Cleethorpes: A Deserted Beach

~ beetleypete

(All photos can be enlarged by clicking on them)

A trip north to the once genteel resort of Cleethorpes delivered something of a shock. Despite being end of season, the town was absolutely packed with tourists, and it took a very long time to find a car-parking space.

Dogs were not allowed on the beach until the end of the month, so we had to walk along the busy promenade with Ollie. Although the streets were full of people, the beach was almost deserted.

In the distance, I spotted what was left of some wartime fortifications.

The pier that once served as an elegant entertainment venue is now just a gigantic fish and chip shop.

It was a sunny and warm day, and we were able to find a good place for a delicious lunch later.

56 thoughts on “Cleethorpes: A Deserted Beach”

  6. In the fifties,we holidayed in Cleethorpes evey year, staying with my aunt, uncle, and older cousin who lived there.
    I remember the smell of the hot tarmac in the coach park when we walked through it to the beach. (Hot? Cleethorpes?) I remember crabs crawling around the neighbour’s garden; the footpath and wall at the end of the garden and the smell of the gasworks behind the wall; the Rayburn in the back room and sharing a bed with my cousin; walking up the road to get fish and chips.
    I remember the carousel on the beach and the donkeys and the sand – real, soft sand – the entertainments arcade on the promenade; the clock and the crazy golf and the swimming pool further along the beach. Every year I mourned when we left to go home.
    I went back as an adult (just) in the seventies. The arcade was seedy and the lido was tired. The carousel was still there but silent on the day we visited. I’ve not been back since.

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  7. As far as I recall I never saw the sea from the beach in Cleethorpes, the tide goes out a looooong way! And that sand can be quite squelchy too like at Skeggy, so you sink rather than walk. Maybe the folk visiting were aware of that! Used to have a nice crazy golf place on the seafront 🙂

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  8. Lets they have fun. As i had read UK citizens for vacancy are most time on beaches around the world. This in the past sounded very curios for me, because you are living on aisles. 😉 Michael
    Honestly i understand there are less beaches in the UK with white sand.

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  10. Pete, Santa Monica’s iconic pier has the same sort of giant pavilion at the end; unfortunately, it’s now just a low-rent restaurant serving mediocre food for tourists…sadly all too common here in the US…there is also a Bubba Gump’s restaurant on the pier…that says it all

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  11. Great photos, Pete. It’s a bit late in the season, but you’re right, things are pretty weird this year. I am with Ollie about walking on the sand. I know it’s good but I hate finding sand all over later (and a lot of the beaches here are very fine sand). Stay well.

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  12. Photo #1: Three adults and one child discussing whether to thumb a ride on that Danish ship (DFDS stands for Det Forenede Dampskibs-Selskab). The child wonders if they serve pastry for breakfast, and if she’d get a chance to meet the little mermaid.
    Photo #2: Those old wartime fortifications have become the secret base of operation for a small group of intellectual apes who plan to take over the world.
    Photo #3: The restaurant on the pier only serves fish that are of an elegant species. As for the “chips” (French fries), they are made from special potatoes imported from Idaho. Each potato is inspected by many eyes before being approved for international shipment.

    Note: A lot of folks here live a short distance from the beach. The nearest oceanic beach to my home is in Santa Monica, California, which is 280 miles away. London Bridge Beach, located in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, is 154 miles away. Beaches are great, but I’m a bit hesitant to get in the water. Steven Spielberg has convinced me that the ocean is full of great white sharks, and Alexandre Aja has convinced me that Lake Havasu is teeming with prehistoric piranhas.

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  19. That is a huge beach! I feel so lucky living only a 15-minute walk from lovely beaches as I do; I don’t visit every time I go out walking, but I do try to visit regularly, as it is so refreshing, both physically & spiritually. Cheers, Jon.

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    1. I have to drive for just 25 minutes to get to our nearest beach, which is at Wells-next-the-Sea. It is enormous though, and extends to Holkham and beyond. I only ever go there out of season, as the car parks are full until October.
      The beaches in Linclonshire are also huge, and it is easy to find a spot where you can be completely alone.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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    1. I only live 25 minutes from the beaches of North Norfolk, but avoid them during the tourist season as it can be impossible to park up there. It was nice to be staying so close to the beach in Sutton-On-Sea that I could see the promenade from the porch of the cabin. I have one more ‘deserted beach’ post to come.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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