Cadbury World 2017

Scrolling through websites, I found an advertisement and promotion for Cadbury World and planned to go with India.

Having been before and enjoyed it, I purchased two tickets, one for myself and one for India, who was eager to come with me.

Glancing at the tickets and requirements, we phoned the exhibition up to confirm that we were looking at the correct tickets.

Confirming this through the phone call, we relised that we were, the two tickets, adult disability ticket and the carer ticket both equaled up to the price of a original adult ticket. Once again, my disability saved me money!

The morning of our visit to Cadbury world, we phoned them up and confirmed our visit and those we would need assistance on the tour.

On arrival it was crowded, full of families and children. During the summer was possibly a bad time to go, as there were young children everywhere you looked.

It was a good job we booked before we came, as we would not of been able to get in otherwise.

Weaving in and out the crowds as best as we could, we finally got to the til and received our tickets.

Fighting through the crowd again to get to get into another line which would take it in the first from of the exhibition, I began to feel a little claustrophobic, feeling frustrated, I moved forward, hoping they would move their toes out the way time.

Lining up, we got four bars of chocolate each to eat during the tour in a mini Cadbury World bag. Yum!

When I was a child and I went to Cadbury World, I was only interested in the chocolate available and how much I could eat, but now I’m slightly older I enjoyed learning about the history of Cadbury and how it first started. I enjoyed watching the holograms of people telling us about the history.

We then moved on to how Cadbury’s chocolate business expanded. I enjoyed learning about Cadburys and how it had changed over the years. Still learning about the history, we saw how the cocoa beans were made and transported to two different parts of the country and finally made into the Cadbury chocolate that we all love.

This part of the experience was interactive and the seats moved in accordance to what was on the screen, it was funny to watch India be shocked by the sudden movements, especially as I knew that it was coming.

Next we went to the main ride of the Cadbury World exhibition. I knew that the exhibition would be very busy and crowded because we went in the summer break, but I never expected the amount of people that would actually be there.

The claustrophobia that I felt when I first got to Cadbury World and was trying to get through to get to the start of the tour found me again. Some people moved when I said excuse me, but others didn’t move and blankly stared at me.

This frustrated me; the rudeness of people never fails to surprise me. Would it hurt to move out the way for five seconds while I move past them. Is it really that hard?

Finally, getting to the end of the queue for the ride, we prepared to be waiting for a long time, when one of the assistants found us.

Leading us out of the queue, we walked alongside this massive queue to the front and waited to go on the ride.

As we passed the queue of the people, I felt slightly guilty but awfully smug at their expressions on their faces.

Waiting, we got into the car, specifically for wheelchair users. It took me a while to maneuver within the space and after crashing a few times I managed it, but then poor India had to climb over me to be able to sit down. Oh I did feel bad.

The ride was particularly aimed at kids, but I enjoyed it, it reminded me of ’its small world after all’ but with coco beans. Smiling, we posed for the camera and had our photograph taken, it was great.

Moving out of the ride, we walked passed the ever-growing queue and I couldn’t conceal smirks as I passed those who I had passed on my way to use the ride.

Making our way through more crowds, we got to the front of the queue for the green screen experience. Positioning us in front of a green screen, we chose a background and got ready to pose.

The choices were to float on a Cadbury’s Diary Milk chocolate bar through space, winning the Cadbury Olympics, appearing out of large Cadbury’s eggs and having flake baths. We chose to have a flake bath. Seeing our photograph, we found it hilarious, we were wearing shower caps and clutching bath ducks.

Returning back to the photo desk, we decided to purchase the photo that we had taken on the Cadbury’s ride and our photo in the flake bath.

We brought a keyring, large photo and a smaller photo of each, then mixed and matched and I still have them to look back on.

Making our way through the tour, we found ourselves in in one of my favourite parts of the tour. The melted chocolate. Yum!

We got a cup of melted chocolate each and we had the choice of two toppings. Having been before, I had tried both the melted chocolate with toppings and without.

Though I saw India’s looked very appetising with Crunchy honeycomb pieces and white chocolate buttons. I much preferred my cup full of melted chocolate on its own.

Coming out of that part, we walked into a slightly darker room where the many screens around the room were showing all of the adverts that advertised Cadbury’s chocolate since the beginning.

This was interesting to see as slowly we could see how the adverts and technology progressed to present. Until this day, I love the gorilla playing the drums advertisement which advertised Cadbury’s chocolate.

Next section of the tour was interactive. This part wasn’t very enjoyable for me as many of the activities that were there involved stomping there feet and running around.

The only part I could join in was pushing buttons to make cocoa bean trees to grow successfully, watering them at the right moment and if I didn’t the trees would die.

Though it was fun the first time, it soon became rather repetitive, becoming rather boring, so we moved on.

For future visits, I do hope that the exhibition altered or expands to include more activities to enable those in wheelchairs or those with disabilities could join in on.

The final part of the tour and exhibition was the gift shop. Having been before when I was younger and being hyped on a lot of chocolate, I used to run about everywhere; buying everything I can get my hands on, including stationery.

Now though, I felt rather full and a bit sick from all of the chocolate I’d already eaten, so I was rather more controlled in buying souvenirs. Having already brought the keyrings and photographs of our Cadbury ride together with us in the flake bath, I focused on the requests I got from my family, and they all wanted something.

Moving around the shop, I bought a big bar of Dairy Milk with Crunchy for Mom, a big bar of Dairy Milk with whole nut for dad, a large original Dairy Milk bar of chocolate for my nan, ten Fri’s chocolate bars for my grandma and finally a big bar of Bournville chocolate for my Granddad.

Waiting in the coffee shop for my Mom to pick us up, I saw many temptations that swayed me a lot, but I resisted, especially the Cadbury’s hot chocolate.

I didn’t get the hot chocolate from the coffee shop but I did admit defeat and went back into the gift shop and bought my Mom and myself a large tub of Cadbury’s hot chocolate to share between ourselves, though this was my intention I still don’t think I got any.

Finally getting to the car I clutched my purchases and handed them out. I kept a keyring, mini photograph and large photograph of India’s time and mine at Cadbury World.

They still bring me happy memories of that day we spent together and also bring a smile to my face every time I look at them.