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when you're alone and life is making you lonely... you can always go to Tramtown!

Trains, planes, boats we love them all and probably airships too but we haven't seen one of those yet! Watching them in action, learning about their history, getting up close and (not surprisingly!) photographing them!


Blackpool has a very special place in both our hearts as being true Northerners we grew up with the annual family trip to Blackpool Illuminations which passes down through the generations - we took our two for years and we have now reached the age where we go with the grandchildren and sit outside in -2C eating fish and chips (haven't recovered from that yet!).


And let's be honest who doesn't love the traditional Blackpool tram? Still travelling the 12 miles from Starr Gate to Fleetwood almost every day hugging the coastline and offering fantastic views of the beaches, piers, sea and the coastal towns the trams travel through. And don't forget those views as you pass Blackpool Tower and, from September to December each year, the journey through the illuminations, which have been a feature of the Blackpool 'golden mile' since 1879.


Blackpool has the oldest electric tramway in the UK and is the only one to have been continually in use for 137 years and still going strong! This is mostly due to the fact that the trams run along the prom so when cars first began to appear they posed no threat to passengers boarding the Blackpool trams. This was not the case in most major cities as the trams usually ran along the middle of very wide roads so when the cars began to travel at the side it became a hazardous activity to reach your tram and safely board!


So, some paragraphs later (there is a point!) long on our list of places to visit was Tramtown - the Blackpool Heritage Tram museum - and one wild, windy and wet Monday in March we finally paid it a visit (stopping for a few photos of the wild sea en route!)

The guided tour cost us a grand total of £10 - just £5 each (2023). An unbelievably cheap amount of money for such an amazing trip through the history of the Blackpool tram. Four extremely knowledgeable and enthusiastic guides took a group of us on a tour of the engineering workshops and the tram sheds full of trams in various stages of life - some still in use, some rusting away at the back and some which had been familiar sights in our childhoods, but thanks to health and safety rules are now relegated to the back of the sheds and will probably stay there forever. (Anyone remember the Rocket ship?)


The tram sheds are in a similar state of disrepair with a leaky roof and parts that are too dangerous for visitors, but there are big plans for a brand new museum. I do feel that we visited at just the right time. Whilst the buildings are clearly in need of renovation they feel authentic and historical and the whole experience of trudging through and round trams, avoiding puddles and oil leaks and clambering through what I'll loosely call 'exhibits' was just wonderful!


The stories and history passed on by the guides were fascinating - let's hope they keep the tours in the new museums plans. We even had the pleasure of the company of retired drivers and conductors all with more fascinating stories to tell. Did you know the trams can change the traffic lights as they travel ensuring they keep moving! No? Neither did we!


And the icing on the tram cake? We all got to sit in the iconic Wild West Tram, modelled on Casey Junior, which arrived in Blackpool in 1962 to huge crowds and queues to ride it. After restoration in 2007 it still travels the Blackpool tramway during the illuminations season. You can even still ride on it! For us? The pleasure and excitement is seeing it coming down the tramlines towards you. Wonderful!

This is the second time we have taken one of the Blackpool Heritage tours and we have loved both. We previously went on an equally fascinating tour of the Blackpool Lightworks - home of the illuminations when they are not shining on the prom! Next stop - Heritage tour of Blackpool Tower. They are such good quality tours full of interesting history and tales and so cheap!


Just before I go here's a confession for you...despite being a big tram fan I have actually only travelled on one once to get to the Pleasure Beach quickly. Must have been late for something! We both much prefer to watch them go past!


As well as tours of the tram depot, Blackpool Heritage run numerous tours on different trams throughout the year. Top of our list? The chippy tea tour! Have a look at their website for information on the tours and how to book.

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