Spinball Whizzer is located at Alton Towers Resort in the beautiful Staffordshire countryside. The spinning roller coaster ride is loosely themed on a pinball machine and the name was a pun on the song “Pinball Wizard” by The Who. Between 2010 and 2016, the ride was named Sonic Spinball as part of a sponsorship deal with Sega.

Spinball Whizzer at Alton Towers

The Spinball Whizzer opened in 2004, featuring a loose pinball machine theme. The popular ride received a Sonic the Hedgehog re-brand in 2010 as part of a partnership with Japanese video game company Sega. As part of the sponsorship deal, the roller coaster track was repainted red and blue, new decals, signage and audio, including songs from the games were also added and the ride was renamed Sonic Spinball. This deal came to an end in 2016 and the ride returned to its original name of Spinball Whizzer.

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Spinball Whizzer Statistics

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Top Speed – 60km/h 37mph
Original Cost – £3.5m
Est Cost Today – £5.5m
Length – 1540ft 470m
Height – 56ft 17m
Manufacturer – Maurer Sohne
Type – Steel Spinning
Lift/Launch – Chain Lift
Inversions – 0
G-Force – unknown
Trains – 8
Passengers per Train – 4
Ride Duration – 1m 15s
Theme Park – Alton Towers Resort
Year Opened – 2004 (as Spinball Whizzer) 2010 (as Sonic Spinball) 2016 (as Spinball Whizzer)

Spinball Whizzer Jigsaw Puzzle

Try our fun Spinball Whizzer Jigsaw challenge. Visit the Attractions Near Me Puzzle Page for more fun activities and jigsaws.

If you enjoyed this jigsaw puzzle then either visit the Attractions Near Me Puzzle Page for more fun activities and jigsaws or select another Alton Towers Resort jigsaw from the list below.

Galactica
Nemesis

Spinning Roller Coaster

Spinball Whizzer is a joy to ride. It will bring a smile to every rider’s face as the cars randomly spin a full 360 degrees in any direction whilst they whizz along the track. Every ride is unique, depending on the weight distribution in the car, you might end up spinning a lot or you might end up spinning very little. There’s no guarantee what kind of ride you will get but that’s half of the fun. The more your car spins, the more intense the ride experience. Spinball Whizzer is a whole lot of fun that will have you laughing with excitement.

Mäurer’s signature “Immelman” element

This short video features the highlight element on Spinball Whizzer at Alton Towers Resort. Mäurer’s signature “Immelman” element, in which the track rises until vertical, then turns 180 degrees and drops back to Earth. This element is nicely framed by a smaller horseshoe turn that threads through the main arch.

UK Roller Coaster Rides

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Alton Towers Roller Coasters

There are seven thrilling roller coasters on offer at Alton Towers.

Wicker Man

Wicker Man is the UK’s first new wooden coaster built in over 20 years, a globally unique experience that will reconnect riders with the primal essence of rollercoasters. Wicker Man was also the first to incorporate fire.

Galactica

Galactica is a flying roller coaster located in the Forbidden Valley area of the Theme Park. The £12m thrill ride was the first-ever flying coaster manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M) and features a dual-platform loading station, permitting three trains to operate simultaneously.

Nemesis

One of the best roller coasters here in the UK, Nemesis is an angry alien creature trying to rip its way out of the ground. It was Europe’s first inverted roller coaster and features a truly thrilling storyline.

Oblivion

Oblivion was the world’s first vertical drop roller coaster featuring a 180ft drop at 87-degrees. As each car reaches the drop it is held by a holding chain for a maximum of five seconds, giving the rider a clear view of the long drop, before a brake is released allowing the car to drop into the tunnel. Each car features two rows, with the back row being slightly raised in order to give passengers a clear view of what lies ahead.

Rita

Rita starts with the train racing forward from the station area, accelerating from 0 to 98.3 km/h (61.1 mph) in 2.5 seconds. The ride negotiates high-speed corners and air-time hills. It was the first hydraulic Launch roller coaster of its kind in the whole of Europe.

The Smiler

The Smiler is the world’s first and only 14 loop roller coaster. When viewed from off the ride, The Smilers batwing element resembles the Smiler logo. The roller coaster’s twisting track combines the world-beating 14 loops with a speed of 85kph.

Th13teen

The £15m Th13teen ride was the world’s first vertical freefall drop roller coaster, on which the track and train freefall in darkness.

Attractions at the Alton Towers Resort

In addition to the famous Theme Park, you will also find a wide range of other Attractions at Alton Towers Resort.

Website Links

Alton Towers Resort Maps
Ride Height Restrictions
Attractions Near Me – Alton Towers Waterpark
Attractions Near Me – Merlin Entertainments

Alton Towers Resort Tickets

Purchase your tickets in advance to save time queuing at the entrance to the park and also save on the full-price admission. View our Alton Towers Resort Special Offers Page for the best discounts on your Tickets and Accommodation.
You can buy your tickets in advance direct from Alton Towers Official Website.

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Travelling to Alton Towers Resort

Alton Towers is located in the beautiful Staffordshire countryside. There are a number of ways to get to Alton Towers. If you are travelling by car, Alton Towers Resort is between the M1 and the M6. When driving to any of Alton Towers Resorts Attractions use the postcode ST10 4DB. Please follow the signs for the final part of your journey, as your Sat Nav may attempt to take you down a local farm track, especially if you’re coming down the B5417.

Please drive with care when you’re in the area. There are many walkers, cyclists and horse riders, and the roads can be very narrow in places.

Travelling by Train

The nearest train station to Alton Towers is Uttoxeter, which is accessible from a large number of UK train stations including London, Birmingham and Newcastle upon Tyne, where trains depart every hour. Search for your train tickets using Raileasy. From Uttoxeter, the remainder of the journey can be made by taxi or bus (there is one daily bus service which takes approximately 40 minutes). Visitors also catch trains to Alton Towers via Stoke-on-Trent (four bus departures daily) and Nottingham and Derby (both one bus service daily).

Nearby Accommodation

There are lots of places to stay in the Peak District. Alton Towers is surrounded by beautiful countryside.  The theme park offers on-site accommodation. If you only planning on visiting the park for one day and would like to explore some of the other attractions in the area then take a look at some of the wonderful self-catering cottages available from Snaptrip.

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