The CF Live at Alton Towers was delayed... but that certainly didn't I couldn't see in the start of the UK theme park season in another way. I decided, on a whim, to do something I'd vaguely been planning for ages: to go back to Chessington World of Adventures after about 15 years.
I don't know why it's ended up being so long since my last visit, but anyway. I visited on Sunday 23rd, the third day of the 2025 season and I can safely say that I'm sorry I stayed away for such a long time. Chessington World of Adventures is a very strong family theme park in most departments - it's got a really nice vibe and a fantastic variety of attractions. Roller coasters, flat rides, water rides and even a safari - Chessington has all of this. Furthermore, it's also a good day for a thrill-seeker, as the rides here are high-quality and also genuinely exciting. The one-two punch here represents what are probably the two finest family-thrill coasters in the country.
In terms of issues... I had a couple. Firstly, operations. Maybe I was just spoiled by the world-class ones at Europa Park but these definitely could've used improvement. On Dragon's Fury, cars were being sent around with several empty seats and on Rattlesnake I was given an entire car to myself. Admittedly, the latter example isn't so damaging as it didn't have the longest queue (it is Rattlesnake, after all) but still, I would've been happy to share! Then again, at least I wasn't sharing with any kids, as the sharp transitions had me swearing like a sailor. Secondly, the park's appearance... or rather, partly. This is an interesting mixed bag in that some rides and areas of the park look absolutely lovely, others feel a bit empty and 'meh'. In particular, I really wasn't too impressed with the Jumanji land; aside from the statue Mandrill Mayhem wraps around, I thought it was pretty boring to look at. Similarly, Rattlesnake and Vampire are both located in ambient ride areas, yet Mandrill Mayhem's theming isn't as good as it could've been and Dragon's Fury doesn't really have any at all.
Speaking of which, since I was last here in Autumn 2009 a few things have changed. Bubbleworks is now a Gruffalo-themed dark ride, Dragon Falls is now Tiger Rock, Ramses' Revenge has been replaced with Croc Drop, Runaway Mine Train / Scorpion Express has (unfortunately) closed as well, the World of Jumanji has arrived and Wild Asia has also opened... and closed within this time. Yeah, I missed the boat on that one!
So, on this most recent visit I did all four of the rollercoasters as well as a few of the non-coaster rides. Thoughts and scores are below! I rate the big rides out of 10 and the family and/or simpler rides out of 5.
Non-Coaster Rides
Croc Drop: It sure is great to be wrong sometimes. I think getting rid of Ramses' Revenge was necessary as many of the park's guests couldn't ride it due to the 1.4 metre height restriction and it always felt like a bit of an odd one out, yet I was disappointed to see it being replaced with this boring-looking family drop tower. Well, I eat my words - Croc Drop is actually a really good family attraction. First up, the theming and theatrics get you nice and pumped before you're even started, and the drop tower itself provides several sharp bursts of floater airtime that made me squawk loudly. This is a great fit for the park - it's kid-friendly but also has some thrills for the adults, and it nails the otherworldly, adventurous vibe this park does so well. My one complaint is that I did wish for a slightly longer cycle, especially as it was a bit of a slow line. 4/5
Ostrich Stampede: Yeah, this does what it says on the tin basically. It's a very solid flat ride with lovely airtime and though the over-the-shoulder restraints worried me at first, I found them very comfortable. The ostrich heads on the cars look like dinosaurs though - just saying. 4/5
The Gruffalo River Ride Adventure: This used to be Bubbleworks, I remember that being pretty awesome. And you know what? This is too. Basically, Chessington took the Gruffalo picture book and turned it into a dark ride, and they did it really well, relying on props rather than screens to deliver an atmospheric, heart-warming adaptation of a much-loved book. The ride's story might not make as much sense for those who don't know the book, but most probably do so that shouldn't be a problem for most. You have to do a fair bit of waiting here. There's the irritating way a photo station is set up within the queue itself, leading to a slow line, and when I rode it several boats had to queue to go down the ride's drop. It's all worth the wait, however, and this is one of the UK's best dark rides. 8/10
Tiger Rock: OK... comfortable boats, wonderful scenery, a soothing and relaxing boat ride broken up by two killer, airtime-filled drops... is this now the best log flume in the UK? Well, with Loggers Leap gone, it's definitely up there. It's a shame I didn't see any tigers, but ah well, this is a fantastic log flume that was even better than I remembered. I'd call this one of my absolute favourite rides at the park - go Tiger Rock! 8.5/10
In my past visits, I've also done some of the other Flat Rides such as Seastorm (the Mack Himalaya) and Tomb Blaster, neither of which I did on this most recent visit but I remember thinking both were really good. I didn't get to do the Blue Barnacle Pirate Ship, which replaced the Black Buccaneer (which I did many times and really enjoyed). Anyway, time to discuss the rollercoasters. I did all four, and got rerides on everything except Rattlesnake. I discovered that the mine train is now closed, which I was sorry to see as I remember enjoying that one. I'm sure I'd rank it above my least-favourite rollercoaster in the park, put it that way...
