Plans have been submitted by Chessington World of Adventures Resort to install a new ‘Themed Carousel’ to replace the existing ride behind the Chessington Shop.
Proposed to be located in the heart of Market Square, in front of Market Square Pizza Pasta, the new carousel will comprise of a number of elements which will be designed to come together to create an attraction which will complement the Market Square setting. The most striking element of the proposed new ride will be a ‘Tree Feature’ which will be fixed above the main carousel and give the attraction a total height of 13 meters. This feature will include a number of elements, each of which will reflect different elements of the Resort. Constructed from both ‘real and composite materials’ the Resort aims for the feature to be natural in appearance as far as possible. The main carousel element will comprise of a circular structure 9m in diameter and feature a range of varied, themed carriages. Plans indicate that the queueline will be routed in concentric rings around the new ride in order to minimise the amount of space this occupies. When in operation the attraction will also play ‘themed music’ in-keeping with the area.
In order to make way for the new development the current carousel, located behind Chessington Shop to the South of Market Square, will be dismantled and removed with the area becoming an open, hard-standing space. The ‘Market Square Donuts’ building, currently located towards the centre of Market Square, will also be demolished to make way for the proposed new carousel.
First installed in 1996 by the south entrance to the park (now known as the Explorer Gate), next to what was Circus World, the current Carousel has been a staple of the Theme Park for 20 years. In 1999 the ride was moved from its original location in order to replace the Toytown Roundabout and has remained it its current location ever since. At 20 years old the ride has now reached the end of its mechanical life.
Although not a headline attraction, the new carousel will represent an upgrade and refresh of the secondary attractions on offer and, if approved, it is anticipated that the new carousel will open for the 2017 season with construction currently scheduled to take place between November 2016 – February 2017. This latest application means that Chessington World of Adventures Resort could potentially have two new additions for the 2017 Theme Park season with it already being confirmed that Bubbleworks is to close on September 6th this year (2016) in order to make way for a new attraction next year.
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