Crapton or Clacton on Sea? A tale of two Towns | Travel Vlog, Essex.

[@teagunn]

Fantastic video! Clacton town has deteriorated but no more than any other beach town. It's a great holiday place and a great place to go for a day trip. I've been going since a child and still love it. The pier and sea front always have things going on from fireworks to air shows. It still has a proper old-fashioned seaside feel. It needs more investment in the town centre and more policing but no different than any other seaside town. Definitely not crapton lol

[@ADayintheUK]

I agree, some lovely parts, just needs some money thrown at the town centre!

[@FRANKIEE253]

Just spent the evening binge watching all your videos - so nice seeing all the places local to me in Essex 😄 keep up the good work! I live on the Essex/Suffolk border, would love to see you explore some areas of Suffolk 😊

[@ADayintheUK]

Cheers for the watch Frankie, I'll see what I can do ;)

[@francesleader2746]

Thanks Adam! My family had holiday homes in Jaywick Sands, near Clacton from the 1950s. In those days the beach between Jaywick and Clacton still had the old war sea defences and so that part of the beach, between the Martello Towers was off limits due to rusty spikes and gun turrets, which were dank and dark places. We used to skate and cycle back and forth along the seafront and there were donkeys to ride on the beaches in the summer months. I left London and lived in Clacton from 1969 until 2004. I was happy there (for the most part) but sold up and moved to central rural Spain to live off grid on a fruit farm. I moved back to the UK, near Bournemouth in Dorset where I am now retired. It was great to see the changes that have happened in the last 20 years. The pier is much improved and the shopping centre is very quiet in comparison with the past. The young man referencing crackheads was being very honest with you. Drugs scene there was always buzzing from the 70s onwards. I have fond memories of good friends and great parties. I worked on the beach during the 70s, selling ice cream and later I became a bus driver for a while. Unemployment was a problem after Butlins closed down and most of the hotels changed their operations to become homes for the elderly. You asked for memories of Butlins and it was indeed a very big important venue in its day. When I was a teenager we used to break through the fencing to go to the discotheque and the swimming pool. It got very run down towards the end and when the site was finally cleared in the 80s all those new houses were built. The beach was improved significantly at that time too. Huge boulders provided barriers to catch the sand and slowly over time the beaches grew into the lovely expanses you saw during your visit. Walking dogs on those beaches in all weathers and seasons were some of my happiest days.

[@ADayintheUK]

@@francesleader2746 fantastic account and memories Frances, thanks for sharing your stories 🙌🏼

[@JohninRosc]

Well made video - thank you. I used to visit Clacton as a youngster (from Romford) and on youth club day trips we'd spend most of the day in Reg Brown's Free House!

[@ADayintheUK]

thanks very much, I'm glad you enjoyed it

[@bestyboo16]

Ahh man I’ve missed your vids !

[@ADayintheUK]

Thanks very much!

[@ninaturner1546]

I used to love Clacton when I was a kid. Now at sixty a can tell you it has changed so much. We affectionately call it Cracktown now.

[@ADayintheUK]

Sadly many do, but I reckon Clacton will see a revival

[@KhairunBegum-v3d]

One of my favourite seaside is Clacton on sea n towards Holland on sea. I go there at least 4-5 times every year on caravan holiday or stay at premiere inn seafront. Local people are very nice never had any problems for the past 12 yrs I have been there. Such a lovely place and lovely people. My only complaint about it is that the town centre needs uplifting and the worse thing about the pier is the gents toilet which is never clean enough and most of the time the toilets are dirty and not usable. So we drive to the big Morrisons even in emergency but that will not stop us from visiting clacton and enjoying the seaside. Thanks for posting the video it did bring back memories. ❤❤

[@ADayintheUK]

No worries, you’re welcome 🤟🏼

[@wondernexus3d482]

I lived there from 1993 - 2011 so i saw many changes, it has definitely gone down hill. My advice is to leave the seaside alone, its been upgraded enough, spend money on the rest of the town!!

