Drusillas opens new soft play attraction!
PUBLISHED 03/07/24
Drusillas Park announces exciting expansion with new soft play venture in Tunbridge Wells
Drusillas Park are delighted to announce an expansion of their portfolio of attractions after acquiring Minor Mania - a much-loved soft play centre in Bells Yew Green near Tunbridge Wells. The exciting expansion marks a thrilling new chapter for the renowned zoo park, which will bring some Drusillas magic to Kent.
MinorMania has now become Amazon Adventure, the sister site to the Park’s existing jungle-themed soft play, with the same emphasis on fun, play, excitement, and excellent customer service that visitors have come to associate with the Drusillas brand.
Amazon Adventure is the second venture of the Smith Family, who have been creating family memories and unique play experiences since 1997 at Drusillas Park. With family roots in Tunbridge Wells, Laurence and Christine Smith, along with their children, Cassie Poland, Caroline Steer, and Ollie Smith, knew that Minor Mania was the perfect place to begin an exciting expansion of the Drusillas family of visitor experiences.
Managed by the family’s youngest daughter, Caroline Steer, Amazon Adventure represents the first opportunity to take almost 30 years of family-attraction knowledge and expertise to create another unique play experience.
As a regular visitor of Minor Mania, Caroline was the natural choice to head up the new venture. She brings over 10 years’ experience in running a busy attraction, thanks to her time working in operations, events, and customer service at Drusillas Park. With her two children, Clementine and Fleur, acting as her chief play testers and advisors, she really understands how to create the best possible experience for families.
Amazon Adventure Operations Director, Caroline Steer, said, “As a regular visitor to Minor Mania I know just much it means to the local parenting community. A lifesaver on a rainy day, or that all important place to grab a coffee and keep the kids entertained so you can have a catch up with a friend, or enjoy a few minutes of breathing space!
“We want to retain as many of the features that customers love as we can, along with some updates and maintenance that will make Amazon Adventure a really first-class experience for families.
“We’ll also be bringing in our expert catering team to give the food and drink offering a refresh, as well as modernising the booking system. Customers want to be able to book their day out as quickly and easily as possible, so we’ll introduce the same ticketing software we have at Drusillas. This will ensure visitors have a seamless, efficient experience from start to finish.“
This exciting news is sure to come as a relief to local families in Tunbridge Wells, who were disappointed when Minor Mania announced they would be closing their doors this summer. With nowhere else in the area quite like it, many regular customers were faced with having to travel some distance to enjoy some soft play fun. However, Drusillas have saved the day and are embracing the challenge of bringing their years of experience to make Amazon Adventure a standout play space for everyone to enjoy.
Drusillas has just taken over the lease and the play space reopened on 20th July, with many families already enjoying Amazon Adventure!
Drusillas Managing Director, Cassie Poland, said, “This very exciting announcement marks our first foray into expanding the well-known Drusillas brand. We’re thrilled to be able to bring our years of experience in family-friendly attractions to create a unique and exhilarating soft play experience.
“Our Drusillas Park site in Alfriston already boasts an extremely popular soft play area, so we know what works to keep children and their parents happy and engaged. We’ll be making some updates to the venue to keep it fresh and fun, and ensuring there are delicious snacks and great coffee on offer for parents. We understand what makes a day out to remember and creates a superior experience for the whole family. We can’t wait to open the doors of Amazon Adventure and to start a whole new chapter of Drusillas history!”
Drusillas Park has been at the forefront of family entertainment since 1925! The current owners, the Smith family, acquired the Park in 1997 and have invested heavily in Drusillas Park ever since. Opening the UK's largest immersive sensory experience of its kind- SPARK, creating two state-of-the-art animal habitats: a £250,000 lynx exhibit and a half-a-million-pound in a brand new colobus monkey habitat, and much more. Amazon Adventure Tunbridge Wells marks the first exciting expansion of the Drusillas family outside the Zoo Park site.