In the nineteenth century, the fishing town of Cleethorpes on the Humber Estuary was changed into a resort for holidaymakers. This was especially for the travellers travelling via train from Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. There are heaps of the things that pulled in Victorian visitors to Cleethorpes. With the likes of the large seashore, dock, sailing lake, promenade and string of well-maintained seafront gardens, this is a must-visit place. During a summer’s day, Cleethorpes means snorkelling in the sun, enjoying a game of wild golf and indulging in fish and chips and ice cream.

The miniature version of the railway is truly outstanding in the nation. It goes back to 1948, while the town of Grimsby was directly nearby and at one time was the world’s biggest fishing port. Let’s take a look at the list of 12 best things to do in Cleethorpes.

12 Best things to do in Cleethorpes

Cleethorpes Beach
Cleethorpes Coast Light Railway
Grimsby
Cleethorpes Pier Gardens
Cleethorpes Boating Lake
Discovery Centre
Jungle Zoo
Cleethorpes Country Park
Greenwich Meridian Line
Waltham Windmill
Tetney Marshes
Armed Forces Day Parades

1. Cleethorpes Beach

Cleethorpes’ seafront is one long golden sandy beach, hemmed by a promenade, gardens and amusements. It also has places to grab an ice cream or a cup of tea. The beach is on a very shallow slope and has a hug intertidal zone. Low tide reveals a vast amount of mud, with the stumps of a forest that grew here 4,000 years ago. During school summer holidays, the beach will fill up easily, particularly around the pier. Yet for a more quiet patch, you don’t have to travel far south. In addition, there is a wide range of tourist spots within a few strides of the shore.

2. Cleethorpes Coast Light Railway

A miniature train on the seashore in Cleethorpes has an innocent beauty. The railway had just recently marked its 70th birthday and offers 45-minute return journeys every day from March to September, halting at three stations. You have to sit on a 12 steam or diesel locomotives. The oldest of this lot was built in 1933.

3. Grimsby

When you’re so close there’s no reason not to fly over to the customary fishing port of Grimsby. In spite of the fact that the fishing business in Grimsby has been downsized since the Cod Wars with Iceland in the mid-twentieth century, it stays a key part of the neighbourhood economy and is in the town’s spirit. Grimsby’s largest milestone is the 61-meter Dock Tower that was built in 1852.

The Renaissance-style exterior, shaped like the Palazzo Pubblico in Siena, concealed a big supply to provide water pressure to the dock machines. Many items of industrial history include the Corporation Bridge, the Grimsby Ice Factory and the colossal Victoria Mill. The Grimsby Fishing Heritage Center tells the tale of the remote fishing ship and has a 20th-century trawler, the Ross Tiger, which you can see.

4. Cleethorpes Pier Gardens

Recreating the main Promenade next to Cleethorpes Shore, Pier Gardens is the kind of neatly kept foreshore area that is the cornerstone of English coastal resorts. There’s an ornamental waterfall in the middle, and just behind this, there’s a golf course and a green area. You’ll be tempted to have a clear glimpse of the Humber Estuary all the way and Ross Castle, which we’ll discuss later.

Also read: Explore the beauty of Hyde Park in Central London

5. Cleethorpes Boating Lake

Boating Lake is situated at the south end of the resort ‘s coastline, a holdover from the Victorian era. In addition, there are two lakes connected by a narrow canal. There is an illuminated waterfall in the middle and the water is covered in greenery. The council also set up a forest walk next to the river, with copper beech, sycamore, Lombardy-poplar, Corsican oak, Monterrey oak, fruit trees and a number of other plants.

Also read: Hop around London with exciting boat trips

6. Discovery Centre

Cleethorpes Exploration Center is situated on the banks of the Boating Lake to get in contact with local history. Across two levels, the Public Gallery and the Exhibition Gallery hosted temporary exhibits on the past of the area, as well as short-term shows for local and regional artists. The Observatory of Humber at the Discovery Centre provides a far-reaching view of the UK ‘s busiest estuary and an immersive map of real-time marine movements.

7. Jungle Zoo

The Jungle Zoo includes ring-tailed lemurs, capuchin monkeys, meerkats, pygmy goats, Kune Kune pigs and a number of birds such as barn owls, Amazon parrots and macaws. Reptile species such as chameleons, Burma python, softshell turtle and a number of frogs are found in terrariums. Every day the Jungle Zoo has a schedule of feeding sessions, conversations and demonstrations which will be an interesting experience to witness.

8. Cleethorpes Country Park

It might come as a shock, but there’s a big band in the countryside just off the shores of Cleethorpes, behind the city’s golf course. It used to be free fields until 1988 when a seven-acre lake had been unearthed in the centre. You can enter these 153 acres for 364 days a year to explore through the woods and grassland surrounding the lake.

If you’re travelling in winter and enjoy the birdlife, the lake is a good spot for overwintering waders at high tide. Skylarks, readily recognized by their red crown, visit the grasslands in spring and summer. The lake is appropriate for fishing, boating and pond diving, and there is also a specific place for dogs to swim.

9. Greenwich Meridian Line

Cleethorpes is at 0 ° Longitude on the Prime Meridian, and the railway travels through the town on the way to the Humber Estuary. The signpost along the route provides instructions and distances to certain points across the world, fairly close to London 143 miles north, and others a little farther south, including New York (3,418 miles) and the South Pole (9,919 miles).

10. Waltham Windmill

You could enjoy half a day out in the lush fields of Lincolnshire at this mill not far from Grimsby. There have been a variety of windmills at this location since 1666, and the present high-rise building goes back to 1878. The mill was operated by wind until 1963 and was last rebuilt in 2013.

Six of its sails and caps are in place, and the mill continues to grind flour from time to time. There are a number of small but amusing attractions in the grounds, such as a miniature railroad, a café in the former Great Northern Railway. In addition, there is a museum about country life in Lincolnshire and a museum solely dedicated to telephones.

Also Read: London’s Best Museums: Museums in London, England

11. Tetney Marshes

Travel down the road, just past Thorpe Park Holiday, then you’ll be in one of the most popular wilderness areas on the Humber Estuary. There are up to 30,000 waders on the Tetney Marshes in September and October. Among the sanderlings, the ringed plovers, the famous sandpipers, the curlews, the godwits and the redshanks, you may see certain unusual features not always seen on these coasts, such as the American white-haired sandpiper.

12. Armed Forces Day Parades

On the very last weekend of June, the Cleethorpes waterfront stages a parade. Along with living music by military bands, you will see memorial ceremonies, fireworks, air shows and markets to celebrate Armed Forces Day. There was an extended facility to celebrate the centenary of the Royal Air Force in 2018 as well.

The aerobatic unit of the RAF, the Red Arrows, is located not far away from the RAF Scampton. And every year, its flight showcase is a main attraction of the event. You’ll see the likes of Spitfires, Dakota, Catalina and BAC Strikemaster in the sky around the area.

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