The Complete Guide & Tips to Thomas Land with Kids 2022

AD – We were gifted a stay and tickets for Drayton Manor in return for this post The Complete Guide to Thomas Land with Kids. All words and opinions are my own

The Complete Guide to Thomas Land with Kids.  So you are considering visiting Thomas Land with kids? But what do you need to know before you visit? We were invited to stay at Drayton Manor Hotel in May with a five-year-old and an eight-year-old. It was the first time we had visited and we were a little unsure what to expect. We knew that we wanted to maximise our time in the park and do as much as possible.  Our Stay & Play Package included one night in the theme park and with both a five-year-old and an eight-year-old our concern was how to keep them both happy. And still, have a family day out. 

With a four year age gap between the boys, it can be tricky sometimes when we visit theme parks as their heights are so different. The 8-year-old is 139cm and the 5-year-old 110cm. However, what we did find is that Thomas Land and Drayton Manor Theme park works really well for different ages and we actually spent a large majority of time together as a four. Rather than two sets of two! I have tried to answer the most common questions I have been asked below. But feel free to drop further questions in the comments and I will come back to you.

The Complete Guide to Thomas Land with Kids

What age is Thomas Land Suitable for?

I would suggest that Thomas land is suitable for children aged two to six.  Harry was five and enjoyed a number of the rides but some were a little young for him. Of course, it depends on the part on the child but since Drayton Manor start to charge (albeit a very reduced fee) from the age of two, this would also suggest that they feel the rides start to become meaningful at this age. 

Which rides are best for a 5-year-old in Thomas Land?

Harry went on a number of different rides. Including the Troublesome Trucks (min 100cm) which was his absolute favourite. A small roller coaster that has enough bends and builds up enough speed to be thoroughly enjoyed by all but not scary at all.  We went on this several times during our visit. 

He also really liked Jeremy’s Jets Flying Academy, where you a whisked around in the sky learning to be a pilot. There is a bottom on the front they can control to lift the plane up and down. During our visit, I would suggest both of these rides are the most popular and so had the biggest queues. However, we didn’t have to wait more than fifteen minutes for a ride.  We visited on a Sunday in May.

Another ride that was not only a hit with Harry but also with the eight-year-old was Cranky’s Drop Tower (min 105cm). The boys went on this over and over again, right at the end of the day. Often staying on the ride and not needing to go and queue again. 

We also enjoyed several of the other rides, but these were the favourites.

Are there water rides in Thomas Land?

Yes! And one of them you can get very wet in so make sure you bring suitable clothing. Of course on a balmy Summers day, a little shower is probably welcomed. But it was a cold May weekend when we visited.  First, there is Flynn’s Fire Rescue (min 90cm) where you get to fire water pistols and put out burning buildings. But the one which you can get soaked on is Captian’s Sea Adventure (min 90cm) as you can fire water at each other!

How many rides does Thomas Land have?

Thomas Land has 20 different rides and attractions. This includes an inside adventure play area, an outside adventure play area and an exhibition.  I have also counted in this the Engine Tours Ride which is where you can catch Thomas, Rosie or Percy all the way from Thomas Land to the Zoo.  

I would suggest catching Winstons Whistle Stop Tours which is a monorail that goes across Thomas Land. Not only will this help with your bearings but it will also help the kids to see the rides they want to go on.  I know mine need to actually see a ride before they can decide.  Thomas Land opens at 10 am in the morning, but the rides will not start until 10.30 am. So if you can get there at opening then this will also give you a chance to see all the rides before they start and for the kids to decide what they want to try out.  

When is the best time of day to go to Thomas Land?

When we visited we went there for when the rides opened at 10.30 and stayed for an hour or so until it started getting busy. Then we went for a ride on Thomas, headed to the zoo and Dino area. Plus the main theme park before going back at the end of the day. This worked really well for us as it meant that when we went back around 3.30 pm (it shuts at 5 pm) it wasn’t very busy at all. The boys could go on ride after ride and in most instances without any queuing.  I do think this was helped in part by the fact it was a Sunday. As people probably left a bit earlier than perhaps they would on a Saturday. 

