Alton Towers has opened for 2022 season and young families can enjoy a revamped CBeebies Land with three new attractions and lots of activities to get stuck into.
The new attractions include a play zone - Hey Duggee's Big Adventure Badge, plus Andy's Adventures Dinosaur Dig and CBeebies latest hit show JoJo and Gran Gran at Home.
The new season launched on Saturday with special guests including adventurer Andy Day alongside Duggee as well as other CBeebies characters including Bing, Teletubbies, Octonauts and even Peter Rabbit who all gathered in front of the colourful new CBeebies entrance for the launch before guests arrived for their first look.
If your kids love watching their favourite characters on CBeebies - then CBeebies Land is like stepping into the TV screen and immersing yourself in the magic and excitement of all the shows. Aimed at tiny tots to primary school age, you're guaranteed to find something your children will enjoy in the dedicated family-friendly part of the theme park.
I visited with my eight-year-old daughter Ava-Violet and son Gabriel, aged three. It's not the first time we've been and already had our favourite rides and attractions ready to cross off our list including Postman Pat, In the Night Garden and the Treetop Top Adventure.
But we were looking forward to checking out the latest additions to the Staffordshire theme park and were even more excited when we met Andy and Duggee.
Note to parents - maybe leave the Hey Duggee attraction to last! This amazing adventure playground is packed full of brilliant activities it was hard to tear them away. They can slide, climb, bounce through interactive and sensory play areas which include the Hey Duggee Clubhouse with slides galore, they can even meet Duggee himself and collect their Big Adventure Badge.
Next, we headed to see JoJo and Gran Gran at Home and my daughter loved video calling JoJo, Gran Gran and Great Gran Gran in St Lucia from Gran Gran's living room.
She also loved exploring the kitchen to help Gran Gran bake her famous banana bread and the garden area also featured a maze, treehouse and hiding holes plus some growing sunflowers and other interactive touches including JoJo who is hiding in the garden.
For my son, Andy's Adventures Dinosaur Dig was the best bit. This show was very popular but we got lucky and managed to get in the queue early.
Even though Andy isn't there in person (he appears on screen and interacts with the actors via video link) it was still a fun experience almost like being part of a live theatre show. We helped collect fossils to put in the fossilator at Andy's outpost before entering the exhibit and even helped to feed a baby diplodocus. The finale was brilliant as we all joined in with Andy's dinosaur rap.
As we wandered around the rest of CBeebies Land, we bumped into lots of characters including Iggle Piggle and Upsy Daisy, the Teletubbies and Captain Barnacles from the Octonauts.
By lunchtime, we were all feeling rather peckish and headed to the Big Fun Show Time arena. There are two new shows for 2022 including Bing and Flop and Hey Duggee’s newest show, The Map Badge! Let's just say I've not stopped singing the Sticky Sticky Stick Stick song and as soon as the tune came on, all the children in the arena went wild, with my daughter dancing away.
As well as the new Bing show - there are also new Bing-themed bedrooms at the CBeebies Land Hotel which offer the ultimate sleepover for Bing fans.
We rounded our visit to CBeebies Land on the Go Jetters Vroomster Ride and the Octonauts Rollercoaster Adventure and my son found the whale squirting water extremely entertaining. The Treetop Adventure ride was our favourite though as my daughter said: "You can see the whole park from up here - it's amazing!"
Alton Towers 2022 tickets and prices
A one-day pass to Alton Towers costs £34 per person but you can buy an annual pass for £119 which includes free parking and benefits including Bring a Friend voucher and up to 20% off retail, food and beverage.
You can also get an exclusive online Parent and Toddler pass for £25 valid for one adult and one child under five. Children aged under three get free entry. This gives access to the whole theme park, including CBeebies Land. Each additional child under five-years-old is £5. This offer is for visits on selected dates during off-peak periods.
Go to altontowers.com to find out more.
Right now, you and your family can also take advantage of Merlin Entertainments Wizards Wanted Sale which sees membership sign up fees for the annual membership slashed, allowing families across the UK the chance to get access to the biggest and best Merlin attractions nationwide from as little as £9.99pm.
If your family loves visiting other Merlin attractions not just Alton Towers which include Chessington World Of Adventures, Legoland Windsor Resort, Thorpe Park, Sea Life, Madame Tussauds, Blackpool Tower and many more - this could save you up to £59.99 a year per person. To find out more click here.
