Thorpe Park Resort, commonly known as Thorpe Park, is an
amusement park located in the village of Thorpe between the towns of
Chertsey
Chertsey is a town in the Borough of Runnymede, Surrey, England, south-west of central London. It grew up round Chertsey Abbey, founded in 666 CE, and gained a market charter from Henry I. A bridge across the River Thames first appeared in t ...
and
Staines-upon-Thames in Surrey, England, southwest of
Central London. It is operated by
Merlin Entertainments
Merlin Entertainments Limited is a British entertainment company based at Poole in Dorset, England. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange until November 2019, when it was acquired by a consortium that includes Kirkbi A/S (the investme ...
and includes rides, themed cabins, live events and ''
Stealth'', the United Kingdom's fastest rollercoaster. In 2019 Thorpe park was the UK's third most visited theme park (1.9 million visitors), behind
Alton Towers and
Legoland Windsor
Legoland Windsor Resort (), styled and also known as Legoland Windsor, is a theme park and resort in Windsor, Berkshire in England, themed around the Lego brand. The park opened on 17 March 1996 and is currently operated by Merlin Entertainment ...
.
However, in 2020, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the park only had a 125-day operation season, along with limited capacity, leading to massively reduced visitor numbers. Despite this, Thorpe Park was the second most attended theme park in the UK in 2020, behind Alton Towers.
After demolition of the Thorpe Park Estate in the 1930s, the site became a gravel pit managed by Ready Mix Concrete (RMC). When the pits were expended, RMC regenerated the site for leisure, opening Thorpe Park as an outdoor activity park in 1979. It has since grown into one of the major theme parks in the UK.
Major attractions include ''
Tidal Wave'', a large water ride, a number of rollercoasters including ''
Colossus'', ''
Nemesis Inferno'', ''
Stealth'', ''
Saw – The Ride
Saw – The Ride is a steel roller coaster located at Thorpe Park in Surrey, England. Manufactured by Gerstlauer, the Euro-Fighter model opened to the public as the steepest freefall roller coaster in the world on 14 March 2009, with a drop angl ...
'', ''
The Swarm'', ''
The Walking Dead: The Ride'', and ''
Derren Brown's Ghost Train: Rise of the Demon'', a dark ride.
History
![Thorpe Park Lake in early days - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/75/Thorpe_Park_Lake_in_early_days_-_geograph.org.uk_-_771796.jpg)
The demolition of the Thorpe Park Estate in the 1930s saw the grounds transform into a gravel pit, originally owned by
Ready Mixed Concrete Limited. When the pits were expended, RMC flooded part of the site. In 1975 the
Water Ski World Championships were held on the site. RMC established a subsidiary, Leisure Sport Limited, to operate a park for water sports, leisure and heritage exhibitions, at a cost of £3 million.
The park was officially opened to the public by
Lord Louis Mountbatten
Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (25 June 1900 – 27 August 1979) was a British naval officer, colonial administrator and close relative of the British royal family. Mountbatten, who was of Germa ...
on 24 May 1979, his final public appearance shortly before he was assassinated by a bomb on board in a fishing boat planted by the Provisional IRA in
Mullaghmore Mullaghmore may refer to the following places in Ireland:
General
* Mullaghmore, County Clare, a limestone hill
* Mullaghmore Peninsula, a peninsula in County Sligo
** Mullaghmore, County Sligo, a village on the Mullaghmore Peninsula
* Mullaghmore, ...
, Ireland. In addition to lakes and parkland, the park featured a replica
Stone Age cave,
Celtic farm,
Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
castle and
Viking
Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...
camp as well as ancient water vehicles and aircraft.
Between 1983 and 1989 it was regularly used as a filming location for
The Benny Hill Show
''The Benny Hill Show'' is a British comedy television show starring Benny Hill that aired on the BBC and ITV (from 1969) between 15 January 1955 and 1 May 1989. The show consisted mainly of sketches that were full of slapstick, mime, parody ...
.
In the early 80s, the park redeveloped into a theme park with permanent themed rides and attractions.
New attractions were opened throughout the 1980s and 1990s.
