Theme Parks

This deal from Wowcher means you could be enjoying the magic of Disneyland Paris, with the cost of the ferry and a two-night stay at a hotel close to the park, at under £200 per person

Nothing beats the magic of a day at Disneyland, but it can be a costly choice just for the tickets alone. That’s why it often works out cheaper to book a deal that includes extras such as accommodation.

Wowcher has just launched a 4* Disneyland Paris Break which is now available to book that includes two-nights in a hotel, transport across the channel, and a one-day Disneyland Paris park entry for each guest, with prices that start at £189 per person.

You can check the availability calendar on Wowcher’s website to see the prices for each date. At the moment, the £189 deal is available in the first week of May with a 37% discount available. However, these dates are likely to sell out quickly, so you may need to snap them up soon.

Dates are available later in the year for November and December at around £249, and this can be an excellent time to visit the parks for the festive period. If you’re looking for summer holiday dates, then the last week in August is the cheapest, with dates from £309 per person.

OPINION

Julie Delahaye

The package includes a stay at the 4* Paxton Hotel Paris MLV, just 10-minutes from the gates of Disneyland by car, which also offers a bus connection to the parks. The price also includes a return ferry crossing for a vehicle, and the drive from Calais to the hotel is just over three hours, mostly on motorways.

The one-day entry pass includes access to all attractions, shows, Character Encounters, parades, and more, so you can pack a lot into your trip.

Since the package has two nights in a hotel, you may also want to enjoy the onsite indoor pool, spa, and hammam, or even head to nearby Bussy-Saint-Georges station to get a train into Paris for some sightseeing. The city centre is about half an hour away by train.

If you’d rather stay onsite at the parks, you can book Disneyland Paris breaks via its official website, which gives you the option to stay in official Disney hotels. Staying in an official Disney property gives you perks such as early access to the parks and a quicker journey home at night, but it is a pricier option.

One night at the Disney Newport Bay Club in early May, with a two-day park pass comes in at £372.45 per person, and considerably more during peak times.

Another way to save money is to look for the deals that Disney offers throughout the year. For example, Walt Disney World in Florida has just relaunched its popular Free Dining offer, as well as offering up to £400 off breaks. This deal can be found on disneypackages.co.uk, and is available during most school holidays. This site also offers packages that include flights, making it easier to plan your trip.

Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com

Walt Disney World has just launched two offers that could help families save money on a dream holiday to the Florida theme parks – and it’s valid for school holidays too

Walt Disney World is a bucket list destination for most families, but visiting the Florida theme parks isn’t necessarily easy to do on a budget.

However, Mickey Mouse’s US home has just launched a deal that could help families save money on their meals – and you could currently save up to £400 off a booking too.

That’s because the resort’s Free Disney Dining and Drinks deal is back for holidays in 2027 – including some school holiday dates – with plans that include free table service dining plans or quick service plans, and one drink per meal (alcoholic or non-alcoholic, depending on the plan you go for). The offer is valid for a minimum of five nights’ consecutive stays if you’re booking a Walt Disney World hotel along with a park ticket package.

You can already book on disneypackages.co.uk, with the deal running until November 4, 2026. However, if you book by July 2, 2026, then you could also bag a discount of up to £400 per booking.

OPINION

Don’t be disheartened if it’s not quite the right deal for you, or you can’t commit before July 2. For a start, if you book after July 2, you’ll still be able to save up to £200 per booking. Meanwhile, there are plenty of tempting deals and offers throughout the year with the Walt Disney Travel Company, including the Free Dining and Drinks offers. If you’re after ticket offers, the likes of Floridatix and AttractionTix can also be good sources, especially if you’re thinking of combining your Disney trip with other Orlando attractions, or even some of the Universal theme parks.

If Florida still feels a little too far to travel just yet and you want some of that Disney magic just a little closer to home, then you may want to consider a cruise, as the Disney Wish cruise ship will be sailing from the UK next summer (we got a sneak peek at what you can expect onboard earlier this year).

