Today, July 10th, I visited Thorpe Park for the first time! This was my first park outside of the United States, and even though I knew a considerable amount about the park already, I was really surprised by a lot of the rides. While not every surprise was good, I had a great time and am looking forward to visiting more European Parks.

  
**Trip Rundown**

I arrrived at Thorpe Park around 9:30 am, which was 30 minutes before the park opened. I don't think you need to get there more than 15 minutes early, as the queue area didn't get too packed originally.

  
One major factor that might have made my visit different than most days was the sheer amount of student groups that were there. While I have always seen a group or two of students every time I visit a park, I was not expecting there to be nearly as many as there actually were. This had a large effect on park opening, since the moment the ropes were dropped the vast majority of these students sprinted towards Hyperia, in a very stampede-like fashion. The standby line for Hyperia must have been at least 30 minutes right off the bat, but by hopping in the single rider line I was able to get on the third train of the day.

  
The first hour in Thorpe Park was the most impactful hour I've ever had at a theme park. By 11:00 am, I had ridden Hyperia, Colossus, Saw, and was about to reach the end of the queue on Stealth. Taking advantage of this hour was crucial to me riding everything that I wanted to ride, as the lines would quickly grow passive.

  
For the rest of the 5 1/2 hours I was there, I was able to match my ride total from the first hour, only stopping to eat lunch for 20 minutes. Swarm, Ghost Train, and a second ride on Hyperia took 60 minutes each, and I waited nearly 90 minutes for Nemesis Inferno. I left the park about 90 minutes before closing, so if you wanted to fit more in you certainly can, but I was content with what I rode.

**Park Thoughts**

  
Thorpe Park was very good operationally. While the lines were very long, the staff was very quick about assigning rows and dispatching trains. Not being able to choose your row on Hyperia was a bummer though.

  
The one food item I had, which was the chicken bowl from a place close to Stealth was good by amusement park standards, but nothing to write home about.

  
This park has a very good idea of what rides they put in, and it was very interesting as an outsider to see. Most of their coaster lineup was built to be short and punchy, and I don't think any other park in the world has a higher average intensity than Thorpe Park. I'm aware that Merlin has other parks in the area geared toward families with Chessington and Legoland, but it was still weird to see. I would love for this park to get a launched family coaster (possibly a Vekoma LIM) to help fill out the gaping hole in its lineup.

  
The theming and stylization of the park was a nice change of pace compared to United States parks of similar caliber. While Six Flags and United Parks have made some effort to step up their theming game, they still have a long way to go to match what this park does.

  
**Ride Reviews/Rankings**

  
**7. Colossus - 5/10**

While this was the most inversions I've ever done on a coaster, it was certainly nothing to write home about. The world's first coaster to have double digit inversions did so in the most uninspired way possible. The main problem is that time has not been kind to Colossus, and I very much got banged around for the majority of the ride. The quad roll was definitely the highlight of this ride.

**6. Ghost Train - 5.5/10**

Ghost Train was a big let down. When it first opened as Derren Brown's Ghost Train, I was extremely interested in the ride, both thematically and mechanically. I knew that the ride went through major changes by dropping the Derren Brown name and removing VR, and you can tell that it operates as if it was designed differently. I was happy with the level and detail in the first couple rooms as well as the train stations, and I hoped that it would carry over into the rest of the attraction. However, the dialogue of the actors as well as the story as a whole is incredibly corny and barebones, and along with an unsatisfying ending it left me wondering why I was so excited to ride it all those years ago.

**5. Saw: The Ride - 6/10**

I've always found the movies in the Saw franchise to be interesting in terms of trap design and story elements, and while I know Saw isn't the pinnacle of cinema, I was looking forward to see how it was turned into a ride. I was happy to find out that the theming is very on brand, and for a high thrill coaster is themed fairly well. The coaster itself also fit in thematically with Saw and its themes of pain. This ride really beat me up, which was a bummer because I could feel that the layout had potential to be great for its size, but that can't happen unless the park does some serious work on it.

**4. Swarm - 8/10**

My only other wing coaster I have done besides swarm was GateKeeper, which I rode once eight years ago. I was eager to experience one again, and Swarm did not disappoint. Swarm is the blueprint of how to do near misses. Nearly every element has some kind of near miss, whether it be with a physical prop or with the coaster track itself. Swarm was also surpisingly forceful, especially around the turn along the water.

**3. Nemesis Inferno - 9/10**

This was easily the biggest surprise of the day. Nemesis Inferno has always been talked down online, primarily because of the constant comparisons to the original Nemesis at Alton Towers. I hope that the OG Nemesis is as good as this one, because Nemesis Inferno might just be my favorite invert. I thought that this ride would be similar to the Batman clones, and it many ways it is, just with everything turned up to 11. I didn't think an invert could possibly have the kind of pacing that Inferno had. Despite starting the same as the Batman clones, Inferno rips through those inversions faster than all of the four Batman clones I have ridden. The interlocking rolls, the breakneck speed, and the interactions with the terrain shocked me to my core. This level of pacing is something that I always thought was missing among the bigger inverts, especially Montu which I have ridden many times over the years. While Montu is still a very intense and well-paced ride, Nemesis Inferno made it look like a family coaster. While I might have gotten a once-in-a-lifetime ride on it, it might stay at the top of my invert list until I get back on it.

**2. Stealth - 9.5/10**

There might be debate on whether Stealth actually has the most powerful launch in the world, but there is no debate that the launch has some kick. While I haven't ridden an accelerator since 2020 (Storm Runner), I certainly didn't remember anything even close to the power that Stealth puts out. It might be simple, but in this case less is more. I know that it just turned 20, but II hope it doesn't share the fate of its fellow accelerators and is able to stay at Thorpe Park for another 20 years.

**1. Hyperia - 10/10**

Who would've guessed? While there were many reasons why I wanted to visit Thorpe Park, Hyperia was definitely the biggest. Despite the high hopes, Hyperia still exceeded my expectations. This is the only coaster I've ridden where every element is fantastic. The length is obviously a huge detractor for many, but I think that what Hyperia does have is so good that it can definitely be considered an elite coaster. While it certainly rough for its age, it isn't rough to the point where you are unable to enjoy the amazing elements of this masterful layout. Hyperia might not be everyone's favorite Mack coaster, but it is definitely mine, and is now my third favorite coaster, behind only Iron Gwazi and Steel Vengeance.

  
**Final Remarks**

I had a great day at Thorpe Park, and you can too as long as you get to the park early to beat the large crowds, as well as being smart about when you ride each attraction. I believe that Hyperia alone is worth the price of admission, but Thorpe was filled with plenty of great rides that made me happy that it was my first park across the pond. I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to make it over to Alton Towers, but if it is anything like Thorpe I know I'll have a great time.



American's Visit to [Thorpe Park]