[@richardfuller5770]

I was born in Holland on Sea. I got my head stuck pushing it though in the concrete bridge over pier gap when I was about 5. My dad had a dry cleaning business in Holland. I now live in Iowa. great coverage of local towns. As far as stores closing, same here in USA. Covid and our current dead beat Progessives fault

[@ADayintheUK]

Cheers for the watch Richard, I hope it brought back some memories for you

[@edwoodsnowden]

Love Clacton! Had some great times and memories with my Dog in Clacton. Jaywick has some amazing beaches and really nice people also.

[@Dinosreviews]

Clacton was a great place to visit when I was a kid in the seventies and eighties. If I’m going to a local beach now it’s normally Frinton.

[@dissyduster]

Its a great place for fishing rods,fresh bait,carpet slippers,hair cut,kebab,and false nails.It went to the dogs when butlins shut down.But pier have spent a lot on it.its not that bad ...

[@oldplucker1]

I live nearby and learned a bit about the Jolly Rodger Theatre. I did see a Cannon and Ball show there once! Look how many boats a d ships were there in the past! Virtually none now. I also took a day trip to Calais on a paddle steamer from the pier. Where are the boat trips from the beach that were there. Clacton also had a second pier and a few jetties! The second pier was near the Martello Tower beach but was called the Jetty!

[@ADayintheUK]

Awesome info, thanks for the comment 🤟🏼

[@howhistory5877]

Where the seaplanes used to operate from.

[@gutz323]

The paddle steamer still operates in the summer months, it goes up the Thames into London from the end of Clacton pier.

[@Glen_Eagles]

As I am relatively new to the area, I moved to Walton on the Naze in April 2022, we have made Clacton our shopping destination for all the odd bits we need. ........So we are definitely for Clacton. Apart from the usual drug users and homeless making the Triangl by McDonald's putting a spoiler on it But we've found the people to be so helpful and friendly, We have made so many friends in the weatherspoons pub the Moon and Starfish, I have to go to Clacton Hospital on many occasions for treatment to all my many disabilities, but we have found a micro climate here and I never want to go back to Kennington/Waterloo in London ever again, I just hope my family come to visit us, we even have a Pie " n " mash shop that opens on Sundays. So it's a big fat Clacton not Crapton. From South (Saff) London to Essex. We love it as the tv programme calls it....TOWIE

[@ADayintheUK]

This is great to hear, thanks for the watch

[@patthewoodboy]

welcome back Adam

[@ADayintheUK]

Cheers bud

[@mikekaraoke]

Love your videos mate-you done a lot of Essex! How about more in Kent, as you have only done /Vlogged Gravesend, Deal, how about other parts of Kent towns and in the boroughs of them-some that are also part of a LB as well like Bexleyheath/Bromley, and others that are not like Dartford, Sevenoaks, Medway, Maidstone, Ashford, Tunbridge Wells, Canterbury, Broadstairs, Herne Bay, Margate/Ramsgate etc.... I'm sure you know a dozen things about them parts of Kent + what is there! I could send you an email(is it still the one on your KZbin page) of some things to do there you might not know? Kind Regards Mike

[@ADayintheUK]

Cheers Mike, glad you're enjoying the vids, I'm sure I'll get around to other parts of Kent in the future, lots to come!

[@mikekaraoke]

@@ADayintheUK No probs, looking fwd to the rest of your video-shall I send you an email then?

[@suggsymalone5008]

Is the ZOLTAN machine still there in the arcade entrance area

[@gutz323]

No mate. Do you remember the laughing clown machine near it on the old pavilion? It used to scare me as a kid.

[@suggsymalone5008]

@@gutz323 no mate I'm from Leeds...first time in crackton was in 2018 when I was staying at melrose bnb viewing boat in that neck of the woods. Ended up in fambridge on the river crouch....southend a bit of a shit hole but not as bad as jaywick lol...stay safe and say it as it is lad

[@gutz323]

@@suggsymalone5008 yes mate! You won't remember the laughing clown then. That was a feature when I was a kid, 35+ years ago. It used to scare the shit out of me!

