Babylon Park London is the only indoor underground amusement park in England. We spent a couple of hours there in July and I want to share an honest review of the place with you. It’s most special, in my view, because there’s something for everyone. It’s pretty rare that both my husband and my 2 year old son enjoy an amusement park an equal amount!
Please note that this review is not sponsored. All views expressed here are my own.
Planning your visit
At least a day before you go, make sure you’ve downloaded their app.
They’re cashless and operate a token system. This means that you top up your token with as many points as you’d like and that’s how you use the different rides and games available there.
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It’s very useful for making sure that your kids are good to go for a while without having to pay for each ride individually.
On the app on your phone, you’ll be able to check how many tokens you’ve got left so you can top up before you run out if you need to.
I had my app ready to go a week before as I expected long queues and hoped that having that ready at least would speed things up a bit.
I didn’t want an inpatient five year old and/or a cranky 2 year old asking for a million things while myself or my husband tried to download an app on my phone at the entrance.
On the day of our visit, I stocked up on snacks, water in their water bottles, raincoats (a must these days for any summery day out in the UK with children!) and some sticker books to keep them occupied for the hour plus drive.
First impressions
Speaking of driving, we were unsure of where we would park and couldn’t find any parking close by at first. The park doesn’t have its own parking so keep that in mind if you’re driving there. On our way there though, we spotted a Sainsbury’s and parked there as we knew we wouldn’t be any longer than an hour. We would be visiting friends right after.
That made the experience feel a lot simpler honestly because looking for parking especially in London can be painful!
From the Sainsbury’s, the walk to Babylon Park London is fairly straightforward through Camden Lock. I’d say the signage outside the park could be a little more conspicuous but still, we couldn’t have missed it.
At the entrance, the staff were more business-like than friendly which is fine by me as long as you’re not rude. I appreciated that it was a clean entrance though – being met at the entrance of any kids establishment by dirt immediately puts me off and doesn’t allow me to enjoy myself but that’s a story for another day!
The staff we met once we got past the entrance and into the park itself were fine. I say fine because I thought they could be a lot more welcoming as they were facing lots of children. However whenever we had any questions, they had answers and were very helpful. The overall atmosphere in there was one of fun and excitement even if that excitement wasn’t generated by the staff.
Attractions and activities
I’m not going to go too deep on this topic. I’ll allow you to be surprised when you go. However, I will say that one thing you have to make sure you do is the rollercoaster. It’s thrilling without being overwhelming and that’s coming from me who is scared of heights and also of going too fast. This was my first rollercoaster ride. Yes, you read that right.
I loved it and so did my 5 year old daughter. It was an absolute stand out feature for us.
Area for improvement: Queues are usually the downside at amusement parks but as busy as the place was when we went, we still didn’t find that there were awful queues everywhere. I’ll say though that if the staff were a bit more energetic, the few activities that did have queues could certainly have moved a lot faster than they did.
6 Tips for future visitors
- Have a plan for if you can’t find each other. It’s crucial to establish a meeting point and a communication plan in case your group gets separated. Choose a well-known, easy-to-find landmark within the park, like the entrance doors or ride that you all like. Make sure everyone in your group knows how to get there and agrees on a time to regroup if needed. This way you can quickly reunite and continue enjoying your day without stress if you lose each other.
- Have a plan for how long you intend to stay. Setting a clear plan for the duration of your visit helps manage expectations and helps you make the most of your time at Babylon Park. Decide in advance how long you plan to stay and prioritize the attractions and activities you most want to experience. This is particularly important if you’re visiting with young children or have other commitments later in the day. You can pace yourselves, avoid fatigue and make sure you have enough time to enjoy the park’s offerings without feeling rushed.
- Fully enjoy each ride or activity. To get the most out of your visit to Babylon Park London, make a conscious effort to fully immerse yourself in each ride or activity. Instead of rushing from one attraction to the next, take the time to experience each moment to its fullest. Whether it’s the thrill of a roller coaster or the charm of a family-friendly ride, savor each experience.
- Ask away. Don’t waste time wondering about how to find specific rides or how long you can use a ride for. The staff are well-trained and very helpful. Seek them out and get answers to any questions you’ve got so that you don’t waste any of your precious time trying to figure things out on your own.
- Best time to visit. I’d say the best time to visit would be a weekday. We only had a Saturday free and while it was a little more busy than I would have liked, it wasn’t bad. However, I can imagine how good it would be for my claustrophobic brain if we’d gone on a weekday when most people would be busy with other activities. Now, going on a weekday during term time must be bliss…
- What to bring. Take some water for your kids because having fun is thirsty work! There is a cafe on the upper floor but if you’ve got any picky little eaters, you’ll also want to have some of their preferred snacks on hand so that no one gets hangry.
In conclusion…
Overall, we had enough of a positive experience that we were already planning our next visit and regretting that we didn’t have enough time to use up all our tokens!
We would absolutely visit again mainly because there was so much available for all four of us to do.
Have you been to Babylon Park London before? What was your experience like?
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