Whitley Bay.

[melv16]

Going this weekend for a short break. Is there anything worth seeing or good places to eat and drink?

[piggynose]

https://www.thecrazytourist.com/15-best-things-to-do-in-whitley-bay-tyne-and-wear-england/

[Jackdaw33]

I have the misfortune to live there. It's a dump. *** all to see and do. Newcastle is your best bet for food and drink.

[melv16]

Thanks for the link, piggy. WB, doesn't look too bad to me.
I was there over 30yrs ago on a rugby tour, Is the Ritz hotel still open, jackdaw?

[Jackdaw33]

No, long gone. The Royal is still there.

[Everhelpful]

Jackdaw is spot on although Tynemouth just along the road is nice. P.S. Never heard of the Ritz Hotel in Whitley Bay.

[JimF]

What about the Spanish City? Or the Leisure Pool?

[melv16]

It could have been the royal. Was it built in Victorian times?

[Everhelpful]

You need a Second Mortgage to eat or drink in the "New" Spanish City.

[Jackdaw33]

Old building along the seafront. Very popular in its heyday.

[Jackdaw33]

The Ritz was further along from the Royal. Old building.

[Buenchico]

Ritz?

Methinks you mean the Rex Hotel
https://i2-prod.chroniclelive.co.uk/incoming/article12574201.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/SGP_NEC_301115GV15JPG.jpg
which has closed and is being redeveloped as a care home.

If you're a beer lover, Melv, then Whitley Bay might have certain attractions for you, such as The Split Chimp micro-pub
https://www.splitchimp.pub/about
and The Brewery (which is a pub with its own micro-brewery on site)
https://www.facebook.com/TheBreweryWhitleyBay/
If you'd rather take your beer away, there's also Hazy Daze Bottle Shop
https://www.hazydaze.uk/

Newcastle has much more to offer. Metro trains run from platform 2 at Whitley Bay station every 12 minutes during the day on Saturday, and every 15 minutes on Saturday evening and all day Sunday, to St James station in the centre of the city, with the journey taking just under half an hour.

[Jackdaw33]

Thank you, Chico. Dawned on me in the middle of the night. The Rex. Monument station is the nearest for the city centre.

[Buenchico]

Thanks, Jack. That cuts the journey time down to 26 minutes.

[melv16]

Thanks for the replies. I'll be trying out the beer emporiums tomorrow, Chris.
Jackdaw. You said that WB is a ****tip. I've found it a lovely place. You've got a good town centre with a excellent mix of shops and restaurants. A good beach and facilities, and a very good transport system with loads of buses and trains. I've travelled a lot in this country and WB is definitely not a****tip.

[AuntPG]

Melv I agree its not tip. We used to take the kids there and now go once or twice in the summer for a look around. They have the 8 million refurbished Playhouse and the promenade and links. I don't think Jackdaw must have been out of his house for a very long time.

[Bobbisox1]

Spent many a bank holiday Monday in my misspent youth down at WB, loved it

[AuntPG]

We hadn't been for ages and were impressed with all the new renovations around Spanish City and the Promenade. I can remember it being a bit down market twenty odd years ago but it seems to have been given quite a few Grants since then and is a nice day out. I don't know which part of it Jackdaw lives in, but I expect even the nicest touristy places have their grotty bits hidden away.

[melv16]

Took the bus down to Tynemouth this morning. The Mrs was very impressed with the market held in the station. Had a wander round the town and visited the Collingwood monument.
Fish and chips for Sunday dinner..yayyyy

[EdmundD]

Worked in Whitley Bay for 3 months in 1995. Used to go to a bar where the barmaids wore bikinis.....

[Bobbisox1]

I think that might have been the Sands bar Edmond?