[@RichardPlympton]

The Zoltan machine is still there mate.

[@paulm.7422]

Definitely Crapton, sadly. Used to go there (Highfield Holiday Park) as a kid in the late 50s and 60s ... much different, back then. It was clean and buzzing. Even Jaywick was OK. Foreign holidays with guaranteed sunshine, helped kill many seaside towns.

[@greenbunnyinabongo7299]

Should have got some Jaywick down ya while you were there buddy 🕺

[@ADayintheUK]

I’ve got 3 vids on Jaywick bud…check em out 🤟🏼

[@greenbunnyinabongo7299]

@@ADayintheUK Oh, Nice One! I’ll take a look 😀👍

[@doningles1771]

Went there from South London as a kid in the 60s - looks like the UK obsession with diversity and inclusion didn’t work out for Clackton, Durham, Ramsgate, Dover, etc.

[@mattbod]

I like Clacton a lot: the people make it. Everyone is super friendly. If you want rough come check out Sheerness and Leysdown on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent. The teachers are all on strike at the local secondary school as the kids are out of control. Living in such a depressing place it is no wonder. Clacton is Cannes in comparison.

[@paulsmith2823]

Good vid I dont think I'm gonna move to clacton after watching a few vids ,but I'm thinking about southend on sea I'm from south London born and bread and wanna move near beach ,can you go south end and make a video bruv?

[@ADayintheUK]

Southend is definitely on the cards Paul, cheers for the watch bud

[@gutz323]

I live in Clacton, I have done all my life, it would probably be OK to retire here but there is not a lot here if you are younger. I go to Southend quite a bit to visit Friends, and it is so much better. It is great for pubs/clubs, and restaurants and stuff. Clacton is OK if you like the quiet life, but there really isn't a lot here. It doesn't feel like a close community here, everyone keeps themselves to themselves. Times have changed, and Clacton isn't what it used to be.

[@mjamespeter]

Very interesting insight into Clacton

[@SeanHogan.]

Love the video use to go Clacton all the time in the 90s even then the town just seemed behind the times but still loved going even Jaywick beach is lovely a bit rundown but we liked it..

[@ADayintheUK]

Cheers for the comment Sean, glad it renewed some great memories!

[@user-yk7if6jv7d]

Sean Bruce at the start lol😂

[@KaziShumon]

Beautiful Vlog

[@garythomas9841]

Your alright mate.subbed

[@ADayintheUK]

Cheers for the Sub Gary

[@ianmeyer2652]

Definitely clacton for me..looks great.

[@suggsymalone5008]

the one from Big with Tom hanks

[@mrg1551]

All the people you spoke to have no idea about clacton! 😂

[@suggsymalone5008]

City slacktons 4star Barbados n a Bag on a benefits budget,....💩

[@johnstockwell9457]

Memorys from years ago when we used to go to Clacton with the kids. I live in Australia now and the beaches here are white and blue, not brown and browner 😂

[@MatthewYoung-nn7ek]

Indeed, white and blue. Better mind the UV though as it has one of the highest skin cancer rates in the world. Swings and roundabouts and all that

[@oldplucker1]

The sand at Clacton is yellow! Really good sandy beaches. And no sharks!

[@anicetune]

The good shops have all closed over recent years - Woolworths, M&S, Wilko, Clinton's, Sainsbury's, Norwich and Peterborough, Post Office, Olde Sweet Shop, Burton's, Mothercare, Dorothy Perkin's, Stead & Simpson, Thing-Me-Bobs, Coop Department Store, Wenn's Traditional Family Butchers, Covered Market, o2 shop, Game... all gone. Even the town's local newspaper the Clacton Gazette left recently, which had been there for over a 100 years. Barclays and the town's library are set to close soon. What's opened in their place are just trashy looking, blandly named charity shops, vaping shops, tattoo parlours, turkish barbers, American Candy Stores and pound shops. Theft is a massive problem in the town and the police are powerless to do anything about it. Drugs are a big problem in the town. The seafront though is Clacton's best feature and some good shops remain.

