There's more to the South End Than The B

Southend-On-Sea

Essex, England South East



Review added: 28/01/2006 18:29
By: sandemp (£0.00 earned from reviews) Earn £££'s

"I've been trying to decide whether to approach this review from the perspective of a tourist or resident (having been both at some point in my life) and then I thought I'd just tell you that for the first ten years of my life, I only ever visited Southend as a day-tripper. I then lived on the outskirts of the town for the next eleven years, and have now spent twelve years again as a day-tripper. (Just realised that you could work out how old I am now). So I'm going to approach this as a day-tripper, who has a slightly more intimate knowledge of the non-tourist side of the town, and perhaps knows of some of those hidden treasures that are off the beaten path. (I'm deliberately not adding entrance prices as they seem to change yearly which would mean that this review would quickly become outdated and therefore less useful)

---The History Of The Town---

Right lets start with a little bit about the history of Southend (as I was taught at school), as many of the places I'm going to recommend to you are part of this history (if slightly hidden from the "tourists").

Although Southend is now quite a large town, this is actually something of a new thing. For most of it's history, it was a small fishing village at the South End of Prittlewell (any guesses where it got it's name from), and I suppose that's how things may have continued, except for the sudden popularity of "taking the waters" and the belief that having a dip in the sea (what sea?) was good for the health that appeared during the period of history we now call the Regency. It was at this time that the Prince Regent decided that his wife (Princess Caroline) might enjoy spending time at the closest beach to London and sent her to stay in what is now known as Royal Terrace (a woefully neglected area near the front).

With Royal patronage, came money and soon that village became a thriving seaside town, and by Victorian times, it was a popular resort, and all the trappings of tourism started to appear. Now many of the original buildings are hidden (by gaudy amusement arcades) or converted, but if you look hard enough you might find a treasure that helps to tell of the town's history.

---Travel Links---

Now if you're going to be visiting Southend on a day trip, you will want to know how to get there. And travel links are pretty good, there are two train-lines that serve the town (both from London). If you're making your way to the sea-front the Fenchurch Street line would probably be the easiest, but you can also catch a train from Victoria which takes you to just outside the High Street. If you prefer to travel by bus, I would say think again, although there are buses to London and the surrounding areas, they are very infrequent, with a large restriction on the time you would need to return home.

Getting to Southend by car, is fairly simple, just take the A13 or A127 off the M25, although there is a reasonable amount of parking available I can't actually comment on the costs, as I don't actually own such a thing as a car.

---The Beach---

Now, I guess this is what you go to the seaside for, to sit on the beach and paddle in the sea. But, I'm going to let you in on a little secret, Southend is not a "seaside" resort at all. Rather it is an estuary-side resort, albeit one that is tidal with a little bit of sand. I wouldn't describe the beaches as all that wonderful either, although they are cleaner now than they were when I was a child, they seem to be made up of stripes of different material. There is a smallish amount of sand nearest the land, that is fairly good for making sandcastles with, then there are quite a few pebbles, and after that there are miles of mud. As a child it was a big adventure to go out onto the mud flats, but it's something I really wouldn't advise as the tide does turn quite quickly. Although it always fascinated me, to watch the anglers going out to catch worms for baiting their lines.

If you plan to simply spend your time on the beach (I use that in the loosest possible sense of the word), I would suggest that you take a short walk in either direction from the main front. Not only are these beaches quieter, but from personal experience they are cleaner and sandier too. If you have children in tow who would quite like to paddle, then head towards Westcliff, where one of Southend's little secrets hides. Here you will find paddling pools that are re-filled by each tide, the water is not too deep, and although I would still suggest that the little 'uns wear jelly shoes (to protect their little feet from glass/sharp stones), great fun can be had, either pretending they're swimming in the sea or simply crabbing. For the older generation, a more peaceful time can be had (away from the noise of the arcades) by taking a short walk in the opposite direction towards, Thorpe Bay and Shoeburyness, both of which offer quieter places to sit and relax.

