Blackgang Chine facts for kids
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Entrance to Blackgang Chine amusement park
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| Location | Blackgang, Isle of Wight, England, United Kingdom |
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| Coordinates | 50°35′20″N 1°18′52″W / 50.58889°N 1.31444°W |
| Status | Open |
| Opened | 1843 |
| Owner | Alexander Dabell/Vectis Ventures Ltd/The Dabell Family |
| General manager | Dominic Wray |
| Slogan | The Land Of Imagination |
| Operating season | March to November |
| Attractions | |
| Total | 5 |
| Roller coasters | 0 |
| Water rides | 1 |
| Website | Blackgangchine.com |
Welcome to Blackgang Chine, the United Kingdom's oldest amusement park! It first opened its doors way back in 1843. The park is named after a "chine," which is a special type of coastal valley carved into soft cliffs. Blackgang Chine is located on the southern tip of the Isle of Wight, about 6 miles from Ventnor.
This amazing park is owned by the Dabell family, who also own its sister park, Robin Hill. Blackgang Chine is famous for its many "lands of imagination," like Pirate Cove, Restricted Area 5 (full of dinosaurs!), Fairy Land, and Cowboy Town. Because the land here isn't very stable, landslides happen sometimes. This means the park has had to move its attractions further inland to keep everyone safe!
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Discovering Blackgang Chine
In its early days, Blackgang Chine was a deep, wild valley overlooking Chale Bay. It stretched almost a mile down to the sea. It was a quiet spot, mostly visited by local fishermen. There were even rumors of smugglers using the area, which is now a fun theme in the park!
In 1836, a ship called the Clarendon was wrecked nearby. Many people sadly lost their lives.
How the Park Began
During the Victorian era, people loved to visit new holiday spots, especially by the coast. As railways grew, the Isle of Wight became a popular place for vacations. Alexander Dabell, who started Blackgang Chine, saw a great business opportunity.
In 1839, Alexander became friends with a hotel owner in Blackgang. This hotel building is now part of the park's cafe and offices. Alexander realized that the valley could be turned into beautiful gardens. These would be perfect for Victorian tourists looking for a romantic holiday.
So, in 1842, Alexander leased the land. Blackgang Chine amusement park officially opened in 1843! Pathways were built down the valley, and gardens were created on the cliffs. Steps were added to reach the beach. The park has stayed a family business ever since.
One of its most famous early attractions was a huge whale skeleton. It washed up near The Needles in 1842 and is still a popular display today!
The Chine Today
Because of ongoing landslides, the original valley (chine) has been destroyed. The coastline is still eroding a lot today. Now, the park focuses on themed fun for families with younger children. Lifesize moving dinosaurs are a big hit!
The same owners also run Robin Hill, a countryside adventure park. You can take walks along the cliffs near Blackgang Chine. These walks offer amazing views of the English Channel and the Isle of Wight coast.
The park's name, "Blackgang," simply means "black pathway." However, the park likes to tell stories about smugglers. When you visit, you're greeted by a giant statue of a smuggler. You can even walk between his legs to enter the park!
Blackgang Chine has even been featured in a documentary. Famous actor Rupert Grint, who played Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter films, once said that visiting Blackgang Chine on the Isle of Wight was his family's favorite holiday!
Some people say the park has ghosts, especially smugglers. There are tales of sightings around the park. In 2008, a video even seemed to show a ghostly girl in a blue dress.
The Land and Its Changes
Blackgang Chine is located on unstable ground. This is because of the soft clay layers underneath. This land often moves, causing huge landslips. These slips give the area a very rugged look, similar to the famous Jurassic Coast.
The cliffs here are eroding (wearing away) by about 3.5 meters each year. This doesn't happen slowly and steadily, but in sudden large movements. Landslides and coastal erosion destroyed the paths in the early 1900s. They have also wiped out the chine itself. The park owners have had to move attractions further inland many times to keep them safe.
