Ride Access Pass
Step 1
Apply Now
Apply for a Merlin Ride Access Pass Photo Card at least 7 days before your first theme park visit
- Applications will need to be submitted through our partner, Nimbus Disability, a social enterprise and an organisation run by and for disabled people and is recognised as a lead authority on accessible ticketing in the UK.
- The team at Nimbus Disability will process your registration within 72 hours, you will not be able to link your application to a Merlin Ride Access Pass until it has been approved.
Already have a Merlin Ride Access Pass Photo card? Skip straight to step 4
Step 2
Link your Access Card
Once your application is approved, you will be sent an Access Card, you will then need to link this to a Merlin Ride Access Pass.
If you already have an active Access Card, you can skip step 1 and link this straight to a Merlin Ride Access Pass through the below link.
Step 3
Your brand-new Ride Access Pass
Once you have linked your Access Card, you will receive a digital version of your Ride Access Pass which you can use to collect your Ride Access Pass card.
Upon your first visit to Alton Towers Resort, Chessington World of Adventures Resort, LEGOLAND® Windsor Resort or Thorpe Park, you can then collect your physical Ride Access Pass ID which card which is valid for 3 years.
Step 4
Pre-book your visit
Ride Access Pass reservations to our UK theme parks are moving online, you will need to pre-book your Ride Access Pass before your visit.
The Ride Access Pass pre-book does not include admission into the attraction. You will still need to book your day tickets or Merlin Annual Pass pre-book to show at entry.
Using your Ride Access Pass
Watch our video to find out how to use your Ride Access Pass
Frequently Asked Questions
Need help? Visit the Merlin Accessibility website for our full list of Frequently Asked Questions
The Ride Access Pass is a system we have in place to provide reasonable adjustments to guests visiting our Theme Parks who require extra assistance or are unable to queue due to a condition or disability. This allows them access to our rides and attractions via a virtual queuing system for themselves and up to three others (at least one of which must be aged 14 or over).
The Ride Access Pass removes the need for our guests to wait within the main standby attraction queue lines and enter via a dedicated entrance.
We have partnered with Nimbus Disability to process our Ride Access Pass applications, who will individually assess your needs and determine if you are eligible. You will then be able to collect your Ride Access Pass – which will be valid for three years – on your first visit to Alton Towers Resort, Chessington World of Adventures Resort or LEGOLAND Windsor Resort, or THORPE PARK Resort.
The Equality Act 2010 (“The Act”) defines that a person shall be regarded as being disabled if they have a physical or mental impairment which has substantial (being more than minor or trivial) long-term adverse effects on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. ‘Substantial’ being more than minor or trivial; ‘long-term’ being that the impairment must have been there for more than 12 months or likely to last for at least 12 months.
Ride Access Pass refers to the facility offered to our guests with disabilities allowing access to our rides and attractions whereby the standard queue is bypassed.
Guests with a disability (as defined by The Act) may, at the discretion of Nimbus Disability and/or Merlin Entertainments Group, be issued upon application, a Ride Access Pass.
All applications for Ride Access Pass must be submitted through Nimbus Disability’s Access Card process, which provides a more focused assessment of an individual person and the barriers they may face which affects their ability to queue. Applicants will be asked to provide any documentation and details to support their application which is then assessed by an expert team with a wide knowledge of disabilities.
- Guests that are already in possession of a valid Nimbus Disability Access Card with the Queuing or Wheelchair symbol on it do not need to apply for the Ride Access Pass. They will only be required to register their Access Card with Merlin Entertainments in order to create their Ride Access Pass.
- Guests must submit their application to Nimbus Disability for a Ride Access Pass at least seven days in advance of their intended visit to our Theme Parks. This will allow the necessary time for the application to be assessed.
- Guests who have not applied in advance may be eligible for a temporary Ride Access Pass – valid for one day from the date of approval – which is issued at the discretion of Merlin Entertainments. Due to the robust application process, this temporary adjustment may take upwards of one hour to be issued and can only be applied for once.
- The temporary adjustment will only be accepted for guests who apply providing one of the following supporting documentation: a Disability Living Allowance letter (dated within the last 24 months) showing that the guest receives either the higher rate mobility component or the higher rate care component, a PIP letter (dated within the last 24 months) showing that the guest receives the enhanced rate for either daily living or mobility components, or a current and valid Blue Badge.
Upon approval for a Ride Access Pass, the disabled guest must collect their Ride Access Pass ID Card – valid for three years from date of issue – from their chosen Merlin Theme Park. This ID card will display the name and photograph of the disabled guest and must be brought with them on every visit to a Merlin Theme Park where they intend to use the Ride Access Pass system. Once guests have received their ride access pass, they must pre book (at zero cost) their ride access pass for every visit to either LEGOLAND Windsor, Alton Towers Resort, Thorpe Park Resort or Chessington World of Adventures. Guests should check before they visit that there is ride access pass capacity available. Failure to pre book a ride access pass visit may result in not being able to use this service on the day of your visit.
- Guests will be required to show this ID card alongside their Ride Access Pass when entering any ride or attraction through the disabled entrance or Ride Access Pass entrance. The named and photographed guest on the ID card must be present and boarding the attraction with their companions.
- Failure to present the ID card when attempting to enter an attraction with a Ride Access Pass will result in entry being refused.
- Guests who are not in possession of their ID Card but wish to use their Ride Access Pass may visit GUEST HELP & INFORMATION/GUEST SERVICES to request a temporary method to validate your entitlement for RAP for the day which can be accepted at attractions in lieu of the ID card.
Upon receipt of a Ride Access Pass, guests may also be supplied with an Accessibility Guide. This guide highlights specific ride restrictions applicable to Ride Access Pass guests. These restrictions are in conjunction with the standard ride restrictions as displayed at the entrance to each individual ride and attraction.
Each guest who has a red ride access pass must be accompanied onto a or into a ride or attraction by a carer or companion.
- At least one carer or companion (up to a maximum of three) aged at least 14 years old must accompany the guest with a disability onto the chosen ride or attraction; this carer or companion must take full care and responsibility for the guest with additional requirements or disability in the event of an emergency.
- A maximum of three companions at a time are permitted to accompany a guest with a disability onto a chosen ride or attraction.
- Companions are not, under any circumstances, permitted to use the Ride Access Pass without accompanying the named Ride Access Pass holder.
- Companions agree that they must take full care and responsibility for the guest with additional requirements or disability during any emergency evacuation and that Merlin Entertainments staff are unable to assist guests through lifting or carrying.
Other restrictions and rules may apply at any time and use of Ride Access Pass does not supersede these should they be in force.
During peak periods, it may not always be possible to have Merlin Entertainments staff at all merge points on some rides and attractions. In these circumstances, please continue to use the designated queue line and use your Ride Access Pass as normal.