This is Theme Park Explorer, a source of information for parents with young children (about ages 2 to 10) who want to visit theme parks as a family but aren’t sure whether it’ll all turn out to be huge fun or a huge waste of time and money.

We’ve been to parks across the UK and Europe and thought we could pass on our experience to help you get the most out of what can be a pretty expensive day out when you look at the price of family tickets for these places (from GBP 46 for a family of four at Oakwood to double that at Legoland Windsor, barring special offers). The reviews and information here are written from first hand experience; where a ride or attraction is mentioned that we haven’t actually tried out, it’s clearly indicated.

Take a look at the park reviews and you’ll see that they're geared partly around how much there is to keep the kids happy, but also cover how good the park is for parents. We try to mention all the attractions at a given park so that you'll get a feeling for the amount there will be to do there, all on one page for easy reference. Plus as I like roller coasters (especially big steel ones with lots of loops) I can’t resist giving my thoughts on the likes of Nemesis and Colossus. Ride height restrictions are given where we know them, but the official web sites are the best place to look these up. Our split between Kids and Parents attractions is just a guide - it's up to you if you think that your 1.4m tall six year old will be OK on a major thrill ride.

Dad – I tend to head straight for big steel roller coasters at theme parks. Favourites: Aerosmith Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster (Disneyland Paris), Demon (Tivoli Gardens). I’m usually the only one of the family who will go on the big coasters so I get to try out the Single Rider Queues, Extended Ride Time, Fasttrack and other parent-friendly setups.

Mum – likes dark rides and coasters without inversions or big drops. Favourites: Runaway Mine Train, Hex (both Alton Towers). Vegetarian, so a major challenge for the average theme park food outlet.

Kids – our eldest is eleven and youngest eight (at the time of writing). Their favourite rides are Runaway Mine Train (Alton), Treetops Roller Coaster (Oakwood) and Megafobia (Oakwood). For each park we have given the date of our last visit and the ages of the kids at the time.

We like visiting theme parks as a family, so our tolerance of the costs and long queues is quite high. To help make your family visit enjoyable rather than an ordeal, have a look at our guide to Surviving Theme Parks.

Packing essentials include wet weather (and water ride) gear for all. Take a look at Waterproof World, which sells a great range of waterproof clothing for
babies, toddlers and kids from top UK and Scandinavian manufacturers (also
UV protective wear and kiddy wetsuits). Prices are very reasonable and
include UK postage and packing.

Theme Park Explorer is featured on the excellent www.childfriendly.net