Alton Towers - top tips

[BeagleHound1]

Taking my DH , DD age 14 and DS age 9, first week of holidays. Plan to drive from north east - can’t leave till 10 due to dog sitter. Plan to get there about 2 and use the water park then probably stay at an on site hotel and then go in the park first thing, spend the day there then drive home.
Just wondering what the water park is like. Does this plan give us enough time in the park. Is the water park good for Teens or should I take my DS and DD can hang out with DH?

Yes plenty of time in the water park, it’s not that amazing. 2 hours was enough for mine but we did go on a day that wasn’t too busy. With queues you might need a bit longer but I wouldn’t have thought more than 3-4 hours. It’s ok for teens, it has a couple of bigger slides but they’re not amazing. Mine is 13 and enjoyed it for a couple of hours. It has a cafe in there and rapids and stuff too.

the park itself can get mad busy in the summer so if it is busy you can get queue jumps for individual rides on the app. The app is brilliant - it has all the queue info on there so you can plan accordingly, there is a bit of a delay with the info but it’s pretty good. If you can afford queue jumps for more rides then you need to get them before you go because they sell out.

if you stay on site you also get to use the crazy golf for free and have breakfast included. And you get to get into the park a bit earlier too.

Just check that you can use the water park at that time - if it's in a package sometimes they allocate you a time.