Space Station Zero
The ''Flying Fish'' is a powered steel roller coaster located at Thorpe Park in Surrey. The ride was known as ''Space Station Zero'' upon opening in 1984, until being moved outdoors in 1990. It was removed in 2005 to make way for ''Stealth' ...
was the park's first
rollercoaster
A roller coaster, or rollercoaster, is a type of amusement ride that employs a form of elevated railroad track designed with tight turns, steep slopes, and sometimes inversions. Passengers ride along the track in open cars, and the rides are o ...
, opening in 1984. The last large attraction opened by the park's original owners was "X:\No Way Out" in 1996.
In 1998,
The Tussauds Group
The Tussauds Group was an entertainment company which is now a part of Merlin Entertainments. It was based in Poole, Dorset from where it managed a portfolio of brands and over 50 attractions that included the Madame Tussauds waxworks, Legoland ...
bought the park. From the outset the park started opening key attractions such as Tidal Wave in 2000, Colossus in 2002, Nemesis Inferno in 2003 and Stealth in 2006.
In May 2007,
Blackstone Group
Blackstone Inc. is an American alternative investment management company based in New York City. Blackstone's private equity business has been one of the largest investors in leveraged buyouts in the last three decades, while its real estate bu ...
purchased The Tussauds Group for US$1.9 billion and the company was merged into
Merlin Entertainments
Merlin Entertainments Limited is a British entertainment company based at Poole in Dorset, England. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange until November 2019, when it was acquired by a consortium that includes Kirkbi A/S (the investme ...
, who took over operation of Thorpe Park.
Dubai International Capital also gained 20% of Merlin Entertainments.
On 17 July 2007, as part of the financing for the Tussauds deal, Merlin sold Thorpe Park to private investor
Nick Leslau
Nick Leslau, born , is an English commercial property investor, with an estimated fortune in the ''Sunday Times'' Rich List of £200 million. Leslau is Chairman and Chief Executive of Prestbury Investment Holdings Limited, and Chairman of ...
and his investment firm Prestbury, under a sale and leaseback agreement. Although it is owned by Prestbury, the site is operated by Merlin based on a renewable 35-year lease.
The target audience for the resort is teenagers and young adults, adding rides such as Saw – The Ride and The Swarm for example. In 2014, Merlin decided to also target a more broad-family based market with new attractions such as Angry Birds Land and the park's onsite hotel.
On 20 February 2019, the official Twitter account of Thorpe Park confirmed the permanent closure of
Logger's Leap, a log flume that opened in 1989 but had been closed since 2015.
On 25 February 2020, Thorpe Park announced the addition of a live action
Black Mirror
''Black Mirror'' is a British anthology television series created by Charlie Brooker. Individual episodes explore a diversity of genres, but most are set in near-future dystopias with science fiction technology—a type of speculative fiction ...
attraction, named Black Mirror Labyrinth, which was scheduled to open in 2020, but was postponed until 2021 due to the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
.
In 2021, Thorpe park announced plans for a new rollercoaster in the Old Town section of the park, planned to open for the 2024 season, under the project name of Project Exodus. This ride is set to be the tallest ride in the UK, at a height of 236 feet (71.93 metres).
Rides and attractions
Rollercoasters
Thrilling flat rides
Water rides
Family flat rides
Dark rides and other rides
Attractions under construction
Former attractions
Territories
Since 2016, Thorpe Park is zoned into eight 'island territories'.
File:Thorpe Park Amity Hotel.jpg, Amity Island
File:Derren Brown's Ghost Train Exterior.jpg, The Dock Yard
File:Nemesis Inferno first drop.jpg, The Jungle
File:Colossus-Thorpe-1.jpg, Lost City
File:The swarm, church, thorpe park.jpg, Swarm Island
* ''Port and Basecamp'' includes the turnstile entrance, bridge, the dome and the playground.
* ''Amity'' (originally 'Amity Cove') opened with
Tidal Wave and now includes ''Stealth'', ''Depth Charge'', ''Amity Beach'', ''High Strikers'' & ''
Storm Surge''.
* ''The Jungle'' contains ''
Nemesis Inferno'', ''
Rumba Rapids
Rumba Rapids (also known as Rumba RAPids or Oompah Rapids) is a rapids ride at Thorpe Park, Chertsey, Surrey. It opened in 1987 under the name of Thunder River, and is the second oldest ride currently still in service at Thorpe Park. In 2002, it ...
