Saving Money at Gulliver’s World Theme Park in Warrington
|This post was written by Becky Stretton, author of the parenting blog, Green Duo. Visit her blog to read all about Becky, her husband Steve, their new baby daughter Phoebe-Rae and all their adventures in their green, eco-friendly household.
A Special Day at Gulliver’s World
My husband and bravely and selflessly sacrificed our Sunday recently to look after some of our nieces and nephews and give their parents a bit of a break during the summer hols and chose to take them somewhere a bit more special and definitely cooler than the local park: Gulliver’s World in Warrington.
Easily the best thing about having nephews and nieces is that you can drop in, nobly whisk them away out of their parent’s hands for a bit, blow a fortune on spoiling them throughout the day, and not need to worry about making them spoilt, greedy kids in the future, or worry that splashing out on one day will mean cutting back to feed the kids for the rest of the month. Children are damn expensive!
But there are ways to make a day out to the park and not break the bank…
Book Online
Booking tickets online is definitely the best thing to do if you’re planning a trip to Gulliver’s theme park. Paying at the gate when you get there will cost £17 per person, and that’s for both adult’s and children’s tickets, but you can get your tickets at £15 each if you book online a minimum of 2 days in advance. This may not be a huge saving, but what you do save on multiple tickets will go nicely towards some treats throughout the day!
Take Your Own Food and Drinks
I mostly choose to take a picnic when I go for a day out to anywhere that’s got a captive audience for food and drink etcetera; I kind of believe if you don’t have competition, why would you have to keep your standards high? However, I admit, I’m also a bit of a cheap-ass and I hate paying out a lot for anything if I don’t have to.
Gulliver’s World does offer quite a variety of food options, but mainly, as would be expected from a theme park, takeaway-style food options, including pizzas, tacos, burgers, fish, and chips. Salad and healthy options are available, as are vegetarian meals as well. Price-wise, it’s about what is expected at a theme park; it’s roughly £5 upwards for a meal per person. Taking your own in a cool bag will definitely save you a few pounds!
Look Out for…
The front of the park at the end of the day!
The worst expenditure of the whole day was the ludicrous purchase my husband made at the balloon stall when we were heading out. Obviously, the stand was strategically situated by the exit to meanly attract kids’ attention – to the expense of their parents – but at £3.50 for one they’re definitely the biggest rip-off in the park, but one we wouldn’t have been trapped into had I not stupidly chosen to leave my husband unattended to nip to the toilet – he hasn’t yet mastered the art of saying no to kids or balloon sellers!
Also on the front are hotdog stands, candy stalls, and a big shop full of goodies. We managed to maneuver the kids to avoid either entrance to the shop easily enough, and the good thing is there is a show with the Gulliver’s characters at the end of the day so the kids will most likely fixate on this rather than the stalls and sellers around them.
Would I Recommend Gulliver’s World?
That’s a definite yes!
For an extra special day of family fun these summer hols Gulliver’s World is ideal. My nephews and nieces had a fabulous time, as did my husband and myself, despite balloon-gate right at the end!
Now I’m going to definitely investigate the park’s special Halloween, Bonfire Night, and Christmas packages available for later on in the year…