Paultons Park in Hampshire has been crowned the UK's Theme Park of the Year in the UK Theme Park Awards 2025. The family-friendly attraction, which sits on about 65 acres at the edge of the New Forest, is best known for Peppa Pig World and Ghostly Manor, a £3.5 million interactive ride designed to appeal to younger visitors. The park’s recognition comes as it has built a reputation as a destination for families with young children, combining gentle attractions with newer immersive experiences.
Paultons Park scooped 10 awards in total this year, with organisers saying the honours were determined by a combination of 334,371 public votes and scores from a judging panel. Among the gold accolades, Ghostly Manor won Best New Attraction, underscoring the park’s push to diversify beyond its traditional lineup. Paultons Park itself earned a gold in the Best Theme Park for Families, while Peppa Pig World was crowned Best Theme Park for Toddlers. The awards are organized by ThemeParks-UK.com, an independent consumer guide that annually tallies votes and expert assessments to determine winners across categories.
Beyond the top prize, the weekend’s results highlighted a broad spectrum of winners. Alton Towers and Drayton Manor in Staffordshire were among the biggest beneficiaries, each claiming a high tally of accolades — nine and six awards, respectively. Other parks racking up multiple honours included Blackpool Pleasure Beach in Lancashire with four awards and LEGOLAND Windsor in Berkshire with six. Chessington World of Adventures in Surrey won two awards, while Thorpe Park took four.
Lawrence Mancey, marketing and technology director at Paultons Park, welcomed the recognition, saying the awards reflect the hard work and dedication of the park team. “We are delighted to have been awarded 10 awards this year at the annual UK Theme Park Awards, including the prestigious Theme Park of the Year Award. These awards are testament to the hard work and dedication of our whole team at Paultons.” He added that the park plans to build on its success with a major new attraction next year: the opening of an inverting rollercoaster, Drakon, in a new immersive realm called Valgard: Realm of the Vikings, scheduled to launch in May 2026.
Paultons Park is a family favourite in part because it is home to Peppa Pig World, a themed zone with a Viking village, shops and dining that aims to transport visitors back to the era of Norse history while remaining accessible to younger guests. The planned Viking world, described by the park as a tribute to Scandinavia’s Norse heritage, is expected to broaden the park’s appeal beyond its existing audience as it adds an inverted rollercoaster capable of delivering high-thrill experiences without sacrificing its family-friendly emphasis.
In addition to the headline win for Paultons Park, a number of parks earned their first-time awards this year. Bottons Pleasure Beach in Lincolnshire, Drusillas Park in East Sussex, and Folly Farm in Pembrokeshire each picked up prizes for the first time, while The Big Sheep in Devon also earned its inaugural honour. The overall spread of winners underscores a vibrant and diverse UK park sector, with smaller regional attractions joining the long-standing giants in receiving recognition from both industry observers and the public.
The UK Theme Park Awards draw attention to how parks balance a mix of classic family-friendly experiences with newer, immersive, and technology-driven attractions. As the sector continues to recover and grow post-pandemic, organisers say awards like these help families discover venues that fit varied tastes, from toddler-friendly zones to high-thrill experiences. The 2025 results thus serve as both a celebration of established destinations and an encouragement for newer ventures aiming to broaden their appeal across a wider audience.