Meanwhile, there’s a brand new World of Frozen that’s opened at Disneyland Paris complete with a new Frozen Ever After attraction that’s nearly identical to one in Walt Disney World’s Epcot theme park.

What’s new at Walt Disney World for 2026?

• Animal Kingdom theme park: Bluey and Bingo will be at the Conservation Station from May 26, with photo opps and games.
• Magic Kingdom: Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin is back after refurbishment, with new interactive targets, lights and sound effects. Meanwhile, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad will reopen on May 3.
• Disney’s Hollywood Studios: From May 22, Star Wars fans can join The Mandalorian and Grogu on a new Millenium Falcon: Smugglers Run mission. From May 26, the former Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster will open with its new Muppets theme.

Have you got a holiday question you want answering? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com

SWEET stations in the lobby, statues of famous cartoon characters and a rip-roaring theme park right outside your bedroom window.  

This might just be the best family resort out there. 

The new Nickelodeon Hotel, which opened last year at the Land of Legends complex in Antalya, is bursting with fun. 

On top of character meet-and-greets at all times of day, there’s free gaming stations and an energetic kids’ club.  

And that’s before you even get to the splash park and heated pool, available for hotel guests only. 

My kids had watched Land of Legends being built on other family trips to Antalya over the years, and the excitement had grown on each visit. 

READ MORE ON FAMILY HOLIDAYS

SUMMER SAVINGS

Swim with dolphins for up to 15% less thanks to Florida package sale

PLAY TIME

I took my kids to the huge slime ‘playground’ at UK’s most famous toy store

But with Joshua and Jessica now 12 and nine, my partner Jo and I wondered if we’d missed the boat, or rollercoaster. 

We needn’t have worried, though.  

Land of Legends, which turns ten this summer, caters for all ages, tastes and daredevil levels. Designed to be a giant entertainment resort, visitors have access to hotels, shopping avenue, waterparks and, of course, a theme park in one place. 

Best of all, anyone staying in the onsite Nickelodeon Hotel can use a private entrance to access the theme park — meaning they can ride when they want, pop back for meals and drinks and then go again.  

Spongebob’s Bikini Bottom became a solid family favourite. The new indoor addition to the park features rides for all ages, including an interactive coaster where you shoot targets as you go. 

Young kids will also love the Star Trek simulator, Family Coaster and the crazy Typhoon Coaster where you go up in a lift before splashing down log flume-style. 

And once me and Josh got our big-boy pants on, we were ready for Hyper Coaster — a ride that rollercoaster enthusiasts travel across Europe to try. 

Trust me, it’s not for the faint-hearted, but I had to at least pretend I was being brave by laughing when Josh was next to me on the ascent, saying: “Dad, I think I’m going to pass out.” 

I couldn’t really hear him over my screams after that, as we plummeted, looped, corkscrewed and flew our way across the park. 

I’m not ashamed to say it took me a good 15 to 20 minutes to be able to feel my knees again. 

For a little less speed, there’s a neat Paw Patrol section of the park and Masha and the Bear area — a favourite of our children when they were toddlers so the boat ride was a lovely trip down memory lane for us all. 

On days when the Turkish heat gets too much, holidaymakers can get more thrills at the waterpark (open April to October). 

Dozens of flumes and the quite incredible Turtle Coaster, where you are propelled uphill in a boat by water jets at amazing speeds, were big hits. Although the group favourite was a rubber-ring ride — especially for Jess, as she found it hilarious that I seemed to go backwards the entire way down the steep slopes. 

As we went early in the season, it didn’t really matter what water attraction we went for first as there were no queues. 

You won’t need to splash out on food at the parks when you stay onsite, either. 

The Nickelodeon Hotel operates a “Full-Board+” concept, which means breakfast, lunch and dinner in La Spatula restaurant and all soft drinks are included.  

