Latest news with #GhostlyManor
BBC News
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Paulton's Park announces new £12m Viking-themed world
A Hampshire theme park has announced plans for a £12m Viking-themed world due to open next Saturday, family-owned Paultons Park in Ower also opened new £3.5m indoor dark ride Ghostly Realm of the Vikings, is the attraction's largest investment to date and is aimed at families with older children and teenagers, said Paulton' will include two new rides - Drakon, the park's first inverting rollercoaster, and Vild Swing, which will swirl riders 39ft (12m) in the air. Paulton's Park first opened on 17 May 1983 and is owned and run by the Mancey family, who bought the site of the manor house, its gardens, parkland and lake, which was designed by Capability Brown, at auction in will also see the retheming of the Cobra ride into a bobsled adventure, which will be renamed Raven, and a themed high-capacity restaurant and new playground for younger park also confirmed another major thrill ride would be added to Valgard in 2027, saying only that it would be a "water-related experience". James Mancey, Paulton's deputy managing director, said: "We are thrilled to share our plans for our largest and boldest investment to date, and on the day that we welcomed guests into our brand-new Ghostly Manor."As an independent, family-owned theme park, we're incredibly proud of the investments we make to deliver the very best guest experience."He said the new rides would be "bigger and better than ever before".The park, which spans 140 acres (57 hectares) in the New Forest, is also home to Peppa Pig World, which opened in 2011. You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Scottish Sun
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
I took my family to the perfect first UK theme park for little kids
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) AS I wind my way through a spooky mansion in the darkness, a ghostly figure appears. So I point my gun at it and begin zapping away. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 4 Shooting ghouls on the Ghostly Manor ride at the park Credit: Paultons Park 4 A Peppa Pig meet and greet for Tara and one of the twins Credit: Supplied I'm one of the first people to try the new Ghostly Manor ride, which opened this weekend, at Paultons Park, home to Peppa Pig World. The new £3.5million attraction transforms riders into ghostbusters aboard a four-seater carriage and armed with a 'Phantom Phaser' to shoot down as many mischievous ghouls as they can manage. At the end, each person gets a score and those with the highest make it on to the leaderboard. This spooky experience is for guests aged five and above, with a parent, while anyone over eight can ride solo — and it's unlike any other ride at the Hampshire park. I was visiting with my dad, partner Joe and our two-year-old twins Jack and Sienna. When we weren't hunting down ghosts in the haunted mansion, we were checking out the other toddler-friendly rides or posing next to Peppa Pig and her little brother George. They offer meet and greet sessions outside the schoolhouse twice a day, at 10.30am and 3pm. Paultons Park is the perfect first theme park for little kids. Everything from the food to the baby changing facilities has been designed with children in mind, and the toilets were spacious and spotless. Better still, every loo has a mini seat for little bums, which, coming from a mum about to embark on potty training, is ingenious. Inside Peppa Pig World There's plenty to keep little ones entertained, including several playgrounds and a Peppa Pig-themed soft play area. When it came to the rides, we didn't queue more than 15 minutes for anything. Peppa Pig World may be the main draw for many, but there's so much to do elsewhere in the park, too. We loved the dinosaur-themed area, Lost Kingdom, where kids can ride a jeep and travel back in time with The Dinosaur Tour Co Jurassic Expedition, getting up close with prehistoric giants. Jack and Sienna also loved seeing flamingos and rare birds in real life at one of a number of animal enclosures on site. There are penguins too. If you're visiting with older kids, aside from the new Ghostly Manor ride, you should be sure to check out the Flight Of The Pterosaur, a dino-themed suspended rollercoaster. 4 Enter the spooky Ghostly Manor, if you dare 4 Watch meerkats in the animal area Credit: Paultons Park My dad and Joe also sneaked off while the little ones were napping to try out the Storm Chaser rollercoaster, a 16-person thrill ride that spins riders around in circles as well as up and down a winding track. Make sure you download the mobile app before you go as it has an easy-to-use interactive map, which is great for getting your bearings. It also has information about how long wait times are. Plus, it lists where the nearest food stalls are and what they sell. If you're looking for a place to crash nearby, hotel Voco Fareham Solent has excellent interconnecting rooms that are great for families. It is a 30-minute drive from the theme park and anyone booking a short break at the hotel directly through the Paultons Park website will bag a second day in the park for free. And while I won't ever forget the huge smiles on my kids' faces and the excitement in their eyes, the downside now is they won't stop asking when we're going back to visit their mate Peppa.
