Travel: Falling in love with Blackpool
The Scots’ long-standing love affair with Blackpool is a curious thing. Around 25 per cent of visitors each year to the perennially popular seaside resort are Scottish and the romance shows no sign of burning out.
In fact, it’s an infatuation that stretches all the way back to the 19th Century and the beginning of the Glasgow Fair Fortnight. This originally week-long holiday, later extended to two weeks, took place at the end of July and saw the city’s shipyards and factories closed down to allow their workforce some much-needed rest and relaxation.
At first, Glaswegians would use their time off to take a steamboat along the Ayrshire coast – the original “booze cruise” – but with the rapid expansion of the railways throughout the latter half of the 19th century, Blackpool became an affordable and amenable destination for thousands of Scots.
The Glasgow Fair’s east coast counterpart, the Edinburgh Trades fortnight merely increased demand even further. These institutions may be distant memories, but Blackpool has moved with the times and now effectively caters for contemporary holidaymakers.
A case in point is the ideally located Hampton by Hilton Hotel which lies on Blackpool’s South Shore directly on the promenade. Located only a ten-minute walk from Blackpool’s world-famous Pleasure Beach and Sandcastle Waterpark, it is also within two miles of Blackpool Tower, the Winter Gardens, Central Pier and Madame Tussaud’s.
Accessibility is key here, with a tram stop directly across from the hotel offering easy travel along the coast. The hotel management are also proud to offer accessible rooms with walk-in showers suitable for any guest. Parking with charging for electric vehicles is available if you want the flexibility of taking the car, and the hotel also offers some pet-friendly rooms so that you can take your best friend on holiday rather than have to face the stress of trying to find them alternative accommodation.
The bar and lounge area are open 24 hours a day, free wifi is available, and there is a meeting room and fitness centre, so if needed you’ll still be able to take care of business while enjoying a break.
The hotel offers a variety of rooms – some of them interconnected – and many look out to the Irish Sea.
The Scots’ well-established relationship with Blackpool may have historic roots but it is stylish, contemporary hotels like this that should see it endure.