Your Child Hit 100cm — Here's Every Ride That Just Unlocked

The 100cm Milestone

If your child just crossed 100cm, congratulations: they've hit one of the two big ride unlock points in UK theme parks. Only 90cm opens more rides across the parks in our directory, and 100cm is where many family coasters, log flumes and pirate ships start letting younger children on.

We compared what a child of 99cm can ride with what a child of 100cm can ride, park by park. A ride counts when your child can board it either alone or with an adult riding alongside. (Still a little way off? Our guide to the rides that unlock at 90cm covers the step before this one.) Heading to Spain? A section further down covers Spanish parks at 100cm.

Parks Where 100cm Unlocks the Most

This table ranks UK parks by how many rides and attractions a child gains by reaching 100cm. It's calculated from our current ride data.

Here's what opens up at some of the parks near the top.

Adventure Island, Southend

Adventure Island is a tough park for under-100cm visitors, but 100cm changes that. A child goes from 15 rides to 25, because a whole tier of family rides is set at 100cm with an adult (riding alone needs 120cm).

Check all Adventure Island rides by height →

Brean Theme Park, Somerset

At Brean, a child goes from 13 rides to 20. Several of these can be ridden alone at 100cm, including the Caterpillar Coaster and the Terror Castle ghost train.

Check all Brean rides by height →

Drayton Manor, Staffordshire

Thomas Land already caters well for younger children, but 100cm brings in the coasters. A child goes from 28 to 34 rides, including Troublesome Trucks Runaway Coaster and Accelerator (both with an adult) and Gold Rush, which can be ridden alone from 100cm.

Check all Drayton Manor rides by height →

LEGOLAND Windsor, Berkshire

At LEGOLAND a child goes from 23 rides to 29 (91% of the park). Every ride that opens at 100cm here needs an adult to ride along until your child is taller.

Check all LEGOLAND rides by height →

Twinlakes Park, Leicestershire

Twinlakes already has one of the longest under-100cm lists in the UK. At 100cm a child goes from 38 to 43, including the Buffalo Stampede coaster and Dragon Falls Log Flume.

Check all Twinlakes Park rides by height →

Paultons Park, Hampshire

Paultons is already strong for under-100cm visitors. At 100cm a child goes from 33 to 37 rides (90% of the park), and the new ones are big: the Velociraptor launch coaster, Storm Chaser and Flight of the Pterosaur all take riders from 100cm with an adult.

Check all Paultons Park rides by height →

The First Proper Coasters

For many children, 100cm is the height where coasters stop being "kiddie" rides. These are the UK roller coasters whose lowest way in is exactly 100cm:

A dash in the "With an adult" column means there's no lower height with an adult: your child rides on their own from 100cm. Where both columns have a height, your child needs an adult with them until they reach the higher one.

Where to Celebrate the Milestone

For the most new rides: look at the top of the table above. Parks such as Adventure Island and Brean set a lot of rides at exactly 100cm, so the difference is very noticeable to a child.

For near-complete access: Paultons Park (90% open at 100cm) or Crealy Adventure Park (89%). At 100cm your child can ride nearly everything there, so the day feels unrestricted. Crealy gains little at 100cm only because its "with an adult" rules already let small children on most rides from 92cm.

For a first big coaster: Paultons Park, where three of the park's main coasters open at 100cm with an adult.

Planning the Day Around the New Rides

Most of what opens at 100cm comes with a condition. Look down the "With an adult" column in the full list at the bottom of this page and you'll see that most of these rides only take a 100cm child with an adult riding too, and the height to ride alone is most often 120cm. That shapes the day more than the height itself.

Count your adults, not just your children. If you have two small riders and one adult, you may not be able to take both on the same ride at once. Each ride sets its own rules on how many children one adult can accompany, so ask at the entrance before you queue.

Head for the new rides early. The rides that open at 100cm are mostly family rides, coasters and log flumes, which are exactly the ones every family with young children wants. Doing them first means a newly tall child gets the rides they've been waiting for before queues build.

Expect to get wet. Plenty of log flumes and boat rides are on the 100cm list. Pack a change of clothes, or read our guide to water ride height requirements for which parks have the most splash rides at each height.

Have a back-up if your child is right on the line. A child who measured exactly 100cm at home can come up a touch short at the ride entrance. Measure them in the shoes they'll wear on the day, since parks usually measure children with shoes on, and have a second-choice ride in mind just in case. Our article on the last 2cm before a height limit explains why measurements vary and what you can fairly do about it.

Watch the other end of the scale. A few toddler rides set a maximum height, so a child who's shooting up can outgrow them: L-Drivers at LEGOLAND Windsor, for example, stops at 110cm. Our guide to maximum height limits lists them all. If an older or younger sibling is coming too, our guide to visiting with siblings of different heights shows which parks suit both.