Rollercoasters
Rattlesnake: This Wild Mouse is notable for having an inexplicable 1.4 metre height restriction (for context, Hyperia's is only 1.3 metres) and for being the worst coaster at the park... actually, no, not really. People hate on this for being rough and while it is undeniably rattly... it's called Rattlesnake. Rattle - snake. It's meant to be intensely rattly, the clue is in the name, you know? Well, that's how I interpreted it as a kid and I found it fun. As for now, I still don't understand the hate. It's far from the most comfortable ride and it is just a Mack Wild Mouse at the end of the day, but genuinely strong theming, plenty of head-chopper moments and some sneakily intense drops make this a perfectly OK coaster in its own right. It seems like each major Merlin park in the UK needs to have an over-hated coaster (Colossus and Rita are others). 6/10
Vampire: Now that the mine train has gone, this is the oldest coaster at the park - it's a staggering 35 years old. That it's still going is impressive - were it not for Vekoma's floorless trains it's likely this would've gone the same way as South Korea's Eagle Fortress (a cred many of us are sad we never got). Furthermore, Vampire's lost none of its punch with age. The one issue it's got is pacing, in that the second lift hill comes way too soon and does break up the ride's flow, and both halves are a bit short. Having said that, this is a quality-over-quantity ride. It might be short, but when it's in motion it's an absolute force to be reckoned with; all those crazy turns and drops provide wonderful forces and wacky swinging all the way through. The woodland setting also adds so much to the experience, even if quite a bit of theming has now disappeared. So rest assured: 35 years later... Vampire still has one hell of a killer bite. 8/10
Dragon's Fury: This was my favourite ride in the park the last time I visited... and it still is now. Although it really could use some more theming and atmosphere, the ride is just a masterful family-thrill coaster that hits a wonderful balance in so many ways. It's kid-friendly while also providing wonderful thrills for older riders, it's jolty without being uncomfortable, it offers fun spinning that never becomes nauseating for easily dizzy riders like me. It's got airtime-filled drops, intense helixes, mostly strong pacing - it's a joyous ride that'll have you laughing all the way through. With its low capacity it will be one of the longer waits of the day (in October 2006 I memorably queued two hours for it... in the rain!) but it is more than worth the wait. This is the best spinning coaster in the UK, quite arguably the best family-thrill coaster in the UK and one of my favourite UK coasters in general. 8.5/10
Mandrill Mayhem: Alright, it's time to talk about the one new cred of the trip, credit #138 for me! From the moment I saw the pre-opening POVs I thought this looked like a very weird ride, definitely one of the most oddball coasters B&M have ever built. Maybe even the most unusual, come to think of it. So, what did I think of Mandrill Mayhem? I.... didn't like it. At all. Even ignoring the fact that building a low-capacity shuttle coaster was a bad idea for such a popular park and even if one overlooks the weak theming (aside from the main statue), this ride is rough and headache-inducing. Every other B&M in the country is glass-smooth, so why is the newest one so uncomfortable? Also, the rest of the layout does nothing for me, with only the initial backwards launch and spike providing any sort of rush. If this was a family coaster the lack of forces wouldn't bother me but given that this has an inversion you can't really call it a family coaster, so it's stuck between a rock and a hard place. It's too extreme to be a family coaster, but it's too dull to qualify as a thrill coaster. I'll give some extra points for the cool train design, the solid launches, that initial backwards part and the impressively wacky, original nature of the whole thing, but I did not care for it at all. I got two rides on it, and the second was even worse. 5/10
I always look forward to writing this trip reports so much, thanks for reading!
