Alton Towers: The UK's best theme park!

Alton Towers is a theme park located in Alton, in the United Kingdom. The park is very well known hosts a plethora of well themed rides and experiences. It is home to 10 roller coasters, which are all very well themed and quite unique.

We visited Alton Towers on their season opening and the opening of Nemesis Reborn on the 16th of March and we also went the next day on the 17th of March. This meant that both days were sold out so it was set to be very busy. This however did not impact our experience in the least and we still managed to have an amazing time at this outstanding park.

Getting to the park

Alton Towers is located in Alton, near Stoke-on-Trent. The park is an hour drive from Manchester airport. The desolated location meant we had to take an Uber to the park from the airport because it was almost impossible to get there with public transport. I advise you to do the same if you are unable to rent a car because this will be the easiest, most time efficient option.

We arrived at the park around 12 o’clock, which meant that all the long lines were gone already. We didn’t have to queue to get into the park and once we were through security we could scan our annual passes and go straight in.

The second day we visited the park we entered through the hotel entrance, which is located in Forbidden Valley. This entrance is quite small and does get some lines but it is way more practical when you are looking to get on Galactica and Nemesis Reborn first.

Our experience 

Once we entered the park we were blown away by the grandiosity of it. The Tower Street is a fun main street which leads to the iconic view of the Towers. I was very hyped to visit the park and was directly immersed into it when I entered. 

The first ride that we went to was Spinball Whizzer, which is a Maurer Spinning coaster that opened in 2004. This coaster is very fun and not too rough. It is very playful and has some good forces to it. Overall it was a good start to our day!

After we rode Spinball Whizzer we went to X-Sector to ride The Smiler and Oblivion. When we entered the area we were impressed by the changes in altitude, which I hadn’t read much about. The entrance to the themed area is located on the top of a hill with the entrance to The Smiler and Oblivion both being located more at the bottom of said hill. This meant that you had the impression that the rides were in fact way taller than they actually are.

The first ride that we rode in X-Sector was the Smiler. This ride is a world-record breaking coaster that has 14 inversions. We were lucky that we had fast passes for both days because the queues were quite long. The Smiler had a line that was around 90 minutes long. Once we came close to the iconic ride we heard the theme song, which is really catchy and really adds to the ride experience. 

Once we were in the station we dropped off our bags in a bag collection point, which is something that most of the major coasters in Alton Towers have and most theme parks should add to their rides.

Afterwards you go up a set of stairs that lead to the station where the train will be waiting. On our first ride we got a front row ride which was really special. The ride itself is really great and disorienting. The Smiler has a great mix of forces, which also includes some great airtime moments and some very forceful moments. The layout itself isn’t repetitive at all, which was quite surprising as it has so many inversions. 

Once you disembark you go down a set of stairs where you can collect your bags again. Here you have some dark corridors, which are really scary, that lead into the rides merchandise shop. 

Overall The Smiler really lived up to the hype and actually felt like something I had never experienced before if you incorporate all of the ride itself and its theming.

After The Smiler we rode Oblivion, which was the first dive coaster to be built by B&M. The ride itself is really, really short and it is nothing more than a drop and a turn which goes directly into the break run. Oblivion was a let down and is easily the worst dive coaster I have ridden but if you put that aside it is still a fun ride for its historical aspect.

After Oblivion we walked around the park for a while, getting lost several times. This park is honestly one of the biggest parks I have ever visited and it is so easy to get lost here. But this also made it very fun to explore the park.

After walking for a bit we finally found Wickerman. Wickerman is a wooden coaster built by GCI. The ride incorporates an extensive storyline, which can be seen around the ride area itself and results in the big centrepiece: the Wickerman statue. The coaster was way better than expected. The ride looks like a family coaster, but looks can be deceiving as the ride has some great airtime and really packs a punch.

After we had a fantastic ride on Wickerman we decided to go to Nemesis Reborn to discover Forbidden Valley and ride Galactica. On our way there we made a pit stop to ride Runaway Mine Train, which is a Mack Rides Powered coaster that surprisingly packs a punch. CHOO CHOO.

After Runaway Mine Train we continued our journey to Forbidden Valley. First passing through Gloomy Woods, where Alton Manor is located. We didn’t ride this ride, but the area had a great spooky atmosphere with actors roaming around, which made it even creepier. 

We finally arrived in Forbidden Valley after a long walk and were directly blown away by the theming and atmosphere in the area. The area is themed to the Phalanx, which are a government style organisation that are located over there to control the monster Nemesis. 

