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Miss Pembrokeshire to officially open Oakwood Theme Park

Miss Pembrokeshire will be on hand to officially open Oakwood Theme Park to the public for the 2011 season on Saturday, April 9^th.

Beauty therapy student Hannah Snape, 18, who won the title back in February will be invited to officially cut the ribbon by Park Director Andy Hygate before welcoming the first visitors through the gates.

She will then join Andy to sample some of Oakwood’s most popular rides including the wooden coaster Megafobia, Bounce, Speed and Drenched.

“We’re delighted Hannah has kindly agreed to help us re-open the park to the public,” said Andy.

“As well as winning the title of Miss Pembrokeshire, Hannah has also helped to raise lots of money for the children’s cancer charity The Joshua Foundation and we’re more than happy to support her ongoing fundraising work.

“Everyone here has been working incredibly hard over the winter to get Oakwood ready for its first visitors and we are all really looking forward to the new season,” he added.

Hannah, who is from Milford Haven, will go on to represent the county in the Miss Wales Grand Final at St David's Hall in Cardiff on Saturday 2 July. The winner will represent Wales at Miss World.

Prior to the competition the contestants for Miss Pembrokeshire and Miss Carmarthenshire raised more than £5,200 for the competition’s associated charity, The Joshua Foundation.

Hannah will continue to fundraise for the children’s cancer charity in the run up to the Miss Wales Grand Final.

Oakwood Bowl to be overrun by pirates!

Oakwood Bowl is being taken over by buccaneers, brigands and privateers next weekend as part of a special ‘Pirates Saturday’ event on Saturday, April 2nd.

Staff will be donning their own piratical costumes for the day and anyone who turns up on Saturday in full pirate fancy dress will receive a FREE game of bowling.

There will also be a special prize for the best dressed pirate on the day with the chance to win an annual pass to Oakwood Theme Park (worth up to £60).

Oakwood Bowl’s Emma Owen said: “Earlier this year we launched new pirate-themed birthday parties and they have proved extremely popular with youngsters.

“We thought the Pirate Saturday event would be a fun way for everyone, including our staff, to get involved.

“For most people the prospect of having to dress up would fill them with dread but our staff can’t wait to get out of their uniforms and into their pirates’ gear!

“As well as staff in fancy dress we’re also expecting a special appearance by the infamous pirate Captain Jack Sparrow in the shape of a life-size statue, which has been donated by Oakwood Theme Park,” she added.

Located next to Oakwood Theme Park, the Oakwood Bowl offers a variety of all-weather activities for the whole family to enjoy.

As well as classic Ten Pin Bowling, there’s also a Game Zone with arcade games, pool tables and a fully licensed bar, a function room and a snack bar to refuel the family.

Pupils to help plant 50 trees at Oakwood

Pupils from St Aidan’s Primary School in Wiston will be visiting Oakwood Theme Park on Wednesday, March 30th at 1pm to help plant more than 50 new trees.

The trees, a mixture of willow and poplar, have been donated by Lawrence Lyons Exclusive Kitchens of Haverfordwest, and will be planted close to the entrance of the popular Pembrokeshire theme park.

Ten pupils, aged from four to 11, from St Aidan’s Eco Council will be on hand to help plant the trees which could eventually grow up to 20 metres high and live for more than 80 years.

Oakwood Park Director, Andy Hygate, said: “We’re delighted that Lawrence Lyons agreed to plant these fantastic trees at the park as part of our ongoing tree-planting scheme here.

“The fact that youngsters from St Aidan’s are also able to come along and help with the planting is a great opportunity for them to get involved in a local environmental project.

“Hopefully they will be able to watch the trees grow and develop over the coming years and maybe, one day, bring their own children to come and see the trees they helped to plant,” he added.

Lawrence Lyons’ managing partner, John Calleja, will also be on hand to assist with the planting programme.

“From day one Lawrence Lyons had always envisaged a programme to replace any trees that were used in the manufacture of our bespoke products,” said John.