Alcohol is served at lunch and dinner times with meals, too. 

The food was tasty, fresh and plentiful — from the omelette station at breakfast to the grilled lamb kebabs in the evenings. 

Magic shows performed over breakfast added another element of fun and Jess was still trying to figure out just how the magician had done it by lunch. 

Most evenings, we were so tired that not even the multi-coloured, themed character rooms could have kept us awake.  

Rooms are spacious and our Dora the Explorer suite had a balcony overlooking the park, meaning the kids went to sleep dreaming of the next ride. You can request room types on different floors subject to availability, themed around Spongebob, Star Trek and Turtles. 

In-room fridges filled with glass bottles of pop, plus a pod-coffee machine and snacks in the drawer were a real bonus for the post-park chill before dinner. 

The “Club Nick” kids’ club was excellent, too, with art classes (we painted SpongeBob, obviously) and nightly dance and character shows. 

Included in longer stays is an afternoon trip to sister hotel Rixos Premium Belek, with a minibus laid on. 

Lunch out was good and it meant we could get a drink by the sea.  

This was our fifth visit to Turkey in three years and the destination never fails to impress. The locals delight at welcoming tourists and showing off their country. 

Not everything is still “cheap” here, but this part of the world definitely knows how to do value for money. 

And if you did want to spend a few more lira, the front of the hotel opens out on to the Land of Legends shopping avenue — a Las Vegas-style strip with a canal, high-end stores and evening shows all centred around a Disney-like castle. 

For a slightly more chilled vibe, there are dancing fountains scattered around the shopping district, which Jo and I enjoyed while Josh and Jess played on the PS5s and arcade games. 

I tended to avoid those because, you know, it’s hard to keep letting them win every game . . .  

I KNEW Efteling theme park had a fairytale garden, but I didn’t realise a stay there would give me such a royal welcome, too.

The lobby of the newly opened Efteling Grand Hotel at this Netherlands attraction feels like its straight out of the classic storybooks my nan used to read me when I was a child.

A sweeping staircase circles an intricate, ­cascading chandelier made from tiny gold keys, candles flicker in the alcove and a 1920s bellhop — a mime-artist in full character — performs a slapstick routine pretending to dust off everyone’s suitcases.

It’s a welcome distraction for the kids, who were itching to bust through the back door and on to the rides. And even as a grown adult, I’m mesmerised.

Efteling first opened in 1952 and its mix of traditional fairground attractions, modern thrill rides and whimsical storytelling now attracts more than five million visitors every year.

Perched dominantly on the edge of the theme park, the Grand Hotel is a a castle-esque chateau that began welcoming guests last summer.

RIDE OFF

Abandoned UK theme park left rotting for 14 years with graffiti-covered walls

PAW-SOME

The UK’s first PAW Patrol land to open in just weeks with four new rides

It’s the first time in Efteling’s ­history that visitors have been able to stay the night within the park gates.

Unlike its other accommodation options — Efteling Wonder Hotel and the holiday villages Bosrijk and Loonsche Land — the Grand Hotel is slightly more premium for those who want some proper R&R — that’s rest and rollercoasters.

It doesn’t feel like a twee theme- park hotel, though.

The arty design was inspired by the park’s history and leans in to the visual style of film director Wes Anderson’s Grand Budapest Hotel.

The 140 plush, modern, yet cosy rooms and suites look more like they belong in a stylish boutique hotel, although there are subtle nods to a princess theme.

Delicate vintage-style decor has been paired with ice-blue walls and brushed gold fittings. Elsewhere, there’s a great swimming pool, spa facilities and two fantastic restaurants.

Guests are also given unlimited, free access to the theme park throughout their stay, including on arrival and departure days and free private parking.

For those who don’t fancy driving, it’s incredibly easy to travel by train.
Eurostar operates direct services from London to Amsterdam, then it’s an easy change on to a local train that will have you at Efteling in less than an hour.

