Amongst other things Blackpool is famed for, it’s famed for its pubs and pub crawls! Blackpool has a massive variety, from your posh bars serving cocktails …..and clientele looking just as posh, through to your typical ‘spit and sawdust’ type bars frequented from first opening in the morning through to kicking out time at night, by those looking for familiar faces….. and a cheap pint. (although we don’t have a ‘Cheers’ bar I’m afraid, we do have some where you may feel so welcome, it’s like you know everyone…. and err…. some where you don’t 😉 )
In this BLOG we’re going to follow a walking route taking in a variety of pubs located across South Shore, trying to have a bit of a bias for those just off the promenade to give you venues popular with tourists and locals alike and ones you might not have encountered before if you’ve just been on a lad / ladies weekend in the town ..…… though if you’re on a pub run, you might not be totally fussy so we’ve not set any hard and fast rules to avoid such places.
So join us as we start with a pub where we contradict ourselves instantly, by either watching our YouTube linked below (don’t forget to subscribe etc etc) or for ‘deeper’ thoughts from us read on as we start with a really popular promenade pub …………the ‘Velvet Coaster’……………….
1. The Velvet Coaster – Blackpool Prom.
As mentioned, the Velvet Coaster is a Wetherspoons pub located on the promenade. It’s an ideal location to start a pub crawl and that’s why we’ve chosen it, it’s big enough to accommodate reasonable sized groups, it’s easy to find being beside the Pleasure Beach and opposite South Pier, it has cheap drinks whilst you’re awaiting any party members turning up (you always have one that takes an age to get changed or gets lost on the way don’t you?) and you can get some reasonable, cheap food if you want to line your stomach before heading ‘out out’.
Don’t let the old adage about Wetherspoons put you off…….. ‘if you’ve been in one, you’ve been in them all’ , as that doesn’t really hold with this one. Sure, same menu, same drinks however this is a fairly new building and is different than most stereo-typical Wethers you’d think of (sorry, we don’t mean the toilets are on the ground floor and you don’t have to traipse miles to them ….…. they’re not, they’re on the first).
The Velvet Coaster hosts three floors, ground floor has outside seating, real fires and a big seating area plus an open plan kitchen! ….however it’s the second and third floors that really sell this place…. first floor hosts a balcony overlooking the prom, great for couples people watching, listening to screams from the pleasure beach or watching a romantic sunset (not just for couples those activities of course). Second floor has a roof terrace with yet more seating to be able to soak up some rays (yes, it is sunny in Blackpool sometimes!!) though to be fair, there is an indoor part and a covered outdoor part on this floor too.
Tbh, if you get to the Velvet Coaster and get a seat on a sunny day on the balcony……. you’d be easily forgiven for not moving for the rest of the day, truly an excellent addition to the promenade (though we were gutted to loose a highlight of the illuminations and backdrop to a Robbie Williams video – the Lucky Star!) however, we must move on…… from the Velvet Coaster, we move onto the next pub ……. The ‘Last Resort’.
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