Planning a theme park day out at Chessington World of Adventures soon? Let me ask you another question… Are you planning to go on The Gruffalo River Ride? If you are curious about this dark water ride then keep on reading!
What is the Gruffalo?
This magical riverboat journey is based off of the best-selling children’s book by Julia Donaldson. The Gruffalo is one of her most popular story books which tells the rhyming tale of Mouse and the Gruffalo. When Mouse goes for a walk in a dangerous forest, he invents tales of a fantastic creature called a Gruffalo to scare off his enemies. To his surprise, he then meets the real Gruffalo in real life…
Just like the story, the ride encapsulates all the exciting twists and turns faced by Mouse in the storybook.
What is The Gruffalo River Ride?
Prepare yourself for each twist and turn as you sail into the dark wood… Don’t worry, this picturesque riverboat journey won’t be a lonely one. You’ll have your favourite gruffalo character, Mouse with you at all times and each vessel holds a maximum of 5 people.
How does the ride work?
This immersive themed ride brings the book to life through digital projections, digital screens and a green screen. The technology helps create the themed lands which makes it such a brilliant ride for kids. There are pictures and scenes from the book are painted everywhere you look too.
Magic Light Productions’ helped create the rides’ scenery at a scale consistent with the 3D theming. There is also impressive lighting designs which use colour temperature to take visitors through the day. Even wildlife noises are recreated from the woodland scenes in the book! The ride also takes you on a magical journey from dawn through til dusk…
This fantastic ride also has smoke, mist and smell machines as well as projections – including hologram-like transparent displays! There is also a 3D mapped waterfall and a projection fog screen. Who doesn’t love a multi-sensory ride?
When did it open?
The Gruffalo River Ride Adventure is a dark water ride that opened in March 2017 at Chessington World of Adventures Resort in Greater London, England, and was developed by Merlin Entertainments.
How long did it take to build?
This adventure ride took around 9 months from design until the ride launched. Would you ever guess it was a redeveloped ride? The Gruffalo River Ride was formerly the classic Bubbleworks ride!
Is The Gruffalo River Ride a popular ride?
The fun water ride enjoyed by 1,200 riders every hour! The Dark Ride Boat Adventure is possibly one of the best amusement rides at Chessington, especially for younger children.
How long is the average wait time?
The average queue time for the ride is 5 minutes!
What Height do you have to be for The Gruffalo River Ride?
According to Chessington there is…
- No Minimum Height
- Children under 1.1m must be accompanied by an adult aged 16+ (adults can accompany up to 4 children per adult)
- No Maximum Height
How long does the ride last?
The ride takes 6 minutes to go round!
Now you know what The Gruffalo River Ride is and what it does, are you ready to take on the Wild Woods? This indoor river ride is a brilliant ride that capture the magical story of the Gruffalo, bringing every page to life. We hope you’ve found this blog useful.
If you are looking for more theme park related articles, theme park breaks or what individual rides are like then head over to our hub! Feel free to check out The Stick Man Trail, more of Chessington Adventure Rides, and insights into other popular amusement rides like Gangsta Granny at Alton Towers or Rush at Thorpe Park!
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