Thorpe Park
England's most thrilling theme park
Thorpe Park is on an island in a lake near Chertsey, about 30 kilometres from central London. The park calls itself the most thrilling theme park in the United Kingdom. With Hyperia, it has the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the country. Ideal for teenagers and adults who love thrills.
What is Thorpe Park?
Thorpe Park is a Merlin Entertainments theme park with more than 25 rides. The park is in the county of Surrey, just off the M25 motorway. It's surrounded by water.
The focus is on intense roller coasters and wet rides, but there's also a colourful street (Big Easy Boulevard) with dodgems, a 4D cinema and sweet shops. Around Halloween the park holds Fright Nights, with haunted houses and scare actors. The park is open from spring into autumn; in winter it stays closed.
Live and latest
Crowds right now
Discover Thorpe Park
The highlights
These are Thorpe Park's best-known rides, with the minimum height according to the park:
- Hyperia (1.30 m): the tallest (72 m) and fastest (130 km/h) roller coaster in the United Kingdom, with the highest inversion in Europe.
- Stealth (1.40 m): you're launched to almost 130 km/h in 1.8 seconds and shoot 62 metres into the air.
- Colossus (1.40 m): the world's first roller coaster with ten inversions.
- The Swarm (1.40 m): a wing coaster in which you hang beside the track, at almost 100 km/h.
- Nemesis Inferno (1.40 m): an inverted coaster through a smoking volcano.
- SAW – The Ride (1.40 m): a horror roller coaster in the world of the Saw films.
- Tidal Wave (1.20 m): a boat with a 26-metre drop, guaranteed to leave you soaked.
- Detonator (1.30 m): a 30-metre free fall in Big Easy Boulevard.
For daredevils (and little thrill-seekers)
Almost all the big rides have a minimum height of 1.30 or 1.40 m. Colossus, Stealth and The Swarm also have a maximum of about 1.95 m. So Thorpe Park is mainly a park for teenagers and adults. Coming with younger children? Fortunately there are smaller rides too:
- From 0.90 m: Flying Fish (a small roller coaster), High Striker and Mr Monkeys Banana Ride, the first two under 1.10 m with someone aged 16 or over.
- From 1.10 m: Storm Surge, Rumba Rapids, Big Easy Bumpers, Dobble Tea Party and Zodiac.
Good news for families: children under 1.20 m get a free ticket when you book online (up to four per booking, with at least one paid ticket). They're measured at the entrance.
Opening times:
The rides usually open at 10 am and close between 5 pm and 7 pm. On some days the park is closed.
Tickets:
A day ticket costs from £ 32 per person online (as of November 2026). Children under 1.20 m go free.
Location:
Thorpe Park, Staines Road, Chertsey, Surrey, KT16 8PN. Parking costs from £ 13 online.
Food, shops and accommodation
Places to eat include Vibes Bar & Kitchen, Spice Kitchen, Cape Cod Fish & Chips, Tacotaria, the Pizza & Pasta Buffet and Colossus Hotdogs. For something sweet, head to the Cadbury Chocolate Lodge. Every big roller coaster has its own shop, such as the Hyporium at Hyperia and the SAW Store.
You can stay overnight at the Thorpe Shark Cabins, the park's own hotel. You sleep in a cabin themed around a roller coaster (Hyperia, The Swarm, Stealth, Nemesis or Colossus) or in the new Fright Nights rooms. A stay costs from £ 77 per person on weekdays, with four people in a room (as of November 2026). It includes two days' admission to the park, breakfast, free parking and an hour of Fastrack.
Travelling to Thorpe Park
By car via Calais and the Eurotunnel it takes about 6.5 hours from Utrecht to Thorpe Park and about 5 hours from Antwerp, including the crossing. In England you drive on the left. On the M25 take junction 11 or 13 (junction 12 isn't possible) and follow the A320. Please note: using the postcode, a satnav sometimes sends you to Norlands Lane; the entrance is on Staines Road, under the roller coaster.
By public transport you take the train from London Waterloo to Staines. From there, bus 950 runs to the park every 15 to 20 minutes (Oyster cards aren't valid). Bus 446 comes from Heathrow Terminal 4, among other places.
By car you cross by ferry (from Hook of Holland, Rotterdam-Europoort, Dunkirk or Calais) or by Eurotunnel from Calais. By train you travel on the Eurostar from Amsterdam, Rotterdam or Brussels to London St Pancras. For the United Kingdom you need a valid passport and an ETA (Electronic Travel Authorisation). You apply for it online or in the UK ETA app; it costs £ 20 and is valid for two years (as of November 2026). Babies and children need one too.
Book online
Online is cheaper than at the ticket office. And children under 1.20 m only get a free ticket when you book online.
Choose a quiet day
According to the park, May and June are quieter than just before the school holidays, when there are lots of school trips.
Save your favourite
Only the queues close at closing time. If you join just in time, you can still ride your favourite roller coaster as your last one.
Plan your visit
Thorpe Park is easy to combine with a few days in London or with Chessington, which is nearby. Below you'll find the current waiting times and hotels.