Unfortunately, our experience at Clacton Pier was extremely disappointing, particularly as a family with additional needs.
I have a 6-year-old son who is severely autistic, non-verbal and disabled, and I am his carer. I always explain this wherever we go and carry multiple forms of evidence, including his Blue Badge, Merlin Access Card, CEA Card and DLA letter. These have always been accepted elsewhere without issue.
We went to the soft play because my children were really excited to play, only to be told I couldn't receive carer access because I didn't have a Nimbus Card. This is one of the only disability cards I don't have. I shouldn't have to collect every possible disability card just to prove that my child is disabled and that I am his carer. There was no clear signage that I could see explaining this requirement, and I couldn't find anything obvious on the website beforehand either.
I also had issues with the rides. There was no clear signage explaining how the card/top-up system worked, and we only found out from another lovely couple that we could use the machine rather than queue at the booths. When I tried to top up the ride card, the machine swallowed the card. I waited around 15 minutes with no staff available to help, while my children became increasingly upset, so eventually I had no choice but to leave.
Another thing that really shocked us was the pricing of the temporary tattoos. There was a lady selling glitter tattoos and other temporary tattoos near the rides, but there was no price displayed anywhere. My daughter wanted one, and we honestly assumed it would be a few pounds. My partner then decided to get one for our son as well, so we had one tattoo done for our daughter and one for our son.
When my partner went to pay, he pulled out a £10 note and was told that they were £10 each — £20 for two temporary tattoos. We were genuinely shocked. I completely accept that I should have asked the price beforehand, but I do feel the price should have been clearly displayed before customers agreed to have them done. £10 for a temporary glitter tattoo is, in my opinion, an absolutely ridiculous price.
To make matters worse, my daughter's glitter tattoo was done on Wednesday and it's now Saturday, and almost all of the glitter has already come off. For £10, we certainly expected it to last longer.
Then we bought over £40 worth of fish and chips and sat outside with our children. Two huge seagulls swooped down, landed on our table, ate the fish and knocked the chips onto the floor. My children were absolutely terrified and ended up hungry.
I completely appreciate that the pier cannot control seagulls, but when I went back to the chip shop to explain what had happened, we were laughed at and then asked if we wanted to buy more food. There was no sympathy or understanding whatsoever.
I've also tried to raise the accessibility issue directly with the pier since returning, but unfortunately I've found the response very dismissive and, at times, quite rude. I was trying to raise a genuine concern about accessibility and how disabled families are treated, not cause an argument.
Overall, we found the pier very difficult as a family with additional needs. The lack of clear signage, accessibility information and pricing, combined with the way some of our concerns were handled, made the experience incredibly disappointing.
Sadly, after our experience and the way my concerns have subsequently been handled, I wouldn't recommend Clacton Pier to families with disabled children.

Best in Beach Pavillion United Kingdom

Companies
(1)

Recently reviewed companies

Clacton Pier

Newest companies

Clacton Pier

Related categories

Beach entertainment shop

Botanical garden

Camp

Camp Site

Camping cabin

Best in Beach Pavillion United Kingdom

Companies(1)

Recently reviewed companies

Clacton Pier

Newest companies

Clacton Pier

Related categories

Beach entertainment shop

Botanical garden

Camp

Camp Site

Camping cabin

Companies
(1)