Would you ever visit a theme park alone?

[Matt N]

Hi guys. Often, theme parks are billed as a social activity; theme park adverts always show happy families or groups of friends enjoying themselves, and usually, people tend to visit parks in groups. But sometimes, you want to visit a park, but you either don’t have anybody to go with or just prefer going on your own. With this in mind, I’d be interested to know; would you ever visit a theme park alone? Have you ever visited a theme park alone? Or do you prefer to go to a park with people?

Personally, I really enjoy a solo park visit! I’m not going to go as far as to say that I prefer it to going with people per se (I enjoy both for different reasons), but I’d certainly say that I have no qualms about visiting a park alone and actively plan to do so at least once or twice a year these days! In 2024 alone, I had 4 solo park days (1 at Thorpe Park, 1 at Legoland, 1 at Alton Towers, and 1 at Drayton Manor), and I thoroughly enjoyed each one! What I love about a solo park day is that it allows you to do things at your own pace and as you see fit; I have racked up some brilliant ride counts on solo park days, and it is quite nice to do exactly what you want, when you want to do it. I also don’t find that the lack of company even vaguely detracts from the day, for the most part; I was worried about standing out and feeling weird before my first solo park visit, but being alone honestly wasn’t an issue for me at all; no one takes any notice of you, and I find that I’m very content in my own company for the entire day. You also get to use single rider queues, which is a nice bonus!

The only time I would say it feels even vaguely weird is in the context of more intimately “social” ride experiences where you’re facing people or otherwise in more intimate contact with them (e.g rapids rides), as you do sometimes feel like a bit of a third wheel, but even then, I’ve never had active problems with this. I rode the rapids at Drayton Manor, for example, alone with very little issue; I was just put with another group.

Sometimes, I dare say it’s even quite nice to be on your own and just thinking and taking in your surroundings in a park. I also find that it sometimes allows me to be that little bit more geeky than I let myself be in company, which can be liberating…

That’s not to say that I don’t enjoy going in a group, as I very much do! It is very nice to have other people to talk to, discuss things with and more generally share the experience with. As I said at the start, I would not necessarily say that I prefer solo park visits to going in a group. But I will certainly bang the drum for solo park visits, and do not in any way view them as the poor relation to going in a group; solo visits can be just as enjoyable, if not more so, as group visits in my view, and I love a solo visit!

But I’d be keen to know; would you ever visit a theme park on your own? Or do you prefer visiting in a group?
(I’ve added a poll, and split Yes down into “Yes, definitely!” and “Yes, but only under duress if I had no one else to go with” as I’m conscious that some may visit alone purely through lack of company rather than actively enjoying a solo visit like I do.)

 

[Zeock]

Definitely, as I often enjoy being alone, but I prefer visiting theme parks with people I know from this forum.

 

[Bowser]

I much much prefer going with other people but i went to Universal Studios Singapore on my own simply because it was likely the only opportunity i'd ever have as i was there for work.

In fairness it was far more productive as i was able to use the single rider queues and run about at my own accelerated pace meaning i got on almost every ride within the few hours of time i had available. If i'd gone with others we'd probably have only got on 2 or 3 rides. At least in this day and age you can entertain yourself in queues with your phone.

 

[Katy]

I prefer to go with somebody (especially if the queues are pretty long - much less boring), but I've done solo trips to France and America for theme/amusement park visits, and plenty of Pleasure Beach trips on my own with it being local.

 

[John_P]

Yeah, my first trip to Cedar Point was on my own.

Couple of solo trips to Pleasure Beach this year, and to Drayton Manor just after Gold Rush opened. Also had a day out in Manchester in the summer to enjoy the city and visit a couple of fairs to get a few +1s.

Figured out a long time ago I'd rather go and do something on my own than not do it at all.

 

[Bert2theSpark]

I visited Towers once on my own, it was an off-peak day because I had a day off of lessons and free tickets to visit, so I did.

It was also very wet so I kind of just did the big coasters and I was just able to lap them, although I was very wet. Just being able to go on rides without much of a wait and nothing to really do except the rides was boring. It felt anti-climatic, without any anticipation of the queue before, and no-one to share the experience with afterwards.

Very meh and took all of the magic out of rides, so do not recommend. If it was a new park and nicer weather, maybe it would be a completely different story.

 

[Bowser]

and no-one to share the experience with afterwards.

Yeah this is the crux of it really. Not that there's anything wrong with going alone but i think theme parks are inherently a social experience.