'', ''Mr Monkey's Banana Ride'' and a street of restaurants.
* ''Angry Birds Land'' is in partnership with the
Angry Birds
''Angry Birds'' is a Finnish action-based media franchise created by Rovio Entertainment. The game series focuses on the eponymous flock of angry birds who try to save their eggs from green-colored pigs. Inspired by the game ''Crush the Castl ...
video game. Attractions in this area include ''Angry Birds 4D'', ''Detonator: Bombs Away'' and ''King Pig's Wild Hog Dodgems''.
* ''Old Town'' is located towards the back of the park and includes ''
Saw - The Ride'' & ''Black Mirror Labyrinth''
* ''Lost City'' contains ''
Colossus'', ''Rush'', ''Quantum'', ''Vortex'' and ''Zodiac''.
* ''Swarm Island'' opened as the plaza for The Swarm.
* ''The Dock Yard'' (previously named 'The Depot' and 'Thorpe Junction') is the plaza immediately outside ''
Derren Brown's Ghost Train: Rise of the Demon'' and includes the nearby ''
The Walking Dead: The Ride'' rollercoaster, previously known as "X" and "X:\ No way out".
Port and Basecamp
The 'Basecamp' area contains security, the turnstiles, toilets, business/staff reception and bridge where guests enter the park. This leads to 'The Dome' which acts as a hub for the park, which houses 'Vibes Bar & Kitchen' (formerly Infinity Bar & Kitchen), an arcade area, The Coffee Shack, toilets, lockers, the Island Gift Shop, guest services, first aid, photo points and staff areas (canteen, 'The Core' and offices).
The dome was previously known as 'Port Atlantis' with an underwater Atlantian themed interior. Much of the scenery and underwater effects went missing since Merlin's acquisition of the park and was removed altogether after the building's change of theme.
The Dome remains open outside park operating hours to provide entertainment and dining facilities for guests staying at Thorpe Shark Cabins, including a breakfast buffet.
Amity
Amity is set as a 1950s-era American fishing village hit by a
tidal wave and opened with ''Tidal Wave'' in 2000. It was previously named 'Amity Cove', as still named on themed signage. The area was expanded in 2006 with ''Stealth'', set at 'Amity Speedway' racetrack. It later took on attractions from the former 'Neptune's Beach' family area, ''Depth Charge'', and ''Amity Beach'' outdoor water park. Amity and Amity Speedway are no longer physically connected, being divided by Angry Birds Land.
It also includes attractions from the former 'European Park' area, ''
Flying Fish
The Exocoetidae are a family of marine fish in the order Beloniformes class Actinopterygii, known colloquially as flying fish or flying cod. About 64 species are grouped in seven to nine genera. While they cannot fly in the same way a bird d ...
'' and ''Storm In A Teacup''. Flying Fish was originally located beside Tidal Wave (where Stealth sits today) but was removed following construction of Stealth in 2005. It was reopened, in its present location near The Swarm, in 2007, due to popular demand. In 2011, the raft water ride ''
Storm Surge'' was re-located from ''
Cypress Gardens
Cypress Gardens was a botanical garden and theme park near Winter Haven, Florida that operated from 1936 to 2009. As of 2011, the botanical garden portion had been preserved inside the newly formed Legoland Florida.
History
Billed as Florida' ...
'' in Florida, USA, before it was rethemed into Legoland Florida. Storm Surge was built on the former site of the ''Octopus Garden'' children's area.
The Jungle
The area's main attractions are ''
Nemesis Inferno'', a
Bolliger & Mabillard inverted coaster set in a volcano, and ''
Rumba Rapids
Rumba Rapids (also known as Rumba RAPids or Oompah Rapids) is a rapids ride at Thorpe Park, Chertsey, Surrey. It opened in 1987 under the name of Thunder River, and is the second oldest ride currently still in service at Thorpe Park. In 2002, it ...
'' a river rapids ride. The area was previously named 'Calypso Quay', the area now also includes part of the former 'Ranger County' family area, including ''Mr Monkey's Banana Ride'' a small swinging ship ride, as well as shopfronts and restaurants from the former 'European Park' area.
In 2021, ''Trailers'', a Fright Nights maze, opened in the building formerly housing the ''
I'm a Celebrity...'' attraction.
