27-07-2025
We tried the new 'Big Ben' ride at Skegness - It's good but not worth the £10 ticket
Skegness is famous for many things, from its beach and donkey rides to endless arcades and its lively atmosphere, but arguably one of the best well known parts of the town is the amusement park right on the seafront. Skegness Pleasure Beach has a huge range of rides and rollercoasters for the whole family to enjoy.
Located off Grand Parade, the site is a must visit stop for most tourists in the town, and it has recently had its Jurassic Resurrection ride nominated for best new attraction in the 2025 UK Theme Park Awards after it opened in May. However, this is still not the newest attraction at the park, with its 'Big Ben' ride officially opening on Thursday, July 3.
It is 262 feet tall and has already become an iconic part of the Skegness skyline as it can be seen from across the town. We decided to try out the new tower, which is a star flyer style ride with seats that swing out above the town.
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Thanks to its gigantic height, the tower was super easy to find and despite visiting on a Friday there was no queue when I got there, just three people already sat on the ride waiting. Whilst some rides cost tokens at the site, this ride is £10 per ticket, which I thought was a bit of a hefty price tag, but surely this meant it would be a great ride.
After getting buckled and strapped in I re-evaluated why I thought wearing a long sundress would be a good idea, and then it was not long before the music changed and we were all slowly lifted into the sky. It didn't take too long to get to the top although it felt as if we would never get there as we kept getting lifted higher and higher, with the seats gradually turning quicker.
The wind picked up pretty quickly so I was pleased that I had my sunglasses safe in my bag, and the views of Skegness were absolutely amazing, although the novelty wore off after a few spins around. It was great fun and I cannot get over how breath-taking the views were.
Although I was also clinging onto the bar as it was so windy and because I was sat alone in my chair it was pushing me around a bit more than the seats of two. The ride started to slowly descend and I managed to take a couple of photos of the view around two thirds up, and then it started speeding up again for a second run before returning to the ground.
It was fun and the views were great, but the whole experience lasted less than five minutes and it's the sort of thing someone might do once but probably not again, especially with it being £10 per person per time. At the end of the day, it was essentially a chair being swirled around high up, whereas at least with a rollercoaster you have some unexpected twists and turns.
