Find the nearest Piers
When we think of a traditional seaside town most of us automatically think of the Victorian pier. Our Piers category brings all Coast Radar’s listings related to the traditional seaside pier together, where most now offer family entertainment and places to eat.
Finding the best things to see and do on a day out with your family or friends is easy – simply explore the piers links below, hit the jump to my location button or use the search bar to plan your next UK and Ireland activity.
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- Brighton Palace Pier features in films like Sweeney Todd, Dr Who and Carry on at your convenience and is as much fun in real life as it is in the films! It was built in 1891 and opened in 1899 and was one of three in the area. It had a concert hall which housed great shows during WWII but in 1973 a storm sent a barge into the pier and the theatre was lost. Today this modern entertainment centre houses fairground rides, thrill and children’s rides and a huge amusement arcade. In 2003 a large fire caused damage but luckily most of it was unscathed. The pier is now listed as a Grade II structure and brings Summer fun and entertainment to the hundreds of thousands of holiday makers who visit it every year! The pier is known for its rides and most visit at night when the whole structure is lit up and fun is in the air. The Booster stands 130 ft and rotates you 360 degrees accelerating to over 3.6G’s in 2.8 seconds! The Twist and the Galaxia rides spin at speeds that make your eyes ache. In the Summer you can cool down withan ice cream and a log flume ride with oceanic wave landings! What is great about the pier is that it has retained it is old worlde charm even though it has been thoroughly modernised with video games, shops, restaurants, bars and even a presence on social media in Facebook and Twitter to keep you abreast of all the news and events. Brighton Pier (1700ft/520m long) was opened in grand ceremony on May 20th 1899. Nowadays the Pier has amusements, theme park rides, restaurants and bars.
- Claremont Pier was constructed in 1902/03 and used originally as a mooring for Belle steamers. The pier was designed by D. Fox at 182 m in length and 11 m in width. In 1912, it was extended to a length of 230 m. A storm in 1962 washed a section of it away, reducing its length to 218 meters.
- Birnbeck Pier is unusual in that it links the mainland with Birnbeck Island, a 1.2 hectares (12,000 m2) rocky island. The pier has been closed to the public since 1994. The grade II* listed pier was designed by Eugenius Birch and opened in 1867. The gothic toll house and pierhead buildings were designed by local architect Hans Price. The main pier is 1,150 feet (351 m) long and 20 feet (6 m) wide. As it has abutments at either end, one on the mainland and one on Birnbeck Island. The construction is more like a bridge than other traditional pleasure piers. A landing jetty extended on the west side of the island to allow steamers to bring day trippers to Weston-super-Mare from ports on both the English and Welsh side of the Bristol Channel. The pier opened on 6 June 1867, Cecil Hugh Pigot-Smyth again being the host of the ceremony, the town taking a holiday and holding a banquet in the Town Hall. The toll to walk on the pier was 1d, but this was quickly raised to 2d, the maximum allowed by Act of Parliament; 120,000 people paid the toll in the first three months. A new wooden northern jetty was added in 1872 which allowed the removal of the original western landing place. Another jetty was added on the south west corner in 1898 which reached deep water even at low tide, thus allowing steamers to use the pier at all states of the tide. This was damaged in a gale in 1903, rebuilt in 1909 but closed in 1916. It was finally removed in 1923. The northern jetty had also been damaged in the 1903 storm but was replaced by the present steel structure in 1905. Article taken from wikipedia.
- Central Pier is constructed mostly of cast iron with wooden decking and was opened on 30 May 1868. Now Central Pier has ammusements and fairground rides including a ferris wheel. Nightly entertainment.
- The last of the 3 piers work began on Blackpool’s third pier in 1892 to the design of T P Worthington. Originally known as the Victoria Pier it opened in 1893. Blackpool South Pier offers bars, ammusement arcades and a fairground includig dodgem cars and thrilling rides. The pier also provides an excellent vantage point from which to view Blackpool’s pleasure beach accross the promenade.
- Walton pier was originally built to a length of 530 feet in the 1870s but due to shallow water was extended in 1898 to a length of 2600 feet and is the second longest pier in Great Britain. Facilities on the pier include a large undercover amusement arcade at the shoreward end which has ten-pin bowling centre. There are fairground rides and a rail-less ‘train’ that takes passengers to the pier-head where there is fishing.
- Colwyn Bay Pier is a Victorian Pier but was closed at the time we visited in August 2010. It seemed to be part restored but with no indication as to what was happening. If this statement is out of date please update or drop us an email!
- Bournemouth Pier is at the heart of the Bournemouth sea front with various attractions, amusements, boat trips, restaurant, cafe, bar and fishing decks. Originally built in 1856 as wood, rebuilt with iron and then as concrete this has been around for generations. Small charge applies for access to help with the upkeep. Dogs are allowed on to the pier but not allowed in some of the attractions.
- The Royal Pier in Aberystwyth is a pleasure pier. Aberystwyth Pier was the first pier to open in Wales in 1865, but after a series of storms, it is now a much shortened version at 91 metres (299 ft), originally it was a length of 242 metres (794 ft).
- Mumbles Pier is a Victorian pier first built in 1898. At 835ft long, it is an iconic landmark for south Wales, located near the village of Mumbles in the south-eastern corner of Swansea Bay. The pier is currently undergoing extensive refurbishment as it had fallen into disrepair. It is expected to reopen towards the end of 2013 and the restored pier will also include a new RNLI lifeboat station.
- Burnham pier in Burnham-On-Sea Pier is Britain’s shortest pier. It is really an Edwardian pavilion on concrete piles. One of the UK’s oldest illuminated seaside piers, built between 1911-1914.
- Hastings Pier, opened in 1872 but then closed and a large fire in 2010 destroyed the original buildings. In 2016 it was opened after major re-work and now stretches out 272 metres into the sea and stands at the centre of Hastings Seafront.
