Back by popular demand – Pirate Takeover is returning to Alton Towers Resort in Staffordshire from Saturday, February 10th 2024 until Sunday, February 25th 2024.
*AD Otis and Us were provided with complimentary tickets to review Pirate Takeover at Alton Towers in return for this honest review. As always, these are our own thoughts on the event. Post contains affiliate links.
Alton Towers Resort, Staffordshire
If you have visited before, you will know that Alton Towers is the largest theme park in the UK, set in around 550 acres of land in Staffordshire and a great day out for all. Of course, we include Alton Towers, in our list of BEST things to do in Staffordshire with kids, because in all honesty Alton Towers is a kids paradise.
Alton Towers is home to over 40 rides and attractions and epic rollercoasters, including Nemesis, the Smiler, Wicker Man, and Oblivion. There are often great events held over the school holidays too so look out for their other events including Santa sleepover over Christmas , Scarefest and their spectacular fireworks events later in the year.
We haven’t visited Alton Towers for quite some time, as our youngest two are at that in-between age and height having grown out of CBeebies but not quite tall enough for the epic Alton Towers rollercoasters, and our oldest daughter is at the age where she just loves all of the scary rollercoasters – so it can be quite hard to meet everyone’s needs and expectations when it comes to which part of the park to visit.
Pirate Takeover review, Alton Towers
So back by popular demand……Pirate Takeover has returned to Alton Towers from Saturday, February 10th 2024 and is perfect for half term family friendly fun.
Between Saturday, February 10th 2024 until Sunday, February 25th 2024 Mutiny Bay, CBeebies Land and Towers Street will transform into a pirate world with live entertainment and incredible shows, family rides and a pirate treasure hunt. We were really looking forward to the day.
Alton Towers Feb Half term
I decided to take along our youngest two (age 9 and 7 at the time of writing) as I knew that Mutiny Bay. CBeebies Land and Towers Street were the only areas of the park open for their February half term Pirate event. We haven’t visited Alton Towers for quite some time so they were really excited about a day of rides, shows and of course, hunting for treasure.
On arrival we scanned our tickets at the main gate and headed straight to CBeebies Land straight for the Octonauts rollercoaster adventure. The queue was around 8 minutes and the kids loved it. Other rides open at CBeebies land that we visited included Peter Rabbit Hippy Hop, Justin’s House Pie – O – Magic Factory, and Tree Top Adventure – all minimal queues when we arrived on the Saturday morning.
We then headed over to Mutiny Bay and we were greeted by two very friendly pirates who sent us on our merry way with a treasure hunt map for us to complete throughout the day.
There were a few rides open including Battle Galleons Seadog Striker’s sailing school, Heave Ho!, Marauder’s Mayhem, and with minimal wait times for both Heave Ho and Marauder’s Mayhem, we were able to frequently visit the rides.
Sharkbait Reed by SEALIFE is a lovely visit, with some over 300 unique species of fish, including sharks, rays and seahorses. The kids even had the opportunity to stroke a starfish in the interactive pool. My little boy in particular loved it in here, and spent ages in the tunnel as the sharks and rays swam by.
Both the kids loved the Treasure hunt and map. They loved meeting the pirates in their huts, and having a go at the individual challenges to uncover each letter. It kept them entertained throughout the visit, and they loved their little goodie bag at the end of the treasure hunt. I thought it was a really lovely extra and well thought out.
Download the Alton Towers app
Be sure to download the Alton Towers app before you head over to the event as it gives you all the information you need for your day, including live queue times, and maps to guide you to all the attractions. It also lists the timings for the live shows including other useful information including buggy hire, lockers, car parking and opening/closing times.
Pirate Takeover Live shows
Be sure to catch the live shows during your visit. There is plenty to see and do including;
Captain Finn’s Pirate Training Camp – Going Captain Finn’s crew as he teaches you all the necessary swashbuckling to become a professional buccaneer!
Pirates of Mutiny Bay: The hunt for the crown of T’Hulu – Mutiny Bay is overrun by pirates on a race to find the whereabouts of the mythical crown of T’Hulu and become the greatest pirate of all time!
Teletubbies Big Bang Live show
Tips for visiting Pirate Take over at Alton Towers
- Wrap up warm, the weather in February half term can be chilly and often rainy, warm waterproof coats, jumpers and a hat is recommended.
- Wear comfortable shoes for walking around the park
- You can grab food in the park but if you wanted to save money – pack a picnic. There are plenty of places to sit and eat around the park.
- Download the app prior to visiting for the live queue times, show times, and directions to the rides and attractions.
- Arrive early – we arrived as the park opened and we didn’t have to wait for any of the rides. It was much busier after lunch.
- Make sure you grab a treasure hunt map from one of the pirates at the entrance of Mutiny Bay, and once completed take it to the pirates near to Sharkbait Reed by SEALIFE for your prize!
- Enjoy your day!
Pirate Takeover, Alton Towers Tickets
Tickets are £15 each, and if your child is under 90cm, they go FREE.
Parking is also free.
Head over to Alton Towers to book your tickets
Pirate Takeover at Alton Towers Staffordshire – final thoughts
The kids told me it was “the best day ever!” So I think they enjoyed themselves 🙂
The event was well thought out and the pirates were all amazing and really entertaining. There was enough to keep slightly older children entertained in the areas of the park that were open and we didn’t have to queue too long for the rides. All in all a really good day out with the kids, we really enjoyed it.
Tickets are currently £15 per person and under 90 cm can go FREE so a great day out over half term with kids.
Looking to stay near to Alton Towers Resort?
Camp – Alton, The Star Club Site
Stay – Honeysuckle Cottages Alton
Visit – Alton Towers
*AD Otis and Us were provided with complimentary tickets to review Pirate Takeover at Alton Towers in return for this honest review. As always, these are our own thoughts on the event. This article contains affiliate links. Should you click to purchase, it is at no additional cost to you, but I receive a small commission