With the expiry date looming on my Merlin Annual Pass, I still hadn’t done 2 of the London Theme Parks & the new DreamWorks Tours – Shrek’s Adventure wasn’t open on the last visit to Merlin’s London Attractions so a trip near my birthday on Easter Weekend was a great idea.
Setting off on Thursday 24th March, I got the coach down to London as it stopped at our connecting Train Station Victoria. After an hour stuck in traffic on the M1 meant a 5 1/2 hour journey, (whose idea was it to travel Easter bank holiday weekend!) we had a short walk across the road from Victoria coach to train station where we caught the train to Staines which was our base for the weekend, conveniently located in between LEGOLAND Windsor and London as well as a few miles away from Thorpe Park! At 10pm we arrived at the hotel after taking a wrong turning on the way as it is a lot harder to find your way around a new town when it is dark! Hungry & tired we ordered a feast of Pizza from the local Pizza Hut and got to bed ready for an early start to Thorpe Park tomorrow.
On a very sunny good Friday morning we headed to the bus stop opposite the George Pub to catch the 446 to Thorpe Park. This is the local bus and is a better option than the packed 950 Thorpe Park Express we saw pass us, it’s much quieter, cheaper, has later buses back and stops near the retail park. We were met with crowds of people at the entrance but once in the park, the masses all spread out nicely. If you have never been to Thorpe park, the theme park is located on an island and you have to cross a bridge to get to the Dome – an entrance area filled with shops & restaurants.
We headed to the parks newest rollercoaster first – The Swarm which is placed on its own little island right next to the main island! The queues were low due to the park just opening, the ride itself was great and I know why they called it the swarm as when queuing you are attacked by swarms of flies! The wing coaster means there is nothing underneath, above or to the side of you and sat at the back of the train climbing the hill seeing the people being flung upside down into the first drop and loop is very scary indeed building the tension until you are next and you fly underneath Planes, through billboards and tight spaces. Stealth was then the next coaster giving the best adrenaline rush with a high speed launch to the sky and back!
Next Was Saw: The Ride and the vertical lift is one of the scariest things I have experienced on a rollercoaster as when you reach the top you are flung over 110 degrees into a more than vertical drop and into a Saw! After, catching Colossus just opening so we didn’t have to wait, we had done nearly all of the major rollercoasters by 1pm so we stopped for lunch at Amity Beach Fish & Chips. Love this area of the park, the music, atmosphere and theming are all brilliant. We then got slightly wet on rumba rapids but didn’t mind as the weather was great for March! Next was X and after a 1 hour wait, it was very disappointing and wouldn’t recommend waiting over 10 mins for it. The indoor Music themed rollercoaster could be so much better & has the potential to be transformed into something amazing.
The new Nitrogenie at the park is an Ice cream outlet selling ice cream made with Nitrogen gas and the Choc Brownie flavour was too tempting, so after watching it being made, I indulged in a really creamy ice cream with giant brownie pieces! It was delicious and well worth trying. We took a look in the new Derren Brown’s Ghost Train Shop which opens this May and looks amazing. This ride alone is making me want to make a return visit this year! Then, we completed all of the major coasters in the park by riding Nemesis Inferno.
Highlights
- The Swarm & Colossus were some of the best rollercoasters I’ve been on!
- Nitrogenie Triple Choc Brownie Ice Cream!
- Riding all the major Rollercoasters
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CJ Attractions Guide 