Prior to company launch Blackpool Tourism Limited was originally Blackpool Operating Company Limited (BOCL) - a private company who operated the Sandcastle Waterpark on behalf of Blackpool Council. The company was bought by the council in 2003 and turned into a
Local Authority Trading Company. In 2010, Blackpool Council struck a deal with Leisure Parcs, the
Trevor Hemmings-owned Blackpool tourism company, to purchase their attractions - which consisted of the Blackpool Tower, Winter Gardens and Louis Tussauds Waxworks - for £38.9 Million. With exception of the Winter Gardens, which would be run separately, the Council contracted Merlin Entertainments to operate the Tower and the Waxworks. For a two-year period starting in August 2022, operation of the Sandcastle Waterpark was transferred from BOCL to Merlin Entertainments. In August 2024, Kate Shane, head of Merlin's Blackpool attractions, became managing director of Blackpool Operating Company Ltd. BOCL would take over operation of the town's Showtown Museum in February 2025.
As Blackpool Tourism Ltd On June 4, 2025, it was announced that the remaining council-owned attractions in Blackpool would no longer be operated by Merlin and instead be ran by Blackpool Operating Company Ltd, which in the process would be rebranded as Blackpool Tourism Ltd (BTL). BTL took over operation of the attractions from 1 August 2025. In November 2025, BTL introduced an annual pass which allows passholders to make unlimited visits to attractions over a one-year period. On February 5, 2026, it was announced that the Winter Gardens, operated by another Blackpool Council subsidiary - Blackpool Entertainment Company Ltd (BECL), would be transferred to Blackpool Tourism Limited. As part of the transfer, BECL would be dissolved. In March 2026, BTL launched the Ultimate Ticket - a £65 ticket bundle which includes admission to the following: their Blackpool Tower attractions (except the Ballroom and Dino Golf), Madame Tussauds, Sandcastle Waterpark and, like the WaveRider ticket, Pleasure Beach. They also added the SkyThrills ticket (all of the above except Sandcastle Waterpark) and the SkyRider (all of the above except Pleasure Beach), both for £50 per person. ==Attractions operated by Blackpool Tourism Ltd==