See first images of UK’s answer to Disneyland
The first visuals have been released of The London Resort, a new theme park being developed on a 535-acre site in a former cement works in Swanscombe, Kent.
The first phase of the park is due to open in 2024 and the second within five years.
Thanks to deals signed with Paramount Pictures, the BBC, ITV and Aardman Animations, it is expected to have rides and attractions themed on favourites such as The Godfather, The Italian Job, Mission Impossible, Shaun the Sheep, Wallace and Gromit, Thunderbirds, Doctor Who, Top Gear and Sherlock.
Around 70% of attractions are expected to be undercover.
Similar to Disney’s Main Street, visitors will enter via ‘The High Street’, with shops, restaurants, hotels, a Convention Centre and a waterpark.
There will be six lands:
The Studios – a gritty, modern-day warehouse district that practically roars with the exhilarating thrills of big, blockbuster features’ with ‘explosive action, high-octane car chases and high-stakes espionage
The Woods – an enchanted realm where springtime reigns eternal and the boundary between reality and fantasy dissolves’ with ‘adventures that put a fresh spin on beloved bedtime stories, fables and fairy tales
The Kingdom – an immersive realm of swords, sorcery, dragons and legend with castles and mystical Arthurian legends.
The Isles – a land of giant creatures, mythical beasts and adventures at the crossroads of imagination and reality with magnificent rides and 21st century technology
The Jungle – ancient ruins of a mysterious long-lost Mesoamerican civilisation pushing up through treetops
The Starport – a bustling 23rd century landing zone with thrilling science-fiction adventures
Thanks to an agreement with EDF Energy, developers claim The London Resort will be the most sustainable, major theme park destination in the world by pursuing a net zero emissions goal.
PY Gerbeau, chief executive of London Resort Company Holdings, said: "We have three guidelines we work to when it comes to developing attractions. Number one is innovation. We’re not here to copy what’s been done before even if it has been successful. Number two is relevance. We need to consider that the customers of today will not be the customers of 2024. And the third is flexibility. We need to create a park that can evolve and adapt easily."
The park was originally meant to called London Paramount, exclusively based on Paramount movies, but Paramount Pictures pulled out of the deal in 2017.
Earlier this year, however, the Hollywood film-making giant signed a deal to become one of the partners.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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