Blackpool combines historic stages and buildings with interactive attractions and natural spaces. Depending on your interests, cultural history, hands-on experiences or wildlife can shape your stay.
Tower, Ballroom and Circus
Blackpool Tower is listed as a Grade I building. Its ballroom dates from 1894 and has a unique sprung dance floor. Blackpool Tower Circus also opened in 1894 and has not missed a season since; its show combines acrobatics and comedy. The ballroom and circus both date back to 1894, but have different focuses: one represents dance history, the other stage entertainment. The climb also takes you 380 feet to the top, where views stretch for many miles.
Blackpool Winter Gardens
Blackpool Winter Gardens is listed as a Grade II* building. Its venues include the glass-roofed Floral Hall, which is a place to stroll. The complex also has an indoor and an outdoor ice rink, as well as the Pavilion Hall for special events. The two ice rinks offer different settings for skating: one indoors and one outdoors. It also has its own connection to dance history: the first Blackpool Dance Festival was held during Easter week in 1920 in the Empress Ballroom at Winter Gardens.
Guided tours of the venue are available. If you would like to include a tour in your visit, check the dates in advance.
Hands-on experiences at Showtown
Showtown explores different aspects of the world of performance through hands-on experiences. These include Punch and Judy, magic tricks and circus skills, as well as dressing up and producing a show. Visitors can also switch on the Illuminations and try the Blackpool Way dance. If you are especially interested in how a performance is created, you can also produce a show yourself here.
Natural spaces, park and zoo
Stanley Park is open every day of the year from sunrise to sunset. Marton Mere Nature Reserve offers opportunities for quiet recreation and environmental education. It is recognised as a Site of Special Scientific Interest because of its bird population. This gives visitors a choice between two different nature experiences in Blackpool: a daily visit to the park and a nature reserve recognised for its birdlife.
Blackpool Zoo cares for more than 1,000 animals, including Asian elephants, gorillas, orangutans, lions, tigers, penguins, giraffes and sea lions. The zoo is primarily an outdoor attraction and covers around 37 acres of flat parkland, most of which is devoted to the habitats of exotic animals. The zoo is accessible by car; the drive takes ten minutes from the M55 or Blackpool town centre. Public buses run to the zoo during the season. Check the timetable before your visit. Animal encounters can be booked; if an encounter is important to you, check availability in advance.
Discover more destinations: Bispham.
Go to the main travel overview: Blackpool.
