Welcome to the Terror Tomb

When you go through the turnstiles at Chessington World of Adventures you are not quite sure whether the noise inside is coming from the screeching monkeys, or from visitors enjoying the masochistic pleasures of the rides.

Chessington, part zoo, part adventure theme park, is bracing itself for around 10,000 visitors a day over the Easter holidays and is just completing the finishing touches to its newest attractions. Paula Hurst, head of design for the studios owned by the Tussauds Group (which in turn owns Chessington), has spent most of the month overseeing the work to "re-theme" some rides and design new ones. She's been with the group for 10 years, but admits that her perception of what children want from a theme park has been sharpened since the birth of her own children, five-and-a-half- year-old Jack, and Georgie, now 18 months. "Jack was two and a half when I first brought him here and took him to the Toy Town area and the Children's Zoo. Now he can go on almost 75 per cent of the rides. When I take him on a ride it's like having the experience for the first time myself."

The latest test of Jack's stamina was the Terror Tomb, a ghost train ride with a story line based on the search for a precious emerald. "We told him it was all make-believe beforehand, in case he found it too scary, but he was fine and hasn't stopped talking about it since."

Attractions like these are aimed at children who are already immersed in TV culture. When the Tussauds group took over Chessington 10 years ago it agreed to keep the zoo, and this is still a big plus for families with very young children. There are the traditional sea lion, penguin and big cat attractions, but this year the fascination many children have for creepy-crawlies is being exploited with a Creepy Caves experience, featuring snakes, cockroaches and a rat run.

Having visited practically every theme park in Europe, Paula Hurst believes it is essential to create as much make-believe as possible.

"What you are doing is satisfying the child's desire for fantasy. Children want fun, and an experience they couldn't have at home. And adults can become big kids again. I didn't realise how good it would be to scream my way round a ride until I tried it."

It is certainly true that worries about the mortgage are unlikely to be uppermost in your mind while you hang upside down during Chessington's most stomach-churning ride, Rameses Revenge. This holds victims in their seats and lifts them upside down to hang in the air, before plunging them into a spray of water. Then there's the Vampire, another "white knuckle" experience that whizzes you round a circuit at breakneck speed in cars shaped like bats. This year a new ride, the Rattlesnake, has been constructed; it takes you through a make-believe Mexican silver mine. Apparently this is only "pink knuckle" - so wimps and those prone to nausea should not worry too much about giving it a whirl.

For families with fearful youngsters, the advice is to start in the Toy Town area and progress towards more adventurous experiences. All the rides have a height restriction, and "family experiences" are dotted among the more hair-raising opportunities. The most popular in the park, Professor Burps Bubbleworks, is a fantasy fizzy drinks factory with coloured lights, music and a tunnel of water fountains. Paula says some children start off a bit nervous about the speed of the rides, but claims that once the adrenaline gets going and they enter into the fantasy spirit, they are keen to be more adventurous.

Ideas for each area of the park are forged in a monthly "think-tank" meeting with the art directors from the Tussauds studios and the marketing team. "Nine times out of 10 an idea gets nowhere, but it's a creative process, and it is essential if you want to develop fresh concepts."

The drive to give every area of the park a theme has resulted this year in a refit of the McDonald's restaurant, now designed to look like an enchanted forest. Paula waxes lyrical about the 22 tills and the visual entertainment on hand for those queueing for food. Perhaps if you are recovering from a half-hour wait for Rameses Revenge it is just what you need, or perhaps working at a theme park can affect your view of reality. Queueing is, of course, what every parent dreads at these places, and Chessington claims to have done all it can to soothe away the hassle involved. Long, winding paths snake through the darkness to the Terror Tomb, giving the waiting hordes a taste of what lies ahead, and the queue line to Rameses Revenge gives everyone a good view of the spectacular ride. Those who don't fancy hanging upside down while being soaked with water can drop out straightaway, and cut down the waiting time for everyone else.

Paula Hurst has advice for parents planning a trip to a theme park over the Easter period. "Make sure you plan it well, and try to get hold of a park map beforehand. When I was planning to take Jack to Chessington and Alton Towers, he spent days studying the map and knew exactly what he wanted to try. It's quite important to get a feel for the place before you arrive."

Chessington's own map has a handy "Thrillometer" chart marking out those rides which are too "intense" for the faint-hearted.

Chessington World of Adventures, Chessington, Surrey (01372 727227). Admission: adults pounds 19, children pounds 15, under-fours free. If it rains, you get a pounds 7 money-back voucher on the way out (though by then you have probably been sprayed with so many fantasy fountains that the weather may be irrelevant). Open daily, 10am-5.15pm with last admission at 3pm. Nearest railway station: Teddington South (a 10-minute walk away). Two miles from junctions nine and 10 of the M25, south west of London.