Barry Island Pleasure Park is an amusement park which is located on the coast at Barry Island which is about 10 miles south west of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. This amusement park has a great deal of history stretching back to the end of the 19th century.
Prior to 1896, the only access to Barry Island had been on foot or by paddle steamer, when the tide was in. However, as a greater incentive for attracting visitors to the island and the new amusement park, an extension to the railway line was built and this resulted in an explosion in the numbers of visitors to the amusement park. During one August Bank Holiday around this period, trains were arriving every 10 minutes and it was estimated that over 150,000 people enjoyed the amusement park that Bank Holiday weekend.
The amusement park attracted almost 3 times as many people during Bank Holidays in the 1930s in what was, commercially, its most popular period.
The scenic railway of the amusement park was one of its most appealing features and in the mid 1900s, it took up over half the site. It met a sad end, however, when it was partially destroyed in strong gales in 1973 and there was no other option but to dismantle it which signalled the end of an era at the amusement park.
Today, the amusement park has over 30 rides and attractions. One of its most popular is the Log Flume which, as a tribute to the amusement park’s heritage, was partially constructed of many of the wooden beams which had gone into making the original scenic railway.
Other thrill seekers can visit the amusement park and ride Evolution, Tropical Fever and the Viper rollercoaster whilst there are several smaller rides and other attractions at the amusement park to keep smaller children and other family members entertained.
The amusement park does not charge an entrance fee and is open annually at weekends from the Easter holidays onwards and daily throughout the school summer holidays up until the first weekend of September.
See also:
Amusement Parks: Camelot Theme Park - a Potted History
Amusement Parks : Diggerland - a Potted History
Amusement Parks : Fantasy Island - a Potted History
Amusement parks: Gulliver's World - a Potted History
Amusement Parks: Lightwater Valley - a Potted History
Amusement Parks : Legoland Windsor - a Potted History