Angry Birds Land
Angry Birds Land opened in May 2014 and is themed to the ''
Angry Birds
''Angry Birds'' is a Finnish action-based media franchise created by Rovio Entertainment. The game series focuses on the eponymous flock of angry birds who try to save their eggs from green-colored pigs. Inspired by the game ''Crush the Castl ...
'' video game. Attractions include ''Angry Birds 4D'' a 4D cinema, ''King Pig's Wild Hog Dodgems'' a dodgem ride and ''
Detonator: Bombs Away'' a drop tower ride.
The Dock Yard
This area is primarily the plaza for ''
Derren Brown's Ghost Train: Rise of the Demon'' an indoor dark ride and also contains ''
The Walking Dead: The Ride'' an indoor rollercoaster. The area has no major themed features, other than buildings and scenery remaining from 'Octopus's Garden' (a since-closed children's area) which was later themed to Amity such as the Megastore, various buoys and a carnival game that resembles a cargo ship.
Lost City
The Lost City's theme is that of the ruins of a recently unearthed Atlantean civilisation, with
Colossus as the main attraction (since 2002). The area first opened in 2001 with the ''
Vortex
In fluid dynamics, a vortex ( : vortices or vortexes) is a region in a fluid in which the flow revolves around an axis line, which may be straight or curved. Vortices form in stirred fluids, and may be observed in smoke rings, whirlpools in ...
'' and ''
Zodiac
The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north or south (as measured in celestial latitude) of the ecliptic, the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. The pat ...
'' rides as the only attractions. In 2003, this area was expanded further, with the additions of ''Quantum'' (a
magic carpet
A magic carpet, also called a flying carpet, is a legendary carpet and common trope in fantasy fiction. It is typically used as a form of transportation and can quickly or instantaneously carry its users to their destination.
In literature
One o ...
ride) and ''
Eclipse'' (a
Ferris Wheel
A Ferris wheel (also called a Giant Wheel or an observation wheel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components (commonly referred to as passenger cars, cabins, tubs, gondolas, capsule ...
). ''Eclipse'' was removed after the 2004 season (being relocated to
Chessington World of Adventures);
in its place, ''
Rush'', an
S&S Screamin' Swing
Screamin' Swing is a pneumatically powered pendulum ride designed and manufactured by S&S - Sansei Technologies. The ride was first installed and operated in 2004 at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California, United States. On February 26th ...
, was opened in the 2005 season. At the end of the 2005 season, ''Zodiac'' was removed, and replaced with a new HUSS Enterprise (relocated from
Drayton Manor
Drayton Manor, one of Britain's lost houses, was a British stately home at Drayton Bassett, since its formation in the District of Lichfield, Staffordshire, England. In modern administrative areas, it was first put into Tamworth Poor Law Unio ...
, where it operated under the name ''Cyclone'', until it had to be closed down due to noise complaints). The replacement ''Zodiac'' opened (without fanfare) for the 2006 season.
Old Town
The main ride in this area is ''
Saw - The Ride'', a
Gerstlauer
Gerstlauer Amusement Rides GmbH is a German manufacturer of stationary and transportable amusement rides and roller coasters, located in Münsterhausen, Germany.
History
In 1982, Hubert Gerstlauer, a former employee of the Anton Schwarzkopf ...
Euro-Fighter
The Euro-Fighter is a type of steel roller coaster developed by Gerstlauer. First launched in 2003, the trademark feature of the roller coaster is its beyond-vertical drop, which reaches an angle greater than 90 degrees. Although the majority of ...
with a , 100-degree beyond vertical drop. The ride is themed to the ''
Saw
A saw is a tool consisting of a tough blade, wire, or chain with a hard toothed edge. It is used to cut through material, very often wood, though sometimes metal or stone. The cut is made by placing the toothed edge against the material and mov ...
'' horror movie franchise and is set in a derelict warehouse/sawmill. A flat ride called ''
Samurai
were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...
'' was relocated from
Chessington World of Adventures in 2004. The area is also home to the brand new 2021 experience ''Black Mirror Labyrinth'' and will be home to the planned "Project Exodus" hyper coaster. Old Town also includes a
Burger King.