Park Attractions
The park covers over 40 acres of cliff-top gardens and themed "lands." It has outdoor rides, walkthrough attractions, and historical displays. Here's a list of some of the fun things you can find at Blackgang Chine:
| Attraction | Date opened | Description | Image |
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| The Blackgang Beach | 2024 | This is a special beach-themed area. It has palm trees, "washed-up" cargo, and a cool interactive pool you can walk on without getting wet! You'll also see dodos and seagulls. | |
| The Jolly Robin | 2024 | A spooky pirate ship ride found in the expanded Pirate Cove. It used to be called Colossus and was moved here from Robin Hill park. | |
| Extinction | 2023 | A thrilling pendulum ride that spins you 360 degrees and does a full loop-the-loop! It reaches a height of 18 meters. | |
| Evolution | 2022 | A 12-meter-tall drop ride that looks like an observation tower. It overlooks a dinosaur dig site and the Restricted Area 5 dinosaur trail. You sit in a gondola that lifts to the top, then drops quickly! | |
| Shipwrecked | 2022 | This ride looks like a giant wrecked ship. You sit in a gondola that spins in a vertical circle, reaching about 10 meters high. It closed briefly in 2022 but reopened in 2024. | |
| Water Force | 1998 | A 100-foot-long water slide with three different chutes. You go down in small boats. Two chutes are open, and one is enclosed, called the 'Plughole'. |
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| Pirate Barrels | 2006 | A fun, pirate-themed version of the classic fairground teacups ride. |  |
| Pirate Cove | 2012 | A pirate-themed area with two play ships, 'The Flying Raven' and 'L' Mistral'. You can aim water cannons at the other ship! It also has the Crossbones play area with climbing nets, rope bridges, and slides. | |
| The Vortex | 2011 | A walkthrough tunnel that spins, making you feel dizzy and disoriented! It used to have other names before becoming 'The Vortex'. | |
| Giant Smuggler | 1987 | A huge fiberglass statue of a smuggler. It's located outside the park's entrance. | |
| Shop And Entrance Facilities | 1986 | The park's main shop and entrance. It's designed to look like the inside of an old ship. | |
| Underwater Kingdom | 2017 | An outdoor trail that feels like you're exploring under the sea! It has animated creatures like Giuseppe the talking crab and a giant whale. | |
| Talking Telescopes | 1990s | Coin-operated telescopes in Nursery Land and Pirate Cove. They tell stories about smuggling, folklore, and the views you see. | |
| Cowboy Town | 1994 | A full-size Old West town with a saloon, jail, covered wagons, and a bank. You can also find a cafe and a shop selling cowboy gear. |
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| Restricted Area 5 | 2014 | A trail with animated dinosaurs that move and roar as you get close! It was updated from the old Dinosaurland. Some of the original dinosaur figures are still there. | |
| Mouth of Hell | 1972 | A giant head you can explore and climb inside. It was originally part of 'Dinosaurland' and moved in 2016. | |
| Dinostore | 2016 | A shop selling dinosaur-themed items. It's located where the Hall of Mirrors used to be. | |
| Boot Hill | 1976 | A collection of wooden crosses with funny names and ways of "passing away." It was moved and expanded when Cowboy Town moved. | |
| Rumpus Crypt | Located near Rumpus Mansion on the lawn. | ||
| Pirate Blasta | A pirate-themed water cannon shooting game. | ||
| iScream | An ice cream shop that serves both humans and dogs! | ||
| Chocobloc | A shop selling sweet treats. It used to be the Waffle House. | ||
| Pirate Bounty | A small arcade with a crane grab machine where you can win soft toys. | ||
| The Quack Shack | A small arcade with two crane grab machines. It's in Pirate Cove. | ||
| Treasure Cove Shooting Gallery | A shooting gallery with interactive pirate characters. It's located in Pirate Cove. | ||
| Way Out West Shooting Gallery | A shooting gallery with interactive cowboy characters. | ||
| Rumpus Mansion | 1993 | This haunted walkthrough attraction is inside an old manor house. It's filled with goblins and other creatures from folklore. It was built for the park's 150th birthday! |
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| The Musical Pet Shop | 1992 | A funny "pet shop" hosted by Mr. Mel-O-Dee. It has animated singing animals that come to life when you press buttons. | |
| Valley of the Dodos | 2013 | An outdoor trail with animated Dodo figures that squawk as you pass by. The story is that the dodos hatched from eggs left by pirates! | |
| Crooked House | 1968 | A small walkthrough attraction with crooked hallways that make you feel disoriented. It now has animated cowboy and fairy characters. |
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| Moby Dick's Revenge | 1974 | A giant whale that squirts water at visitors inside! It used to be called Jonah's Whale and had live fish. The whale was moved in April 2024 to a new area. | |
| Nurseryland | 1974 | A wooded trail with scenes from famous nursery rhymes. Many characters are animated. You can find 'The House That Jack Built' and characters like Humpty Dumpty and the Three Little Pigs. |
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| Chimney pot Walk | Late 1960s / Early 1970s | A short walk featuring many old chimney pots of different shapes and sizes. A natural stream also flows through these gardens. | |
| Fairyland | 2011 | This area is themed as a Fairy Village. It includes the Fairy Castle, which shows scenes from the story of Sleeping Beauty. Look closely in the trees for fairies and other creatures! |