The Irish Sun
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
I took my family to the perfect first UK theme park for little kids
AS I wind my way through a spooky mansion in the darkness, a ghostly figure appears. So I point my gun at it and begin zapping away. Advertisement 4 Shooting ghouls on the Ghostly Manor ride at the park Credit: Paultons Park 4 A Peppa Pig meet and greet for Tara and one of the twins Credit: Supplied I'm one of the first people to try the new Ghostly Manor ride, which opened this weekend, at The new £3.5million attraction transforms riders into ghostbusters aboard a four-seater carriage and armed with a 'Phantom Phaser' to shoot down as many mischievous ghouls as they can manage. At the end, each person gets a score and those with the highest make it on to the leaderboard. This spooky experience is for guests aged five and above, with a parent, while anyone over eight can ride solo — and it's unlike any other ride at the Hampshire park. Advertisement Read More on Travel I was visiting with my dad, partner Joe and our two-year-old twins Jack and Sienna. When we weren't hunting down ghosts in the haunted mansion, we were checking out the other toddler-friendly rides or posing next to Peppa Pig and her little brother George. They offer meet and greet sessions outside the schoolhouse twice a day, at 10.30am and 3pm. Advertisement Most read in Family Everything from the food to the baby changing facilities has been designed with children in mind, and the toilets were spacious and spotless. Better still, every loo has a mini seat for little bums, which, coming from a mum about to embark on potty training, is ingenious. Inside Peppa Pig World There's plenty to keep little ones entertained, including several playgrounds and a Peppa Pig-themed soft play area. When it came to the rides, we didn't queue more than 15 minutes for anything. Advertisement Peppa Pig World may be the main draw for many, but there's so much to do elsewhere in the park, too. We loved the dinosaur-themed area, Lost Kingdom, where kids can ride a jeep and travel back in time with The Dinosaur Tour Co Jurassic Expedition, getting up close with prehistoric giants. Jack and Sienna also loved seeing flamingos and rare birds in real life at one of a number of animal enclosures on site. There are penguins too. If you're visiting with older kids, aside from the new Ghostly Manor ride, you should be sure to check out the Flight Of The Pterosaur, a dino-themed suspended rollercoaster. Advertisement 4 Enter the spooky Ghostly Manor, if you dare 4 Watch meerkats in the animal area Credit: Paultons Park My dad and Joe also sneaked off while the little ones were napping to try out the Storm Chaser rollercoaster, a 16-person thrill ride that spins riders around in circles as well as up and down a winding track. Make sure you download the mobile app before you go as it has an easy-to-use interactive map, which is great for getting your bearings. Advertisement It also has information about how long wait times are. Plus, it lists where the nearest food stalls are and what they sell. If you're looking for a place to crash nearby, hotel Voco Fareham Solent has excellent interconnecting rooms that are great for families. It is a 30-minute drive from the theme park and anyone booking a short break at the hotel directly through the Paultons Park website will bag a second day in the park for free. Advertisement And while I won't ever forget the huge smiles on my kids' faces and the excitement in their eyes, the downside now is they won't stop asking when we're going back to visit their mate Peppa. GO: PAULTONS PARK ENTRY: Tickets to Paultons Park costs from £45pp, while anyone under one metre in height goes free. STAYING THERE: Interconnecting rooms at the Voco Fareham Solent hotel cost from £492 for two adults and two children, on a B&B basis and including a second day at the park for free. See
The Sun
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
I took my family to the perfect first UK theme park for little kids
AS I wind my way through a spooky mansion in the darkness, a ghostly figure appears. So I point my gun at it and begin zapping away. 4 4 I'm one of the first people to try the new Ghostly Manor ride, which opened this weekend, at Paultons Park, home to Peppa Pig World. The new £3.5million attraction transforms riders into ghostbusters aboard a four-seater carriage and armed with a 'Phantom Phaser' to shoot down as many mischievous ghouls as they can manage. At the end, each person gets a score and those with the highest make it on to the leaderboard. This spooky experience is for guests aged five and above, with a parent, while anyone over eight can ride solo — and it's unlike any other ride at the Hampshire park. I was visiting with my dad, partner Joe and our two-year-old twins Jack and Sienna. When we weren't hunting down ghosts in the haunted mansion, we were checking out the other toddler-friendly rides or posing next to Peppa Pig and her little brother George. They offer meet and greet sessions outside the schoolhouse twice a day, at 10.30am and 3pm. Paultons Park is the perfect first theme park for little kids. Everything from the food to the baby changing facilities has been designed with children in mind, and the toilets were spacious and spotless. Better still, every loo has a mini seat for little bums, which, coming from a mum about to embark on potty training, is ingenious. Inside Peppa Pig World There's plenty to keep little ones entertained, including several playgrounds and a Peppa Pig-themed soft play area. When it came to the rides, we didn't queue more than 15 minutes for anything. Peppa Pig World may be the main draw for many, but there's so much to do elsewhere in the park, too. We loved the dinosaur -themed area, Lost Kingdom, where kids can ride a jeep and travel back in time with The Dinosaur Tour Co Jurassic Expedition, getting up close with prehistoric giants. Jack and Sienna also loved seeing flamingos and rare birds in real life at one of a number of animal enclosures on site. There are penguins too. If you're visiting with older kids, aside from the new Ghostly Manor ride, you should be sure to check out the Flight Of The Pterosaur, a dino-themed suspended rollercoaster. 4 4 My dad and Joe also sneaked off while the little ones were napping to try out the Storm Chaser rollercoaster, a 16-person thrill ride that spins riders around in circles as well as up and down a winding track. Make sure you download the mobile app before you go as it has an easy-to-use interactive map, which is great for getting your bearings. It also has information about how long wait times are. Plus, it lists where the nearest food stalls are and what they sell. If you're looking for a place to crash nearby, hotel Voco Fareham Solent has excellent interconnecting rooms that are great for families. It is a 30-minute drive from the theme park and anyone booking a short break at the hotel directly through the Paultons Park website will bag a second day in the park for free. And while I won't ever forget the huge smiles on my kids' faces and the excitement in their eyes, the downside now is they won't stop asking when we're going back to visit their mate Peppa.