The area was previously named 'Canada Creek' and was the plaza for
Logger's Leap, which opened in 1989 as one of the tallest log flumes in the world. It had a loose Canadian forest theme, although this has mostly been lost through redevelopments and resembles more of a Western town theme. The main attractions listed in the area sat outside the plaza. Logger's Leap ceased to operate after the 2015 season, and its permanent closure was confirmed in 2019.
It also used to have the main station for the ''Canada Creek Railway'', a miniature railway which used to take guests to and from the (now closed) 'Thorpe Farm' area of the park, and around the backwoods of Canada Creek (after the closure of Thorpe Farm, it only traversed the backwoods of the Canada Creek area). The railway was closed during the 2008 season (and the track had to be partially rerouted due to the construction of ''SAW - The Ride''), before being closed permanently at the end of the 2011 season.
In the years since its closure, the trains, station, and route used by this ride were utilized by several Fright Nights attractions.
This area also was home to ''
Slammer'', an
S&S Sky Swatter. It has been standing but not operating (SBNO) since April 2017, with its permanent closure being confirmed in September 2017.
Most of the rides in this area have been closed since the start of the 2022 season, due to construction work for Project Exodus.
Swarm Island
Swarm Island is the plaza area for ''
The Swarm'', a
Bolliger & Mabillard wing-rider rollercoaster, opened in 2012. The area was built on land reclaimed from the surrounding lakes. The area is themed as the scene of an apocalyptic disaster/alien invasion with a crashed plane, various damaged emergency vehicles like a helicopter and fire truck, a partially destroyed church (used as the ride station), and other destroyed structures. Many of the areas facilities are based within these structures, such as the ride station being housed in the church, the shop being housed in a shipping container, and the ride control room being based in an overturned police trailer wedged in the roof of the church.
Records held by the park
* ''
Nemesis Inferno'' is the first inverted coaster to feature interlocking corkscrews.
* Additionally, the world record for 'most naked people on a rollercoaster' was set on Nemesis Inferno in May 2004.
* ''
The Swarm'' opened as Europe's tallest wing coaster.
* ''
SAW - The Ride'' was marketed as having the world's steepest 'freefall' drop,
and as the world's first horror movie themed roller coaster. ''SAW - The Ride'' was not actually the steepest rollercoaster in the world when it opened in March 2009 -
Steel Hawg
Steel Hawg is an orange and black roller coaster located at Indiana Beach, Monticello, Indiana. The ride is the first '' El Loco'' model built by manufacturer S&S Worldwide (now S&S – Sansei Technologies) of Logan, Utah. The ride was installed ...
at
Indiana Beach
Indiana Beach is an amusement park located on Lake Shafer in Monticello, Indiana. The resort was developed by the Spackman family, who owned it from 1926 to 2008. The park was then sold to Morgan RV LLC, Apex Parks Group, LLC, and now is owned a ...
had opened the previous year with a steeper 111° drop. However, whilst Steel Hawg's drop has brakes on it, ''SAWs drop is brakeless - hence it being marketed as having the steepest ''freefall'' drop. This particular accolade was taken by
The Monster in 2016 (and, as of 2022, is held by
Defiance).
*''
Colossus'' held the world record for the most inversions on a rollercoaster when it opened in 2002, with 10 inversions. This record was beaten in 2013 by ''
The Smiler
The Smiler is a steel roller coaster located at Alton Towers in Staffordshire, United Kingdom. Manufactured by Gerstlauer, it opened in 2013 as the world's first Gerstlauer Infinity Coaster. It is located in the X-Sector area of the park. W ...
'' at Alton Towers resort, with 14 inversions.
*''
Stealth'' is the UK's fastest roller coaster, launching from in 1.9 seconds. The signage outside of the ride indicates a slower acceleration of in 2.3 seconds; this discrepancy is because the ride's launch was modified to accelerate faster in the off-season of 2013 (whilst the signage was left as-is). Standing at , it is also the UK's second tallest roller coaster (behind the ''
Big One'' at
Blackpool Pleasure Beach
Blackpool Pleasure Beach is an amusement park situated on Blackpool's South Shore, in the county of Lancashire, North West England. It operates as a secure facility, and has introduced epayments via smartphones for admission charges, replac ...
).
