PAULTONS Park has finally revealed the opening date for its much anticipated Viking Valgard land.
Valgard: Realm of the Vikings will be a “fully immersive Viking world bursting with all new adventures, epic discovery, and legendary rides”.
And the new £12million development is set to open on May 16, 2026.
Visitors will be able to head on Drakon – Paultons’ most thrilling rollercoaster yet with two inversions and a “beyond-vertical drop”.
There will also be Raven, which is the park’s Gerstlauer Bobsled ride reimagined and Vild Swing, which swings 12 metres high and is a first of its kind in the UK.
There will also be a themed playground.
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After exploring the attractions, visitors can head to the Feasting Hall where they can chose from a range of hearty dishes.
Valgard: Real of the Vikings will be located next to Lost Kingdom.
According to Paultons’ website, the land will be suitable for parents, older children and teenagers, with the new rides not for the faint-hearted.
James Mancey, deputy managing director at Paultons Park, previously said: “We’ve opened two brand-new rides in the last two years and with the build of Valgard firmly underway, we’re excited to open a further three, bigger-and-better-than-ever-before rides, between now and summer 2027.
“Valgard promises an immersive, atmospheric, and action-packed experience for families and has been specifically designed to grow with our fans.
“The introduction of inversions and a vertical lift hill on Drakon certainly up the adrenaline levels at Paultons Park, but staying true to our roots, we haven’t forgotten about the little ones and there is something for all of the family in our new Viking village.”
Once Valgard: Realm of the Vikings opens, the theme park will boast over 80 rides and attractions across six themed worlds.
In March of this year, the park also submitted plans to build a new holiday village with a resort offering.
It would be located next to Valgard: Realm of the Vikings and would feature between 85 and 95 lodges, parking and its own entrance.
In May, the park then also released a 26-second trailer on YouTube for 2027.
The video doesn’t show much other than a wave washing over a giant ‘2027’ sign standing on a rock, but many fans have speculated that the park will be getting a new water ride.
One person commented: “It’s gonna be the long rumoured water coaster.”
Another said: “Judging by the clue being water, I think that the new investment for 2027 will be a Mack Rides Water Coaster.”
What’s it like to visit Paultons Park?
THE Sun’s travel editor Caroline McGuire recently visited the theme park, and here is what she thought…
Last week, a friend from the school gates and I decided to ignore the alert from the Met Office about high-speed gusts and still visit Paultons Park in the New Forest.
And it turned out to be an excellent decision, because the longest we queued for a ride was about four minutes.
And it was two minutes for popular rides Al’s Auto Academy and the Farmyard Flyer rollercoaster.
That fact alone makes this my favourite theme park in Europe.
Because it doesn’t matter how good the rides are if you’re waiting up to an hour for each one.
On the kids’ favourite rides, such as the Velociraptor and Cat-O-Pillar coasters, we were able to fit in about three rounds in 15 minutes.
Paultons is the perfect starter park for toddlers, and I first took my son there when he was two, lured by its famous Peppa Pig World.
He is in year 2 now, so has grown out of Peppa and moved on to the entry-level coasters, of which they have several.
So despite the yellow weather warnings, we spent the entire weekend outside, grinning from ear to ear.
And we were blown away, in the good sense.
Paultons Park was also named the best theme park in the UK – scooping up 10 awards recently.
Plus, it is the UK’s best value theme park also has the shortest queue times in the country.
