Blackpool Stag Do

A Blackpool stag do is the seaside at full volume. It’s loud, it’s cheerful and it makes no effort at all to be classy, which is exactly why lads keep coming back. You get rollercoasters, the Tower, three piers, a long promenade and nights out that start early and finish whenever the stag falls asleep.

Subtle it isn’t, and it was never meant to be. If your stag likes a quiet glass of red and a chat about house prices, look elsewhere. If he likes chips, karaoke and losing on the arcades, you’ve found his spiritual home.

It’s also a place where nobody bats an eyelid at a grown man in a fancy dress costume at eleven in the morning. For a best man, that’s half the battle won before you’ve even started. Pick your stag’s outfit with care, because the photos will outlive the marriage jokes.

The town centre streets behind the Tower, around Church Street, Market Street and Queen Street, are where the bar crawls happen. The Promenade has bars with sea views for the early rounds. Expect plenty of other stag and hen parties. That’s half the fun, and the other half is watching your stag try to out-sing a hen party at karaoke and lose.

Blackpool does shows as well as bars. The Tower Ballroom is a proper Victorian landmark, and Funny Girls has been putting on its cabaret since the nineties, which makes it a classic way to start a Saturday. A comedy night is another good opener before the bars.

Pleasure Beach is the obvious first stop. The Big One is the ride for whoever lost the bet, and getting the stag on it before his breakfast has settled is my idea of good planning. Check opening dates before you go, because the park runs a season rather than opening all year.

Away from the rides, the Fylde coast has room for quad biking, paintball and go karting, all easy to fit round a hangover. The arcades on the prom are perfect for a coin-pusher rematch nobody asked for, and the town’s casinos let the stag lose his money with a bit more dignity.

Trains run into Blackpool North, with many routes changing at Preston, and the M55 brings drivers almost to the seafront. Trams run along the promenade, which is handy for getting between the piers and your hotel once walking stops being an option. Most of the action is close together, so the group can stick together on foot.

• Bring ID. Blackpool doors see a lot of groups and they do check.
• Costumes. Blackpool is the spiritual home of stag fancy dress, but some bars refuse big groups in costume. Pick from our stag do costumes and have a plan B outfit for the stricter doors.
• Split up at the door. A huge group can get knocked back. Smaller groups of six or eight get in faster.
• Timing. The Illuminations make autumn weekends busy, and summer fills fast too. Book your Blackpool stag weekend early.
• Want something different? Liverpool is close enough to compare if the lads want a city instead of a seafront.

I’d base the group in the town centre, close to the Tower. The streets behind it, around Church Street, Market Street and Queen Street, are where the bar crawls happen, and the Promenade with its sea-view bars is right there for the early rounds. Most of the action is close together, so the whole group can stick together on foot instead of losing three lads to a taxi queue.

Staying near the seafront has another perk. Trams run along the promenade, which is handy for getting between the piers and your hotel once walking stops being an option. Anyone driving can leave the car parked up for the weekend.

My practical tip: book your beds early. Summer fills fast, and the Illuminations make autumn weekends busy, so lock in the rooms before you start arguing about costumes.

Friday Get the train into Blackpool North (plenty of routes change at Preston) or drive in on the M55. Bags down, then a few early pints at the sea-view bars on the Promenade. I’d book a comedy night as the opener, then let the lads loose on the streets behind the Tower.

Saturday Pleasure Beach first, and get the stag on The Big One before his breakfast has settled. Check the opening dates, because it runs a season. In the afternoon I’d pick something competitive, like bubble football or paintballing, so the stag gets flattened before the night out. Then it’s fancy dress on, a show at Funny Girls, which has been doing cabaret since the nineties, and on to Church Street, Market Street and Queen Street. Bring ID, because the doors check. Split into groups of six or eight at the door, and have a plan B outfit, since some bars refuse big groups in costume. Finish at the casino so the stag can lose what’s left with a bit of dignity.

Sunday Gentle. A walk along the three piers, a look at the Tower, and a coin-pusher rematch in the arcades on the prom that nobody asked for. Then home, with the photos.