Paignton Pier
Paignton Pier
3.5
Full view
Top ways to experience nearby attractions
The area
Best nearby
Restaurants
402 within 5 kms
Attractions
146 within 10 kms
See what travellers are saying
- Millie DCornwall, United Kingdom4 contributionsa good afternoon out enjoyedhad low expectations due to other reviews but was pleasantly surprised. despite other reviews saying the machines are scams, we spent about 5£ in the 2p machines and got 6 things out. the staff were perfectly fine towards us, and it was actually the other visitors that were treating the staff with little respect and being rude. loads of good photo opportunities and something for everyone. there was even a park and fun fair across the road. will be returningVisited April 2023Travelled with familyWritten 2 April 2023
- Becky bettison2 contributionsLovely place by the sea !Pier is very good value for money, all the staff are lovely helpful and friendly, and came away with lots of prizes ! Me and my friends had a very good experience whilst visiting family and will definitely will be returning ! I’ve cream was also delicious 🍦Visited March 2023Travelled with friendsWritten 13 April 2023
- Elysia TimmsAscott-under-Wychwood, United Kingdom41 contributionsFab place for a Fun time!Absolutely fab place to go to for a fun time! Especially if its raining! Staff on the Pier are all very friendly and helpful. The food stands on the Pier are brilliant, you have the options of eat in or take away Fish and Chips, Pastries, Doughnuts and Ice Cream! You have a brilliant view of beach and can look into the distance to see torquay and Brixham as well as see all the boats in the distance.Visited April 2023Travelled as a coupleWritten 6 May 2023
- Elanor5673Southend-on-Sea, United Kingdom5 contributionsOne of my favourite piersWe always love visiting the pier when on holiday. A great place to go spend some pennies and enjoy yourself for a couple hours yes in places its a little run down but so do most piers. Staff could also be a little more friendly but with kids running around screaming all day I can understand. Overall one of my favourite piers will always returnVisited September 2022Travelled with friendsWritten 14 May 2023
- braithwaite12Northampton, United Kingdom942 contributionsA modern pierNice late afternoon for a walk to the pier from my nearby hotel. Good no entrance fee but amazed at the huge number of machines to gamble and loose money on. I realize some win, but how manyVisited May 2023Written 19 May 2023
- mincombe1337 contributionsBe gamble aware, great slushy'sLovely selection of slushy's value price. Played lots of games including 2p machine... be gamble aware. Disappointed in having to pay to use public toilets. Despite this we all had fun. Amazing beach views. Difficult finding the seafront parking.Visited May 2023Travelled with familyWritten 6 June 2023
- That Girl Who ReviewsNorthampton, United Kingdom1,371 contributionsGreat Pier!Great pier! One long arcade and a crazy golf at the end with photo opportunities! Great selection of food stalls at the front too. Couldn’t find any toilets on the pier but having said that, there were some paid for public ones opposite (which were dirty as hell, do yourself a favour and don’t go in those toilets) But the pier was fab! I recommend!Visited June 2023Travelled as a coupleWritten 1 July 2023
- DavePortsmouth, United Kingdom699 contributionsHmm...nice pier shame about the arcades!Well lots of resorts have them and this one is in good condition. We visited the arcades and were very disappointed! Penny falls machines have weights on the coins to stop them falling! Much better games in the high street!Visited July 2023Travelled as a coupleWritten 6 July 2023
- Gina K1 contributionWhat an Arcade shameAgree, what a let down the arcade is on the pier. It really is a rip off, especially the claw machines. There were times I had the toy gripped and lifted up and then it just dropped, it should be that once you've achieved this you've one the prize. Looking around, no one had any claw machine prizes in their hands. Unfortunately unless people stop going the arcade owners won't change their system. Sad to leave with a bad impression rather than a fab experience.Visited July 2023Travelled with familyWritten 25 July 2023
- darren l5 contributionsReally enjoyableAbsolutely love visiting Paignton Pier. A few upgrades, changes since I was last there but still a great experience. Staff in the arcade area were absolutely amazing, and one particular individual went above and beyond when we had an issue and resolved it in a way that really made my visit. Thankyou so much for making our visit enjoyable and memorable. We will be back next yearVisited July 2023Travelled with familyWritten 9 August 2023
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
3.5
2 182 reviews
Excellent
551
Very good
596
Average
565
Poor
232
Terrible
238
Kim H
1 contribution
Mar 2024 • Couples
I absolutely love piers, loved playing the one-armed bandits as a child, and as I call it the "claw" and 2p machines. Sadly the one-armed bandits are long gone, but the claw and the 2p machines still thrive.
So if you do go to paignton pier, please note you are going to be "RIPPED OFF"
and you are going to be "RIPPED OFF BIG TIME"
If you are happy to spend vast amounts of money to allegedly win a prize then good luck to you.
Its all about luck apparently, it is so not. I played the claw today and picked up a prize 3 times only for it to be dropped.