I don't know why it's ended up being so long since my last visit, but anyway. I visited on Sunday 23rd, the third day of the 2025 season and I can safely say that I'm sorry I stayed away for such a long time. Chessington World of Adventures is a very strong family theme park in most departments - it's got a really nice vibe and a fantastic variety of attractions. Roller coasters, flat rides, water rides and even a safari - Chessington has all of this. Furthermore, it's also a good day for a thrill-seeker, as the rides here are high-quality and also genuinely exciting. The one-two punch here represents what are probably the two finest family-thrill coasters in the country.
In terms of issues... I had a couple. Firstly, operations. Maybe I was just spoiled by the world-class ones at Europa Park but these definitely could've used improvement. On Dragon's Fury, cars were being sent around with several empty seats and on Rattlesnake I was given an entire car to myself. Admittedly, the latter example isn't so damaging as it didn't have the longest queue (it is Rattlesnake, after all) but still, I would've been happy to share! Then again, at least I wasn't sharing with any kids, as the sharp transitions had me swearing like a sailor. Secondly, the park's appearance... or rather, partly. This is an interesting mixed bag in that some rides and areas of the park look absolutely lovely, others feel a bit empty and 'meh'. In particular, I really wasn't too impressed with the Jumanji land; aside from the statue Mandrill Mayhem wraps around, I thought it was pretty boring to look at. Similarly, Rattlesnake and Vampire are both located in ambient ride areas, yet Mandrill Mayhem's theming isn't as good as it could've been and Dragon's Fury doesn't really have any at all.
Speaking of which, since I was last here in Autumn 2009 a few things have changed. Bubbleworks is now a Gruffalo-themed dark ride, Dragon Falls is now Tiger Rock, Ramses' Revenge has been replaced with Croc Drop, Runaway Mine Train / Scorpion Express has (unfortunately) closed as well, the World of Jumanji has arrived and Wild Asia has also opened... and closed within this time. Yeah, I missed the boat on that one!
So, on this most recent visit I did all four of the rollercoasters as well as a few of the non-coaster rides. Thoughts and scores are below! I rate the big rides out of 10 and the family and/or simpler rides out of 5.
Non-Coaster Rides
Croc Drop: It sure is great to be wrong sometimes. I think getting rid of Ramses' Revenge was necessary as many of the park's guests couldn't ride it due to the 1.4 metre height restriction and it always felt like a bit of an odd one out, yet I was disappointed to see it being replaced with this boring-looking family drop tower. Well, I eat my words - Croc Drop is actually a really good family attraction. First up, the theming and theatrics get you nice and pumped before you're even started, and the drop tower itself provides several sharp bursts of floater airtime that made me squawk loudly. This is a great fit for the park - it's kid-friendly but also has some thrills for the adults, and it nails the otherworldly, adventurous vibe this park does so well. My one complaint is that I did wish for a slightly longer cycle, especially as it was a bit of a slow line. 4/5
Ostrich Stampede: Yeah, this does what it says on the tin basically. It's a very solid flat ride with lovely airtime and though the over-the-shoulder restraints worried me at first, I found them very comfortable. The ostrich heads on the cars look like dinosaurs though - just saying. 4/5
The Gruffalo River Ride Adventure: This used to be Bubbleworks, I remember that being pretty awesome. And you know what? This is too. Basically, Chessington took the Gruffalo picture book and turned it into a dark ride, and they did it really well, relying on props rather than screens to deliver an atmospheric, heart-warming adaptation of a much-loved book. The ride's story might not make as much sense for those who don't know the book, but most probably do so that shouldn't be a problem for most. You have to do a fair bit of waiting here. There's the irritating way a photo station is set up within the queue itself, leading to a slow line, and when I rode it several boats had to queue to go down the ride's drop. It's all worth the wait, however, and this is one of the UK's best dark rides. 8/10
Tiger Rock: OK... comfortable boats, wonderful scenery, a soothing and relaxing boat ride broken up by two killer, airtime-filled drops... is this now the best log flume in the UK? Well, with Loggers Leap gone, it's definitely up there. It's a shame I didn't see any tigers, but ah well, this is a fantastic log flume that was even better than I remembered. I'd call this one of my absolute favourite rides at the park - go Tiger Rock! 8.5/10
In my past visits, I've also done some of the other Flat Rides such as Seastorm (the Mack Himalaya) and Tomb Blaster, neither of which I did on this most recent visit but I remember thinking both were really good. I didn't get to do the Blue Barnacle Pirate Ship, which replaced the Black Buccaneer (which I did many times and really enjoyed). Anyway, time to discuss the rollercoasters. I did all four, and got rerides on everything except Rattlesnake. I discovered that the mine train is now closed, which I was sorry to see as I remember enjoying that one. I'm sure I'd rank it above my least-favourite rollercoaster in the park, put it that way...
