Adventure Golf at Adventure Island in Southend-on-Sea

Here's a look at the Adventure Golf course at Adventure Island in Southend-on-Sea, Essex.

We revisited the Adventure Golf at Adventure Island in Southend-on-Sea on our trip to the seaside town in April 2023.

There are two 9-hole courses there and they were originally the 14th and 15th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour back in March 2007 and we've returned a number of times since then.

We actually played the Aztec and Inca Adventure Golf courses at Adventure Island in 2003, three years before our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour began. Sadly the results of that contest are lost in the ether!

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Since 2006 Emily and I have visited 1,064 miniature golf courses around the UK and overseas on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. As well as playing minigolf in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Jersey and the Isle of Man we’ve travelled to minigolf courses in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Chile, Finland, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Poland, Singapore, Spain (Lanzarote and Majorca), Sweden and the USA.

When added to the courses my brother Christopher and his family have visited around the British Isles and Türkiye, Spain (Majorca), Italy, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany, France, Indonesia, Croatia and the USA, the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour stands at a combined 1,111 courses visited!

Toys R Us at Macy's in Chicago, USA

A look at a Toys R Us at a Macy's department store in Chicago, Illinois.

Emily visited this Toys R Us within a Macy's in Chicago last month.

It's one of over 450 Toys R Us stores you can find within Macy's in the USA.

Emily also went to a Macy's Toys R Us store while on a trip to Texas earlier this year.

Visit the Toys R Us at Macy's website for more information.

Working at Toys R Us

My first job while at university in the year 2000 was as one of Geoffrey's helpers at the Luton store. I worked on the video game and electronics section.

Toys R Us concessions in the UK

There are currently 39 Toys R Us concessions in WH Smith shops, with more planned to open through 2024. Visit the Toys R Us UK website for more information.

The old Toys R Us

It's been very interesting to find that there are still remnants of the brand on some retail parks in the UK and we've visited several of these closed, abandoned, derelict and demolished Toys R Us locations on our travels.

Former Toys R Us locations we've been to on our travels:

• Brighton Hill Retail Park in Basingstoke
• Central Retail Park in Manchester
• Cathedral Retail Park in Norwich
• Deepdale shopping centre in Preston
• Festival retail park in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent
• Gateway retail park in Reading
• Gemini Retail Park in Warrington
• Interchange Retail Park at Copdock Mill, Ipswich
• St James Retail Park in Northampton
• Teesside Retail Park in Stockton-on-Tees
• The Leisure Plaza in Milton Keynes
• Trafford Centre in Manchester
• Western Esplanade in Southampton
• Wolverhampton Road in Oldbury
• Wyvern Retail Park in Derby

Lost Toys R Us Stores

My book about Lost Toys R Us Stores is available to buy from Amazon.

There were once 105 Toys R Us stores in the UK. The business ceased trading in 2018 and all of those shops closed. It is still possible to find traces of the brand on some retail parks and shopping centres around the UK. The book takes a look at some of those old stores between 2019 and 2021.

Buy Lost Toys R Us Stores on Amazon.

Miniature Golf Day - Saturday 21st September 2024

Will you be celebrating Miniature Golf Day?

Each year there are two 'Miniature Golf Days' - National Miniature Golf Day is first up on the second Saturday in May, while Miniature Golf Day follows on the 21st September. This year the 21st September falls on a Saturday.

How many minigolf courses are there in the UK?

There are lots of new minigolf courses being built, in development or planned to open in the UK.

Minigolf is an incredibly popular activity for all ages and there are new courses opening up all the time in a wide-range of outdoor and indoor locations.

Whereas the game in the UK has traditionally been a seaside pastime, over the last decade it has grown to be a game enjoyed by people in more and more towns and cities - with many catering to a late night audience.

How many minigolf courses are there in the UK?

As at September 2024 there are approximately 1,350 minigolf courses around the UK and British Isles (including Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man, and other islands). This includes public courses, as well as those at pay to enter attractions, holiday parks, hotels and other 'non-standard' locations.