[@RobertGearing]

Excellent video…..inspired me to take the kids for the day 👍

[@ADayintheUK]

Cheers mate, take em to jurassic pier!

[@drnono3386]

Thanks for such a great video. I don't know why people put down their own town, Clacton looks like fun, I'd look forward to visiting.

[@None_06_13]

Crapton essex yes!!

[@ukraine24tracking]

I live in clacton. Thanks for this video!

[@ADayintheUK]

Welcome 🤟🏼

[@localrider5213]

There is no local people left , London on sea 🤔

[@cato451]

I’m so sad for England. What was once maybe the greatest country on earth a leader has now become a laughing stock.

[@travisheldreth5021]

Crackton is how I heard it.

[@DougieL]

'Shops closing'- Internet: happening everywhere. Clacton's major issue is that politically they are a safe seat. So the political party they elect doesn't need to do anything for them. If Clactonian's could vote for another party as well and make their seat (politically) a contested seat. Then they would see money poured in. Vote strategically!!!! Possibly ;)

[@gostopstopgo]

love clacton

[@LukeyBoyAndTheCatlings]

It took me 4 years to try and move down here and after spending 1 year down here... I HATE THE PLACE, I have never been so bored is all my life. What do people see down here, there's just nothing to do. Concidering its a seaside town there's nothing to draw you in. It's the same generic shop as everywhere else, the arcades are a scam, the pier is nothing. It's gotten to the point now where I literally have NO reason to leave the house apart from going to Morrisons... THAT'S IT I set a timer and wondered around, when I felt done I cheked the timer... It took me half an hour to see everything Clacton has to offer.

[@marcelliott125]

Promo-SM ❤️

[@steveallen1635]

Is that a syrup, or your real hair?

[@poppiefleur7425]

Irs crackton

[@CHINZIG_UK]

Since mass immigration has got out of control, Clacton is an English persons utopia.

[@manuelfg2902]

Definately scrapton

[@suggsymalone5008]

More like Crackton on Pee ...😂

[@manuelfg2902]

@@suggsymalone5008 and poo 🤣🤣🤣

[@andymarkham8350]

My home town I was born clactonian

[@HayleyYoung-jx7bq]

Crackton

[@blossomwinter]

That guy a million dollar on pier 😂 we are British it’s pounds

[@michaelmooney6671]

It's the Londoner's that makes the crap part.

[@jwouldgo2531]

would not be caught dead in this town or the beach! dead!

[@EdgyNumber1]

*Seems like a combination of things.* An old population that doesn't get around much (definitely because Essex Council cut the buses.) A young population that wants to move out. A dumping ground for dr•g users, with no support. Exorbitant high rents caused by property 'investors.' A (Conservative) council that doesn't give a damn. Lack of affordable housing. Continued Tory austerity, hitting places like this. It explains the split - the less well off areas a left to fend for themselves, and the much well off, towards H-o-S noticing the issues on their side of the aisle or blaming the less well off o the other side. Clacton seafront IS AWESOME but I don't want to live in the town.

[@gutz323]

You hit the nail on the head! I've lived here all my life, and things have changed. Also the residents are to blame, there seems to be no sense of community anymore. Nobody knows anybody anymore, people seem to keep themselves to themselves. People moan that the shops are crap, but if there was more small, locally owned businesses, would people use them?... probably not, the competition online is so great, people would probably do that anyway. Its not the worst place to live, it's just a boring little town like 99% of every other little place. Eat, sleep, work, repeat!

[@gutz323]

@jupiter7627 agree! Also the older generation are frightened of the people around them. 30 years ago the local paper was filled with good, happy, (maybe mundane) news, things like someone doing something for charity, or a small businesses person doing something good for the community. Now it is filled with local crime or another business failing. People don't want to know their local community anymore.