The In-Between Heights: 101cm to 109cm

Not every ride sits on a round number. A handful of UK rides set their lowest height somewhere between 101cm and 109cm, so a child who has just reached 100cm will meet these next, before 110cm:

At Drayton Manor, for example, Loki and Jormungandr both take riders from 105cm with an adult. If you're planning a trip a few months away, it's worth measuring again close to the day: a few centimetres can add one of these to the list.

Spain at 100cm

Spanish parks go from 270 rides at 99cm to 310 at 100cm.

At PortAventura Park, 100cm opens Templo del Fuego, Silver River Flume and Wild Buffalos with an adult (alone from 140cm), and Crazy Barrels, Coco Piloto and Tami Tami with an adult (alone from 130cm); children can also go into the Laberinto Blacksmith play area on their own from 100cm. Parque Warner Madrid opens the Tom & Jerry Picnic en el Parque coaster (alone from 120cm) and the Correcaminos Bip Bip coaster (alone from 130cm) with an adult, along with Río Bravo and Mr.Freeze Fábrica de Hielo (both alone from 120cm), and its user guide does not allow children under 4 on either coaster. At Parque de Atracciones de Madrid, the TNT - Tren de la mina coaster takes children from 100cm with an adult (alone from 120cm), and the user guide adds a minimum age of 4. Ferrari Land opens Flying Dreams, Flying Race, Kids' Tower and Maranello Grand Race with an adult, and Tibidabo opens Embruixabruixes, Piratta and Tibidabo Express with a companion, all three alone from 120cm.

What Comes Next: 110cm and Beyond

This table shows how many of the 1146 rides and attractions across UK parks in our directory a child can go on at each height:

• 110cm opens a smaller batch, such as Runaway Mine Train and Congo River Rapids at Alton Towers and Storm Surge at Thorpe Park (both with an adult). Our 110cm guide lists every ride that opens there.
• 120cm is the next big jump, when many rides that need an adult below 120cm can be ridden alone, and rides like Spinball Whizzer and Wicker Man at Alton Towers open. See every ride that unlocks at 120cm.
• 130cm and 140cm unlock the headline thrill rides, from Hyperia at Thorpe Park (130cm) to Nemesis Reborn and The Smiler at Alton Towers (140cm). A few rides set maximum heights or need more than 140cm, so even at 140cm not quite everything is open. Our list of the UK's tallest height requirements covers the top end.

Every Ride That Unlocks at 100cm

Here is every ride and attraction in UK parks in our directory whose lowest height to board is exactly 100cm:

Use our height calculator to see exactly what your child can ride right now at any park. Enter 100cm and compare, then enter 110cm to see what's coming next.

Frequently asked questions

Does my child need an adult on rides that open at 100cm?

Usually, yes. Most UK rides that open at 100cm only let a 100cm child on with an adult riding alongside, and riding alone most often comes at 120cm. The tables on this page show both heights for every ride, and our guide to riding with an adult vs alone explains how the two rules work.

Will the park measure my child with shoes on?

Usually, yes: parks normally measure children with their shoes on. Measure your child at home in the shoes they'll wear on the day so there are no surprises at the ride entrance.

My child is 99cm. Will they be allowed on a 100cm ride?

Probably not. Ride staff apply the published minimum as written. Measure again close to your visit, and in the meantime see our ranking of UK parks for under-100cm children for the parks with the most to do at 99cm.

Which UK park is best for a child who has just reached 100cm?

It depends on what you want. For the biggest jump in new rides, look at the top of the gains table above. For a day where almost nothing is off-limits, Paultons Park has 90% of its rides and attractions open at 100cm, including three of its main coasters with an adult.

What can a 100cm child ride at Alton Towers?

At 100cm a child can go on 24 of the 37 rides and attractions at Alton Towers, most of them in CBeebies Land, plus Cuckoo Cars Driving School, which opens at 100cm. Runaway Mine Train and Congo River Rapids follow at 110cm with an adult. Our Alton Towers vs Thorpe Park comparison goes through both parks height by height.

What opens at 100cm in Spain?

Many of the Spanish rides that open at 100cm take a 100cm child only with an adult, such as Templo del Fuego and Silver River Flume at PortAventura Park, Tom & Jerry Picnic en el Parque at Parque Warner Madrid and TNT - Tren de la mina at Parque de Atracciones de Madrid. The Spain section above shows which Spanish parks gain the most at 100cm.

What's the next milestone after 100cm?

110cm opens a smaller batch of rides, and 120cm is the next big jump, when many rides that need an adult can be ridden alone. Our guides to 110cm and 120cm list every ride at each.