Fourteen at Alton Towers

Competition entries are now closed for our limited edition Alton Towers Fourteen mugs.  Many thanks for all the entries, the response has been overwhelming over the past week – there’s certainly been an interest in Alton Towers decision to re-name Thirteen for the day.

Congratulations to R Hood & K Grieve who have been randomly selected;  your mugs are on their way to you!

Liz

Fright Nights at Thorpe Park are back from 8 October.  Ride remain open until 10pm plus many additional fright experiences  including four live action horror mazes:

• The Curse
• Seven
• The Asylum
• Hellgate

Check out the Thorpe Park online deal currently running offering 2 for 1 on Fright Night tickets – 2 adult tickets for £40!  This offer is running until 1 October.  More information available at Thorpe Park deals.

Liz

Barclays Cycle Hire has just taken off in London and if you are aged over 14, this is a cheap way to get around town!

The Barclays Cycle Hire scheme is open to tourists, visitors and residents alike.  Before you can access the cycle hire scheme, you will need to sign up and pay the access fee – you can do this by phone, online or at a docking station.  The access fee will only put you back £1 a day with discounts on week/annual prices.

The first half hour of every journey is free of charge with the next 30 minutes charged at only £1.  As this is a scheme for short journeys by bike, the charges become progressively more expensive the longer you have the bike.  So it’s best to return your bike to a docking station as soon as you have completed your journey – you can always pick up another one later!

For further details, go to Barclays Cycle Hire in London.  Let me know if you’ve tried these out yet?

Liz

Nothing to do with parking but Pink was at Alton Towers recently!

Alton Towers parking fee seems to annoy more people than any other issue at this popular theme park.  Parking this season at Alton Towers will put you back £5 in the standard car park.

Parking at Alton Towers is free of charge for:

• Annual Passholders, (includes Alton Towers Theme Park, Merlin & Merlin Premium Pass Holders)
• Those staying at the Alton Towers Resort
• Disabled guest, (disabled badge holders can make use of the Express Parking zone close to the entrance)

If you do have to pay for parking, you are best off picking up a car parking token as your arrive to avoid queues at the end of the day, (car parking tokens can be purchased at the mono-rail entrance as well as the main exit/entrance into the park by the turnstiles.)

Your only other option is to pay more money for Express Parking that bypasses the need for the mono-rail & offers you a swifter exit out of the park at the end of your day.  Priced at £15 for the day for those willing to pay this extra charge.

Liz

Planning a trip to Go Ape and looking for a deal, then check these out:

Buy 4 Go Ape tickets, get 5th for free: if you can club together with friends & family, then this offers free entry for the 5th person in your group.  Just enter the code 05GUAR AND THE FIFTH PERSON GOES FREE.

Here are some regional offers for Go Ape, but worth checking out you can use these in August before you set off:

• Check out the longest zip wire at the new course at Aberfoyle, Scotland with this 20% midweek discount voucher for Go Ape.
• Purchase an Annual Discovery Pass from the Forestry Commission.  Benefits include a 20% midweek discount on all Go Ape Courses.  More information can be found at deals for Go Ape nationwide.
• Here’s a £5 off per person at Go Ape Delamere Forest, Cheshire

Let me know please if you hear of any others?

Liz

Looking for Blue Planet Aquarium vouchers this summer, then check out these deals:

Blue Planet Aquarium is offering a free child voucher that is valid until 29 August. Just print off and complete the necessary details!  For further details and to download a voucher, go to Blue Planet Aquarium free child voucher.

Alternatively, make use of this £1 off per ticket for Blue Planet Aquarium that can be used for up to 6 people.  For further details from Favourite Days out in Cheshire , go to offers for Blue Planet Aquarium.

Enjoy.

Liz

Planning a trip away but not looking forward to the ‘are we there yet’ mantra from the kids, then check out this free children’s travel book from kidstravel2.

Packed with ideas for games as well as tips for travel sickness and ideas for mess free snacks for the car, this guide could ease the journey for all the family!  To this check out, go to free travel guide for families.

Whilst you are away, remember our very own Insider Guides to help you beat the queues at top attractions and keep the costs down whilst you are away.

Happy holidays!

Liz

To mark the fact that more people than ever are taking staycations in the UK, topdogdays opted to tour the country from John O’Groats to Lands End whilst also supporting a charity bike ride from top to bottom!

Whilst car parking at Lands End is charged at £3, for those wanting a drink/meal at the hotel on site parking is free of charge.  It’s worth keeping an eye out for the ample play area to the right that will keep the kids amused for some time.

Our last topdogdays tip for the tour – if you are after a picture of the lands end sign but don’t want to fork out,  wait until after 5.30pm when the photographer leaves and places a replica sign in the same location!

We hope you have enjoyed the journey from John O’Groats to Lands End with us and picked up a few tips along the way – it is an amazing country we live in.

Sorry no photos today, quite an emotional day cheering in the guys from their charity bike ride!

Liz

Lego guard at Legoland, Windsor

Looking for a deal on a Merlin Pass, then check out the current offer available from Legoland, Windsor.  Buy a Merlin Annual Pass from Legoland, Windsor and receive £25 to spend at the Legoland Park.

Remember a Merlin Pass is valid for a full 12 months and so when bought mid season can last you two seasons!  Just watch out though as Merlin Passes have restrictions of use at Merlin attractions, particularly in the south of the country during the school holidays.

For more details on this Legoland Merlin Pass deal, go to Deals for Merlin Passes.

Looking for alternative deals & offers for Legoland as well as tips to beat the queues, go to our Insider Guide to Legoland, Windsor.

Liz

Staycations appear to be on the rise as the Office of National Statistics report a drop in foreign holidays by us Brits by 15% for last year.

As many of us opt for a budget holiday on the home front, there’s plenty of visitor attractions to choose from around the UK.  Furthermore, with an abundance of discount vouchers and cheap tickets for top UK attractions, a UK holiday if planned well, it doesn’t have to cost you a fortune…and that’s where topdogdays come in!

So topdogdays is on the move, starting at John O’Groats through to Lands End, we are going to check out some of the UK’s finest attractions on the way and then blog our way down the country!

Feel free to let me know any suggestions or top tips so we can make the most of what the UK has to offer.

Liz