Daily Mail
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Huge UK theme park reveals £12 million expansion for 2026
One of Britain's favourite theme parks has announced a major expansion is in the pipeline for next year. Paultons Park, which sits on 65 acres on the New Forest's edge in Hampshire, will open a brand new £12million themed world, Valgard - Realm of the Vikings, in 2026. The park, already a hit with younger children thanks to Peppa Pig World, today also cut the ribbon on its latest attraction, Ghostly Manor - a £3.5 million ghoulish interactive gameplay ride. News of the latest developments at the park will see it likely rival some of the nation's biggest theme parks - including Alton Towers, Chessington World of Adventures and Thorpe Park - for visitors next summer. Viking-themed Valgard is Paultons' biggest investment in a new themed area to date and is aimed at teens and older children. The biggest crowd-pleaser at Valgard is likely to be Drakon, a high-octane thrill ride with a vertical lift hill and two twists that take riders upside down. Elsewhere, there's also set to be a Vild Swing, which will whirl those brave enough to ride it 12 metres in the air - and one of the park's most famous rides, Cobra, is also set for a makeover. Cobra will be transformed into a bobsled adventure named Raven, with plans afoot to create a playground aimed at younger children in the village too. A Viking village, with shops and dining, will transport theme park goers back to the historical period when Scandinavia's famous Norse warriors lived. And the Hampshire theme park also teased the prospect of another ride in Valgard in 2027, suggesting that it might be a water-based attraction. From today though, visitors are likely to be clamouring to have a go on Ghostly Manor, which welcomed the first thrillseekers on board this morning. The indoor ride offers five minutes of game play plus pre-show surprises and is described as a tour of a 'family-friendly supernatural world'. Those who enter Ghost Manor will journey through the home of paranormal investigator, Dr Kinley - with plenty of things going bump in the night. Riders board four-seater carriages and get their own Phantom Phaser to try and capture the eerie apparitions they encounter. James Mancey, deputy managing director at Paultons Park, said the park was delighted to be able to announce a double whammy of news - and explained more about what theme park fans can expect in 2026. He said: 'Valgard promises an immersive, atmospheric, and action-packed experience for families and has been specifically designed to grow with our fans. 'The introduction of inversions and a vertical lift hill on Drakon certainly up the adrenaline levels at Paultons Park, but staying true to our roots, we haven't forgotten about the little ones and there is something for all of the family in our new Viking village.' Day entry for the park is £45, with children under a metre going free. It's been a month of announcements in the world of theme parks, with Walt Disney revealing plans to open a Disney theme park in United Arab Emirates' capital Abu Dhabi. The park, in collaboration with regional developer Miral Group, will be its first major new theme park in nearly a decade and its first in the Middle East. The planned Disney waterfront resort will be located on Yas Island, a popular tourist destination that is home to other family-friendly attractions, including Warner Bros World Yas Island, SeaWorld Yas Island and Yas Waterworld Abu Dhabi. The city of Abu Dhabi has a population of about 2.5 million, but Yas Island recorded more than 34 million visits in 2023, a 38% rise compared to the year before, Miral has said. 'We've always been interested in this part of the world - to bring our Disney stories to new, younger fans,' Disney's Experiences unit Chairman Josh D´Amaro told Reuters, adding, 'Abu Dhabi was an ideal location for us.' Miral, the Abu Dhabi-based leisure and entertainment group responsible for developing Yas Island, will finance, build and operate the resort. The creative and technical professionals who design Disney's theme parks, known as Imagineers, will lead creative design and provide operational oversight. The U.S. entertainment company will earn royalties based on the park's revenue, according to a regulatory filing. The Disney park 'will be authentically Disney and distinctly Emirati - an oasis of extraordinary Disney entertainment that is at the crossroads of the world,' Disney CEO Bob Iger said in a statement. Disney said the park will be the 'most advanced and interactive destination in our portfolio' and the concept art shows how far it may go to cast a powerful spell. The concept art was deliberately blurry in order to keep fans guessing about what will be in it - but one landmark that stuck out was the centre-piece castle, with a similar style to Elsa's ice palace from Frozen.
