We left London for a couple of days for a trip to Peppa Pig World. I’ve had quite a few friends go there, so knew what to expect – although I think we could have been better prepared as I can see now why they do the two-day tickets with an overnight stay deal. We didn’t have the time for two days so got done as much as we could in one without completely exhausting ourselves.
Firstly, don’t let the fact that there’s only seven rides at PPW make you think you’ll do it all in a morning – there’s a LOT to do. We managed to get on three rides quickly by being in the park by 10am when it opened and getting on to what we thought would be the busiest rides. Actually in retrospect we chose rides that could take lots of people so had a quick turnaround.
First top tip – plan to go on Miss Rabbit’s Helicopter Ride or the Balloon Ride as the park opens – they take the least number of people per turn and (especially with the helicopter) are slow getting you on – you’ll avoid long queues and can get onto the other rides quicker.
We went on George’s Dinosaur Ride first which was brilliant – H loved it, and we were on within five minutes of getting there. Our second ride was Grandpa’s Little Train – again quick to get on as it takes so many people at once. You can fit four people in a carriage.
Second top tip – if only two of you can make it onto a ride that’s good, as you might get a queue jump when they need two people to fill a carriage – most people were in groups of three or four.
Third top tip – take a picnic or snacks if you can – food is expensive and I wasn’t that impressed with it. It was edible, so I’m not complaining. There was loads of space to have picnics and no signs telling you that you can’t sit in the eating areas like some places.
There are loads of characters from Peppa Pig which walk around the park that you can have your photo taken with – so keep your eyes peeled. There’s also Peppa’s House and the School House where you can take a photo with the characters and stand and have a picture with Peppa and her friends (and Madame Gazelle) for free.
Fourth top tip – they do photo passes – for £20 you can get four photos around Paulton’s Park rides – quite a good deal if you consider you’re paying £8 for a single print. There’s a lot of opportunities too, and had we known we’d probably have done it (I couldn’t see anything mentioning it on the Peppa side).
I spotted loads of kids with stickers and their parents phone number on it in case they got lost. We didn’t get one or find out where it’s from, but that’s a great idea.
The Peppa Pig Shop is huge and full of Peppa things. A friend compared prices with Amazon and found that everything was identical which is good – as in, they’ve not bumped the prices up. There’s something in there for everyone, and no I didn’t get a Mummy Pig t-shirt… (I may have bought Daddy Pig socks for someone though…) There’s a stand outside the shop where you can throw two balls into a bucket, and win a ridiculously large Peppa related toy. We lucked out and Shaun won one within two throws. I tried one – it’s not easy. We saved ourselves around £25 there, had we bought the toy.
Fifth top tip – entrance to PPW – it’s quicker (and cheaper) if you buy a ticket in advance. If you only plan to do one day it may work out cheaper to book accommodation seperately – we saved a bit of money doing it that way.
We were approached to do a little interview for the PPW website while we were walking around – H answered (very quietly) two questions and got a free Peppa book and a puzzle on some paper which impressed us – especially as we don’t have that book. Whether it’s actually used or not is another matter… I suspect not though.
The toilets are excellent – they have those dual seats – the kind which lower for smaller bottoms – I’ve never been anywhere which does this – Paultons know there are lots of kids there, and it’s the little touches like this which make me warm to the place a lot – it’s a family park and families are catered for – even in ways like this. I didn’t spot whether Baby Changing was in Male and Female toilets, or just separate – but I’d like to think they’ve done the right thing anyway.
There’s a rollercoaster just beyond PPW, and H went on – and had a fantastic time. I was stood watching equally terrified and excited, and relieved when I saw her laughing. There’s a lot of height restricted rides, but also quite a lot they can go on outside the park. There’s also a little train which goes around some of the park (not all of it) which is fun too, and a good sit down.
In addition to rides, there’s various animals and birds around the park – we caught the penguins being fed as well as having a wander around the birds section and gardens. There’s also a dinosaurs display which is pretty good.
Play area-wise there’s enough for little and big kids, areas you can sit in the shade, and really so much to do that we’re going to have to go back to do the rest – when it isn’t the school holidays.
There’s some Peppa Pig World competitions running over at their official Facebook page which we’ve not had much luck with just yet.
I know I had more to write, but I can’t remember what, so for now we’ll go with this and I’ll add updates when I do.
