Review: Cbeebies Land Alton Towers with a Toddler and Baby

Review: Cbeebies Land Alton Towers

Does Cbeebies Land Alton Towers live up to the hype and is it worth the queues? One toddler, one baby and three very underwhelmed adults give you their verdict.

Cbeebies Land Alton Towers is hard to miss or avoid if you watch any TV with adverts. The promise of Postman Pat, Octonauts and the Furchester Hotel blare from your screen. As Merlin Annual Pass holders a trip to Cbeebies Alton Towers was inevitable. A short break with some camping was a bonus. Our party included my 2 boys age 3 and 1, husband and mum.

Here are my top tips for getting the most out of the day:

Get there early

We live in Milton Keynes so the drive to Alton Towers is at best almost 2hrs. To get there for opening we knew we’d be hitting the rush hour M1 traffic. We opted to extend our visit by a few days and camp near Alton. This proved very useful in getting a head start on the day and beating  some the queues. On reflection I would have got their even earlier aim to be at the park gates for 10am. NOT in the car park for 10am as you will either need to walk or queue for the monorail which can easily eat up 30mins of park time.

1.Head straight to Cbeebies Land

Cbeebies land is to the right of the park entrance, really helpful for small legs. I had researched which rides would have big queues. We picked them off first (Octonauts, Go Jetters, In the Night Garden and Postman Pat) my advice is prioritise the rides that are must.

2.Be prepared to queue

Even after making a direct dash for Cbeebies the queues were starting to form. Octonauts and Go Jetters have infuriating slow queues because of the ride capacity and speed with which the riders change over. In the Night Garden was by far the worst and pained me the most. The queue for In the Night Garden is so unnecessary. If the boats were filled more efficiently then the queue would move quicker but they don’t we had a boat to ourselves with 2 empty rows – madness.

3.Be prepared IN the queue

You can use the queue to your advantage. It is a great point to offer snacks, play I spy, look at the Alton Towers map, plan your next ride etc. The toddler managed the situation pretty well, there are some pretty cool puzzles and interactive games for the children to play with as they queue. The queue was hardest on the baby. He was able to go on a lot of the rides with us but wasn’t a fan of standing still for a long time.

4.Look for the attractions with NO queue

Charlie and Lola’s Moonsquirters and Green drops was really quiet and proved to be a lot of fun for the toddler and the baby. H had load of freedom to crawl about and open and close doors, Bilbo was able to play in the ball pit and run around.

The NumTums has no queue as so many people can get on this ride at a time.

Something Special Sensory Garden and Tree Fu Tom Training camp were both easily accessible with no queue.

5.Bring your own food

There are  plenty of food outlets at Cbeebies & Alton Towers but unless you are looking to spend a small fortune to eat burgers/chicken and chips, a picnic is well worth the investment of time upfront. And the picnic addresses point 3.

6.Little people can get overwhelmed and tired

Cbeebies Land Alton Towers has a lot to take in. And the sheer volume of kids is overwhelming too. Cbeebies Land peak time is from 12 – 3pm so use this time to take the kids off to other parts of the park. Stop and eat your picnic (if there is any left) or schedule a nap.

7.Head back on your way out

Promising a final stop at Cbeebies land on the way out was a great incentive for tired legs at the end of the day. The queues had thinned out. Only a 20mins wait for Postman Pat rather than 40mins.

8.Don’t make promises you can’t keep

You don’t know if you’re going to be able to do everything, my BIGGEST tip is don’t promise what you won’t necessarily be able to deliver on. Rides can close, weather can stop play and sometimes things just don’t work out. We promise the boys a great time, lots of fun but we never make promises about things we have no control over.

9. Know when it is time to go home

The queue for the monorail back to the car park will grow as the park winds down. Make sure there is enough energy left in the toddler to make it back to the carpark.

10. Embrace the Fun

You might prefer the thrill of the Nemesis or Rita rides. But the look on your childs face when they step into the Furchester Hotel will be priceless. Riding the Vroomster Zoom Go Jetters  ride might not fill you with joy, but I guarantee someone will be delighted.

    

I hope this has given you a flavour of what worked for us. Cbeebies Land Alton Towers is lots of fun.

Find out more about our camping experience in Alton, Visiting Alton Towers Water Park and our other Merlin Annual Pass Days out.