Food, Toilets and Baby Change at Thomas Land

Right in the middle of Thomas Land there is a cafe offering various snacks and food packages. There is both outside and inside seating. So if you forget your picnic you do not need to worry. It also has a microwave for heating milk and baby food. I must say that the toilets throughout the park were first class. Big spaces so plenty of rooms for buggies. And spotless. They also had dedicated baby changing rooms which meant you could easily go in together and with multiple stations when we visited I didn’t see one queue.  Plus there are locked facilities near the inside adventure play area. 

Our Top Tips for Visiting Thomas Land

We really did have a great time at Thomas Land, with so much to do I am sure your family would as well. There are some things you can do to make your day run smoother:

Early Dinner

If you are also doing the Stay & Play package then definitely eat in the restaurant in the hotel as the food is really good. But book an early table with little ones. We booked at 6.15 pm and it was busy and didn’t end up leaving the restaurant until gone nine.  With boys aged 5 and 8, it wasn’t the end of the world but if they had been younger it would have been more tricky.

There is a fridge in the room

So if you want to bring a packed lunch for the park or you need to store baby milk then you can do so easily

Go back to Thomas Land in the afternoon

We found that from 3.30 pm onwards Thomas Land was very quiet which meant the boys could go on many of the rides without queuing at all.

Golf in the morning

If you are staying at the hotel and the early risers, then there is a mini-golf next door. You can pick up clubs and balls from reception. This could be a good activity to squeeze in before the park opens

Troublesome Trucks

Drayton Manor Troublesome Trucks, appears to be the most popular ride in Thomas Land. It is just past the station.  Although the red fits a good few people on we heard there first before the ride opened. Again this was one of the rides where the queues were really reduced in the afternoon when we visited.

Photo opportunities

If you get there for the park opening then you can get a picture with Thomas as he will be in the station before pulling the first train at 10.30. There are also some more photo opportunities towards the back of Thomas Land behind the balloon ride. And you can even pretend to drive James. Many of the rides across the park have cameras so if you are thinking of getting some ride photos. They do offer a photo pass for £20 which may be worth considering. 

Play area 

There is a large play area behind the hotel, check-in is from 3 pm. So. if you are travelling down it is a great place to let of steam.  There are also plenty of tables and chairs so the opportunity to get a drink from the bar and sit outside while the kids play.

Make a plan

I would suggest you do this before you go. When we visited there were no paper maps. And although there is an app which you can download that shows you where everything is. You need to click into each blue dot to see the ride and to see the restrictions around height etc. So I would encourage you to have a list of rides that you want to go on, especially during busier periods.  We found this really important especially when you have a bigger age gap like ours. 

Drayton Manor Hotel – Standard Room Review 

I was really impressed with the layout and thought that has gone into the hotel room. Our room was set up as two double beds. On the opposite side of the room, there is a unit that runs almost all the way along. This houses the TV but also has a desk area. Under one end of the unit, there is a small pull out table with some little stools. Ideal if you had room service and didn’t want the kids jumping all over the beds with the food.  There is also a small empty fridge. 

Between the bathroom and the bed, there is a small wardrobe area with a safe. Plus iron and ironing board. The wardrobe is small but there is enough room to hang coats and an outfit each. As the hotel is normally only used for one night stays it is more than adequate.  There are tea and coffee making facilities and I was impressed to see four cups. The number of places where we have stayed with only two, which can cause us a problem since Charlie is quite partial. toa weak cup of teas in the morning. 

The bathroom is well appointed and a good size. There is plenty of room to move around and bathe the kids. The hotel also has a stock of things you may have forgotten to pack which can be requested from reception such as toothbrushes and toothpaste! Which is always handy.

We had a very comfortable night in our hotel room. Breakfast is served downstairs in the restaurant and included in the room rate. You need to book your time slot prior to arrival. This is clearly indicated in the booking email.  Breakfast is a mix of continental and full English. 

The Complete Guide to Drayton Manor Theme Park for older kids

As Charlies is eight he was very interested in exploring other parts of the park and could not wait to try out some of the larger rollercoasters. However, we discovered that he is 139cm and not 140cm. This meant that there are a few rides he could not go on. This comes to my previous point about making a plan, as we then struggled to logistically work out all the rides he could go on. 

Can you do Drayton Manor in a day?