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| Snakes and Ladders | 1990 | A giant version of the board game built on a hillside. It has steps leading up to big slides at different levels. | |
| Captain Jacks | 1992 | A shop in Pirate Cove that sells food, drinks, toys, and souvenirs. | |
| Talking Rubbish Bins | 1990s | Fun rubbish bins shaped like character faces. They talk and ask you to put your trash in their mouths! You can find them near iScream, Chocobloc, and La Cantina. | |
| Hall of Mirrors | 2016 (in present form) | This attraction has many mirrors that create funny and distorted reflections of you! The original Hall of Mirrors was one of the park's first attractions, with mirrors from Paris installed in 1933. | |
| Hedge Maze | 1963 | A large hedge maze made with over 5,000 privet bushes. There's a platform for people to watch and help those inside. |
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| Giant Bug Walk | 2009 | A hillside trail with huge arthropod models. There's also an oversized garden shed with talking gnomes inside! |
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| Whale Museum | 2010 (in current form) | This exhibition features the park's original 19-meter-long fin whale skeleton, which has been on display since 1843! You can also find an ancient wooden wishing chair near the whale's head. | |
| Chine valley gardens and musical bridge | 1987 | A short, pretty walkway that winds through a natural stream. It includes a small bridge that plays peaceful music. | |
| The Disappearing Village Exhibition | 1994 | This exhibit shows the history of Blackgang's landslides using old photos, newspaper clippings, and models. There's even a simulator room that makes you feel like you're in a landslide! |
Former Attractions
Blackgang Chine has been around for a long time, and some attractions have changed or moved over the years, often because of the moving land!
| Attraction | Date opened | Date closed | Description | Image |
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| Jurassica Dinosaur Encounter | 2023 | 2023 | This was a seating area for interactive shows, located where the Cliffhanger rollercoaster used to be. | |
| Cliffhanger | 2005 | 2022 | A small roller coaster that sat high up on the cliff edge. It reached heights of 11 meters and went about 35 kilometers per hour. It was removed at the end of 2022 and moved to another park. | |
| Jungleland | 1978/9 | 2008 | A walkthrough area with lifesize fiberglass jungle animals and sounds. Many of these animals were moved to the sister park, Robin Hill. | |
| Adventureland | 1970 | 1986 | This area closed due to coastal erosion. It had old military vehicles and a replica of a spacecraft from a Disney movie. |
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| Smugglerland | 1978 | 2011 | This area featured a play ship, a tree-top walk, and the 'Smugglers' Cave'. The cave was an animated walkthrough showing the 1836 Clarendon shipwreck. |
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| Fantasyland | 1991 | 2016 | This themed area included attractions like 'The Weather Wizard' and 'The Angry Dragon'. It was completely redeveloped into the 'Underwater Kingdom' in 2017. | |
| Dinosaurland | 1972 | 2013 | An outdoor trail with lifesize fiberglass dinosaurs. It was later updated with new moving dinosaurs and became 'Restricted Area 5'. | |
| Buffalo Creek | 1976 | 1994 | A full-size Wild West cowboy town with a bank, gold mine, saloon, and jail. Parts of it were moved uphill to become the current Cowboy Town after a landslide. | |
| The Triassic Club | 1994 | 2016 | An animated walkthrough attraction where talking dinosaurs invited you to join them for lunch. This area now houses the 'Mouth of Hell'. |
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| Smugglers Cave | 1954 | 2016 | A themed walkthrough with animated displays telling the story of the Clarendon shipwreck. The empty inside of this cave now forms the entrance to the 'Underwater Kingdom'. | |
| Fort Tortuga | 1997 | 2007 | A pirate-themed play area with slides, climbing nets, and walkways. It was replaced by 'The Wight Experience'. | |
| Rumpus Clock Tower | 1994 | 2005 | An animated clock tower where monsters and goblins appeared. A surviving goblin can still be found near the entrance to Fairyland. | |
| Water Gardens | 1962 | 2017 | A series of ponds, waterfalls, and fountains. They were partly redeveloped over time due to being close to the cliff edge. The last pond was filled in 2017. |
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| Butterfly Walk | 2008 | 2017 | A trail with larger-than-life butterflies and signs with their names. |  |
| World of Timber / Blackgang sawmill | 1981 | 2016 | This was an exhibition about timber, set in an old water mill. It showed workshops, engines, and how timber was used. It closed in 2016. |
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| Model Village | 1953 | 1989 | A collection of models of buildings from around the Isle of Wight, like Ryde Pier and Osborne House. It closed due to landslips. |
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| Bazaar / Ship Shop /Entrance | 1842 | 1988 | This was the original entrance and shop building. It was demolished in 1989 due to coastal erosion, and a new entrance was built. |
Park Updates
Here are some of the latest changes and additions at Blackgang Chine:
In 2010, a new area called "Blackgang's Disappearing Village" opened. It was made with the BBC show Coast. It told the story of the island's coast and the landslides at Blackgang. Part of this exhibit was later changed into the new Hall of Mirrors in 2016. The rest still has the park's original whale skeleton and a simulator that makes you feel like you're in a landslide.
