By Isle of Wight Observer
The familiar gates of Robin Hill swing open again today (Friday), welcoming visitors eager to revisit old favourites and experience the new rides on offer. But it’s not just the visitors who are buzzing with excitement; the park’s new owners, Lee Priddle and John Smith, along with their team, have plenty to look forward to as they unveil their bold vision for this favourite Island destination.
The IW Observer was invited to a sneak preview to see Robin Hill’s remarkable transformation. The event began with an animated address from Lee, who spoke about the ups and downs of the past year as they turned their vision into reality, while joking about the moments he and John repeatedly asked themselves, “What on earth have we done?”
They took care to applaud the tireless efforts of their staff team, who often worked seven-day weeks to ensure everything was finished in time and perfect for opening day.
Beyond personal aspirations, the pair have ambitious goals for Robin Hill. They are determined to help put the Isle of Wight on the map – and also do some good with their investment. Speaking to the IW Observer, Lee explained: “We can all just keep moaning about everything or we can decide to do something about it – and that’s what we’re doing. We’ve used local suppliers wherever we can, including food and drink producers, to spread the benefits.”
A spectacular display, by the Falconry Experience, gave various birds of prey the opportunity to show off their skills – or, in some cases, their independent nature.
As well as the aerial acrobatics on show, Lee got the opportunity to “make like a ballet dancer” to illustrate how accurately Harris’s hawks can fly.
The guided tour offered a glimpse into what’s new at Robin Hill, with an array of attractions designed to tempt visitors of all ages. As well as old favourites, there are 16 brand-new attractions, injecting some fresh energy into the park’s traditional offerings. Visitors can try their hand at Digger School, and learn to operate real mini- diggers, or take a subterranean adventure in Tunnel Quest – which looks as though a Teletubby may be in residence. If you’re feeling daring, take command of an electric boat on Crocodile Creek, or you can bounce away on the giant water-pillows dotted around the park. Competitive spirits can tee off at an 18-hole crazy golf course, and the Sky Walk provides bird’s-eye views of the park as you walk, crawl and climb among the treetops.
An attraction bound to be very popular is the ‘Glide’ skating rink. Although most of the invited guests decided not risk of making a fool of themselves by falling over – Isle of Wight Guru, Robbie Lane, confidently showed off his inner child and glided gracefully around the plastic ice. All the attractions (and there are many more than listed here) are included in the park entry price, except the toboggan run.
It was also good to hear there will be a tractor train to transport visitors, who are not quite as fit as they were, up and down those long hilly climbs.
Planned to open in early May is the thrilling Adrenaline Zone – which had some of us closing our eyes even looking at it– let alone imagining climbing it, zooming around on it and even apparently jumping off it! It will be a separate part of the park, with its own entry fee and attractions that have not been seen in this country, or even Europe before – so (even if we had our eyes open) it will take some imagining until it actually opens.
As well as the soon-to-be-opened Heron Restaurant, which will be open to non-park visitors to appreciate fine dining with a stunning view, there will be plenty of eating and drinking places around the park. There will also be a strong wi-fi signal so that people can take along their laptop, buy themselves a coffee and get on with some work – if they can resist all the fun things to do around them.
With day tickets at £14.99, and season tickets giving unlimited visits at less than £50 (charges apply only to those over 1 metre high), and free parking, Robin Hill looks set to be a success. Lee and John have certainly invested significant money behind making their unlikely dream come true – and the IW Observer team wish them every success.
View our on-line gallery of the event at iw.observer/robin-hill-launch-pics.
Mal Butler