“With help from Oakwood Theme Park this has become a reality, we aim to be able to plant a further 50 trees in the autumn with plans for additional planting in 2012,” he added.

Theme park wants your help to stay high and dry

Oakwood Theme Park is to stage its very own vote on election day (Thursday May 6th) to discover if it’s possible to stay dry on Europe’s wettest ride - and they want your help.

On Thursday a team of volunteers from the Pembrokeshire park will don a variety of different outfits to see which one keeps them driest on their giant water ride Hydro.

Hydro is the tallest, steepest and wettest ride in Europe. After climbing more than 30 metres into the air riders are faced with a near vertical 88 degree drop into 4.5million litres of water.

Even spectators need to be on their guard to dodge the 45 foot splash wave on the wooden viewing bridge.

Park director Andy Hygate said: “Hydro is one of our most popular rides and getting soaked is all part of the fun.

“However we’ve decided to run an experiment to discover which types of clothing and waterproof equipment provide the greatest protection.

“Our team here have come up with some suggestions of their own but we would also like to invite people to email in their ideas – the plan is for us to then pick out the best ones and test them out.

“Whoever comes up with the most effective, practical and safe idea will win a year’s membership to the park and the opportunity to try out their suggestion on Hydro for themselves,” he added.

A team of volunteers has been recruited as guinea pigs for the experiment and the effectiveness of their outfits will be judged by an impartial group of adjudicators who will take into account everything from overall dryness, to comfort and practicality.

• Anyone who has a suggestion can email, along with their contact details to marketing@oakwoodthemepark.co.uk. All entries should be marked ‘High and Dry Vote’.

Celebrating National Pet Month

Dog owners who visit Oakwood Theme Park throughout April and May are being invited to show their support for National Pet Month.

The Pembrokeshire theme park is one of the few in the UK to provide free kennelling for visitors’ pets.

The service is normally free, with visitors paying a refundable deposit. However for the duration of National Pet Month staff are inviting owners to donate the deposit to a local animal rescue charity.

Local dog trainer Amy Shaler of Dogs ‘n’ Stuff said: “Many visitors come to the area on holiday with their pets and Oakwood’s kennels provide a safe, secure and comfortable environment for the dogs to relax in while their owners enjoy the rides.

“I know how much holidaymakers appreciate this, normally, free service and think Oakwood’s idea to utilise the kennel service to raise awareness of National Pet Month and help raise funds for a local animal rescue centre at the same time is a fantastic.

“It’s particularly relevant as the theme of this year’s campaign is responsible pet ownership. Everyone knows the potential risks of leaving dogs in cars during hot weather – Oakwood’s kennels provide the perfect alternative.”

National Pet Month is a charity raising the profile of how to look after our pets responsibly whilst showing how much fun we can have with them.

This year, from 3 April – 3 May, National Pet Month is marking its 21st birthday and thousands of people are celebrating life with their pets at hundreds of events throughout the UK.

The theme of this year’s event is ‘Healthy pets make happy pets’ and aims to promote responsible pet ownership.

All money raised from the event will be donated to the nearby Green Acres Animal Rescue centre.

First week of opening

Distinct lack of blogging of late - sorry guys been manic with the reopening of the park. LOADS of stuff has been happening at Oakwood - here's a brief round up for you ...

KO the police dog came for a visit with his handler Sharon Gibby!

The dog section use Oakwood for training during our closed period and Sharon, who passed her course in February, completed much of her training here. Personnally, I'm a sucker for a big dog and the gorgeous KO was no exception!

Danger Mouse opened the park for 2010!

The fearless mouse popped down to Pembrokeshire to officially open the park for 2010 and, of course, to check out Speed and Megafobia!

New Bounce sculpture unveiled

One of our Ash trees needed to be cut down but rather than just remove it we got an amazing chainsaw sculptor to do this ...

Furry friends arrive

We had a lovely arrival this week - rabbits and guinea pigs. They were a bit shy when they saw the camera but here's a sneak preview for you ...