Rides and Attractions
The Ingestre Centre was the area surrounding the Courtyard, which today is known as Mutiny Bay. A selection of rides operated around the courtyard buildings, which were home to various amenities, such as shops and restaurants.
The area was home to some of the park's oldest attractions, with stations for both the park's Cable Cars and Miniature Railway, along with the park's Aquarium. In 1981, the area became home to the new headline water ride: The Wild Water Flume, which was later joined by the Space Boat, one of the park's first flat rides.
In 1984, the Ingestre Centre became Aqualand, which saw the area's attractions combined with those around The Lakes.
Aquarium
1976 - 1994
Long before Sharkbait Reef, Alton Towers was home to a much more traditional Aquarium, which operated in one of the neighbouring buildings (the current location of Pirates Quest arcade).
Cable Cars
1963 - 1986
Gliding gently through the treetops, the Cable Cars offered an aerial tour of the Gardens at Alton Tower, ferrying guests from the Ingestre Courtyard to the Chinese Temple and back.
The open-air cars operated for over twenty years, before being replaced by the current Skyride.
Miniature Railway
1953 - 1996
One of the first attractions added to the park after the war, the Miniature Railway wound its way through the woods, along the former Quixhill Drive.
Trains shuttled guests in either direction between the Ingestre Courtyard and the Chinese Temple, though over the years the track was gradually shortened to make way for the park to expand.
Space Boat
1983
For a very brief time The Space Boat operated in the Ingestre Centre, roughly where the waterfall entrance to Katanga Canyon is now.
The ride operated for less than a single season in 1983, before being replaced by the Octopus in 1984.
Wild Water Flume
1981 - 2015
One of the park's first water rides, The Flume opened back in 1981 as the Wild Water Flume. Guests were originally invited to board a log and take a journey through the ancient woodland on the edge of the garden before facing a final splashdown.
In later years you could experience some interesting wildlife on the ride. For many years the ride was home to a whole land of Dinosaurs, and later was taken over by rubber ducks as The Flume: Unplugged.