---The Seafront Attractions---

Not surprisingly most people don't actually go to Southend for the beach, but rather for the other attractions that can be found on the seafront. There are of course plenty of amusement arcades, some of which are huge and fancy (and the first to be noticed), but if you make your way a little further along the front, you'll find some smaller arcades a few of which have some traditional amusements in them. I've personally always preferred the smaller ones, where the staff are very friendly and will even join you in a game of table football.

One of Southend's most famous attractions is the pier, which happens to be the longest pleasure pier in the world, at 1.34 miles long. Although I've always enjoyed the walk along the pier, and even taking a ride on the train.

For the thrill seekers among Southend's visitors, the place to go would be Adventure Island. This amusement park has been operating for as long as I can remember (well even longer than that, and has actually been going since Victorian times). In recent years, the park has been given a new lease of life and there are rides for young and old, the adventurous and the not so adventurous. If you do visit, take a look at the crooked house, which hasn't changed since I was a child and stands as a memorial to the floods of 1953 (there is a mark on the side of the building which shows the level the water reached). Another little bit of history to be found here, is the replica of The Golden Hind, which is another memory of my childhood visits, where my sister and I would be horrified and thrilled by the torture chamber.

A more peaceful attraction is The Sealife Centre, which is situated a little further down the front. I must say here though, that on my one and only visit, I found this very disappointing and poor value for money. Only visit here if you (or your family) have a fascination with sealife. Virtually opposite the Sealife Centre, you will find The Kursall, which is sadly no longer the amusement arcade (with shooting galleries) of my childhood, but now houses among other things a bowling alley. Still worth a visit though, if only for the unusual design of the building.

---Yearly Events On The Front---

There are two main events that take place every year on the front, the first of which is the Airshow, which occurs during the May Bank Holiday weekend. I used to love watching the planes take off from the airport for this, but found the actual front was always far to crowded for my own tastes (and so avoided it like the plague). The second event is the carnival (which normally takes place in August) and culminates in the switching on of the illuminations. This is a great event to both watch and take part in, especially the night time procession, and is again a huge crowd raiser, with the whole of the seafront taking on a party air.

---Attractions away from the front---

If you're prepared to move a little away from the front there are plenty of other attractions to suit all tastes. There are a couple of large parks, one being Chalkwell, but my favourite is Priory Park. This is situated on Victoria avenue (on the lead into the town proper) and as well as a children's playground, plenty of open spaces for games of football there is the Priory museum, in which I have often an hour wandering around admiring the exhibits.

Two minutes walk from the park you will find Southend Museum and Planetarium. While I've never actually gone into the planetarium, I have often browsed the museum. Don't get me wrong, this is nothing on the scale of the London museums, but the exhibits do give an interesting insight into the history of the area. Next door to the museum is the library, a lovely building where I spent many hours reading, or browsing the special exhibits (normally of art). While we're talking of the arts, there are a couple of other places that are worth a visit (if you have time), one is the Beecroft Gallery in Station Road Westcliff, which offers free entry (and where some of my Art GCSE work was displayed many moons ago). And while you're in the Westcliff area why not see if you can catch a play at the Palace Theatre before it closes it doors at the end of October, I bet you didn't realise that Southend was so cultured did you?

If it's historical buildings that take your fancy, then might I suggest you take a short bus journey away from the main town, and visit some churches that date back to the time of the Norman conquest. St Mary's church, Prittlewell (next to Priory Park) and her sister church of St Laurence and All Saints, Eastwood (near to Southend airport) are both wonderful examples architecture from this time. If it's something a little more modern you're looking for, then a trip to Old Leigh is well worth the effort, or even a trip into some of the few remaining areas of farmland where you can still find examples of "pill-boxes" dating back to the second world war.

