Room on the Broom - A Magical Journey

In March 2019, Room on the Broom - A Magical Journey opened at Chessington World of Adventures. From that season onwards, visitors could walk through scenes from the well-known children's book. Special effects and animatronics brought the characters to life along the route, turning the story into something families could physically move through rather than simply watch.

The attraction was based on Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson. Beyond the book, the story had also reached a wider audience through a short animated film released in 2012. Chessington's creative team wanted the experience to make guests feel as if they were stepping into that film world.

For the park, the opening was more than a straightforward retheme. Chessington was strengthening a family identity built around familiar British children's stories. After The Gruffalo, Room on the Broom gained its own physical presence in the resort. For visitors, it meant a gentle, story-driven attraction aimed especially at younger children, while also giving an old walkthrough building a new purpose.

One month after the striking Hocus Pocus Hall stunt, Chessington revealed what would happen to the building. In October 2018, the English park announced Room on the Broom - A Magical Journey, a walkthrough based on the popular children's book Room on the Broom.

The existing Hocus Pocus Hall attraction would be converted for the new experience. Visitors were promised an enchanted library and a journey through the pages of the book. The story follows a clumsy witch who loses her hat, bow and wand along the way. Several animals help her find the missing items, and those scenes were set to come alive inside the attraction.

For Chessington, the choice fitted a broader creative direction. In 2017, the park had already opened The Gruffalo River Ride Adventure, also based on a book by Julia Donaldson and illustrator Axel Scheffler. Room on the Broom gave Chessington another recognisable family property and turned an ageing walkthrough into a story-led attraction aimed at young children and their parents.

Before Room on the Broom - A Magical Journey was announced, Chessington set the stage with an unusual move involving Hocus Pocus Hall. In September 2018, the park claimed that the walkthrough attraction was for sale for £7 million. The 2003 attraction sat inside an old mansion on the edge of the park and featured blacklight sets, 3D effects, animatronics, a rotating tunnel and a mirror maze.

Looopings immediately treated the story with caution. Although Chessington presented the mansion as if it was genuinely looking for a new owner, the timing felt designed to generate attention. The park said a new owner would be revealed on 17 October, even though no one had placed a bid. At the same time, Chessington promised fans that it would soon reveal what would replace the attraction.

For the history of Room on the Broom, the article captures the build-up to the retheme. The new walkthrough did not appear out of nowhere: it took over an eccentric family attraction and gave the old building a story that fitted Chessington's growing use of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler children's book worlds.