Last week we took Sebastian to SEA LIFE Weymouth where he got to see his favourite sea creatures.The weather was amazingly clear so we decided to take the land train to the Jurassic Skyline which stands 53m above the Jurassic coast.
Sebby loves trains so you can imagine his excitement when he saw the train was decorated with all his favourite sea creatures and we took the rather bumpy ride along the seafront to our destination.
We got to the Jurassic Skyline in around 10 minutes and literally walked straight on as it was so quiet, sharing the gondola with just a handful of other people.
The gondola rises gently from the ground, up to the top of the tower and slowly rotates a full 360 degrees offering uninterrupted panoramic views up to 26km away including Portland, Lulworth and beyond through its floor to ceiling windows.
The gondola performs two full rotations at a relaxed pace, with a commentary explaining everything you can see as well as some local history.
We had to wait to get the land train back to the SEA LIFE Centre so watched and waved as the Jurassic Skyline took the next lot of passengers up on high and had a wander around its base to see what else we could see which included a cormorant fishing in the sea.
The Jurassic Skyline is part of the Merlin group so if you have Merlin Annual passes it is free to use. Standard tickets are just £6.50 per person, or you can buy a combined ticket which gets you into the SEA LIFE Centre too for £16.50.
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This weekend we were invited to an exciting preview of the new Lost Kingdom at Paultons Park, a new £9m attraction which transports families back millions of years to when dinosaurs roamed the world!
The Lost Kingdom is set within four acres of Jurassic landscape, inspired by the era of fierce velociraptors, flying pterodactyls, giant triceratops and the mighty tyrannosaurus rex and we were amazed by what we saw. The dinosaur walk of old has been brought right up to date with lifelike animatronic dinosaurs and some brilliant new rides as well as a couple of revamped old favourites.
Our first experience of the Lost Kingdom was the Dinosaur Encounter where we came face to face with the Park’s very own, but fortunately quite friendly, captive T-Rex.
The Lost Kingdom has some fantastic new Jurassic-themed family rides including Boulder-Dash, Temple Heights and Dino-Chase; a dinosaur adventure play park, Little Explorers, and The Dinosaur Tour Co – a 4×4 Jurassic Jeep expedition, where you get to discover dinosaurs of all shapes and sizes along with a few surprises along the way and get to earn a Park Ranger License.
Isaac, Eliza and Sebastian loved the Dinosaur Tour Co. although Sebby was a little scared when we went in a dimly lit tunnel and was met with a rather scary looking dinosaur who squirted him with water. Boulder Dash was lots of fun and had us spinning really fast in circles, Temple Heights was a really gentle flying carpet style ride and the adventure play park was lots of fun and the kids got to meet a baby Velociraptor in the shade of a large sand pit.
Paultons Park is home of Peppa Pig World and therefore an instant hit for toddlers but with the addition of the Lost Kingdom there is now something more daring for older children to enjoy with the launch of not one, but two new rollercoasters: Flight of the Pterosaur and Velociraptor.
The Flight of the Pterosaur is a 395m suspended dinosaur coaster, which takes family adventurers swooping high and low around the prehistoric landscape with speeds of up to 35mph. Although Isaac and Eliza were both tall enough for this ride they were not brave enough to try it, leaving me to put it to the test. I have to say it was brilliant, you were held in at the waist which means your upper body is free. Having nothing to hold on to is exhilarating as you soar above the park.
Again I was on my own to take on Velociraptor. This breath-taking 200m dinosaur family coaster drops you from 20m in the air and sweeps around tight bends with speeds of up to 40 mph and then sends you back around the track backwards. I have to say sitting at the back of the coaster sent me to its highest point and it is a lot higher than it looks but was great fun.
The old caterpillar rollercoaster has been given a make-over to become Dino-Chase and I was impressed that Eliza braved it with Nanny, I think I may convert her into a rollercoaster lover very soon. The real highlight of the Lost Kingdom is the realistic animatronic dinosaurs that are scattered through the park, along with life-like sounds.
