‘I visited UK’s worst seaside town and made instant realisation in Butlin’s’ | Travel News | Travel

Bognor Regis has hit the headlines once again – for all the wrong reasons. Which? Magazine recently placed the resort bottom of its annual rundown of Britain’s finest and most disappointing coastal destinations for the second year in a row. But not everyone thinks the title is justified.

After their bottom-placed finish last year, YouTuber James Burton embarked on an ambitious 250-mile journey from his hometown of Barnsley to see it for himself, capturing the results on his well-followed By The Curb channel. Despite doing little in the way of preparation, he managed to arrive in Bognor on one of the hottest and sunniest days of the year and visited Butlins.

For straightforward, unpretentious entertainment, the Yorkshireman declared, Butlins was hard to surpass, and on its own demonstrated that the Which? verdict had been far too severe.

“Worst seaside town in the UK?” he asked, before adding: “Absolute waffle. It’s lovely. I’m not going to say it’s the best. But it is nice. Yet again, I’ve proved them all wrong, I just come here, walked around and proved them wrong.”

Which? polled more than 5,300 individuals about their experiences visiting UK coastal destinations over the past year to come to the brutal verdict about Bognor Regis. They canvassed their opinions across a range of factors including beach quality, scenery, food and drink, accommodation, tourist attractions, shopping and value for money.

Meanwhile, James’s enthusiastic reassessment of the much-criticised town was undoubtedly boosted by the glorious sunshine and near-cloudless skies overhead. He savoured a cold beer from a bar situated directly on the town’s pebble beach, observing: “It was just £4.90, which is not bad value really with that spectacular view.”

He also popped into one or two appealing chip shops.

Nevertheless, James believed that Butlins was the crown jewel of Bognor, which made history as the inaugural site in Billy Butlin’s renowned chain of holiday camps in 1960.

While the company’s fortunes have diminished considerably since its 1960s golden age, Butlins Resort Bognor Regis continues to accommodate over 385,000 visitors annually, with 300,000 staying as residents and 85,000 dropping in for the day.

James numbered among the day trippers, albeit unofficially, having wandered through with every intention of purchasing a ticket but turning up too late to find the gate staff, who seemed to have finished their shift.

He arrived in time to witness one of the company’s legendary redcoats guiding a crowd of thrilled youngsters through a spirited rendition of “Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes,” and proclaimed: “I’d have loved this as an eight-year-old.”

Living “life on the edge,” James also ventured into one of the resort’s many restaurants: “To be honest it looked a nice restaurant.

“I’ve never seen so many chicken nuggets though,” he remarked, “they must go through thousands of chicken nuggets.”

Despite encountering some challenges finding his exit from the resort, James came away with a favourable impression: “I liked it. It looked good.

“I’m going to bring my daughter to a Butlins…it’s gone up in my estimation.”

After enjoying some fish and chips that he rated a respectable eight out of 10, he returned to his hotel, which had previously welcomed legendary comedian Tony Hancock, who lodged there while filming his Sixties classic, The Punch and Judy Man.

On the whole, James concluded, Bognor didn’t warrant its poor reputation: “It’s tidy. The people are friendly.

“It’s got a lovely beach. I know it’s a pebbly beach, but that don’t matter. You’ve got Butlins. Butlins was great.”