What to See & Do in Fleetwood
Sights Tram Sunday is a popular event in July of every year, drawing visitors and participants from all over the UK, and featuring trams, buses, coaches, cars, and even tanks. Fleetwood has been the location for the Fylde Folk Festival since the early 1980s. The Festival features many national and international acts, encompassing not only music, but also poetry and the Lancashire dialect. The Fleetwood Museum, traces the nautical and maritime history of Fleetwood. The seafront Leisure Centre offers a wide range of activity sports and beside it is an indoor swimming pool, with an outdoor pool open in summer, with a free kiddies’ paddling pool nearby. The town also has a Crown Green for Bowling at the Marine Gardens. The foreshore offers a 9-hole golf course, a Crazy Golf Green, and the Fleetwood Golf Course is available for the more serious golfer. Claims to fame: Fleetwood was the first Victorian planned town. Fleetwood has three lighthouses. Two are actually in the town, and the third was the first of its kind to be built in Britain. Fleetwood is believed to be the location of the lost Roman port, Portus Setantorium. Fleetwood is renowned worldwide for its tram system. In 1885 it was the first tramway to be electrified in Britain, and until recently it was the only UK town where trams ran along the main street. On 15 July 1922, the UK’s first automatic telephone exchange began service in Fleetwood. Wilfred Owen, the famous War poet, lived in Fleetwood in 1916, when he was 23. He stayed at 111, Bold Street, whilst commanding the Gunnery Range in Fleetwood (where Fleetwood Golf Club now stands), as a Second Lieutenant in the Manchester Regiment. A display about Wilfred Owen can be found in the main bar of the North Euston Hotel. John Lennon spent his childhood holidays in Fleetwood, returning there on 25 August 1962 when the Beatles played at the Marine Hall. Fleetwood is the only place outside the United States where a Confederate Navy Officer (Commander Arthur Sinclair) was buried after dying on active service. Fleetwood held its own Aviation Week from 18-23 October 1909 - the second of its kind to be held in Britain. Transport: To reach Fleetwood by road take the Junction 32 (M6), then Junction 3 (M55), and then the A585. Many people arrive in Fleetwood after taking the train to Blackpool and then the bus or tram. Accommodation: During the summer season many holiday makers choose to stay in Fleetwood as a cheaper and less congested alternative to Blackpool. There are many guest houses in Fleetwood, though in season it’s best to book in advance. Back To Fleetwood
