Welcome to The Leisure Historian.

I’ve always been fascinated by the places people visited for fun. Places like holiday camps, tourist attractions, amusement parks, zoos, hotels etc. Many have closed, leaving surprisingly little written about their history. For some, I could find almost nothing. For others, the same stories were repeated over and over, often with errors or important parts of the story missing

So I started digging. Instead of relying on what was already online, I went back to the original sources. Old newspapers, magazines, guidebooks, brochures, postcards, maps and official records have all helped piece these stories together. Whenever possible, I’ve also spoken to people who visited, worked at or were connected with many of the places featured here.

Some of these articles were first written twenty years ago, so I’ve revisited them and brought them up to date. Others have been revised as new information has come to light.

The site covers both closed attractions and those still welcoming visitors, focusing on places whose history and development have received little attention. If a subject has already been well covered elsewhere, in a blog, book or video, you’re unlikely to find it here. My interest lies in the more obscure places and the stories that remain largely untold.

I created this website in 2026 as somewhere to share my research. Most of the early articles are about British subjects, simply because that’s where my research began, but you might also find stories from overseas. If it’s an interesting place that helped people enjoy their leisure time, and it’s not been well covered elsewhere, there’s a good chance it might find its way onto these pages.

Thanks for visiting. We’ll be adding new blogs on a regular basis