*''
Tidal Wave'' opened as Europe's tallest water ride.
* ''Project Exodus'' will be the tallest roller coaster in the UK at .
Events
Thorpe Park events for the 2023 Season:
* Mardi Gras (18 May – 11 June) which will entail "a variety of live entertainment" as it brings "a taste of New Orleans" to the park.
* Carnival (21 July – 28 August) where live entertainment and a brand new stage show will be arriving to the park for a limited time.
* Oktoberfest (8 September – 1 October) which the park offers live entertainment (music and roaming actors) at the Island Festival Centre (By Derren Brown's Ghost Train) and German food and drink offerings around the park. Rides and attractions are open until late and select rides have Bavarian themed music/ride announcements to fit with the Oktoberfest theme.
* Fright Nights (6 October – 31 October) which the park offers a range of Halloween entertainment: including horror mazes, shows, scare zones and roaming actors. On top of this, rides and attractions are open until late – excluding Depth Charge (close at dusk).
In recent years, Thorpe Park has held a range of unique events such as Zombie Hunt (2018), GameFX (2019), ParkVibes (2021) and many more.
Fright Nights
''Fright Nights'', formerly "Fright Nites" is Thorpe Park's terrifying annual Halloween event and also its largest Halloween event in the UK. It is an event that has been running at Thorpe Park since 2002, celebrating Halloween with the park staying open until late at night, as well as operating a range of temporary Halloween attractions. Roaming actors in costume or with make up can also be found around the park. During Fright Nights, the park stays open until 9pm, with a range of scare mazes available for guests, who normally enter in groups of 8–10. "Face it Alone" has sometimes been available as an upcharge, where a guest enters unaccompanied and must sign a disclaimer before entering.
In 2013, Fright Nights was relaunched with a horror movie theme, courtesy of a three-year contract with
Lionsgate
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquartered ...
. All of the pre-existing Fright Nights attractions were removed with the exception of The Asylum and SAW: Alive to make way for new horror-film themed attractions.
In 2014, when the Thorpe Shark Hotel opened, Thorpe Park offered two overnight scare attractions, one of which involved a 'night terror' character appearing in guests' hotel rooms during the night. The other attraction, the 'Extra Cut', involved guests being 'kidnapped' from their hotel room during the night and chased throughout the park.
In 2017 Fright Nights was reinvented with a Walking Dead theme. The addition of two Walking Dead attractions coincided with the season 8 premier of the show. SAW Alive, The Big Top and Platform 15 remained in operation from previous years, with Containment returning as an upcharge attraction.
In 2020, restrictions put into place due to the
COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
meant that only two mazes operated: Platform 15 and Roots of Evil, both of which took place primarily outdoors. This led to a wide selection of scare zones introduced for the first time to Fright Nights, with The Swarm: Invasion located on Swarm Island, Creek Freaks Unchained in Old Town, The Fearstival Arena in The Dockyard, The Howling of LycanThorpe High in Lost City (on the site near Zodiac and Rush typically used for a scare maze), and Terror at Amity High returning for its third year on the Stealth Plaza. The Crows were also added as roaming actors dressed as scarecrows, based in a few main locations but found anywhere around the park, including interacting with other scare zones.
– Previous Fright Night attraction.
– Current Fright Night attraction.
Hotel
Guests can stay over on-park at the 'Thorpe Shark Cabins', comprising 90 rooms converted from
shipping container
A shipping container is a container with strength suitable to withstand shipment, storage, and handling. Shipping containers range from large reusable steel boxes used for intermodal shipments to the ubiquitous corrugated boxes. In the context of ...
s with a link to facilities in the adjacent Dome. The accommodation takes its name from its shark head entrance feature built from recycled park signage.
The hotel initially opened in 2013 as 'The Crash Pad', run by external company
Snoozebox. The temporary development was purchased by the park the following year and rebranded as the Thorpe Shark Hotel.
Thorpe Park had originally been planning to build a permanent 250-bed hotel as far back as 2006. This would have been located on the opposite side of the lake, on the site of former excavation works, featuring a lakeside bar, health club and restaurant. Planning permission was granted in 2011.
The development was pitched again following the installation of 'The Crash Pad' to "test market conditions". The park received planning permission to construct the permanent hotel in 2014, with construction planned to begin in 2016 and an opening in 2018. However, the hotel was never constructed and the Shark Hotel's planning permission was extended by 10 years instead.
