Never mind the adrenaline rush, just taste the chocolate
Jayne Howarth turns into an adrenaline junkie, before sampling a chocolate delight at Alton Towers...
At the risk of showing my age, the last time I experienced a white-knuckle rollercoaster ride was when the Corkscrew was unveiled at Alton Towers.
And that was 1980.
So what have I been missing these past 26 years? A heck of a lot, it transpires.
In one day, I turned into an adrenaline junkie: tackling the awesome Nemesis, with its G-force that's greater than a space shuttle take-off; Oblivion, which has a terrifying 180 feet drop into a black hole; and Rita, Queen of Speed, a ride that takes your breath away, achieving 0-61.1 mph in 2.5 seconds.
As much as I wanted to shout "Again! Again!", my children had other ideas.
They wanted to experience the theme park, too. And there was only one ride on their lips as we travelled through the entrance gates of Alton Towers: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
This £8 million indoor ride opened last Saturday and gaggles of excited children were eager to travel in a boat along a chocolate river, listening to Willy Wonka recount the Roald Dahl classic story, spotting oompa-loompas, watching Augustus Gloop get stuck in a pipe and Mike Teevee be zapped into tiny pieces.
It was great to see a ride aimed at children that was drawing in the crowds. My two loved the short ride on their boat, spotting the characters, although the promise of candy smells was not forthcoming.
But the gentle boat ride was just an appetiser for the ride in the glass elevator - a world first, multi-sensory ride that uses revolutionary film technology to take guests on a virtual 3D tour through Willy Wonka's factory, up into candy floss clouds and beyond.
The elevator tilts forwards, backwards and sidewards eventually exploding through the factory roof. The children fair yelped with delight at the finale.
It is the standard of technological wizardry that makes the new ride stand out and it is these standards that have elevated Alton Towers to one of the best theme parks around.
In fact, it is going head-to-head with Disneyland Paris in this year's World Travel Awards for the Europe's Leading Theme Park prize, which will be awarded in September at a ceremony in the Turks & Caicos islands.
There is no doubt that Charlie and the Chocolate Factory will be the ride that all children will want to go on this year. It wouldn't be right to disappoint them.
If you visit over Easter, the park will be transformed into Chocolate Towers. For two weeks, from April 8, Chocuvious, the world's only chocolate volcano, will be erupting twice daily, showering guests with thousands of chocolate treats.
There will also be chocolate-themed treats throughout, with a chocolate casino, chocolate themed entertainment and chocolate fountains at the Alton Towers Chocolate Box Hotel. Even the spa has chocolate treatments.
* Park entry starts at £23 for adults, £16 for children when booked in advance online. Book at www.altontowers.com. Information about hotel rates at Splash Landings Hotel and Alton Towers Hotel can also be found online.
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