“School’s out for Summer!” roared Alice Cooper in his infamous AC/DC track. While the kids are over the moon about this prospect, the 2-month Summer break is filled with excitement for them. However, us parents who need to find ways of keeping the kids & teens amused throughout the whole 7-8 weeks off school can be a daunting task!
However, Surrey Rocks has come up with this handy guide to keep your kids enthralled this Summer 2024. Ranging from days out at theme parks, adventure parks, topgolf, watersports, aqua parks, superhero specials and family event days – no stone is left unturned in making it the funnest Summer imaginable for you and your brood.
HULLABALLOO AT HOBBLEDOWN
Get ready for a Summer of magic at children’s adventure park and zoo Hobbledown in Epsom. From 20th July to 3rd September – ‘Hullaballoo at Hobbledown’ is a festival of fabulous fun that will create unforgettable memories. Dive into a vibrant world where dragons, fairies, and whimsical wonders await. Hobbledown’s Summer of Colour and Magic is designed to encourage kids to get outdoors, get messy, and get creative. And don’t worry, in addition to all these spectacular events, their amazing play areas are always available, including towers, tunnels, role play areas, and a huge indoor play barn for those unpredictable weather days!
Highlights of Hullaballoo (all included in your general admission fee):
Paint Throwing: Grab some powdered and experience the ultimate colour explosion!
Skibbler Splash: Participate in Water Wars and help the Hobblers complete their challenges. Be prepared to get soaked in this fun-filled battle!
Hobbler Story Time: Gather at the Thinkery Theatre for an extraordinary story of the Hobbledown Family’s adventures. Will teamwork prevail or will disaster strike?
Wormwood’s Wonders: Explore the enchanting power of Hobbledown Crystallite and Magic with swirling smoke, mesmerizing bubbles, and captivating displays.
Rumpletump’s Jelly Challenge: How many hilarious games can you play with jelly? And how much can you eat in one go?!
Dragon Parade: Grab flags and streamers to celebrate the arrival of the Dragons.
Merrydown Mayhem: Dive into messy games like Tug of War, “Hobbler Says,” and activities featuring slime, foam, and bubbles. Prefer to stay clean? Enjoy charming and competitive pursuits in the Garden Games.
Animal Talks and Birds of Prey: Join zookeepers for animal feeding times and knowledgeable talks. Watch owls, hawks, and falcons soar daily at 12pm and 3:30pm at Willows Birds of Prey Centre.
SURREY THEME PARKS
Without a doubt one of the best UK’s best theme parks is Thorpe Park, which is luckily right on our doorstep in Chertsey, just off Junction 11 on the M25.
There are now over 30 rollercoasters at Thorpe Park including the brand new 236ft drop at ‘Hyperia’, the infamous ‘Stealth’, a hydraulic launched rollercoaster propelling you from 0-80 miles per hour in less than 2 seconds and ‘Collossus’, the first 10 loop rollercoaster.
You can also experience the world’s first horror movie themed rollercoaster with ‘Saw’ where you ride through Jigsaw’s most intricate torture equipment on this terrifying rollercoaster with swinging pendulum blades, floor spikes and giant rotating blades. Even the bravest of thrill seekers will cling on tight as they face a beyond vertical drop of 100 degrees, from a height of 100ft.
There are 2 fabulous water rides, water slides, interactive shows, arcades and a kids section of the theme park for younger guests.
Best advised for children aged 10 and up – as the rides are not for the faint hearted and there is a minimum height restriction set at 140cm for the majority of the rollercoasters. If your child is 139cm or below don’t even try and get them on as the stewards are very strict on measuring. Under 3’s go free at Thorpe Park so if you have little ones you won’t be charged when you take them with your older kids. Chessington World of Adventures, in Chessington, may be your best option for kids aged 6-8 plus who want to take in great rollercoasters or the Zoo for viewing animals yet not be limited by height resrictions. Or for smaller children try nearby Legoland in Windsor where there a host of toddler rides and activities for your little ‘uns this Summer.
SUPERHERO SUMMER
Nova Cinema in Woking is putting on a fabulous ‘Superhero Summer’ which can be
booked for both kids and adults.
Superhero kids films showing as part of Nova Kids, which is every Saturday & Sunday at 10:30am with tickets just £6. To celebrate the release of ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Nova have other superhero films joining across the summer, with the Spider-Man films all being released across August and September, tickets are just £7.50 and £5 for Super Nova members.
Plus as part of a Hans Zimmer season, also showing is ‘Dune: Part Two’, ‘Inception’ & ‘Thelma & Louise’, and all of the Nolan Batman films (‘Batman Begins’, ‘The Dark Knight’ & ‘The Dark Knight Rises’) as a marathon, with tickets just £15 and £10 for Super Nova Members. Incredible value!
