Overview

For carer tickets, you can reserve them online, then it's confusing if you have to exchange the QR code you receive with your other tickets in email or not. Apparently, you don't have to, but you can go to the ticket window right at Lodge Gate with your documentation and they'll print off a carer ticket if you like. We turned up at 9:20am on a school weekday and had free choice of all the Blue Badge parking spaces at Lodge Gate. You still have to pay for parking (7 pounds in advance online), but you get to park on hardstanding, right by the entrance. My mobility is bad at the moment, so I wanted to rent a mobility scooter for the first time. You do this at the ticket window at Lodge Gate. Very short form to fill in, 35 pound charge, 50 pound deposit. Wheelchairs are free (with deposit) for Blue Badge holders. I saw 2 scooters, and they're first come/first serve. They are right there by the entrance, you don't have to walk elsewhere (like I read online). They are very robust and comfortable, with a basket at the front for your bag. I've attached a picture of it. It holds up to 500 pounds, and is fully charged, no need to recharge during your visit. It had no trouble at all managing the hills. You can't take it into the queues; you just park near the entrance (may be left outside, e.g. Vampire) then take the key with you. For the queue itself, I brought my Ta-Da Stick, it's pricey but a very well engineered walking stick/seat so I always have a seat for longer queues. There are some stairs at some rides, but this is listed on page 2 of the Accessibility Guide https://www.chessington.com/media/m23bjd4y/accessibility-guide-2024-final-compressed.pdf For Mandrill Mayhem, ask to be put in the near side queue. They put me in the far queue (despite me having a big walking stick), which involves going up and over the ride with several stairs before and after the ride. It was unnecessary as I could have been filtered to the near side with no stairs. There is this same up and over stairs bridge for entry at the Gruffalo ride and the Tiger Rock log flume, but level at exit. Most other rides just have a few stairs, if any. As someone with limited mobility, I was able to manage this, but it was tiring. There are lots of reviews about the Ride Access Passes elsewhere, so I won't comment further other than to say it worked as expected and made the day accessible for me. We had lunch at the Pizza/Pasta buffet (eye wateringly expensive at 12 quid for kids/21 for adults), and they kindly seated us right near the food so I didn't have to walk very far to serve myself. There were several Radar key disabled toilets around that were a good size and clean. At the end of the day, you just take the Scooter back to the ticket window, return the key, they confirm return of your deposit (takes a few days to show up), and you're done. The scooter absolutely was a life saver for me, as there's no way I'd have been able to walk around for a full 5/6 hour day without it. It was very comfortable to ride, with a padded, roomy seat. The basket was appreciated for my bag. 35 pounds to me seemed pricy compared to other places, but as the free carer ticket would have been about that price, I thought it worked out in the end, and would not hesitate to rent it again on bad mobility days. Overall, an excellent day out at Chessington!

Transport & Parking

Apparently Blue Badge parking can fill up quite quickly on busy days, but you can park anywhere in that lot (but it's not as close and not a wide space). At least you're parked on hard standing by the Lodge Gate, otherwise it's dirt roads. Cheeky they charge for it, though.

Access

The rented mobility scooter was a dream, but not pre-bookable, so you really have to turn up early to guarantee you'll get one. I only saw 2 available. Was glad I also brought my Ta-Da stick as some queues had a reasonable wait in the RAP line and being able to sit helped extend my day.

Toilets

Staff

Photos