Rollercoasters
Rattlesnake: This Wild Mouse is notable for having an inexplicable 1.4 metre height restriction (for context, Hyperia's is only 1.3 metres) and for being the worst coaster at the park... actually, no, not really. People hate on this for being rough and while it is undeniably rattly... it's called Rattlesnake. Rattle - snake. It's meant to be intensely rattly, the clue is in the name, you know? Well, that's how I interpreted it as a kid and I found it fun. As for now, I still don't understand the hate. It's far from the most comfortable ride and it is just a Mack Wild Mouse at the end of the day, but genuinely strong theming, plenty of head-chopper moments and some sneakily intense drops make this a perfectly OK coaster in its own right. It seems like each major Merlin park in the UK needs to have an over-hated coaster (Colossus and Rita are others). 6/10
Vampire: Now that the mine train has gone, this is the oldest coaster at the park - it's a staggering 35 years old. That it's still going is impressive - were it not for Vekoma's floorless trains it's likely this would've gone the same way as South Korea's Eagle Fortress (a cred many of us are sad we never got). Furthermore, Vampire's lost none of its punch with age. The one issue it's got is pacing, in that the second lift hill comes way too soon and does break up the ride's flow, and both halves are a bit short. Having said that, this is a quality-over-quantity ride. It might be short, but when it's in motion it's an absolute force to be reckoned with; all those crazy turns and drops provide wonderful forces and wacky swinging all the way through. The woodland setting also adds so much to the experience, even if quite a bit of theming has now disappeared. So rest assured: 35 years later... Vampire still has one hell of a killer bite. 8/10
Dragon's Fury: This was my favourite ride in the park the last time I visited... and it still is now. Although it really could use some more theming and atmosphere, the ride is just a masterful family-thrill coaster that hits a wonderful balance in so many ways. It's kid-friendly while also providing wonderful thrills for older riders, it's jolty without being uncomfortable, it offers fun spinning that never becomes nauseating for easily dizzy riders like me. It's got airtime-filled drops, intense helixes, mostly strong pacing - it's a joyous ride that'll have you laughing all the way through. With its low capacity it will be one of the longer waits of the day (in October 2006 I memorably queued two hours for it... in the rain!) but it is more than worth the wait. This is the best spinning coaster in the UK, quite arguably the best family-thrill coaster in the UK and one of my favourite UK coasters in general. 8.5/10
Mandrill Mayhem: Alright, it's time to talk about the one new cred of the trip, credit #138 for me! From the moment I saw the pre-opening POVs I thought this looked like a very weird ride, definitely one of the most oddball coasters B&M have ever built. Maybe even the most unusual, come to think of it. So, what did I think of Mandrill Mayhem? I.... didn't like it. At all. Even ignoring the fact that building a low-capacity shuttle coaster was a bad idea for such a popular park and even if one overlooks the weak theming (aside from the main statue), this ride is rough and headache-inducing. Every other B&M in the country is glass-smooth, so why is the newest one so uncomfortable? Also, the rest of the layout does nothing for me, with only the initial backwards launch and spike providing any sort of rush. If this was a family coaster the lack of forces wouldn't bother me but given that this has an inversion you can't really call it a family coaster, so it's stuck between a rock and a hard place. It's too extreme to be a family coaster, but it's too dull to qualify as a thrill coaster. I'll give some extra points for the cool train design, the solid launches, that initial backwards part and the impressively wacky, original nature of the whole thing, but I did not care for it at all. I got two rides on it, and the second was even worse. 5/10
I always look forward to writing this trip reports so much, thanks for reading!
