All aboard for a trip down memory line
FEEL like a trip down memory lane this summer? You don’t have to travel far to recapture the magic of the past. Across England, yesteryear is alive and well, says KATIE ROWE. You can hop back in time to the 1920s or relive some of your favourite childhood memories.
DREAMLAND, MARGATE
YOU’LL be whizzed back several decades as you’re greeted by the clinks and flashes of 1960s pinball machines on your way to Dreamland’s wonderfully retro fairground. Zoom through the air on the 1950s Hurricane jet ride, give your friend the bumps in a vintage dodgem as classic hits burst from the surrounding speakers, and lace up your skates for the neon-soaked roller disco, making sure you stop off for a slice of pizza and a glass of prosecco in between. Don’t leave without buckling up for the Scenic Railway, the UK’s oldest surviving rollercoaster.
DARTMOUTH STEAM RAILWAY COMPANY
LOAD your bag with jam sandwiches and book yourself on a Round Robin trip with the Dartmouth Steam Railway Company, a trip that also includes travel by river boat and bus. Your day-long adventure begins at Paignton and takes you through the idyllic harbour towns of Dartmouth and Kingswear, allowing you to soak up the glorious nooks and crannies of the South. Whether you’re six or 60, there’s nothing like chugging along the coastline with views of rolling hills and pristine sandy beaches glimpsed through wooden window frames.
VINTAGE BY THE SEA, MORECAMBE
DROP off your bags at one of the finest Art Deco hotels in the country. Curving along Morecambe’s seafront like a handsome ship, the Midland Hotel has seen visits from Coco Chanel, Sir Laurence Olivier and Noel Coward and has been lovingly restored with 21st Century touches. The Sun Terrace restaurant brings the beach into the dining room with its floor-to-ceiling windows, and the Rotunda bar is a striking spot for pre-dinner drinks.
On September 3 and 4, Vintage By The Sea sets up camp both in the hotel and also in venues across Morecambe. There will be a vintage and classic car rally and an RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight flypast, plus plenty of vintage and retro-themed shenanigans, including a soul and funk party in a magnificent Edwardian railway station and a huge market showcasing the best vintage and antiques traders in the UK.
JUBILEE POOL, CORNWALL
TAKE a dip in Britain’s largest surviving seawater lido, measuring 330ft by 240ft and one of only a few remaining 1930s lidos in the country. Cornwall’s much-loved Jubilee Pool opened in 1935 to mark the Silver Jubilee of George V and has recently undergone a renovation. This sweeping Art Deco masterpiece curves along the Penzance seafront, meaning you’ll be able to lap up views of the glittering blue sea as well as St Michael’s Mount and the harbour village of Newlyn in the distance while you bathe in refreshing Cornish seawater. Afterwards, be sure to pop into Penzance’s many historic pubs. Sup a pint of beer at the Turks Head on Chapel Street just as pirates and smugglers once did, then head a few doors down to the Admiral Benbow, an eccentric local festooned with artefacts from numerous shipwrecks.