Where The Antelope roams.

[Gary]

You guessed it!!..Costa Del Warrington!..And before anyone starts saying anything I have to say that the three of us had a great day!

Gullivers World is an eclectic mix of hi tech, swing parks, sand pits, roundabouts and..well..two very good coasters..

It cost £25.50 for Ann, Isabel and I to enter and with the crowded car park at 1020 greeting us on our arrival (The park was open 1030- 5pm) we all feared the worst.

But (today anyway) the whole place seemed just so relaxed..no hassles, no rushing about..just nice sunshine and something there to please most people.
It probably helps that we only live about 20 minutes away as well!

The park is aimed at 2 - 13 year olds and there are strict height regulations but the very small get in free anyway.

I added a hall of mirrors, maze and haunted house to my tally of walk throughs simply because I love these attractions, and besides I didn't know they existed in Warrington.

My 5 year old daughter and I queued up for 30 minutes for a ride on The Antelope..And What a ride!..The last time I rode this was 4 years ago and although it has become very VERY rough and wild the air time was wonderful!!..An incredible ride today giving BPB and Southport a run for their money..and it's a wooden coaster.

Next up The Wild Mine Ride..Think Southports King Solomon Mines but steel..Another great ride with some very sharp turns!

Darkrides?..Step forward Tomb Raider....er..well..I'm not going to shout too much about this one..Why?..Well for one it's "Interactive"..but it's not very hi tech..Think one of those laser gun shoot out Alleys at the end of a pier..now enclose it with a building that resembles a garage and add about 10 feet of track..Worth riding for pure curiosity sake..To be honest if they had removed the zappers, added some "Slam" doors and sprayed the inside with some luminous paint and added a skeleton or two I probably would have loved it!!

Gullivers World Management can't spell..the word Que as in "Queue Here" was everywhere to be seen..I don't get it...Why?

New for 2003 The Lost World consisting of
1) Dino Safari Tour (Don't do it...Please don't do it..Reminds me of a dinosaur ride from Southport circa seventies when you take a ride through a garden littered with paper mache dinosaurs..Hmm..maybe it wasn't that bad after all..)

2) Flight of the Pteranodan (Surely takes the award for the ride most likely to be referred to as 'What's that called again?') **AS AT 15/6/03 this ride has changed its name to FLIGHT OF THE TERADACTYL**
But its good..Think chairoplanes that move up and down but you are harnessed in an Air like contraption..From a distance it looks like Supermen and women flying through the air..You lie on your stomachs and hold on..You get the picture!

There are many variations on roundabouts dotted around the park..Average price of a portion of chips is about £1..(We took sandwiches and picniced on the lawn)..Expect to pay£1.10 for a Magnum Ice Cream..On the whole prices are pretty good for a park and the car parking is free!..

If I have to criticise today then maybe the litter was a bit of an eyesore..I did see a lot of uncleared fast food from the tables and chips strewn about on the floor which does detract but when all is said and done at the end of the day..

..we went home when it closed!

http://themagiceye.shorturl.com

[Nick]

Thanks for posting the TR. It is always interesting to read about less well-known parks.

I have added Gullivers World onto my list of parks to visit in 2003 (with the kids, of course!)

[Graeme]

Nice TR.

The Antelope is the only woodie in the UK that I haven't ridden! I'll have to find a way to someday!

The Wild Mine Ride, which I believe is an L&T Systems ride, looks quite interesting as it has a drop after the S-bend section. If you look at the Maurer mice, they turn round then travel a flat length of track just underneath the switchback section.

Tomb Raider... That's a strange one. I would have thought this franchise was aimed at teenagers and young adults really, not young children (and the ride certainly doesn't sound like it would impress teenage fans of the game!)

Flight of the Pteranodon sounds like a ride I saw in a Goofy comic when I was really young! I never thought there would really be a ride like it!

Finally, they've got a ride like the dinosaur adventure that used to be at Southport, you say? That ride's a legend!!!

[Gary]

Aaah... the Southport "Land of the Dinosaurs"..for Jurassic Park read Jurassic carpark..

For those of you who don't remember this ride adjacent the Southport pier from the seventies ..er...lucky you...

It looked good from the queueing area..You walked through some cave like structure accompanied by some ..er..dinosaur sounds and paid (lost) your money...(15p when that was expensive)...Well the ride started in the dark (good) but turned a corner and immediately took you outside into daylight!!! (bad)

The ride was akin to sitting in a motorised wheelbarrow and being ferried around someone's back garden amongst the weeds!..Every now and again you would come across a "shape" that resembled more a gigantic dog turd than a T Rex.

I remember a few skinheads leaning over the edge of the pier and throwing a paper cup in my direction as the motorised wheelbarrow zig zagged slowly past the brontosaurus...To add insult to injury and to my horror you went around twice for your money and so I got laughed at again.


Anyway that was then and The Antelope is now... Hey, it has definately become very rough. If you click the link you can see the final straight that clicked my neck!..

http://hometown.aol.co.uk/themagiceye/antelope.html