I spoke today to the manager of Paignton pier, who told me that the "claw/grabber machines give out their prizes on a % win he wouldn't say what that % was. He said he didn't know, but please note it is in the hundreds.
The 2p machines have magnets attached to the £5.00 notes.
So do let your kids know the reasons why they can't win the £1.99 fluffy toy they have just spent their pocket money on.... its a con... and no longer fun.
I appreciate the fact that everyone needs to make a living, and seriously Paignton amusement arcade is doing just that.
The only people who win are on a yacht in the Bahamas, ask the manager at Paignton pier that's where his boss is, "allegedly".
Have fun.
So if you do go to paignton pier, please note you are going to be "RIPPED OFF"
and you are going to be "RIPPED OFF BIG TIME"
If you are happy to spend vast amounts of money to allegedly win a prize then good luck to you.
Its all about luck apparently, it is so not. I played the claw today and picked up a prize 3 times only for it to be dropped.
I spoke today to the manager of Paignton pier, who told me that the "claw/grabber machines give out their prizes on a % win he wouldn't say what that % was. He said he didn't know, but please note it is in the hundreds.
The 2p machines have magnets attached to the £5.00 notes.
So do let your kids know the reasons why they can't win the £1.99 fluffy toy they have just spent their pocket money on.... its a con... and no longer fun.
I appreciate the fact that everyone needs to make a living, and seriously Paignton amusement arcade is doing just that.
The only people who win are on a yacht in the Bahamas, ask the manager at Paignton pier that's where his boss is, "allegedly".
Have fun.
Written 16 March 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Keith P
53 contributions
Feb 2024 • Couples
Didn't like walking along the Pier as you had to walk through to many slot machines . Unless you really are an Las Vagas gambler I wouldn't bother going
Written 12 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Toby J
Bristol, UK4 contributions
Feb 2024 • Couples
Some fun game machines, but the 2p machines were suspiciously stubborn at giving out 2p winnings. Lots of coins would drop from the top, the back of the bottom level would move, but the edges would barely budge. I don't expect to win big, but I also don't expect not to win anything. Odd.
Written 2 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mark P
4 contributions
Nov 2023 • Family
Most of the machine appear to be rigged not to pay out anymore. Played the 2p pusher games. Put it £2 Worth of 2p and literally just 3 coins drops out. The sweets we did win were out of date, the toys/£5 notes are held on by Magnets, so even if you push them over the edge, they don't drop. The claw machines are full because they don't pick anything up, the fruit machine don't pay out. Do bother going here.
Written 6 November 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ouryear2011
Cardiff, UK193 contributions
Nov 2023 • Family
Currently here now, I have been to many arcades over the years but I feel this place is just one big con our little one loves playing the claw machine and you could see the claw releasing before even getting to the opening and also the 2p machines I am yet to see anyone get money back out. We spent a small fortune on them with no coins coming out and even other people commenting the same thing. I will not be returning here in the future as I feel this place is just one big rip off.
Written 5 November 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Judith G
Gloucester, UK40 contributions
Sept 2023 • Family
Easy to get too. Don't have to pay to go on !!
Typical pier with slot machines, food & drinks to purchase. Great for families.
It's traditional so go and see.
Typical pier with slot machines, food & drinks to purchase. Great for families.
It's traditional so go and see.
Written 28 October 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Gary J
Venice, Italy9 contributions
Oct 2023 • Family
So many things wrong! The 2p machines were “rigged” against the players benefit by far more ways than other 2p push machines. I put in £3 of 2ps into one pusher and got absolutely no coins out at all. Plenty of coins could be heard falling off of the edges on my playing field but sounded like they were being diverted to a coin hopper rather than the metal coin tray by my knees.
Several of the games that you see elsewhere which offer three goes for a £1 were set to one go for a £1 and also the ticket payouts from many of the machines seemed very stingey and Scrooge-like compared to most other amusement arcades.
The grabber machines were all set to have no grabbing power what so ever and dropped everything long before the items got to the collection point. The difficulty is winning any grabber prizes probably explains why none of the prizes were particularly “with it” or “current” or “trendy”
The ticket eating//counting machines were also in a poor state of repair, with only one or two of the counting machines that we tried, out of 8 machines, would actually count tickets.
Truely dismal place - wouldn’t go back
Several of the games that you see elsewhere which offer three goes for a £1 were set to one go for a £1 and also the ticket payouts from many of the machines seemed very stingey and Scrooge-like compared to most other amusement arcades.
The grabber machines were all set to have no grabbing power what so ever and dropped everything long before the items got to the collection point. The difficulty is winning any grabber prizes probably explains why none of the prizes were particularly “with it” or “current” or “trendy”
The ticket eating//counting machines were also in a poor state of repair, with only one or two of the counting machines that we tried, out of 8 machines, would actually count tickets.
Truely dismal place - wouldn’t go back
Written 17 October 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
huw j
Pontypridd, UK817 contributions
Oct 2023 • Couples
Your very typical English seaside pier with fairground, slots, chip shop, ice cream, freshly made delicious donuts etc. Wouldn't say it was one of the longer piers but i guess it was average sized? No charge to just amble along it.
