Heritage organisation Historic England has named Southend Pier as one its "seven wonders of the English seaside". 

The list was compiled by Allan Brodie, an author who specialises in the history of the British seaside. He said the grade II listed building was not given the accolade because it was "grand or pretty" but because it is the longest pier in the world with a train that takes visitors along the 1.34 mile stretch.

Mr Brodie added: "The pier was built in 1889 by James Brunlees and it was adapted to carry an electric tramway in 1890. It has subsequently been added to and rebuilt following a number of fires. These progressive alterations add to its interest.

“’The other contenders for the pier category were Weston-Super-Mare and Clevedon, but I have always felt an affinity for Southend. It’s not the prettiest or the grandest of piers, but what’s remarkable is that it is over a mile long, and you can actually get a train from one end to the other.”

The other "seaside wonders" were the scenic railway at Dreamland in Margate, Blackpool Tower, The Grand Hotel in Scarborough, the Hippodrome at Great Yarmouth, Brighton Lido, and the Royal Pavilion in Brighton.

Five spectacular Southend parks have again won prestigious green flags.

The national accolades have been awarded to Belfairs, Chalkwell, Priory, Shoebury and Southchurch Parks to show they are ranked with the country’s best parks and green spaces.

Environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy recognises parks, cemeteries, universities, shopping centres and community gardens which have all met the high standard needed to achieve the Green Flag Award or the Green Flag Community Award.

Sites are visited by inspectors and assessed against eight strict criteria, including horticultural standards, cleanliness, sustainability and community involvement.

Executive Councillor for Enterprise, Tourism and Economic Development, Councillor Graham Longley said: “We are delighted that these five Southend parks which are so enjoyed by residents and visitors, have again reached the top standards required to win green flags.

“These awards mean that our parks are being recognised nationally for their quality and appeal.

“As well as their trees and horticultural highlights, our parks host all kinds of attractions ranging from the Bandstand in Priory Park with free musical performances at weekends, to major events such as Village Green in Chalkwell Park, as well as tennis courts, other sports grounds, childrens play areas – such as the new one in Shoebury Park, and outdoor gyms.

“It is even more pleasing to know that we have maintained our high standards and managed to retain all the flags we were awarded last year.

“This is a tribute to the terrific efforts of all those who have been working so hard to keep our parks up to such award-winning standards.”

Hotel bookings in Southend are up by a whopping 374% as people opt for a "stay-cation" instead of travelling abroad.

Online hotel booking company LateRooms.com says its figures show tourism figures are at a record high for resorts like Southend. They put the surge down to a combination of factors, such as investment in Southend, hot summers and turmoil in traditional overseas holiday spots. Strikes by French ferry workers, financial chaos in Greece and terror attacks in places like Tunisia and Turkey have all persuaded people to holiday closer to home.

Many UK seaside resorts have seen big increases in tourism over the last five years, but none more so than Southend:

Southend-on-Sea - bookings up by 374% since 2011
Minehead - up by 262%
Skegness - up by 191%
Whitby - up by 100%
Blackpool -  up by 72%
Margate - up by 55%
Weymouth - up by 45%
Eastbourne - up by 40%

Andrea Tarpey from LateRooms.com said: “Along with trends for afternoon tea, knitting and picnics, our passion for the UK’s beach resorts shows we’re feeling nostalgic this year.

“With great investment being made in the facilities and attractions too, we see this as a trend that’s definitely set to continue.”

The annual TripAdvisor Traveller’s Choice Awards has seen Southend's Adventure Island move from 9th to 3rd in the list of Britain’s best amusement parks – and make a new entry at 11th best in Europe.

The awards, based on millions of reviews posted on the world’s biggest travel ratings website, recognise the best travel spots and destinations based on customers’ experiences and opinions. The award winning destinations and venues are decided by their popularity with TripAdvisor users, taking into account their favourite and most highly-rated places.

In the UK, Adventure Island received 1,326 reviews with 1,194 rating it as either Excellent or Very Good, with comments such as “The staff are amazingly chirpy”, “great value for the whole day” and “good rides and compared with other parks not too expensive, get a wrist band to make the most of the day” being typical of the overwhelmingly positive experiences. There was also lots of mentions about the lack of queues at Adventure island compared to other parks.

Marc Miller, Managing Director of Adventure Island, said: “This latest accolade brackets us with some of the most famous names in our industry – both in the UK and globally. To be ranked higher in the UK than iconic attractions like Blackpool Pleasure Beach and Brighton Pier is very gratifying – and to be rated in the top 1% of all amusement parks in the world is amazing. It is a testament to our unwavering commitment to our customers having a terrific time here and continually striving to improve our offer. Our investment in new attractions, such as Adventure Inside, and its subsequent success demonstrates this.”

He added: “Of course, an essential part of winning this latest award is the standard we set in customer service. We take great care to recruit, train and look after the very best people. It is down to their personalities and professionalism that the public – our toughest critics – feel motivated to go on TripAdvisor and share their appreciation for what we do. I am very grateful to everyone in the Adventure Island team, all our reviewers and TripAdvisor for this superb recognition.”

Councillors have unanimously agreed plans for a new £1.5m spa at a popular seafront hotel.

Bosses of the four-star Roslin Beach Hotel first outlined proposals for a spa extension last year, but planning issues meant that the scheme only went before Southend’s development control committee this afternoon.

The green light means that work can now begin on creating a sauna, steam room, five new treatment rooms, an expanded nail bar, hydrotherapy pool and a terrace with sea views at the hotel in Thorpe Esplanade.

The hotel already employs 120 staff, and a further 15 will be taken on when the spa opens, possibly as early as this Christmas.

easyJet has today announced a new winter route from Southend Airport to Lanzarote in the Canary Islands.

Flights will be scheduled for twice a week during the winter, beginning on November 6th, with up to 600 passengers a week able to take advantage of the new route.

Last week easyJet announced a new winter route to Lyon, France, and airport bosses are in talks with airlines to add even more new routes.

Neil Slaven, UK commercia manager at easyJet, said: "Having just added Lyon to the range of destinations offered from Southend, we're delighted to be adding another new route to Lanzarote.

"With the addition of new affordable routes, we are catering for the demand from passengers in the region who wish to fly from the airport.

"We are sure Lanzarote will be a firm favourite for those looking for a winter break."