 

[Stuie]

For me, theme parks is something I prefer to do with someone else as I like to share the experience. I'm not a particular fan of going in groups though as it can waste time and become a bit of a drain. The closest I've come to doing theme parks on my own is a few cheeky solo trips to Hyde Park Winter Wonderland when I've been in London for work client meetings and then popped over to get some rides in before I travel back home.

That's just my personal preference though. In general I'm very passionate about solo adventures, pushing myself out of my comfort zone and just going for it and seeing what happens. I've just booked a trip to Thailand in March 2025 with a group of 15 unknown guys and an English speaking guide - we'll all be introduced by a WhatsApp group about a week before. What's the worst that can happen? haha

Whatever it is, don't waste your life sitting around waiting for someone to do something with - crack on, I say!

 

[Shaggy_Dog_]

I’ve visited a few parks on my own and have always loved every minute of it, I enjoy the freedom to just have a day doing whatever I want at the pace I want. I grew up as an only child so from when I was young I learnt to be comfortable doing things on my own (and I was also a bit of a loner as a teenager as well truth be told) so the idea of travelling to places and doing things just by myself has never been a problem. Whilst I visit some parks with my wife and children a lot of my theme park visits over the past few years have been just by myself as I enjoy solo travelling to countries in Europe. I’ve been to Liseberg, Plopsaland, Phantasialand, PortAventura, Linanmaki, Prater, and Tussenfryd by myself, and I even went on a solo trip to Munich Oktoberfest (though having a buddy for that one might have been fun as the beer halls seemed a bit intimidating on your own). Domestically I’ve done Thorpe, Chessington, and Adventure Island solo. Queues aren’t a problem at all on solo trips, I’ll either just put my earbuds on and use it as a chance to catch up on albums I’ve been meaning to listen to or I’ll just soak up the atmosphere. And of course the great thing about solo trips is that if you want to session a certain ride then you can just go for it (constant back to back walk on rides on Taiga for the last hour of the day was a hell of an experience). The only slight downer about solo trips for me as a grown adult is that it can feel a teeny bit more awkward getting any kiddie or junior creds compared to when you are either with your own kids or even just with a buddy.

 

[Bowser]

I’ve visited a few parks on my own and have always loved every minute of it, I enjoy the freedom to just have a day doing whatever I want at the pace I want. I grew up as an only child so from when I was young I learnt to be comfortable doing things on my own (and I was also a bit of a loner as a teenager as well truth be told) so the idea of travelling to places and doing things just by myself has never been a problem. Whilst I visit some parks with my wife and children a lot of my theme park visits over the past few years have been just by myself as I enjoy solo travelling to countries in Europe. I’ve been to Liseberg, Plopsaland, Phantasialand, PortAventura, Linanmaki, Prater, and Tussenfryd by myself, and I even went on a solo trip to Munich Oktoberfest (though having a buddy for that one might have been fun as the beer halls seemed a bit intimidating on your own). Domestically I’ve done Thorpe, Chessington, and Adventure Island solo. Queues aren’t a problem at all on solo trips, I’ll either just put my earbuds on and use it as a chance to catch up on albums I’ve been meaning to listen to or I’ll just soak up the atmosphere. And of course the great thing about solo trips is that if you want to session a certain ride then you can just go for it. The only slight downer about solo trips for me as a grown adult is that it can feel a teeny bit more awkward getting any kiddie or junior creds compared to when you are either with your own kids or even just with a buddy.

Do your children get annoyed that you do theme park trips without them? Or are they not avid enthusiasts?

 

[Shaggy_Dog_]

Do your children get annoyed that you do theme park trips without them? Or are they not avid enthusiasts?

No, they don’t care at all. They really enjoy a park visit when we do one as a family day out but they aren’t super enthusiast level kids or cred chasers. They know that I love travelling and seeing new places but they wouldn’t be interested in doing the backpacking style travelling and sightseeing that I do as part of my trips so they aren’t bothered that I’ve visited this park or ridden that ride. Liseberg was a park that I visited solo a few years back and then said to my daughter that she’d love it and I’d take her there next time (and we visited it this summer and Helix is her all time favourite coaster now), and Phantasialand is one that I’d want to go back to with her. But no, they don’t care that I’ve ridden rides without them as they know it’s my hobby. I wouldn’t go to DLP without them for example though.

 

[rctneil]

Absolutely. Going with others is great but have been to a fair number of parks on my own previously. Alton Towers, Universal Studios Singapore and Legoland Malaysia have all been done solo by me.

Universal and Legoland were part of a family wedding trip to Borneo so I added a few days in Singapore at the end. It was great, I could do what I wanted, when i wanted, how i wanted all day long. Can't argue really!