The area, which opened that day, looked fresh and was very clean. Once you walk down the hill you will enter the Nemesis containment zone and Nemesis Reborn will be revealed. The first time I saw Nemesis, I was very hyped. The ride looked amazing. The new colour scheme looks amazing and the station is very well themed.

We decided to ride Nemesis Reborn later that day because the line was still around a 100 minutes and we really wanted a night-ride. So, to Galactica we went. This ride is located at the back of Forbidden Valley and honestly doesn’t have much to do with the rest of the theming in Forbidden Valley.

Galactica is a flying coaster built by B&M, and was the first one ever to be built. This ride is just pure fun! The ride isn’t very intense or isn’t the craziest in terms of elements but it is just relaxing and fun to ride when you are soaring above the ground. It does have some special forces that I haven’t felt on any other coasters, especially when you turn from the flying position onto your back. Although Galactica is a fun ride, it does lack in the theming department, with theming almost being nonexistent.

After Galactica we decided to walk back to Dark Forest to ride Rita and Thirteen. Both coasters are constructed by Intamin. Rita is a hydraulic launch coaster with the same layout as Desert Storm in Heide Park in Germany. This is however the superior version. The ride is fun but short and the launch is definitely the best element. 

Thirteen is a fun, well themed family coaster with a few unique and surprising elements. The layout itself is trimmed quite hard but still manages to pack a punch. The best part however, is the end of the ride with its drop track. 

After doing Rita and Thirteen we did some of the non-coasters and we ate something. Our day had been amazing until now and we had done almost everything that we wanted to do on day one. 

So we decided to go to Forbidden Valley to go ride Nemesis Reborn. It was getting dark already and we really wanted to get our night-ride on it. When we arrived at the entrance of Nemesis, it was advertised as a 120 minute wait, which we thought was quite long but reasonable, especially because we wanted our night-ride. 

Rain had started to come down quite heavily and we were starting to get drenched. After about an hour of waiting the line suddenly started to stop moving. More and more people were walking back, which resulted in the line starting to move again. Then we saw it, the train was stuck on the lift hill. It was about 20 minutes till closing around this time and the line was still quite long, but we were adamant on getting our night-ride. Unfortunately the employees came into the queue line after about fifteen minutes and we were ordered to exit the queue line.

Afterwards I heard that some people could stay in line and that they were still able to get on it. As I am a ride operator myself I completely understand that they came into the queue and let us leave as the park was about to close, but I do not understand that some people could stay while others could not.

So after the disappointing end to our day we went to our Stargazing pods to check in. 

On day two we finally got the chance to ride Nemesis Reborn, two times in the back and one time on the front row, and it did not disappoint. The ride was immensely smooth, except for the last turn, which did have a weird rattle to it. Besides the ride being smooth it was also very forceful and overall a lot of fun. It was definitely one of the best inverts, if not the best invert I have ever ridden. 

The rest of our day here consisted in getting some rides on the major coasters and enjoying the atmosphere of this amazing park.

The merchandise

When you visit Alton Towers you have to check out the merchandise stores. They are full of great hoodies, t-shirts, pins, magnets… This was one of the best merchandise I have ever seen at a theme park. 

The Nemesis Reborn merchandise however was VERY expensive. You had to pay 100 pounds just for a hoodie, which is quite overpriced. This merchandise store did get long lines during the day, which isn’t something I have seen before when going to a theme park.

The food

The food in Alton Towers was okay with some special options that I haven’t seen before. Most food you can get here is your basic theme park food. The food was okay but it wasn’t the best I had ever eaten. 

We however did get a Black Vanilla Ice Cream, which was something I have never seen before. The ice cream tasted like normal vanilla, but it was completely black, cone included. This special ice cream is something you should really try and it can be found near Alton Manor.

Live entertainment

Another element that Alton Towers did very well was their live entertainment. They had actors rooming around in two main areas: Gloomy Woods, where Alton Manor is located and in Forbidden Valley, near Nemesis Reborn. 

The live entertainment is really an element that made those areas feel more complete and alive and it is for sure something that more parks should add to immerse guests.

Conclusion

Alton Towers is a must visit. The park has a lively and amazing atmosphere that I haven’t felt anywhere else. The staff is very friendly and are always there to help you if you need anything. 

The collection of rides is amazing with an outstanding top three: The Smiler, Nemesis Reborn and Wickerman. The theming is top notch and you will not know where to look first. I really recommend visiting the park and I can assure you will have an amazing time here.