can be limited over the summer. Where to stay The four-star Big Blue Hotel has doubles with breakfast from £85. Next door, the five-star Boulevard Hotel has doubles with breakfast from £125. Both offer family rooms, fully accessible options and Pleasure Beach ticket packages. More information visitblackpool.com