I didn't stroke a beaver at Drayton Manor..... (Drayton Manor)

Member Name: Lools_24

Product:	Drayton Manor
Date:	15/08/09 (298 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Short queues for rides , zoo

Disadvantages: Lack of choice with food outlets, queue times not displayed

Mr Lools and I decided to visit Drayton Manor a month ago with another two friends on a planned weekend break to the Midlands. Alton Towers usually would have been the first choice theme park but every member of the group had been here at least five times and fancied trying somewhere else. In addition the thought of standing in queues for two hours for the larger rides at Alton Towers was not at all appealing so we took the advice of a work colleague of mine and gave Drayton Manor a try. My review is based on the experience of a group of four big kids, aged between 21 - 27.

This year Drayton Manor is open from 21st March 2009- 1st Nov 2009

Gates open at 9.30am.

Rides open from 10.30am - 5.00 or 6.00pm (rides queues can close earlier)


***Location***

Drayton Manor is located near Tamworth Staffordshire and located just off the A38. We found the park very easy to find as it is clearly signposted. The park car and coach park is free. It is also very close to the park entrance and only a short walk away. Unlike Alton Towers it does not appear as vast (although there are plenty of spaces) and you do not need a monorail to take you to the park entrance.

As this was a weekend break we visited Drayton Manor on a Saturday. On the night before our visit we stayed in an Express by Holiday Inn in Burton upon Trent. From the hotel it took us 20 minutes to drive to the park. The following night we stayed in Birmingham City Centre which took only 25 minutes to drive to. Finding somewhere reasonably priced to stay over in the local area as very easy and I found that there was a great deal of choice in the area. The Drayton Manor website also has a guide of places to stay.

***Prices***

If you decide to purchase on the day the ticket prices are as shown.

Adult - (aged 12+) £25.00
Child (aged 4-11) £21.00
Grandee (aged 60+) £12.00
Disabled Visitor and Helper (each) £19.00
Child under 4- FREE

There are also family saver deals available:

3 family members - £60
4 family members - £80
5 family members - £100

It is possible to book tickets online from the Drayton Manor website which makes the ticket price cheaper. You do need to book 48 hours in advance. Tickets are priced:

Web day pass 4- 60 years - £19.00
Web day pass 60 years + - £12.00

Booking online is very easy and the site is easy to use. After booking you can print your E tickets immediately or print them later as a copy are sent to your email address. This print out just needs to be presented at the ticket offices on arrival at the park gates.

There are a number of ticket desks at the park entrance therefore the queues to purchase tickets were very small (5 minutes) when we arrived at the park at 10.15am on a Saturday morning.


***The Main Theme Park***

The main theme park caters for a wide range of ages. It is not like Alton Towers where there a large number of extreme rides but there are a number for the adrenaline junkies at Drayton Manor.
I felt that Drayton Manor catered better for mixed groups as there is something for everyone. There are also more in between rides for those not wanting to go on extreme rides but also still on rides that are exciting and a little bit scary.

The park does not feel cramped but the rides are closer together than Alton Towers which means less walking and less of a need to split up and go to separate areas of the park.

The parks main attractions to name a few are:

Shockwave- Europes only standup rollercoaster. My favourite although it was pretty scary being strapped in standing up and tipping upside down.

Apocalypse- A stand up drop tower. You can either ride sitting down, standing up on a ledge, or standing up just strapped in so your legs are dangling free. Pretty big drop so lots of butterflies in your stomach after.

G- Force- A rollercoaster where you are strapped in from the waist down and its fast with lots of rolls and loops. Mr Lools nearly passed out on this one he was so scared (but he is a big wimp when it comes to rollercoasters).

Maelstrom- A gryo swing that swings you over the park whilst you are facing outwards

Pandemonium- Tow gondola swings which swing 360 degrees through the air. On many rotations you are held upside down for 5 seconds or so.

Stormforce 10- A log flume type water coaster. A number of drops which include a backwards drop. Be warned you get soaked on this ride. Buy a mac for £2 otherwise you will be drenched all day.

Splash Canyon- Water rapid ride. Slightly tame, especially in comparison to Alton Towers. A good ride for younger children. You get a little wet but nothing like on Stormforce 10.

What I did like about the park was that the queues for rides were much shorter than Alton Towers. The longest queue we stood in was 1 hour (for the long flume Stormforce 10) but for the large rides such as G Force and Shockwave we waited less than 30 minutes for both. My
Only issue with the queue system is that there are no signs to indicate how long the queues are.

It is difficult to assess how many people are queing already on many of the rides as the queues are hidden from the main paths and park areas.

***The Zoo***

The zoo at Drayton Manor is set over 15 acres and contains over 100 species. The zoo has tigers, monkeys and a large collection of reptiles to name a few. We had a browse around the zoo for an hour or so but could have definitely spent longer in here.

The animals in the zoo looked healthy and well cared for. I love visiting zoos but I often feel quite uneasy about it because of the animals not being in their own habitats. After visiting Tanzania last year it made me realise how much happier and healthier wild animals look in their natural habitats. But Drayton Manor does have the animals in reasonable sized enclosures and the big cats at Drayton Manor were less distressed than those at Blackpool zoo.

The zoo alone is probably not a main attraction and is not on the same level as Chester, Blackpool or London zoo for example but still is worth looking round. I would not visit Drayton Manor just to visit the zoo but is a great place for those who like a break from the rides.

***Thomas Land***

There are about 10 Thomas the Tank themed rides in this area, aimed at younger children.

We did not go on any rides in this part of the part but this is great for younger children. Parents can also ride on the attractions alongside their children, so they do not have to just stand and watch.

***Eating ***

The park does have a number of food outlets (probably not as many as Alton Towers) These are not the likes of Pizza Hut or McDonalds etc and are the parks own independent food outlets. These mainly sell fast food, burgers, hot dogs pizza etc but there are a number which sell sandwiches too. I felt that there was a lack of choice of food within each of the outlets and you had to eat a certain food. This is ok if there are only two of you but as a group of four we found it difficult to find one place where there was something on the menu for everyone.


Cost wise the food sold at the outlets are more expensive than you would expect to pay from normal high street outlets for similar types of food but I did not find that the food was as expensive as Alton Towers. Large hot dogs (in baguette buns) were £3 each. These were great for larger adult appetites but I did notice many people with children, sharing these between two children.
The park does have a picnic area (next to the zoo) so there are picnic tables to eat your own food at. Probably better than eating at the food outlets in my opinion and I wish that we had done this instead of buying lunch.

***Overall***

I was very impressed with Drayton Manor and thought that this was a great day out and offered value for money. I really am a big fan of Alton Towers but I enjoyed my day out at Drayton Manor more because we got on more rides because of the shorter queues and there was also less walking so we covered more areas of the park in one day. The zoo was an excellent break from the rides and more interesting for children (and big kids) than the gardens at Alton Towers. Will I be going back..... not straight away but definitely in the next few years.

PS.... For all of you Max and Paddy fans out there you will hopefully understand the title of the review, for everyone else you will just think that I'm crazy

Summary: A great day out for all ages