Surrey-based Thorpe Park takes the expression “scary theme park ride” to its logical conclusion, with a significant smattering of its 30 state-of-the-art rides having a horror theme.
Walking Dead: The Ride and Demon compete to provide thrills, spills and bloodcurdling frissons with The Swarm (a rollercoaster that’s, in part, trackless) and SAW whose name is a direct echo of the long-running slasher film franchise. Derren Brown’s Ghost Train has the hallucinatory, unsettling feel of one of the spooky illusionist’s TV specials.
For those who aren’t fans of the horror genre, there are family friendly attractions such as Mr Monkey’s Banana Ride – although even the birds in the theme park have an edge: they’re angry. Check out the Angry Birds ride and see.
The Greater London-based theme park has 40 rides and attractions. Of these, Chessington claims that 18 are suitable for babies and toddlers making the centre a top destination for young families looking for a smile and a rush of fun.
Recommended rides include Gruffalo River Ride, Rameses Revenge, Rattlesnake, Bubbleworks, Dragon Falls, Dragon’s Fury and Vampire roller coaster.
The theme park’s big draw is that it’s part of the same complex as Chessington Zoo and Chessington Sea Life. The day’s experience includes the possibility of moving from rollercoaster to a tree-tops stroll in monkeys’ habitats and then a glimpse of sea life on the coral reef – moving from spider monkey, Bolivian squirrel monkey, clownfish and upside-down jelly fish to the squeals and yelps of customers on the big dippers and fast rides.
Lego has long since been merely the building blocks of child’s play and is now the stuff of blockbuster movies.
L-Drivers is a driving experience for the knee-high. Children aged 3 to 5 watch a road safety video, drive electric Lego cars around a Lego course and receive a Legoland driving licence.
Kids can go from one Lego-themed transport experience to another by being a pilot at Duplo Valley Airport and riding the spinning helicopter above the Windsor landscape.
Undersea education and entertainment are provided by the Sea Life Aquarium and the Atlantis Submarine Voyage in which stingrays weave through the sea-bottom ruins of the ancient city of Atlantis – built by of Lego an ancient civilisation (of course)!
Finally, it’s all aboard the Duplo Train – to round off a voyage around the world of imaginative building blocks by road, rail, sea and air.
“Cinematic” and “captivating” are words often used by the visitors of this, one of the UK’s top visitor attractions.
Naturally, a tour of the Harry Potter Studios is a multimedia experience featuring sets, costumes and special effects from the blockbuster films. Potter fans get the chance to “fly” against a green screen and recreate scenes of wizards on broomsticks over London. Some of the series best props are to hand – for example, the magical, Whomping Willow tree trunks used to thrash Mr Weasley’s flying car in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
This year sees the launch of the attraction’s biggest addition: the set of Gringotts Wizarding Bank. Fans can walk through its glorious marble hall and Lestrange Vault plus gaze upon at the costumes and prosthetics for Goblin bankers such as Griphook and Bogrod.
At certain times of year, there are special events such as one on the run up to Christmas when key parts of the studio are decked with film-making snow.
Head to the studios – just outside Watford – and enter the world of school-age wizards and witches, Professor Severus Tobias Kalovan Snape, Nymphadora Tonks, the Great Hall, Forbidden Forest and Platform 9¾.
Alton Towers is one of most established and successful theme parks in Europe.
Based in Staffordshire, the entertainment complex is comprised of the theme park itself plus a spa, water park, high ropes and mini-golf attraction.
Its star attractions include Mine Train, Congo River Rapids, Runaway Mine Train, Nemesis, Oblivion, Galactica, The Smiler, and Wicker Man inspired by the 70s cult horror flick.
The theme park is open from the middle of March until early November and is occasionally closed midweek during the quieter months. We recommend you double check opening times before visiting any of the attractions mentioned in this article.