Of course no visit to Paultons Park would be without visiting Peppa Pig World for Sebastian, who is finally tall enough to ride on George’s Dinosaur Ride (it has been a long time coming) and we spent a couple of hours enjoying the delights of Peppa Pig and her friends.
The Lost Kingdom is a fantastic new addition to Paultons Park and now makes it appeal to families with older children too as along with Magma, The Edge, Wave Runner, Sky Swinger, Log Flume and Cobra, there now enough to keep them occupied all day too.
Disclaimer: We were provided with a family ticket for Paultons Park for the purpose of an honest review.
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There are three things that Isaac adores at the moment – WWE, Doctor Who and Ghostbusters.
Sadly Dr Who is off our screens at the moment and we have to wait until July for the new Ghostbusters so there was only thing left for a pre-birthday treat, a trip to see WWE Live when it arrived in Birmingham last weekend.
The WrestleMania Revenge Tour is currently on tour of the UK and includes episodes of both Raw and SmackDown, much to the Hubby and the boys delight.
We arrived in Birmingham in good time so decided to have a bite to eat in Gourmet Burger Kitchen which was pricey but delicious. We were convinced we were sat next to a star of WWE but sadly have no idea who it was apart from the fact he was huge and had a very expensive looking watch!
We have been to WWE before but there has never been anything to do other than eat or shop. This time Isaac got to pose with a WWE Championship Belt and see his photo up on the WWE Kids facebook page and check his height against some cardboard cut outs of his favourite stars.
The venue was packed and the atmosphere can only be described as lively with adults and children all eager for the action to begin. The first match was between the wrestler we all love to hate Stardust against the king of the spins Cesaro. During the match there were some funny moments with stardust and Cesaro won after the Cesaro Swing!
Next up was one of Isaac’s favourites – Sin Cara from the Lucha Dragons who was to fight Tyler Breeze. Sin Cara won with a Swanton but Breeze got on the mic saying he wouldn’t leave until he got a victory selfie. It went all dark and then out came Jack Swagger who beat Breeze really quickly with an ankle lock.
The next match was Kane vs Rusev. I have to admit that this was a match that went on a little too long for our liking with Kane finally winning with a chokeslam.
Thankfully the next match was much more fun with the WWE Tag Team Championship featuring the brilliant New Day, who made the best entrance of the night complete with a trombone and swagger, versus Braun Strowman and Erick Rowan of the Wyatt’s. Their entrance was just as good as the lights went out before the they came in and the whole arena lit up with everyone lifting their phone on high – it was a real spectacle to behold. Of course is was the New Day who won with their double finish!
A break followed with the chance to stretch the legs and a comfort stop before the second half of the evening commenced with Hubby and the teen’s favourites – the Diva’s. Charlotte who came out with Ric Flair, beat Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch to retain the WWE Women’s Title.
The first time we saw WWE Live, Kian really enjoyed the USO Twins and much to his delight they were back tonight versus the Dudley Boys. The Dudley’s teased by offering tables but sadly they never appeared, despite the crowd shouting “We want Tables” and the Uso’s won after double super kick.
The final match of the night belonged to the WWE World Heavyweight Championship between Seamus and Roman Reigns. I was really surprised when both men were booed, although Seamus fully deserved it for winding up the Birmingham audience with jibes about being no longer in the Premier League. I have to admit that I like Roman Reigns so was really pleased when he won and I have nothing but admiration for him as instead of heading out of the ring and straight back to his dressing room after his victory, he stopped and signed autographs and posed for selfies with his fans for a really long time. I am just disappointed that we couldn’t get close ourselves.
All in all it was a brilliant night out and we are hoping to get to NXT in June at Bournemouth International Centre.
Disclaimer: We were guests of WWE and received a family ticket for the purpose of a review, all thoughts are our own.