Written 14 October 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
@darrenlewis78
Neath Port Talbot, UK1 173 contributions
Sept 2023 • Family
Didn’t think much of pier. We walked the length of pier and it was pretty much arcades every inch of the way.
I will say there was a very nice fish & chip shop at the very beginning of the pier. With seats outside or you can dine indoors with stunning views of sea. Dogs not allowed inside though.
I will say there was a very nice fish & chip shop at the very beginning of the pier. With seats outside or you can dine indoors with stunning views of sea. Dogs not allowed inside though.
Written 3 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Marge247
Aylesbury, UK103 contributions
Aug 2023
The pier has the usual food outlets and amusements you would expect and has a very nice atmosphere. However we were disappointed in the price of some of the food, which was dearer than it should have been (even when considering its location). Also the 2p slot and push machines had been nobbled by the staff. Normally half the fun of the arcade is to pop in your 2p's, and then watch as you hope some get pushed off the moving levels and then drop into the catcher for you to collect. However on the pier, all of these machines had quite heavy objects near the point where coins get pushed off, which basically stopped any coins falling. This seems to be an attempt to stop anyone winning but it takes all the fun out of it. The fun and excitement of these machines is to watch the coins fall, which inevitably get put straight back in again anyway. However with the 'prizes' you 'could' win being in there (and witnessed to be placed very strategically by staff to stop lots of coins falling) really destroyed the fun element, which resulted in us spending less and leaving earlier than we would have done. I know a lot of arcades have additional bits to be won in these machines, but this was the worst we have ever experienced.
Written 21 August 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ouryear2011
Cardiff, UK193 contributions
Does anyone actually contact you when you make a complaint over a week later I messaged their page and even put in a complaint with their very unprofessional manager
ouryear2011
Cardiff, UK193 contributions
Does anyone actually contact you when you make a complaint over a week later I messaged their page and even put in a complaint with their very unprofessional manager 😡
Can you park close by as I am disabled?
sysyphus37
21 contributions
There's parking all along the sea front to each side of the pier which is available most of the year. During the carnival week it may be blocked off at times and on Weds nights the area near the pier is regularly blocked off for the Bikers gathering (BMAD)
southwestgal
Devon
Is there crazy golf on Paignton pier, the seafront or in Torquay?
Steven
16 contributions
Yes there is
charlenem497
Wolverhampton, UK156 contributions
Ins this wheelchair friendly?
Gordon D
London, UK261 contributions
Yes there are ramps to get on/off and all over the pier.
Katie
Crawley, UK98 contributions
Is the pier open all year round?
Doozerdog46
Midsomer Norton, UK66 contributions
We visited mid January, it was open then.
MissStiltwalker
Wirral78 contributions
Hi Steve, I would just like to reiterate the danger of the seagulls not just on the pier but even in the town of Paignton and surrounding areas. They have become fearless and brazen. We were sat on a bench and my Partner and I were totally shocked at the lightning speed with which a gull swooped and stole the whole of the hot dog he was eating. It happened in a flash; now if they are brave enough to do that to an adult goodness knows what could happen to a child. These are menaces in the sky and it seems wrong that they are protected. We even saw a total waste of resources with two fire engines deployed to rescue a seagull that had become trapped up on Alta Vista road in netting at the top of some flats. I would also like to add that I love Paignton, but people do need to be made aware of this real danger.
steve h
Settle, UK75 contributions
Hi Miss Stiltwalker, thank you for your comments, if you have time type in a search engine, "man attacked by seagulls Fined £80" thats me, i was unaware of the problem there and it cost me a fine, i want to warn others not only there is a seagull problem in Paignton but Enforcement officers there who want to make the council some money, Im not going back, Ive appealed against my fine and the Enforcement Agency and Torbay Council dont even have the courtsey to reply. No wonder seaside towns are in trouble when it comes to having few tourists visit
ros h
York, UK4 contributions
Is there a fortune teller on pier?
Elliot dale A
Paignton, UK22 contributions
Yes there is a fortune teller on the pier, but she is only there in the summer months. She is on the right hand side as you go along the pier, she was also there last year.
Are dogs allowed ?
Nigel Barry H
Swindon, UK102 contributions
Yes, most definitely
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listingPAIGNTON PIER: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)
Frequently Asked Questions about Paignton Pier
- Hotels near Paignton Pier:
- (0.13 km) Trentham Guest House
- (0.21 km) Blue Waters Lodge
- (0.10 km) Travelodge Paignton Seafront
- (0.20 km) Redcliffe Hotel
- (0.09 km) Cambria Hotel
- Restaurants near Paignton Pier:
- (0.00 km) The Sun Lounge and Gardens
- (0.18 km) The Paris Restaurant at Palace Hotel
- (0.21 km) Inn On The Green
- (0.14 km) Sandbanks
- (0.12 km) Cafe Twenty9