Review The Gruffalo River Ride Adventure – Chessington World of Adventures

I remember going on Professor Bubbleworks when I was a young girl and loving it, yet the last time we visited it had become very old and tried and really did need a refurbishment. For those of you who have been on Bubbleworks before then, you will be pleased to know the actual ride is the same. It is just now The Gruffalo ride at Chessington World of Adventures. You sit in the same round seats, there is still the drop-down where you run the risk of getting soaked (although I never have) and the dancing water over your head near the end. What’s changed is the scenery. Instead, you go into the deep dark wood and hear the story of the Gruffalo while floating along on the lazy river.

 

 

We arrived at Chessington World of Adventures when it opened and headed straight over to the ride which is in the Wild Wood area of the park. I thought that we would be one of the first on! Wrong there was already a queue, the wait time was about fifteen minutes in total, so not too bad. I kept an eye on the boards throughout the day as I wanted to give it another go and see if I could do better with the pictures but it didn’t go below fifty minutes. So I think next time we go we will head there first again.

 

The park has anticipated its popularity by arranging for an extra queuing area around the back. Once you get close to the building they have placed some activities to keep the kids entertained as much as possible. Ranging from quotes of the story, to lift the flap boards and finger mazes. There is also a wall that looks like it is straight out of the book. It even looked like the Axel Scheffler illustrations of course we couldn’t resist the photo opportunity.

 

 

World of the Gruffalo – What to Expect

 

Once through the gate theres only a tiny bit of queuing at the base of the stairs. The kids were so excited that they ran on which meant I missed photographing the walls which are just covered floor to ceiling in book pictures. Everything is Grufflao related. The ride goes through the story and you join mouse as he meets each of the characters. There are some modern effects now, including giant dandelion clocks and a plasma screen with a snake squeezing mouse on digital screens. At the end of the ride, you actually go through the Gruffalo crumble. There was so much going on the magical riverboat journey it was difficult to take it all in. Monkey loved it talking about one side and then the other, pointing out all the characters and telling the story as went round.

 

What age is the Gruffalo ride suitable for?

I would definitely recommend this for children of Charlie’s age (four). We went on with our friend’s little girl who is two and a half and she really enjoyed it too. It is a dark ride though so if you have a child that is not keen on the dark then this could be a problem for them.

The only other thing I am not so keen on is that you exit the ride through the gift shop. This has always been the way but there is now so much Gruffalo memorabilia. That when it is in front of their eyes, it’s even harder to get out without spending anything. There are two photo opportunities on the ride, one at the end of the queue where you are transposed into the book and the second on the ride itself. You can pay £10 for a photo, or keyring or magnet. Or it is possible to buy two items for £15. You also get a free download.

It really is a great themed ride we have been on. Charlie declared it was the best ride ever! If you go on the right day when they have the Gruffalo Summer show on, you can also do a character meet. We will be going back soon so I can try and get some better photos. Have you visited The Gruffalo River Ride Adventure? I would love to hear what your thoughts are of the picturesque riverboat journey