After a successful launch of the fair in Promenade Park in Maldon and following the latest government Covid-19 guidelines for fairground attractions, the Carters Steam Fair team have now reviewed the fair visitor experience to give more flexibility and choice for all those wanting to ride their iconic vintage fairground rides.
Starting from Tuesday 1 June and running until Sunday 4 July, the fair will be reverting to a free entry and then a ‘pay as you go’ system for riders. Visitors to the fair can purchase ride tokens and pick their favourite rides and go on as many (or as few) as they want. Ride tokens can be bought on the day from the token booth, or online in an advance token bundle for extra value which includes additional free ride tickets.
Fairground visitors will no longer need to choose a 30-minute time slot to experience the fair but will be given longer to enjoy the rides. For extra peace of mind, visitor numbers will be monitored throughout the day to ensure no large crowds. This flexible way to experience the fair means that adventurous little kids can mix and match and go on some of the bigger rides (subject to height restrictions) and adults can choose to use their ride tokens to ride alongside them. If anyone in the family wants to go on more rides, they can buy additional ride tokens on the day.
Fairground owner Joby Carter says:
“As a small, family run fair, visitor experience is always the most important thing to us. We are delighted that in line with the latest Covid-19 restrictions we can now let our visitors enjoy the fair however they want. This is our first trip out on the road since the nation went into lockdown and we have been thrilled to see the big smiles on children’s faces when they visit us – for many of them it is the first big fun experience they have had in over a year. By giving the flexibility of ride tokens in a covid-secure environment we hope to give families peace of mind to come along and make lasting family memories.”
How do the ride tokens work?
Instead of paying cash for each ride, you’ll need to buy ride tokens to enter the ride enclosure. Each ride is 4, 5 or 6 ride tokens per person riding.
Ride tokens are 50p per token and you can buy them individually, buy enough for just one ride or you can buy a ride bundle from the main token booth or online by 10am on the day of your visit. That’s when you get best value for money as you get extra free ride tickets with the online bundles.
Most of the rides for young children (up to around age 6 or7 depending on how tall they are) are 4 tokens. A ride bundle of 40 tokens will give you 10 rides – that could be 10 rides for 1 child or if you have 2 children you could give them 5 rides each.
The ‘family favourite’ rides like the Galloper Horses (you may know it by the American word of ‘carousel’) and the Dodgems are 6 ride tokens per person.
There is a mix of rides at the fair in Maldon:
These rides are all suitable for children up to around 7 years of age (or under 1.3m)
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- Austin Cars
- Boat Ride
- Wonder Railway Train
- Toytown
- Swing boats
These rides are suitable for children over 1.1m but some of the rides that spin fast and fly high have additional height restrictions in place and younger riders will need to be accompanied by an adult. Younger children can go on the Galloper Horses if they are accompanied by an adult (you will need ride tokens for each rider)
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- The Galloper Horses
- Hurricane Jets
- Jungle Ark Thriller
- Chair-O-Plane
- Lightning Skid
- Dodgem Cars
A local blogger said:
“You might look at the website and decide that out of all the rides, there are 5 rides that your child will want to go on. What I have seen with my kids and my friend’s kids is that once they have been on a ride once, they are just as thrilled to go on it a second time – there are so many cool cars and funky animals to choose from that it never gets boring.”
How can you get the best value for money at the fair?
As with so many visitor attractions, you will get the best value when you book in advance online by 10am on the day of your visit. That way you’ll get a big bundle of ride tokens, and some extra free ride tickets thrown in too. The free ride tickets can be used to give one free ride on any of the 4, 5 or 6 token rides.
The online advance deals are always better value than any deals you will get on the day.
If you’ve not booked in advance by 10am, then your best bet on the day is to head to the main token booth as there will still be a ‘deal of the day’ on offer. This typically has the same amount of ride tokens, but half the number of free tickets compared to the advance deals.
Enjoy a Covid-secure fair
The Carters family have followed the latest government guidelines for fairgrounds to ensure that a covid-secure system is in place. When you visit the fair there are several measures in place to ensure you have peace of mind:
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- There is a one-way system around the fair
- Hand sanitising stations are in place around the fair and we ask all visitors to sanitise their hands when they come into the ride enclosure
- We ask visitors to wear a mask when you come to the token booth and when you are in close proximity to others who are not in your household.
- Visitor numbers will be monitored to ensure there are no large crowds
- We ask everyone to social distance
- All of our rides are cleaned using an industry standard ‘fogging machine’ which sanitises for up to 24 hours.
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Book now
You can book an online ride token bundle here. Book by 10am on the day of your visit and you’ll get extra free ride tickets with your token bundle.
