It's The End Of The World As We Know It

There some well know scams out there such as 'find the lady' and giving you credit card details to claim your 'prize' but few can be as successful as the Land's End Visitors Centre! Let me tell you things have certainly changed since my only other visit there 30 odd years ago.

Arriving there by car we are promised an array of interesting things to see, entrance fee £3. So in we go, park up and head to fun central. As soon as we are through the gates we are faced with a huge sign which in gaudy 6 inch letters tell us how much each of the 'interesting' attractions is going to cost. As it turns out the £3 was entrance for the car park only, there was absolutely no mention of further costs prior to getting the car parked.

We forgo the promised excitement and decide cliff top walks topped off by a photo by 'THE Sign' will suffice for our visit to the end of England. The scenery is amazing here, but then it is all the way up and down the coast where plentiful free car parking is available, the cliff top walks here are free - only because it is a public footpath part of the South West Coast Path. Not surprising then that this free entry bit is badly maintained with sign boards falling to bits and down right dangerous where flimsy bits of string are supposed to stop you falling off the 'dangerous cliffs'. As we were leaving an ambulance and 2 mountain rescue teams came sreaming down the access road (and were probably charged entrance fees). We head to the Land's End sign for the obligatory photo only to find it is no longer at the cliff top, rather it is now on private land surrounded by a fence and accessible via a payment booth! £10 for an official photo (with your town on it), TEN BLOODY QUID, 5 minutes in photoshop and I can create my own realistic photo for nowt!

So, a family of four turn up after a long drive here pay £3 for parking, £22 family ticket, £10 photo and a bite to eat at 'the first and last cafe' probably topping out at well over £50. Now call me a Yorkshireman, but save yourself the money and the feeling of being ripped off. Park up for free somewhere close along the southwest coast path, grab yourself a cornish pasty picnic and walk the cliff tops. The views are amazing, sea crashing against the cliffs and the walking is free, after all Land's End is just that, the end of land in the form of cliffs and sea NOT a Doctor Who visitors centre!

It's The End Of The World As We Know It - R.E.M.