Developments over the last two decades

When our travels began in 2006 there were around 600 courses in the British Isles. Only two of those original courses were indoor venues. Now the indoor game is booming and you can find minigolf courses indoors at shopping centres, retail parks, and in town and city centres around the country.

The Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

We've now been to a total of 1,064 miniature golf courses on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, with 1,007 of them in the UK. Our travels have been recognised by the Guinness World Records, and I'm a record holder for "Most miniature golf courses visited" (902 at the time of going to press). Check out the Guinness World Records 2024 book to see a lot more minigolf records too!

Of the original list of 600 we've still got to visit 39 of the public courses. In addition there are a further 150 courses at pay to enter attractions, hotels and holiday parks that we've not yet been to.

On top of these 189 courses from the original list there are hundreds more courses that have opened over the last 18 years! We tracked 320 courses that opened between May 2020 and July 2023. And between August 2023 and September 2024 a further 150 courses have opened, or are in development.

More new courses to come

There are around 100 new courses being created each year - some are on old sites/locations, some are completely new venues, others are short-term 'pop-ups', while others are in planning/development, or under construction.

A few things to note

Please note that minigolf in the UK is not an exact science and courses are opening, in planning/development, and being 'lost' quite often. Others are being refurbished, and some are completely renovated to the point where they could be considered entirely new courses.

Find new courses

For information about new minigolf, crazy golf, and adventure golf courses opening in the UK take a look at the posts with the New course tag here on the Ham & Egger Files minigolf blog where I regularly update about new places to play the game.

Let's talk minigolf

If you know of a new course opening in the UK please do get in touch and let us know.

Minigolf Miraflores in Majorca, Spain

Playing at Minigolf Miraflores in Majorca.

Emily visited and played the Minigolf Miraflores course on her holiday to Majorca, Spain in May 2023.

Minigolf Miraflores became the 1,027th course visited and 566th played overall on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

A scorecard from Emily's round against her sister Jo

Check out the Minigolf Miraflores Facebook page for more information.

A postcard from Minigolf Miraflores

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Since 2006 Emily and I have visited 1,064 miniature golf courses around the UK and overseas on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. As well as playing minigolf in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Jersey and the Isle of Man we’ve travelled to minigolf courses in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Chile, Finland, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Poland, Singapore, Spain (Lanzarote and Majorca), Sweden and the USA.

When added to the courses my brother Christopher and his family have visited around the British Isles and Türkiye, Spain (Majorca), Italy, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany, France, Indonesia, Croatia and the USA, the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour stands at a combined 1,111 courses visited!

Enesco Small World of Music Tee Time Mini Golf Music Box

Adding a new item to our minigolf collection.

Check out this cool piece of minigolf merchandise - a Small World of Music Tee Time Mini Golf Music Box by Enesco. It dates from 1992.

Scorecard from Paradise Island Adventure Golf at the Trafford Centre in Manchester

Here's a minigolf scorecard from the Paradise Island Adventure Golf venue at the Trafford Centre in Manchester, England.

A nice addition to our collection of minigolf scorecards and ephemera.

Collected on a revisit to the course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Photos of the Paradise Island Adventure Golf course in Manchester

The 36-hole indoor Adventure Golf venue at the Trafford Centre opened in 2008. It was one of the very first of the new wave of themed indoor adventure golf venues.

The Tiki Hut Trail and Temple Ruins Adventure courses were the 85th and 86th courses played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour back in 2009.

Following our move north in 2016 Paradise Island Adventure Golf became one of our local places to play and we've returned for fun and tournaments at PIAG Manchester a lot over the years.

I won the Paradise Island Adventure Golf Open Championships in 2018 and Emily won the tournament in 2019.

Visit the Paradise Island Adventure Golf website for more information about the PIAG courses in Cheshire Oaks, Derby, Glasgow, Livingston, Manchester, Plymouth, Rushden Lakes and Sheffield.