Operations and developments
Thorpe Park has a maximum capacity of 15,000 guests.
In 2010, the park outlined a 5-year development plan that outlined new rollercoasters for 2012, which was later realised in The Swarm. The plan outlined another rollercoaster scheduled for 2015 as well as a permanent lakeside hotel, both of which have not come to fruition. No application was ever submitted for the 2015 development and the earmarked site behind The Swarm remains undeveloped.
On 26 November 2021, the park launched a public consultation website outlining a proposal for a brand new roller coaster.
Alongside this, leaflets were handed out to local residents, stating the proposal will 'involve the removal of existing old rides and replacement with a new roller coaster in the Old Town part of the resort'. The public consultation began on the 10 December 2021, with plans detailing a tall steel hyper coaster codenamed "Project Exodus".
An application for planning permission was submitted on the 14th of March 2022.
Objections to the planning permission application were raised by
Surrey Wildlife Trust,
Natural England
Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, ...
, and the
Environment Agency; citing concerns regarding biodiversity impacts, pollution, and flood risks. The concerns raised by Surrey Wildlife Trust and Natural England were addressed, leading to their objections subsequently being withdrawn, however, the Environment Agency's concerns remained unresolved as of October 2022. On the 5th of October 2022, Runnymede Borough Council approved the application for "Project Exodus", but, due to the unresolved objection from the Environment Agency, the application had to be referred to the
Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, also referred to as the levelling up secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction o ...
for approval (under the terms of The Town and Country Planning (Consultation) (England) Direction 2021).
On the 1st of November 2022, a letter sent to Runnymede Borough Council on behalf of the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities stated that 'He is content that it should be determined by the local planning authority'.
Subsequently, Runnymede Borough Council granted planning permission for "Project Exodus" on the 2nd of November 2022.
Incidents
See also
*
Merlin Entertainments
Merlin Entertainments Limited is a British entertainment company based at Poole in Dorset, England. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange until November 2019, when it was acquired by a consortium that includes Kirkbi A/S (the investme ...
*
The Tussauds Group
The Tussauds Group was an entertainment company which is now a part of Merlin Entertainments. It was based in Poole, Dorset from where it managed a portfolio of brands and over 50 attractions that included the Madame Tussauds waxworks, Legoland ...
*
RMC Group
RMC Group plc (formerly "Ready Mixed Concrete Limited") was a ready mixed concrete, quarrying and concrete products company headquartered in Egham, United Kingdom. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was once a constituent of the FTSE ...
* "
Thorpe Park
Thorpe Park Resort, commonly known as Thorpe Park, is an amusement park located in the village of Thorpe between the towns of Chertsey and Staines-upon-Thames in Surrey, England, southwest of Central London. It is operated by Merlin Entertai ...
", an episode of ''
The Inbetweeners
''The Inbetweeners'' is a British coming-of-age television teen sitcom, which originally aired on E4 from 2008 until 2010 and was created and written by Damon Beesley and Iain Morris. The series follows the misadventures of suburban teenager ...
'' where the main characters visit Thorpe Park
* ''
Primeval'' – the third episode of
Series 2 Series 2 could refer to:
* Apple Watch Series 2, a smart watch by Apple
* Aston Martin Lagonda Series 2, the automobile model
* Aston Martin V8 Series 2, the automobile model
* BMW 2 Series, the automobile model line
* GeForce 2 series, line of nV ...
featured the park under a fictitious name.
*
Staines railway station
*
Alton Towers
*
Chessington World of Adventures
*
Theme Park
An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...
*
Drayton Manor Theme Park
Drayton Manor Resort is a family theme park, zoo and accommodation in the grounds of the former Drayton Manor, in Drayton Bassett, Staffordshire, England, UK. It covers , of which about are in use, and hosts about 1.5 million people each yea ...
References
External links
*
Merlin EntertainmentsOfficial Fan Website
{{authority control
1979 establishments in England
Amusement parks in England
Buildings and structures in Surrey
Merlin Entertainments Group
Tourist attractions in Surrey
Amusement parks opened in 1979
Parks and attractions with Angry Birds exhibits