In 2011, 'Fairy Land' was created next to the Fairy Castle. The next year, the pirate ship play area was redesigned as 'Pirate Cove'. It got two new pirate ships, other themed buildings, a pirate shooting gallery, and 'The Sailors Return' (now 'The Vortex'), which is a spinning tunnel that makes you feel dizzy.
'Restricted Area 5' opened in 2014. This was an update to the park's old 'Dinosaurland'. It has new animated dinosaurs that move and roar when you get close. Some of the original fiberglass dinosaurs were kept too.
In 2015, Cowboy Town was updated with new buildings and scenery. A family of animated Triceratops dinosaurs was also added to Restricted Area 5.
In 2016, 'The Triassic Club' attraction was removed. The area was rebuilt to be a new, larger space for 'The Mouth of Hell'. This attraction is now surrounded by a walkway with fallen angel statues and spooky sounds.
For the opening of the 'Underwater Kingdom' in 2017, the Fantasyland area was completely changed. Attractions like 'The Weather Wizard' and 'The Angry Dragon' were removed. The animated 'Smugglers Cave' walkthrough was also removed. A new structure was built in its place to form the entrance to the 'Underwater Kingdom'.
As of 2018, the Water Gardens are no longer part of the park after 56 years. The area was taken down starting in 2016, and the last pond was filled in during the winter of 2017.
For the park’s 2022 season, two new rides opened: 'Evolution', a drop ride, and 'Shipwrecked', a spinning boat ride.
For the park's 2023 season and its 180th anniversary, a new 18-meter, 360-degree pendulum ride called "Extinction" opened.
In December 2023, Blackgang Chine opened its doors for the first time ever on selected dates for Christmas. It had a pop-up Christmas shop with gifts and a coffee shop. The main park attractions were not open to the public during this time.
Images for kids
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Crackerjack Amusement Arcade 1980 (now removed)
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St Catherine's Quay at Blackgang Chine (now removed)
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Aviaries at Blackgang Chine
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Jungleland in 1980 (now removed)
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Former site of Jungle Land in 2024.
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Mission Control remains in the old Adventureland
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Adventureland in 2008
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Adventureland remains at Blackgang Chine
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Stardust, one of the many items moved to New Adventureland.
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Smugglerland relocated and expanded version 1982
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Blackgang Chine smugglers
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The Liquorice Factory in Fantasyland (now removed) Blackgang Chine
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Dinosaurland Blackgang Chine (now removed)
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A view of Cowboy Town in Buffalo Creek, Isle of Wight County.
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Inside The Triassic Club.
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The Triassic Club sign at Blackgang Chine
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The Smugglers Cave entrance
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A lantern inside the Smugglers Cave
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The entrance to Fort Tortuga (now unused)
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A survivor from the Rumpus Mansion Clock Tower
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The Water Gardens in 2012 (part closed)
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Blackgang Chine Water Gardens
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The LED lighting along one of Blackgang Chine's footpaths
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Blackgang Chine - Butterfly Walk
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Chine Cascade at Blackgang Chine (lost to coastal erosion)
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The Magical Music Factory (removed)
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The Gnomes Garden at Blackgang Chine (now removed)
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Inside Blackgang Sawmill.
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Blackgang Sawmill in 1991
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Blackgang Sawmill
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The castle in 1972.
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Orbiter V
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Site of the model of Osborne House after its removal from the eroding cliff edge. 1984.
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A survivor of the Model Village still in the park today
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Blackgang Chine Model Village 1
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The stocks and pillory in their last location near The Crooked House.
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The entrance building to the Chine 1980 (now removed)
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The Chine entrance in 1974 (now lost to coastal erosion)
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The walkway path to the old entrance circa 1979.
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Bodger the badger making his final ever appearance March 17th 2018.
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Bronty the brontosaurus making his final ever appearance March 17th 2018.
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1952 The shipwreck collection on the cliff path.
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The entrance to the Mill Pond Gardens.
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Looking towards Rocken End from the observatory.
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