Thorpe Park Resort is in my opinion the Merlin Attraction for the big kids (that is those over 1.4m). YES there is lots of other stuff to do for those shorter than the magic height but it is the park you want to head to when you are tall enough. This can cause problems for us as our youngest isn’t quite there yet – so when it was a sunny day (and there happened to be some guys kicking a football around on the telly – which was provided in The Dome) we thought it the perfect place to visit due to its Amity Beach (which we hadn’t previously utilised).
Ways to cool down at Thorpe Park Resort
We tend to have to split our family in two at Thorpe Park Resort so that the more thrilling rides can be enjoyed but thanks to the fact we all have a Merlin Premium Annual Pass we had done them so many times we could enjoy the park in other ways. We start the day with Storm Surge knowing that straight away our feet will get wet and wear appropriate footwear for this. After this we head on over to Tidal Wave where you will get completely and utterly soaked!
For this we wore our swimwear and then headed straight over to Amity Beach – where the boys also rode on Wet, Wet, Wet (the blue, green and yellow slides). Finally we went on the Rumba Rapids (of the rides that could get you at all wet). Also quite cooling is Depth Charge but you don’t really get wet on this and on this occasion we did not visit that particular attraction. After Tidal Wave you will need a spare change of clothes – which could always be coupled with staying over at The Shark Hotel.
The Walking Dead: The Ride
Being as we had been many times before we wanted to go on the The Walking Dead: The Ride as we hadn’t experienced it before. For a new ride on a hot day the queue moved pretty quickly. We warned loads of times that there would be live actors and that they may touch us but that we couldn’t touch them back. That if this was too much we should leave the queue now.
My main concern was that I feared there would be just lots of dark tunnels (as it is basically X that has been revamped). Indeed that’s exactly how things were but my teenager took hold of my hand and looked after me the whole way through. It was funny when we were right at the front at one point and no-one wanted to move forwards (even though you KNOW it is JUST a ride and nothing bad will happen! This ride is for 1.4m (although the actual ride part is the same as X in terms of safety) and a suitable age of 13+. We did see much younger children go on but I wouldn’t let our 10 year old go on as it really isn’t age appropriate for him. I won’t spoil it too much more other than to say it is worth riding at least once – more so if you are fans of The Walking Dead.
The Rest of Our Experience at Thorpe Park Resort
Between 21st July and 3rd September 2018 there will be Zombie Hunt – a brand new for this year interactive laser blaster battle against the zombies in the woods of Old Town. This is suitable for ages 8 and over with adult supervision required. We did end a very lovely day by splitting up with the older children doing their favourite big rides whilst I took our youngest to the King Pig’s Wild Hog Dodgems and we cooled off watching the ANGRY BIRDS 4D Experience. As we own Merlin Premium Annual Passes there is no parking charge for us – but we were pleased to see that those who have not got a parking ticket before leaving now pay extra at the gate (£10).
We are Merlin Premium Annual Pass Ambassadors but all thoughts and opinions are honest and my own.
We love water parks, looks like so much fun. We’ve been thinking about visiting Thorpe Park but the boys are still probably a little young.
We went to a theme park this week too and used the water features to cool off, but ours were much tamer and we didn’t need a change of clothes ! Not sure I’d fancy the Walking Dead ride though !
We had annual passes for Merlin last year and Thorpe Park was the only place we didn’t manage to visit. I didn’t realise it had a waterpark, definitely a great idea in this hot weather #countrykids
Oh my, I’ve never been to Thorpe Park but I think my kids would adore this. Those slides look amazing and you capture such a happy fun photo in the water of the kids having a ball. How sweet is your teen guiding you through the scary Walking Dead tunnel like that, such a lovely touch.
I first went to Thorpe Park with school 40+ years ago, I wish I had photos as it is nothing like it is today. I agree, this one is for older kids, although the beach there was a big hit with my son when we went a few years ago #CountryKids
It looks pretty good fun! Dividing the family works well in theme parks
Looks like a fun day. It was 112 degrees here in Texas on Monday. We stayed inside with the air conditioning on. It’s nice you have a season pass and can visit regularly. # countrykids