Chessington World of Adventures Resort

[Burniel]

I subscribed to the email thing, and received similar info:

It's operation have fun at Chessington from Spring 2015, as we dive into the Year of the Penguins, with lots of brand new experiences to be had:
•DreamWorks' Penguins of Madagascar descend for an exclusive new live show "Penguins of Madagascar Live: Operation Cheezy Dibbles".
•Stay over and join the Penguins on a secret mission in one of two exclusive new Penguins of Madagascar themed bedrooms at the Chessington Safari Hotel.
•Bounce high into the sky on a newly themed Penguins of Madagascar ride for young adventurers.
•Humboldt penguins frolic in a brand new enclosure and walk-through experience.

Anyone else thinking that Africa should be turned into "Madagascar Land"? This "newly themed ride" is obviously the re-theme of Jungle Bouncers, leaving just Toadies, which can easily be themed around Madagascar, else join Market Square or be re-themed for Land of the Dragons.

[BenBowser]

^ Or just get rid of it!

The space it wastes is outrageous! To be honest, Toadies is probably the only site left, big enough for a major development!

[TheBeast]

haha im with ben on this one. its a real pity about the court case...Chessington is a great park and should remain that way.

[Burniel]

Forbidden Kingdom expansion featuring the return of Samurai anyone?

[Jared]

Forbidden Kingdom expansion featuring the return of Samurai anyone?

Not gonna happen...

[Burniel]

Just sayin' it'd be nice

[NemesisRider]

Do Chessington have any IP rides? Excluding anything Merlin owned.

[Morgan]

They used to have Beanoland, and next year they are getting Penguins of Madagascar.

[BenBowser]

Other than small things (like Madagascar), I don't think Chessington should have IPs. Its a park that rightly does create its on themes. To create a 'World of Adventures'. Chessington has always had a special sparkle. It takes you to somewhere special, something that is totally different to the normal life. Bringing in IPs would partially destroy that illusion.

[NemesisRider]

OK, thanks

[Burniel]

The closest I've ever seen was when Imperial Leather sponsored Bubbleworks, which worked OK. I agree with Ben, Chessington's IPs need to be moulded around the ride/area, and not vice versa. The occasional subtle element of using another IP is acceptable, but nothing more. And that SHOULD be the same for Towers IMO.

[Burniel]

14th - 22nd February 2015


African Adventures returns to Chessington World of Adventure Resort this February half term for more family fun!

Adventurers can visit Chessington World of Adventures Resort every day between 14th – 22nd February from 10am-3pm, for African Adventures; a fantastic and unique experience for February Half Term!

Selected rides will be available* and adventurers can enjoy meeting some of our incredible animals in the Zoo. With Trail of the Kings, the SEA LIFE centre, Creepy Caves, Children’s Zoo, Sealion Bay and the Wanyama Village all open during African Adventures, there’s a whole host of amazing animals just waiting to meet you! Our famous daily Zoo shows will also run throughout African Adventures; see Chessington’s amazing animals up close and learn more about them from the Zoo Keepers. You can also learn about different aspects of African culture through arts & crafts, and take part in an African adventure quiz trail around the Zoo, making it a truly unique half term adventure!

Book your Zoo Days tickets now

* Selected rides subject to availability and weather conditions.

Source - Chessington website.

Thoughts?

[Nathan_Fisher]

I suppose this is a good event for the kids, i'm guessing the selected rides will be ones for children so i'm sure rides like Vampire and rattlesnake may not be open. I personally wouldn't want to spend a day there during Feb half term due to the limited ride availability, however the animals is the main draw during this event not the rides.

[Burniel]

I think a range of rides are possibilities, the most thrilling ride I've known to open on these days is Black Buccaneer, and there's no reason why we can't have that this year. I think Hocus Pocus Hall and Seastorm (two great family rides) are bound to open, and Tomb Blaster seems likely.

[Nathan_Fisher]

It would be great if Black Buccaneer did open, in my opinion its the best pirate ship I've ever been on, scorpion express is another possibility. If RMT can open at Alton, why can't scorpion open at Chessington. Both Seastorm and Tomb blaster seem likely, along with bubble works.

[Jamie]

It's good to see this event returning. I expect that Bubbleworks and Hocus Pocus Hall will be operating, and it would be nice to see some other rides open (maybe even a coaster)?
Tomb Blaster is also likely although it is in desperate need of an overhaul so if they are actually bothering, it might not be open.

[Benb]

Verdicts in: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-30780504

£150k fine for the park.
Honestly I'd have hoped Chessington would've been monitoring such little things like the quality of fencing, etc. It's an abysmal mistake to make.

[Burniel]

Apparently the fence plank had just dropped, and staff were already on their way to fix it. Yes, the fence could have been maintained better, but it was one fence plank, easily missed.

The girl's parents should really have stopped her from running too far ahead and too far to the side tbh.

I'm sympathetic for the girl and her family, I really am, but I think 150K is far too much.

[Dan]

Apparently the fence plank had just dropped, and staff were already on their way to fix it. Yes, the fence could have been maintained better, but it was one fence plank, easily missed.

The girl's parents should really have stopped her from running too far ahead and too far to the side tbh.

I'm sympathetic for the girl and her family, I really am, but I think 150K is far too much.

At the prices people pay to visit parks like Chessington, you expect to not be in any danger. Particularly at Chessington which is primarily aimed for children, you can't take any chances with H&S.

They should have noticed that that section of queueline was rotting, and taken appropriate preventative measures to minimise the risk of any incident occurring. This is something they failed to do and that young girl ended up with quite serious injuries because of it.

How can you say that the girls parents should have stopped her running ahead? They would have expected her to be safe anywhere in the park so you can't pin any blame on them.

The responsibility for the accident lays solely with Chessington/Merlin as they failed in ensuring all publicly accessible areas of the theme park were properly maintained.

[Jamie]

Apparently the fence plank had just dropped, and staff were already on their way to fix it. Yes, the fence could have been maintained better, but it was one fence plank, easily missed.

The girl's parents should really have stopped her from running too far ahead and too far to the side tbh.

I'm sympathetic for the girl and her family, I really am, but I think 150K is far too much.

It's not enough for an obviously poorly maintained fence. If it's weak enough to just drop off (or even be kicked off - it should withstand it) then it's not been looked after enough.
Plus, 150K is literally nothing to Merlin, it's like pocket money.