It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately 27 miles (43 km) north of Liverpool and 14 miles (23 km) west of Preston. It is the main settlement in the borough of the same name.
Getting to Blackpool
Blackpool can be reached via the M55 from the M6, the UK's main motorway through the North West of England. Blackpool has many car parks available to visitors, several of which are very close the town's main attractions and promenade. Long distance buses don't run to Blackpool - change in Preston. Stagecoach Bus 61 runs hourly from Preston taking 75 min.
Worth seeing
- 01Blackpool Tower
A Victorian tribute-act to the Eiffel Tower, 518 ft (158 m) high, part of a big leisure complex.
- 02St Johns Anglican
Completed in 1878 in Early English style.
- 03North Pier
North Pier was opened in 1863 and is 550 yards (500 m) long.
- 04Central Pier
This opened in 1868 to target the day-tripper mass-market that North Pier didn't care for, so it was close to the (now vanished) Central Station and has always had more amusements.
- 05South Pier
When opened in 1893 it was called Victoria Pier.
- 06Blackpool Pleasure Beach
Things to do
What's on? Check local listings for forthcoming events in Blackpool. Blackpool Sands extend for miles. The area between North and Central Piers can get busy and trash-strewn in summer. Take a donkey ride, ironically if that helps (not Fridays; 50-kg rider weight limit).
Where to eat
"Chippies" are everywhere in Blackpool, but the quality varies enormously. The promenade is one enormous strip of fish & chips and other fast-food places.
Getting around Blackpool the local way
- Get inFerries no longer sail from nearby Fleetwood.
- Get inThe closest ferry routes are from Heysham near Morecambe to Douglas, Isle of Man, and from Liverpool to Dublin and Belfast.
From Wikivoyage: Blackpool, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-09.
Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Wikimedia Commons (see Commons), Wikimedia Commons.