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My 100th cred in 'Great' Yarmouth

vaugc002

Mega Poster
A quick one - a visit to Great Yarmouth and six creds ticked off. Including my 100th! I've been on this forum 11 or 12 years so at this rate I'll hit my 200th in 2032. Back in February I visited Blackpool's Pleasure Beach and just missed my 100th due to the Big One's closure because of high wind, so it seemed apt to be reaching the milestone at another pleasure beach in this post-Covid world.

Parks visited: Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach and Joyland

Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach

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Arrived at the Pleasure Beach first, having booked online. Currently they're offering a 3hr session of unlimited rides for £12 which is a decent price albeit a short time period. The park was supposedly restricted to a limited number of visitors but I'd say it felt decidedly busy.

First ride was the imposing 'Roller Coaster'. It's the main reason for visiting personally (a notable 100th cred), and is one of only a handful of brakeman-operated coasters in the world. I loved the one at Tivoli, wasn't so keen on the one at Wiener Prater, but this one looked impressive. The design of this ride is fantastic and feels like it should be in BPB instead - it's large and well-decorated, looming over the rest of the park.

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The ride seating was being restricted due to COVID so half as many riders could ride each go. The ride is pretty much what I expected - shallow but fast drops, slow scenic turns, juddering segments through the structure. It was surprisingly rough at times (I don't mind that though). Think it would be better fully-loaded but it was a fun ride - long, with great views and an impressive feeling of speed.

Next up was the Family Star - the first Fabbri spinner I'd seen (although I understand these off the shelf models are kinda common).
I thought it looked fun but the ride experience was bland, jolty and not memorable in the slightest.

The other two creds here are generic too - an SBF Visa spinner (always a punchy little ride)

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and a Crazy Caterpillar with the apple still intact. The park also had a few heritage rides - think Blackpool Pleasure Beach but on a smaller budget (amusing to me because the entire town had a vibe akin to a baby Blackpool). There's a nice monorail that has some amazing interaction with the Roller Coaster,

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a classic ghost train with some gravity drops that would get Duane frothing, and a Snails type ride that has a surprisingly dark interior section beneath the Roller Coaster. Also of note is the Log Flume - an industrial monstrosity that's certainly impressive, with three drops standing over a vast salt water lagoon. The water in the trough was salty too (thumbs down).

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Sadly the park's new ride wasn't open for their opening in true British amusement park style so i cleared up a few flat rides and left for Joyland further along the beachfront.

Joyland

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This place is really surreal. It's a tiny vintage park set beside the rundown pier, all located within an impressively-themed toy mountain. The park was operating a one-way system around the layout which worked fine for me. Every ride is the same cost - one £1.50 token. An excellent system.

Two creds here among a few interesting older rides: the mini Virginia Reel (Tyrolean Tub Twist) and the Spook Express - a custom twin helix coaster built into the 'mountain'.

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The twist was laughably bad to be honest, with a bizzare controlling powered descent that spun the car without any sense of freedom. It would jolt horribly and change spin direction in an instant, throwing me around like anything. A laugh but not a ride I'd rush to return to. Spook Express however was a little gem, with a fast curved lift hill, two intense helices and amazing theming. Of note also are the Snails - a coaster- style ride with gravity dips that surely coasts more than the Tyrolean Tub Twist but doesn't get the credit on rcdb. I'm sure there's a technical reason behind it but for me, either both are coasters or neither should be counted :p

Two unique parks, in one Blackpool-esque destination. If you like mini golf, arcades, seafront amusements then the Golden Mile of Great Yarmouth will impress. I enjoyed the place but then I thought Blackpool had an amusingly old school charm so make up your judgement based on that!

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Nicky Borrill

Strata Poster
I like Yarmouth, we used to take family breaks at Vauxhall Park at Easter... Though I think the only creds you’ve mentioned there that I’ve done is Rollercoaster and the apple... Must head down!
 

gavin

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Social Media Team
The Joyland snails used to be listed on RCDB, and I think they still are on coaster-count (though that's not saying much based on some other stuff they list).

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caffeine_demon

Strata Poster
"Sadly the park's new ride wasn't open for their opening in true British amusement park style so i cleared up a few flat rides and left for Joyland further along the beachfront."

It was open on the saturday morning! crap tho!
 
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