After a very early start, the fluffy linens in my room could have easily tempted me to have a duvet day, but the views of the park from my window were too much to resist.

Within minutes, I was out of the door and approaching my first ride of the day — the quirky and family- friendly Symbolica.

Revered as one of the best attractions at the park, it’s an absolute must-do.

The immersive experience sees visitors sit in floating cars on a modern, magnetic track, journeying through a Gothic palace that features some curious inhabitants.

It’s packed with optical illusions and special effects, perfectly pairing Efteling’s reputation for storytelling with enough excitement to appease the TikTok generation.

There’s plenty for adrenaline junkies too, and for children of all ages.

If you’re travelling with kids, keep your eyes peeled for Hooghmoed.

Set to open on May 1, it features three drop towers and is aimed at younger guests who don’t yet want to take on the white-knuckle rides.

And if you’re not a fan of rides full stop, there’s plenty more to enjoy at Efteling.

The theme park is set around stunning gardens and enchanting woodland, which is used to full effect to play out the fairytale theme.

Granted, parents don’t tend to leave a theme park feeling well rested, but somehow the Efteling Grand Hotel changes that.

The atmosphere feels serene, despite being literally next-door to six roaring rollercoasters and a donkey that poops gold coins (one of the park’s quirkier attractions).

At the end of each tiring day, I was made to feel like a sleeping beauty snuggled in that ridiculously comfy bed.

Although having endured upside-down loops, sudden drops and water rides, I’m not convinced I looked like one.

Chocolate lovers will soon be able to enjoy a brand new theme park based on an iconic Swiss brand, and at the heart of it all will be a real-life working chocolate factory to explore

If you’ve got a serious sweet tooth, and spent your entire childhood reading and re-reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, then a new attraction could soon be top of your bucket list.

Switzerland is already a major destination for chocolate lovers and for many of them the highlight of the trip is visiting Maison Cailler in Broc, Gruyère. It’s where the iconic Cailler chocolate has been made since the late 19th-century, and is among the oldest chocolate factories in the world to still be in operation.

At the moment, chocolate lovers can visit the factory and take tours, and there’s already a museum on the history of Cailler. Guests can take a chocolate workshop to learn to make their own treats such as truffles, and of course, there are plenty of opportunities for tastings along the way.

Now, new plans could mean the chocolate factory will be just the start of the excitement for fans of the brand. While the current attraction is 2,000 m², there are plans for it to be expanded to nearly 30,000m², allowing for what its website bills as a “memorable sensory experience”. The plan is for a park that’ll take around four to six hours to explore, taking visitors on a “journey of discovery through cocoa”.

Around 400,000 visitors a year already visit the attraction, making it one of Switzerland’s most visited museums, and there are reports that the park could double this number in the first phase alone.

Plans also include a cable car to whisk visitors from the car park to the factory, and a ‘flying theatre’ that will allow for stunning views over the Swiss scenery. There will also be a huge cocoa greenhouse so visitors can see how chocolate is grown and harvested.

And if that’s not enough chocolate-themed fun, a new hotel will allow visitors to indulge their sweet tooth overnight. If the project goes forward, the first phase should be open by 2030.

Maison Cailler can be reached by train from Montreux, and even the journey itself has been designed for chocolate enthusiasts with a themed train that zips you across stunning Swiss landscapes. Most visitors from the UK fly to Geneva, just a 90 minute flight from the UK, with a number of services run by easyJet, TUI, and British Airways.

READ MORE: Foreign Office warns tourist spot on islands loved by Brits can be ‘fatal’READ MORE: 5 holiday hotspots with tourist tax hikes as Venice re-introduces visitors’ fee

Broc itself is worth spending some time in, whether it’s in the winter when the snowy Alps are at their most beautiful, or during the summer when the mountains are lush and green. Explore the fairytale-like Château de Gruyères whose stone walls are covered in ornate oil paintings and treasures.

