Discobowl Burnley — Attraction in Burnley

To call this place a bowling alley is woefully far from the truth. Almost every available space is crammed full of arcade style games designed to milk you dry - Cake Walks and Grabbers, and bubblegum type dispensers filled with cheap sweets.

No hire shoes to protect expensive lane surfaces and once you get to the lanes it is fairly obvious why. Lancashire roads are in a parlours state - rucked potholed and in need of significant investment. MFA Bowl is similarly woeful with not a single lane even remotely close to an acceptable standard.

For many reasons ten pin bowling is expensive. The machinery is expensive to buy and I'm sure little has changed since the 1960s when it was in its heyday so maintenance is probably a challenge too. Back in the day lanes were surfaced with fine ash timber also expensive to install and maintain and I remember well the furore amongst the bowling fraternity when lanes were converted to concrete with laminate top layers to save money, MFA has clearly little to no budget for maintenance to the point where nobody who can bowl would use it.

It's clear from the permanently up gulley guards and the kiddy ramp at every lane this onetime bowling alley has descended in to a kiddy party venue for parents who have no interest in the quality of the experience as long as the price is right and the effort involved is minimal.

It's a crying shame that the decay and rot is so bad. I'm sure the current owners couldn't afford to invest in bringing it up to standard whether they want to or not. And once the footfall gets below the point where the bowling side ceases to attract paying clientele and the arcade machines don't pay enough to cover the cost of being open it will close for good and be demolished. Another victim of the declining interest of bowling as a sport, and greedy owners who want to milk every available cent before selling the site as a "development" opportunity.

Sadly demolition is all this place is fit for, unloved uncared for and a shadow of its former glory this is a dog long past the point where it's end would be a kindness and it pains me to say so.

The only plus I can find is the lady behind the counter was cheery, friendly, and spoke to not at the...

So upon arrival I'm told it's cheaper to book online then on site, no worries thanks for the advice, so i stood at the counter on my phone booking myself a lane. Surely the lady on the counter could have looked on the computer and sorted a booking out for me for the same prices as online? (£4 a game difference for booking online) total saving £21 after a booking fee was applied 🙄? (Dunno what her wages are for if she's just stood there saying book online.) Next we go to the bar where all the alcohol taps are off, no beer, obviously not selling anything, so no money for barrels (this could be due to it being empty cause it's £9 a game when booking in store). The bottle of beer I did purchase from the fridge was warm, don't think the fridges worked or weren't turned on and the Coke from the dispenser was flat. The place was empty at 7.30 pm on a Thursday, maybe charge less to get people in the venue so the staff have to earn their wages, literally 4 staff, 2 customers. The place was cleaner than it used to be and they have been doing it up slowly, new TVs, new seating areas, new pool tables and a lick of paint here and there but the main issue that everyone swerves when owning this place is the lanes need replacing, the wood's battered and most the balls have chunks missing out of them. It killed an hour but the experience has meant it'll be a while...

Review: Mixed Feelings – Some Good, Some Frustrating

Visited the bowling alley with my son and had a decent time overall, but a few things left me frustrated.

I booked online for one game at 3:40pm on a Thursday and was charged £19.22 for the two of us. Later, I saw on the website that games are only £5 per game on weekdays — something I only noticed after booking. There was no option to select this cheaper rate during the booking process, which felt misleading. Since the place was quiet when we arrived, we definitely would’ve saved money by just turning up and paying in person and could have had 3 games for the same price.

We also had a poor experience with the pool table. I paid £2 by card to use it but missed a sign saying there’s a £5 cash deposit required for cues. I only had mobile payment, so that was an issue. The staff did lend us some cues (one of which was damaged), and I appreciated their help — but the whole process could’ve been clearer.

On the plus side, the atmosphere was relaxed, and I had a good time with my son. Staff were friendly and did their best to help when needed.

Overall: We enjoyed ourselves, but I wouldn’t book online again due to effectively not allowing the cheaper rate online. Better to just turn up, pay the cheaper price, and avoid the confusion. Clearer pricing and signage would really improve...