Yes! But is more fun to stay overnight. Drayton Manor is a good size theme park but not as large as some we have in the UK. Since it was relatively quiet Charlie managed all the rides he wanted to go on without significant queues.  The theme park rides open at 10.30 am, the gates at 10.00 am but queues do form to get in. So if you want to be first inline then I would make sure you are 

Pre Book your tickets 

In the current environment, you need to pre-book tickets anyway. But if things ever get back to some sort of normality where we can be spontaneous again it is still worth pre-booking. As you will see £10 on the price of a ticket for over 12s, £4 on a ticket for 4-11s. So for a family of four, two adults and two children under 12 that’s a saving of £28. 

Where is there to eat at Drayton Manor?

I was impressed with the number of places to eat and just how many of them were open. This meant queuing was kept to a minimum. I find there is nothing worse than spending precious theme park hours queuing for food. We opted for fish and chips, prices are on par with what. would expect to spend in a theme park. But there is also the opportunity for burgers, pizza & pasta. pies and their chicken diner. Plus numerous tea rooms if cake is your thing. You can find out more about the wide variety on their website – food options and opening hours.

What are the best rides at Drayton Manor?

Of course, the ‘best’ rides are all down to personal opinion. But the scariest ride by popular opinion is the Apocalypse. It is the first stand up drop rollercoaster in the world (although you can choose to sit down if you want). But basically, there is no floor and fall for a whopping 54m. 

The other bigger rides which tend to be the ones people consider the best are Shockwave, Pandemonium, The Haunting,  Stormforce 10 and  Malestrom.  Charlie was just a little bit too short for some of these so I would encourage you to check out the list of rides and their restrictions on the website.  But I do recommend packing the waterproofs for Stormforce 10 as the boys got soaked! Please note The Haunting is temporarily closed due to the pandemic until the 21st of June. 

Which are the best rides for families at Drayton Manor?

I mentioned earlier that theme park rides can be a little tricky for us due to the boy’s age difference and therefore height difference. So we needed rides that worked for both 110cm and 139cm.  There were three which the boys particularly enjoyed and went on a number of times. 

The first favourite was the Buffalo Roller Coaster (min 105cm). It is ideal as a first roller coaster experience as it goes fast enough and has some turns which are fun and not scary!  The coaster also goes out over the water which adds a different element and it gives you a great view of the lake. The queue moves quickly for this one as it takes a good number of people in one go. And the ride long enough as you get two goes of the circuit. 

Next, there was the Flying Dutchman where the boys could go in together if they wanted without us. Children under 100cm need to be accompanied by an adult. Again a ride that fills up quickly we did not have to queue for this once during our visit and went on several times.  If you are staying in the hotel and using that entrance,  it is the last ride in the park. We found it empty when leaving so the perfect end to our day.

However, the favourite has got to be Accelerator (min 100cm). I was a little dubious when Harry insisted on having a go as it goes up high before plummeting back down and then you do it all backwards! But he loved it giggling all the way around.  The dark photo below gives you an idea of how high it goes. 

What is at Drayton Manor Zoo?

It is a lot bigger than I expected spanning over 15 acres and has  over100 animals.  We visited after stopping for lunch as we found this was when the park was at its busiest.  Yet the zoo was quite quiet. They were fascinated by the reptile house which had lots of glass cabinets at the perfect height for Harry. It is also inside so a good place to go if it rains. There are also lots of birds and monkeys. We saw the Lynx but didn’t quite make it to the tiger as the boys got distracted by the dinosaur walk which is right next door.  We had planned on going back to see the tiger but the heavens opened so we hopped back on the train to Thomas Land to take shelter.

If you are concerned about little legs. Then it is worth noting that Engine Tours little train from Thomas Land will take you straight into the zoo and dino trail. Next to the station is a little play area and a teashop. A lovely haven if the park gets a little too much for the little people. 

How Big is the Dino Trail?

The boys got very excited when we rounded a corner and could see the dinosaurs.  It is well done and there are some great photo opportunities.  Dino Walk is not that long so you can walk round in ten minutes or take longer if you want to read about each dinosaur. Again it works as a great break from the theme park and when we visited we were the only family there. So good for quiet time!

We had a fantastic time at Drayton Manor staying with the ‘Stay & Play’ package. You can find out more about availability and pricing which is dependent on the time of the year and day of the week, on their website.

Please let me know if you have any questions in the comments below and I will do my best to answer them for you. 

READ MORE – Magical Christmas at Drayton Manor

 

If you’ve liked this post please follow me on my social media channels:

Mudpie Fridays: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Pinterest | LinkedIn