Just down the road another of the area’s famous exports is made. At La Maison du Gruyère you can explore a working cheese factory and sample this distinctive local product. You can even take a tour and see the huge wheels of cheese being ripened to perfection.

Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com

FOR those waterpark fans amongst you, there are some exciting plans in the works with five more potentially coming to the UK.

From massive indoor resorts with beaches, to surfing lagoons, here’s everything you need to know.

Follow The Sun’s award-winning travel team on Instagram and Tiktok for top holiday tips and inspiration @thesuntravel.

Chessington World of Adventures Resort

Chessington is known for its rides, zoo and aquarium, but is hoping to add waterpark fun to its offerings.

Back in 2024, the theme park submitted plans to build an African-themed waterpark with six water slides, two lazy rivers and rapids.

If given the go-ahead, it will have a kids wave pool, splash pad, spa pool, a safari beach, cafe and outdoor restaurants.

GREAT ESCAPES

Ten European city or beach holidays for under £100pp INCLUDING flight & hotel

PARK UP

Holiday park expert reveals her top UK resorts and how to get cheap stays

The plans are for it to be built opposite the Safari Hotel.

First-look images reveal a huge indoor waterpark with outdoor waterfalls and greenery surrounding the pool areas.

Little else is known about it right now, with the last update back in 2024.

Therme Manchester

When Therme Manchester opens, it will be the “largest water-based wellbeing destination in Europe“.

It’s set to cost £500million, and could welcome three million people a year to its indoor resort.

It will be every waterpark’s fan dream with spa and wellness facilities that will be split into three distinct zones – Play, Relax and Restore.

The Play zone will focus on ‘next-generation’ water slides, along with a wave pool, warm water pool, steam rooms, saunas and lounging and family dining experiences.

This zone will have an outdoor beach too.

The Relax zone will be adults-only and there will be a “focus on premium wellbeing experiences”, as well as indoor and outdoor pools, waterfall showers, mineral baths, steam rooms, saunas and dining.

The last area is the Restore Zone and is also adults-only.

Here will be “industry leading health, nutrition and wellbeing therapies”, “sauna rituals”, experience showers, wellbeing consultations and dining.

Therme is due to open next to the Trafford Centre in late 2028.

Check out our favourite holidays to Greece – two have waterparks…

*If you click on a link in this box, we will earn affiliate revenue.

Blue Bay Beach Resort, Rhodes

The four-star Blue Bay Beach Resort sits a stone’s throw away from this beach, and has its own pools, splash park and water slides. Here you’re only a 15-minute drive away from Rhodes Old Town, where UNESCO-listed medieval streets wind through castle-like architecture. Make sure to check out the Street of the Knights, one of the best-preserved medieval streets in Europe.

BOOK HERE

Gouves Bay Hotel, Crete

Gouves Bay Hotel keeps things simple on a sunny Greek island location right by the sea. This hotel has a relaxed, family-friendly feel with two pools, a kids’ club and easy all-inclusive dining. And if you fancy a change of atmosphere, Gouves’ bars and tavernas are just a short walk away for your choice of evening drinks with a view.

BOOK HERE

Aegean View Aqua Resort, Kos

The picturesque hotel is perched up high and surrounded by lush greenery in the historic harbour town of Kos. Here you’ll find a huge swimming pool and a waterpark, as well as activities like darts, tennis, football and more. There’s evening entertainment six days a week, and an on-site spa with a hot tub and sauna to unwind.

BOOK HERE

TUI Blue Lagoon Queen, Halkidiki

This mega resort with six pools and its own waterpark is rated five stars by TUI. In the main restaurant, you’ll see show cooking displays as you take your pick from an extensive international buffet. Plus, Kalives beach is on the doorstep of this hotel, with its strikingly blue water and soft golden sands.

BOOK HERE

Great Wolf Lodge

Great Wolf Lodge might not mean much to Brits, but it has 23 resorts across North America and Canada, and wants to to open its very first UK site.

