Sail down river from Adventure Cove...
Sail down river from Adventure Cove...
| Theme Park | Drayton Manor |
|---|---|
| Park Area | Adventure Cove |
| Type | River Rapids Ride |
| Audience | Families |
| Opened | 11 August 2021 (replaced Splash Canyon) |
| Manufacturer | Intamin |
| Length | 1460 ft |
River Rapids
River Rapids is Drayton Manor's bright and colourful whitewater rapids ride, which sits within the park's Adventure Cove area.
Riders sit in round nine-seater boats for a trip down the river, past lots of brightly painted scenery and encountering some fairly mild rapids along the way.
Much of the river's course passes beneath Shockwave, and it is easy to catch a glimpse of the stand up rollercoaster as it makes its way above. That is, of course, if your attention is drawn away from the various colourful buildings that are placed along the banks and provide some additional interest.
The ride is a rethemed and refurbished version of Splash Canyon which has been at Drayton Manor since 1993. The new River Rapids are much tamer than in the days of Splash Canyon, but improvements have also been made. For example, boats can no longer get stuck on the rocks part way around the course, helplessly waiting for ages to be dislodged by another boat bumping into them and watching as everybody else sailed past.
River Rapids is a fun ride, but very tame and there are few moments during the journey where riders are likely to actually get that wet (although there's always the chance of a stray wave!). It is definitely amongst the most family-friendly of rapids rides, which perhaps ideally fits with Drayton Manor's new focus on targetting families rather than thrillseekers.
River Rapids sign
Ride entrance
Safety instructions
Station
Inside the station
Turntable platform
Safety briefing
Welcome to the rapids
Nine seater boats
Big boat
Seats
Heading towards the tunnel
Rusty machinery
Floating along
Under Shockwave
Colourful buildings
On the river
Boats by Intamin
River Rapids
Climbing the lift
