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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The second longest pier in Britain, Southport Pier was first opened in 1860 with an original length of 3,600 ft. In 1868 it was further extended to 4,380 ft. The Pier has a tram is the walk is too much!
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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.
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Ramsey Queens pier was built in 1886 and is 2241 feet long. The pier is being restored in sections by the Queen’s Pier Restoration Trust that has a long fight to keep this Victorian pier from being demolished and to enable to be accessed by future generations, please check their website for current progress and to support them.
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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 If this statement is out of date please update or drop us an email!
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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).
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Weymouth Pier Bandstand originally consisted of a raised deck area with glazed shelters along both sides, leading to a semicircular Bandstand. After the main pier was demolished all you now have is the entrance that looks out of place.
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Cromer Pier is at the heart of the edwardian seaside resort of Cromer with its narrow roads and cliffs. Cropmer has had wooden piers since the 1400s and in the mid 1800s the pier was still just a short structure. In 1901 the pier was finally replaced with a more elegant structure.
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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.
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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.
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Felixstowe Pier is a wooden pier built in 1905 and designed by the Rogers Brothers. The pier extended to a length of 2,640ft (800m) and was little more than a promenade deck, with railings along the entire length, and a T-shaped landing stage at the head. A large pavilion was at the shoreward end. The pier deck had an electric tramway takeing passengers and luggage to the steam boats. The pier was partly demolished for safety reasons and due to lack of funds looks set to disappear in the near future. Note that due to the lack of development plans the state of the pier could change. If anyone has an update please leave a comment.
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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.
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Work commenced on Teignmouth pier in 1865 and was completed during 1867 and it was placed in the middle of a long stretches of sandy beach.