The company has submitted plans to built on the current site of Basingstoke Golf Centre on Worting Road in Hampshire.

The plans are for it to be transformed into a 50,000m² complex.

It will consist of three interconnected buildings – one will be a hotel, another an adventure park and the last, an indoor waterpark.

It will be lots of family-friendly pools, slides, rides and splash pads.

Planned activities inside the adventure park will be a children’s haven with a rope course, mini bowling, mini golf and a games arcade.

Seahive

While not a waterpark per se, Seahive is set to be a huge new water attraction near Deal in Kent.

If it gets the go-ahead, Seahive would be the world’s first surfing wellness resort with a dedicated surf lagoon for every skill level with waves ranging in size from 50cm to 2m.

The site will also have a relaxing wellness area, spa and gym.

There’s room for on-land activities too like a skate park for skateboards, bikes and scooters.

Also proposed for the site are 15 holiday lodges and a clubhouse with restaurants.

The Cove Resort

Similar to Seahive, in Southport there will soon be Cove Resort which is a £75million new attraction with incredible views across the Irish Sea.

Visitors will be able to experience leisure activities like an outdoor lagoon with opportunities for surfing.

Other proposed facilities include a thermal spa – the resort will focus primarily on health and wellbeing.

The plans include the building of large 4-star hotel on site too.

For more on waterparks, here are all the ones in the UK mapped – with lazy rivers and wave pools.

And here’s where you will find the waterpark capital of the UK.

The new land will add playful puppy-themed fun to Chessington and comes with new rides, places for kids to play, as well as meet and greets with the much-loved hero doggy characters

Chessington World of Adventures has finally revealed the opening date of its long-anticipated PAW Patrol land, and parents will be pleased to hear that the gates will be open to meet the pups before May half-term.

From May 3, kids and their parents will be able to enjoy a brand-new and very colourful PAW Patrol-themed area at Chessington in a new £15 million immersive experience.

The date also coincides with the early May bank holiday, so parents may wish to book Chessington tickets now to avoid missing out on this paw-some experience. At the heart of the new land are four kid-friendly rides, each one inspired by a different pup from the brave crew.

The land’s four new rides are: Chase’s Mountain Mission, Marshall’s Firetruck Rescue, Skye’s Helicopter Heroes, and Zuma’s Hovercraft Adventure, which also claims to be the UK’s first ‘Drifter’ ride. The 1.4 acre land will also have three themed play areas, perfect for little pups to burn off energy, and include Rubble & Rocky’s Play Zone where they can climb and crawl through a maze of construction parts.

At The Flounder Boat Play, kids can enjoy a high-seas adventure with Captain Turbot, and there will also be themed food and drink offerings throughout the area. And of course, there will be a gift shop with plenty of PAW Patrol themed merch to take home as a souvenir. Regular meet and greets will also take place, so kids can get a photo with their favourite hero.

And if simply spending the day at Adventure Bay wasn’t enough, fans of the pups can also book a PAW Patrol themed room at the resort’s hotels. These colourful and fun rooms are fully-themed including bunk beds shaped like the pups’ rescue vehicles and colourful murals. Guests also enjoy early access to the park from 9am, allowing parents with young kids to get on the rides with minimal queues.

The park is the UK’s first and only land themed around PAW Patrol, a series that has become massively popular among pre-schoolers. The series airs on Channel 5 and Nickelodeon, as well as streaming on Paramount+.

Chessington isn’t the only park getting a new themed land this year. Over at Paultons Park guests will be able to enjoy the new Valgard — Realm of the Vikings land from May 16. This will include a new rollercoaster and swing ride.

Crealy Theme Park is also adding two new rides to its offerings for summer 2026, although dates are still to be confirmed. This includes Pirates’ Plummet, which claims it’ll be the tallest ride in the south west, and Rotor, an inverting flat ride which will spin passengers around and upside-down for a “heart pounding adventure”.

Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com