The Swarm is located at Thorpe Park in Surrey. The £20m Thrill Ride is the UK’s first and only Roller Coaster of this type, referred to as a Wing Coaster. The Swarm tells the story of an alien attack on London, featuring excellent ride theming and interaction with the ride elements.
The Swarm at Thorpe Park
The Swarm is a steel Wing Coaster at Thorpe Park. As with all Wing Coasters, the seats of the ride are located on either side of the track meaning that riders are completely suspended in mid-air with nothing above or below them. Thorpe Park announced that the last two rows of The Swarm would be turned backwards for the 2013 season, this was a first for a Wing Coaster.
The Swarm Statistics
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Top Speed – 92km/h 57mph
Cost – £20m
Est Cost Today – £25m
Length – 2543ft 775m
Height – 127ft 38m
Manufacturer – Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M)
Type – Steel Wing Coaster
Lift/Launch – Chain Lift
Inversions – 4
G-Force – 4.5g
Trains – 2
Passengers per Train – 28
Ride Duration – 1m 15s
Theme Park – Thorpe Park
Year Opened – 2012
Attractions Near Me – Thorpe Park
Thorpe Park Official Website
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The Swarm Ride Theming
When the Swarm initially opened in 2012, Thorpe Park used the slogan “War is Here” to promote the ride. The roller coaster ride’s backstory is that a swarm of aliens have attacked London. In addition to destroying large swathes of the city, the aliens also have a nasty habit of plucking humans off the ground and carrying them into the skies. The coaster’s trains represent the aliens themselves and riders are set to be “abducted”.
The ride area resembles the site of the alien attack and is strewn with wreckage. The ride recreates the experience of being abducted by the aliens and carried into the sky, whilst swooping down to interact with the disaster scene on the ground. The ride’s station is very impressive, with the alien-themed trains gliding into the church in a suitably menacing fashion. The ride operators are housed in an overturned police vehicle.
The ride interacts with a number of themed elements, including a crashed aeroplane, a half-submerged fire engine and a damaged helicopter. One of the main interactive elements is a billboard advertising Paradise Airlines and Headeze painkillers (“Don’t lose your head”), which the train passes through providing a keyhole effect.
The Swarm Roller Coaster Train
The Swarm features two 28-seat Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M) Wing Coaster trains. Each train is made up of seven rows with four seats per row, the seats are located on either side and slightly lower than the ride’s track, as with all Wing Coasters. The trains are themed to resemble alien-like drones (the ride’s eponymous “Swarm”), with a number of red LED lights placed across the train.
Top 10 Listings
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Thorpe Park Rides and Attractions
Experience over 30 thrill rides, family attractions and unique events on a day trip or short break at Thorpe Park, one of the UK’s best theme parks.
UK Roller Coaster Rides
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Thorpe Park Roller Coasters
Thorpe Park offers a number of thrilling roller coasters, ranging from the family-friendly Flying Fish to the 205ft tall Stealth which features the fastest acceleration of any roller coaster in Europe. Follow the links below to learn more about each of them.
🎢 Colossus was the World’s first ten looping roller coaster and was the park’s first major attraction. The record held by Colossus has now been beaten by The Smiler at Alton Towers with 14 inversions.
🎢 Hyperia is the UK’s tallest and fastest roller coaster having taking the title from The Big One at Blackpool Pleasure Beach when it opened in 2024.
🎢 Nemesis Inferno is themed around the eruption of a volcano and is the sequel ride to Nemesis at sister park Alton Towers.
🎢 Stealth is an Intamin launch coaster themed around 1950s drag racing. The ride accelerates from 0 – 80 mph in 1.8 seconds, sending its riders 205ft into the air. Stealth has the fastest acceleration of any roller coaster in Europe and is the tallest launched coaster in the UK.
🎢 SAW – The Ride is themed around the SAW horror movie franchise, SAW – The Ride is dubbed as the world’s scariest ride.
🎢 The Swarm is the UK’s first winged roller coaster, meaning that the seats are positioned beyond the width of the roller coaster track. It has a total of 5 inversions and is 127 feet tall.
🎢 The Walking Dead is a horror-themed roller coaster that mixes the theatrics of a Halloween style scare attraction with the practical effects of a traditional ghost train.
Attractions at Thorpe Park Resort
There are a wide range of Attractions on offer at Thorpe Park Resort.
Learn more about Thorpe Park.
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