Thorpe Park · Chessington · Legoland · Alton Towers · Paultons
Theme parks: pick by age, not by name
Parents book the park they have heard of and then discover half the group is too short for the rides or too old for the theme. Height restrictions and age suitability differ enormously between the main parks, and choosing on that basis makes a considerably better day than choosing on reputation.
Because a seven-year-old at a thrill park spends the day watching, and a fifteen-year-old at a park built for under-tens spends it complaining. Check the height restrictions for the rides your group actually wants before you buy tickets.
A rough guide by age
Check each park's own height and age information, since rides and restrictions change.
Younger children
Built around under-tens. Older teenagers generally find it thin.
Mixed families
Rides and a zoo, which spreads the age range well.
Young families
Peppa Pig World and gentler rides. Hampshire, and further.
Teenagers and adults
Thrill rides, with height restrictions that exclude smaller children.
Teenagers and adults
The biggest thrill park, and a four-hour drive from Kent.
Getting to each
Distance is often the deciding factor once the age question is settled.
| Park | Journey each way | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Chessington | 50–85 min | Easy day out |
| Thorpe Park | 55–90 min | Easy day out |
| Legoland Windsor | 1h 15m – 1h 50m | Comfortable day out |
| Paultons, Hampshire | 2h – 2h 45m | Long day |
| Alton Towers, Staffordshire | 3h 45m – 4h 40m | Overnight strongly advised |
The part nobody plans for
Closing time at a theme park car park is the worst half hour of the day.
| Point | Detail |
|---|---|
| Everyone leaves at closing | Simultaneously, into one car park |
| Children are exhausted | Which makes a stationary queue considerably worse |
| The walk to the car | Is long, at the end of a day of walking |
| Being collected skips it | We meet you at an agreed point and go |
| Or leave slightly early | Which many families do, and it works |
Planning a theme park day
Check the height restrictions before you buy tickets
This is the single most useful thing on this page. Every park publishes height requirements for its rides, and a child who is two centimetres short for the ride they came for has a difficult day. Look at the rides your group actually wants, check the numbers, and pick the park from that rather than from the name.
Alton Towers is an overnight from Kent
Nearly four hours each way makes a same-day return a fourteen-hour exercise with exhausted children at the end of it. The park has on-site hotels and there are others nearby, and one night turns an endurance test into a proper trip. We drop, you stay, we collect the next day.
Tell us the children's ages for the vehicle too
Same as our Camp Bestival and London Zoo pages. Child seat requirements are set by law rather than preference and depend on age and height, and buggies take real space. Raise it at the enquiry stage and we will confirm what we can supply.
The exit queue is the reason to book
A theme park car park at closing time, with several thousand cars leaving at once and children who have been on their feet for eight hours, is genuinely the worst part of the day. Being collected from an agreed point and driving straight out removes it entirely, and it is what most of our theme park passengers say afterwards.
Theme park questions
Ages, heights and the drive.
Which park should we choose?
Start from the ages. Legoland and Paultons suit younger children, Chessington spreads the range with rides and a zoo, and Thorpe Park and Alton Towers are thrill parks for teenagers and adults.
Why do height restrictions matter so much?
Because a child who is slightly too short for the ride they came for has a difficult day. Check the published heights for the rides your group wants before buying tickets.
Can we do Alton Towers in a day from Kent?
Nearly four hours each way makes it a fourteen-hour exercise with exhausted children. We would strongly suggest an overnight, and there are hotels on and near the site.
Do you need the children's ages?
Yes, at the enquiry stage. Child seat requirements are set by law and depend on age and height, and we will confirm what we can supply.
Why book transport rather than drive?
The car park at closing time. Several thousand cars leaving at once with exhausted children in them is the worst part of the day, and being collected removes it.
Can you carry buggies?
Yes, and tell us how many and whether any are doubles, since they take real space.
Which is the easiest from Kent?
Chessington and Thorpe Park, both under ninety minutes from north Kent.
Is the fare fixed?
Yes, agreed at booking including the waiting.
Family days out
Parks, zoos and attractions.