There is even something in Southend for plane-spotters (like train-spotters but they like planes). Situated close to the Southend/Rayleigh border you will find Southend airport, many's the happy hour that this plane enthusiast stood watching the small planes landing and taking off. But the very best time to watch the planes is during the airshow, I lived half a mile from the airport, and swear I got to see a better display than anyone on the seafront.

---Staying In Southend---

Now I've whetted your appetite at just how much there actually is to do in Southend, perhaps you want to know where you could stay. Well sadly, I've never needed to stay any hotels in the area (either I or relatives have always lived there), but (from a project I did at college) I know there are a great variety of hotels, ranging from simple bread and breakfasts, to Travel Inns to "posher" hotels. You'd probably be better off visiting the tourist information website (www.visitbritain.com) to get details of the various hotels in the area.

---Eating In Southend---

There is no shortage of places to eat in Southend either. From fast food, to fish and chips, to Italian to Mexican you name it and you'll be able to find it. You can even eat in the same pie and mash shop as Mark and Pauline Fowler (from Eastenders), which is quite close to the seafront.

---Shopping---

Being a large town, Southend has it's fair share of major High Street shops and supermarkets. But along the seafront you will also find the touristy shops, that sell the kind of tat that seaside resorts are famous for, you know the kind of things, kiss-me-quick hats, ornaments made of shells, postcards and of course sticks of rock. As a former resident, I have rarely bought anything from these shops, or even passed through the doors all that often, but I would imagine that prices are on a par with other resorts.

---Night Life---

Southend has a fairly good night-life (or it did when I was 18), there are several clubs on the seafront itself (entrances are at the back in Lucy Road), as well as one on Aviation Way (near the airport) but I not going to name them, as they seem to change their names almost as often as I change my socks. One in particular has in it's time been known as Talk Of The South, TOTS, TOTS 2000 and I believe is now known as Talk. These clubs were always the place to be, especially on a Tuesday or Thursday, which where then known as Party nights (you can imagine how many excuses we could make up for parties when there were free tickets involved), although I'm not sure they still hold these events. (I've just checked and yes they do still hold the free nights at Talk).

If you've got children, I wouldn't really advise using the seafront on a Friday or Saturday night. You see for time immemorial, these have been the domain of the cruisers, and although traffic calming measures have been put in place, the cars do still tend to travel quite fast up and down the seafront, and there are plenty of young girls out to flirt (not that I've got anything against them, after all I was their age once). Another place to avoid at night (unless you're that way inclined) is the town's very own red-light district which is York Road (quite close to the front).

---Conclusion---

I hope I've given you an idea of the treasures (both apparent and hidden) that the South End of Prittlewell holds. It is a town that I at turns both love and loathe, that has a garish tourist side, and then behind that there are more quiet pursuits if only you know where to find them. Within the town's confines you will find activities to suit all ages and tastes, from the amusement arcades and Adventure Island for the young who are in search of thrills, to art galleries, theatres and historical buildings for those of a more quiet disposition. So am I recommending that you visit the town I called home for so long, well yes, but don't think that the seafront is all there is to Southend, why not have a look at some of the other places I've told you about."

Comments

My fathers family the Burvilles lived at 97 York road for many years , my father Norman recalls how his brother and him saw a zeplin ship. I think 97 is no more, but wow what an improvement its now a red light district they even pulled down the ancient church my parents were married in St Erkenwalds

Funny that Cliffs Pavillion wasn't mentioned but very good and honest review of Southend. I live in Thorpe Bay so know the area well. I have to recommend the newly refurbished Roslin Hotel on the seafront in Thorpe Bay, excellent, stylish, contempory hotel, a world away from what it was before - chintzy and old fasioned.

There is also a smallish village, Rochford, with the rochford hundred golf course. Also some rather old Pubs with excellent food. Easy way ? Number 7 Bus to market square. Grew up and went to school and college there, less than 200yds from airport on wells avenue.