Kids Films (showing every Sat & Sun at 10:20am, tickets just £6)
Combat Wombat (20 & 21 Jul)
DC League of Super-Pets (27 & 28 Jul)
The Lego Batman Movie (3 & 4 Aug)
Megamind (10 & 11 Aug)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (17 & 18 Aug)
Paw Patrol (24 & 25 Aug)
Just Super (31 Aug & Sep 1)
Deadpool & Wolverine (From Thu 25 Jul)
Spider-Man (2002 | From Fri 2 Aug)
Spider-Man 2 (2004 | From Fri 9 Aug)
Spider-Man 3 (2007 | From Fri 16 Aug)
The Dark Knight Marathon (Sat 17 Aug)
The Amazing Spider-Man (2012 | From Fri 23 Aug)
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014 | From Fri 30 Aug)
INFLATABLE FUN AT AQUA PARKS
Liquid Leisure in Shepperton and Thorpe Lakes in Chertsey both run fantastic aqua parks suitable for children of any age. These giant inflatable obstacle courses are great fun and won’t break the bank either at approximately £18 for a 55-minute session. There are also sessions for children under 13, over 13 and adults as well as tiny tot sessions for kids under 6.
The inflatables are great fun and good exercise too! They include slides, swings, trampolines, climbing frames, hanging monkey bars and obstacles to race through.
At Thorpe Lakes, once you have paid your entry you can stay and enjoy the facilities such as a man-made beach, swimming and great food and drink at the cafes on site.
Both these venues also offer watersports and lessons too so if you want to make a day of it you can sign up for waterskiing and wakeboarding.
Prices range from £65pp for a lesson consisting of 2 x 15 minute one-on-one sessions with an instructor.
After the lessons you can take part in the group cable experience from only £25 per hour. This comes with use of a wakeboard, wetsuit and helmet.
Great fun whilst also learning a great new skill and sport.
Both venues also run supervised Summer Camps so if you want to drop off and collect the kids while you work there is a full day of activities including lunch planned.
www.thorpelakeswatersports.co.uk
IN THE NIGHT GARDEN LIVE SHOWS
In the Night Garden Live Shows are coming to Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford on Friday 19th July and Saturday 20th July.
Igglepiggle, Upsy Daisy, Makka Pakka and friends are back in their fun-filled live show Igglepiggle’s Busy Day! Join Igglepiggle as he looks for his friends in the Night Garden by following their funny sounds until he finds them all!
The biggest family event this summer is coming to Surrey!
The Independent said, “You’ll see all your favourite characters beautifully brought to life with full-size costumes, magical puppets, and enchanting music. This show lasts just under an hour and your little ones will be amazed when they see a very special visit from the amazing flying Pinky Ponk.”
Now in its 15th year, In the Night Garden Live is one of the UK’s favourite family events.
Over 1.1 million people have seen it so far and it gets 4.8 out of 5 stars based on 13,774 parents’ reviews. A great show.
If your kids are a little bit older and are interested in getting into theatre there are lots of special theatre days at Yvonne Arnaud for them to participate in. Showtime! 8-11 years is on July 24th, Showtime! 5-7 years is on July 25th and West End Workshop for 14-18 years is on July 29th.
FAMILY EVENT DAYS
Join Surrey’s first, award-winning food hall Epsom Social every Sunday for their spectacular Family Event Days with great activities, movies and trivia.
The day generally pans out with: Movie Time at 12pm, Family Trivia at 1pm, Crafts Time at 2pm, Chill Time with giant board games at 3pm and Chalk & Play from 4pm.
At Epsom Social, you can experience the best food, drink and events from local independent vendors and performers.
Epsom Social’s food hall features six tempting kitchens offering a range of cuisines and innovative menus including Pete’s Fish & Chips, Kukorea, Asian Kitchen, Napo Pizza and ice-cream parlour Il Gelatissimo.
Epsom Social are proud to partner with local entrepreneurs and entertainers to bring the Epsom and wider Surrey communities together under one roof.
They just won Highly Commended in the Best Restaurant category in the Surrey Awards 2024.
TOP GOLF SURREY
No golfing ability? No problem! Topgolf is a game that seasoned golfers or total novices can play. Topgolf only has 4 centres in the UK – and luckily for us there is one based in Addlestone, Surrey.
You can have up to 6 players in a booth and you score points by hitting micro-chipped golf balls at giant dartboard-like targets on an outfield. The closer you get your ball to the centre or the ‘bullseye’ and the further the distance, the more points you earn.
You play using proper golf clubs and it is a great way to take up golf in a fun environment as it all digitally scored so you can just get on and enjoy playing the game. Or have fun laughing at those in your party that can’t!
If you have a few families for a day out – you can get two adjacent bays so 12 of you can play together.
It is worth noting that it is a lot easier to get the balls further on the top tier so always best to request an upstairs booth area if you are with beginners.
The fun and games don’t stop there either; there is arcades and a bar and restaurant on site so you indulge in delicious food and drinks brought to you while you play.
You can also book in and enjoy a game of Footgolf on site at the Addlestone Meadow Farm site.
