Days Out, travel

Top Tips to make the most of a day at Alton Towers

Posted on 18th June 2022 by The Helpful Hiker

Updated 12/03/2026

I was not much of a theme park fan when I was younger, I went to a few smaller ones but I had never been to the big daddy, Alton Towers, until recently. Then, due to various circumstances I have been to Alton Towers lots of times over the last few years.

The First Trip

I’m not going to lie, the first time we went as a family in June 2021 it was a bit of a disaster. We turned up without a plan, it was a hot, busy day and we ended up leaving early after going on just a couple of rides. An expensive way to spend a rubbish day out.

Ollie is a big fan of CBeebies Land

We vowed we wouldn’t go back until the kids were older, able to queue more patiently and tall enough to go on more rides.

Finally Cracked It

Since then I have managed to get cheap tickets through my work that were just too good an opportunity to miss, so we’ve been a few times in recent years and I think we’ve finally cracked it!

Alton Towers is huge, so you really need a plan to get the most out of your visit

I find that our most successful trips to Alton Towers are the ones where we make a plan and stick to it!

Top Tips

So this brings me on to my top tips to make the most of your trip to Alton Towers. These hacks come from hard earned experience, and will definitely be how we tackle any future trips.

Have a plan! Alton Towers is HUGE, so you won’t get to everything in one day, particularly if you have kids, so decide which rides you really want to do and work from there. Make a note of where they are and any height restrictions etc so you know what you’re doing.
Go against the flow. Most people start from the entrance and make their way down the park. On our latest trip we did the opposite, we headed to the farthest part of Alton Towers first and managed to get on 2 big rides (Thirteen and Rita) with just a few minutes queuing at each
Do CBeebies Land later in the day. Following on from my last point: CBeebies Land is the first place you come to when entering Alton Towers, so many people head straight there. It tends to be a little quieter later on in the day when everyone has moved on.
Get your timings right. If you’ve identified your must-do rides, the quietest times tend to be first thing in the morning and the last hour, so you can plan accordingly
Download the app. The Alton Towers app is great for planning a visit, buying extras (like parking or fastrack) and keeping an eye on the queue times.
Conserve your energy. If you have small children, the Sky Ride is a great way to move around the park with ease, it’s also a very scenic ride that the whole family can enjoy. Likewise, the monorail to and from the car park makes life easier-particularly at the end of a tiring day.
Get some wheels. Even if you don’t usually need a buggy, it can be a good idea to bring one (or hire one at the park) as Alton Towers is very big and a day there involves a lot of walking. On our latest trip we took along our festival wagon, which proved to be a hit, both for transporting tired children and carrying all of our stuff.

The Sky Ride is a great way to see Alton Towers

Must dos with kids

Obviously if you have young children, CBeebies Land is a must do at Alton Towers. There are lots of rides and attractions in that area and plenty for the whole family to enjoy together. The Hey Duggee Big Adventure Badge, was a hit when the boys were younger. It’s a great opportunity for the kids to run around and the adults can take a well earned break.

The new Bluey ride is due to open later this month (March 2026), so that’s one to try next time. It has taken the place of the old Postman Pat ride.

Other attractions that are suitable for young children, and tested and loved by our kids, include Heave Ho (a pirate ship ride) and The Runaway Mine Train. These both have height restrictions of 0.9m, you can see the full list here.

Ollie loved spotting the sharks at Sharkbait Reef