Many of Britain's most popular theme parks and attractions now only live on in our memories and photographs.
Today's youngsters will be familiar with the likes of Alton Towers or Blackpool Pleasure Beach. But for many of us, the attractions we loved are now a thing of the past.
A number of theme parks, rides and attractions were based here in Greater Manchester, from The Water Place in Bolton to Gorton Tub and the Granada Studio Tour. Whereas other popular day outs could be find elsewhere in the UK, in neighbouring Lancashire and Wales and beyond.
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Some were demolished years ago, whereas other still lie in a state of disrepair years after closing their doors. Here, we take a look back at a number of attractions loved in Greater Manchester and beyond that you can't visit now.
This list isn't intended to be comprehensive, we've selected a number of lost attractions from the region and elsewhere in the UK. But. if you feel there are any we should have included, let us know in the comments section.
The Water Place, Bolton
For years, families flocked to the state-of-the art fun centre on Great Moor Street in the middle of Bolton town centre. At a cost of £5.8m, Bolton's Water Place was opened to huge fanfare by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 1988.
The Water Place featured two massive 100m water flumes that went right to the top of the building. It also had rubber dinghy rapids, a wave machine and palm trees, which had been imported from Florida.
Built over two floors, it also featured a a spa pool, health pool and children's pool, a cafeteria, gym, meeting rooms and office space. Sadly, the leisure complex finally closed in 2002 with debts of £750,000.
American Adventure, Derbyshire
The American Adventure theme park in Ilkeston, Derbyshire, was a much loved wild west inspired themed park. Famous for its white-knuckle rides, the park opened on a country estate in 1987 and thrilled visitors from all over the North West in the '80s and '90s.
Featuring top rollercoasters like The Missile, Twin Looper and Nightmare Niagara, from 1996, the park began to decline, and in 1997, Granada sold it to the company Ventureworld. It was also re-branded in 2005 to cater for younger children.
But later the theme park closed down, and many of the rides were sold off. After that time the site sat empty, the rides were dismantled and either scrapped or moved to other parks leaving it a waste ground.
Belle Vue Zoological Gardens and fairground, Manchester
Opened in 1836, Belle Vue zoo started life as a small private collection of birds owned by gardener John Jennison - but his vision for a vast Victorian amusement park soon saw it blossom into much more – Manchester’s very own theme park. Generations of thrill seekers poured through its gates not just for the animals, but for the theme park’s legendary funfair rides and circus shows. Many will also remember its concert venue.
By the early 20th century its collection of animals – from Asian elephants to chimpanzees – and it soon became home to several rides, including "The Bob" which cost a shilling to ride and offered amazing views from the top. But spiralling debts saw the zoo wound up in the 1970s and the park, once described as a 'showground of the world,' closed its gates in 1982.
The attractions were dismantled and in 1988, what was left on the site was finally demolished. Nothing now remains of what was once one of the world's most famous amusement parks.
Camelot, Lancashire
Anyone who was born in the 80s or 90s will have fond memories of days out with the family at Camelot Theme Park. Located a few miles outside Chorley in Lancashire, it first opened its doors in 1983.
The Camelot theme park was based on the well-known medieval Camelot castle, which was associated with the legendary King Arthur and welcomed thousands of visitors every year. The park boasted a 100ft roller coaster called the Knightmare which spanned over 200 meters.
It also had a log flume, a smaller size roller coaster The Twister, three large water slides and a large caterpillar roller coaster train which spanned the whole length and depth of the park running above ground and on ground level. It closed in 2012 leaving its sprawling 140-acre site to fall into disrepair and dereliction.
Manchester Ice Palace, Manchester
Manchester Ice Palace was the largest indoor ice rink in Britain when it first opened in 1910. The building still proudly stands in Cheetham Hill, although it closed as an ice rink in the 1960s.
The Ice Palace was more than just somewhere to learn how to skate or to have fun with friends on weekends. The venue also hosted fancy dress competitions, live performances and more.
