Blackpool Pleasure Beach Resort won eight titles at the UK Theme Park Awards 2026, including Best New Attraction and Best Seaside Resort, while Hampshire's Paultons Park and Suffolk's Pleasurewood Hills were jointly crowned Theme Park of the Year.
Paultons Park, home to Peppa Pig World, took gold in the over one million visitors category for the second year running. Pleasurewood Hills, East Anglia's biggest theme park, won gold in the under one million visitors category.
Blackpool's success came despite the resort recently being placed in the bottom five of seaside towns surveyed by consumer group Which?. Pleasure Beach Resort also made headlines this week after Derek Cowan proposed to Nicolle Henderson, a mother of two, on the Avalanche ride, according to the BBC. Sandcastle Waterpark, also in Blackpool, was named Waterpark of the Year.
Theme Park of the Year
Paultons Park is known for its Disney-like theming and immersive detail. This year it opened a Viking-themed world featuring the park's first inverting rollercoaster, a £12 million investment that is the park's largest to date.
Pleasurewood Hills first opened in 1983 and offers everything from thrill rides to children's attractions, alongside live displays including 'Birds of Paradise' and 'Sea Lion Splash'.
Best new attraction
Drakon, Paultons Park's first inverting rollercoaster, won gold in the large category with a vertical lift hill and two twists that send riders upside down. Silver went to Aviktas at Pleasure Beach Resort, and bronze to Bluey the Ride: Here Come the Grannies! at Alton Towers Resort.
In the small category, Spinning Racer at Lightwater Valley, launched earlier this year, took gold. The blue and yellow ride is aimed at visitors measuring 1.2m or taller. Silver went to Rotor at Crealy Theme Park & Resort and bronze to Fossil Falls at ROARR!.
Best theme park for families
Paultons Park won gold in the large category, offering free parking, free entry for children under one metre, and some of the lowest ride queue times in the UK. LEGOLAND Windsor Resort took silver and Chessington World of Adventures Resort claimed bronze.
In the small category, Gulliver's Theme Park Resorts in Milton Keynes was crowned winner, describing itself as a "perfect family destination designed for children aged two to 13." Crealy Theme Park & Resort took silver and Adventure Island bronze.
Best theme park for thrills
Thorpe Park took gold thanks to its record-breaking rollercoasters, led by Hyperia, which opened in 2024 as the tallest and fastest coaster in the country at 99.5m high with speeds of 80mph. Alton Towers Resort took silver and Blackpool's Pleasure Beach Resort took bronze.
Best seaside park
In the North category, Pleasure Beach Resort took gold, Fantasy Island in Ingoldmells took silver and Skegness Pleasure Beach took bronze. In the South category, Southend-on-Sea's Adventure Island won gold, Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach took silver and Blackgang Chine took bronze.
Waterpark of the year
Sandcastle Waterpark in Blackpool, the UK's largest indoor waterpark, has more than 18 attractions in a 29C tropical climate. It is home to the Masterblaster, the country's longest indoor rollercoaster water slide at 200m, and the Sidewinder, described as the world's first indoor half-pipe water slide. Alton Towers Waterpark took silver and Subtropical Swimming Paradise at Center Parcs took bronze.
Other category winners
- Best Theme Park for Toddlers: gold Paultons Park (Peppa Pig World) and Crealy Theme Park & Resort (Sooty Land); silver LEGOLAND Windsor Resort (DUPLO Valley) and Gulliver's Theme Park Resorts; bronze Drayton Manor Resort (Thomas Land) and Sundown Adventureland.
- Scream Park of the Year: gold Tulleys Shocktober Fest, silver Screamfest, bronze Xtreme Scream Park.
- Best Halloween Event: gold Fright Nights at Thorpe Park and Fear Island at Fantasy Island; silver Scarefest at Alton Towers Resort and Spookfest at Crealy Theme Park & Resort; bronze Journey to Hell at Pleasure Beach Resort and Fairground Frights at Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach.
- Best Christmas Event: gold A Celebration of Christmas at Paultons Park and Christmas Spectacular at Sundown Adventureland; silver Christmas Wonderland at Drayton Manor Resort and Santa Safari at West Midlands Safari Park; bronze LEGOLAND at Christmas at LEGOLAND Windsor Resort and Magical Christmas Nights at Woodlands.
- Best New Entertainment: gold Alice Frozen in a Wonderland of Dreams at Pleasure Beach Resort, silver A Celebration of Valgard at Paultons Park, bronze Dark Hollow at Alton Towers Resort.
- Best Brand Activation: gold Minecraft: Meet the Mobs at Alton Towers Resort, silver LEGO NINJAGO Celebration at LEGOLAND Windsor Resort, bronze PAW Patrol Autumn Adventure at Chessington World of Adventures Resort.
- Best Landscaped Theme Park: gold Alton Towers Resort, silver Paultons Park, bronze Blackgang Chine.
- Best Theme Park Animal Exhibit: gold ZUFARI: Ride into Africa at Chessington World of Adventures Resort, silver LEGO City Deep Sea Adventure at LEGOLAND Windsor Resort, bronze Lion Coast at Flamingo Land Resort.
- Best Theme Park Holiday Village: gold Safari Lodges at West Midlands Safari Park, silver Alton Towers Enchanted Village, bronze LEGOLAND Woodland Village.
- Best New Accessibility Initiative: gold Wheelchair Adapted Ride Vehicles from Merlin Entertainments, silver SEND Days at Crealy Theme Park & Resort, bronze ASN Family Festival at M&D's Scotland's Theme Park.
- Best Customer Service: gold Paultons Park, silver Adventure Island, bronze Pleasure Beach Resort.
- Best Value Theme Park: gold Adventure Island, silver Pleasure Beach Resort, bronze Drayton Manor Resort.
- Best Marketing Campaign: gold Valgard at Paultons Park, silver Aviktas at Pleasure Beach Resort, bronze Fright Nights at Thorpe Park.
- Best Social Media Content: gold Paultons Park and Adventure Island, silver Alton Towers Resort and Wicksteed Park, bronze Thorpe Park and Blackgang Chine.
Theme Park Personality of the Year went to Lawrence Mancey of Paultons Park, and Content Creator of the Year to Coastertog. In the Industry Excellence Awards, Josh Haywood of Crealy Theme Park & Resort won Outstanding Achievement and Sarah Smith of ROARR! was named Rising Star.