Not just amateur skaters would use the rink, with professionals often taking to the ice. This included when the Manchester venue hosted the National Ice Skating Championships in 1911 and the World Championships in 1922.
Frontierland, Lancashire
The complex in Morcambe operated for almost 100 years and enjoyed a rebrand in the 1980s during the height of the theme park era and was rebranded with the western theme. It was home to several popular and iconic rides and attractions including the famous Polo Tower - a 150-feet-tall gyro tower, sponsored by Polo Mints, a skyride, a log flume, and a runaway mine train.
However a decline in visitor numbers led to the park closing in 1999. All of the rides, excluding the Polo Tower and Log Flume, were demolished or dismantled and sold on.
Do these awaken any memories for you? Let us know in the comments section below.
Gorton Tub, Gorton
Gorton Tub opened in 1988 and was the place every kid wanted to go, where scores of memories were made. Thousands of kids spent hours in its chlorinated water before heading for a Slush Puppie and a chocolate bar, or a burger and chips.
It later underwent a re-brand and became known as Neptune's Kingdom after the Roman god of the sea. It closed in the early 2000s.
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Ocean Beach, Rhyl
Ocean Beach saw thousands of visitors annually at the height of the British seaside summer holiday. It was so popular that it had to relocate in 1954 from Marine Lake to the bigger space at the West end of the promenade.
The park featured many rides of historic interest including a 1950s Ghost Train, a 1930s vintage toy set, Britain's first ever tubular steel roller coaster - known as the jet Stream- and the world's last surviving circular water chute. There was very little investment in new rides or attractions in its final years. It closed for the final time in September 2007.
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Rhyl Sun Centre, Rhyl
For years, the school holidays weren’t complete without launching yourself down one of the flumes or having a go on the monorail cars at Rhyl Sun Centre. Opened in June 1980, it was the largest indoor pool in Europe at the time and thousands of families from Greater Manchester would travel there to enjoy a day out.
Back in the eighties and nineties, children would spend hours playing on the famous octopus slide, the monorail cars and in the wave pool - and for adults, there were coin operated sunbeds at the poolside and people were even allowed to smoke. In its early days, children under three went free and entry would cost £2.45 for adults before 6pm - and £1.40 after, with the facility open until 11pm.
Youngsters under the age of 14 and senior citizens were charged £1.40 before 6pm and 95p after, and locals were also offered discounts. Sadly, 34 years after it opened, it was announced that the centre would be pulled down to make way for a revamp of Rhyl’s waterfront.
Granada Studio Tour, Manchester
After opening in a blaze of publicity in 1988, Manchester's Granada Studio Tour tour attracted over five million telly fans in its heyday, who came to see the famous outdoor set of Coronation Street and more. Located on Quay Street, the Granada Studio Tour was opened in July 1988 and was a must-visit for anyone in Manchester and nearby, quickly attracting people from all over the world.
The red neon Granada sign soon became a popular sight across the city. However, by the turn of the millennium the number of visitors was 30 per cent less than expected, the drop coming as Granada Media moved away from leisure and entertainment. In December 1999, the entertainment theme park closed to the general public, although it continued to welcome visitors as part of hospitality packages until 2006, when it closed for good.
Skytrak, Manchester
Based in the old Granada Studios Tour theme park in Castlefield, the Skytrak rollercoaster finally opened to a huge fanfare in 1997 after months of delays. The thrill ride was the first 'flying' rollercoaster in the world.
Skytrak was also a 'solo coaster' meaning riders would experience the ride with only one person per car. The single-passenger design kept the ride's capacity low, at only 200 riders per hour.
At a length of 1,282ft and 50ft high, passengers would fly around the track at a speed of 28mph and experience a G-force of 2.5. Sadly, lasting only a year, many who wanted to ride on Skytrak never got the chance. The Granada Studios theme park closed for good in 1999.
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