A BRIT has offered his honest review of a tourist attraction dubbed by many as the “worst value in the UK”.
Phil Carr visited Cadbury World last week after a slew of fans online urged him to go, following his string of reviews and guides to British leisure activities.
The dad, from Epsom, Surrey, made the journey through to rainy Birmingham last week to visit the “rip-off tourist attraction”, and offer his own thoughts on whether Cadbury World was really that bad.
Phil’s video begins with him voicing over a compilation of footage from his visit, as he says: “Rip-off tourist attractions. This country is full of them.
“You have messaged in your dozens to suggest this is one.”
The camera shows Phil walking towards Cadbury World as he says: “I’m at Cadbury World – widely considered to be one of the worst-value tourist attractions in the whole country, after the Harry Potter studios.”
Phil begins the self-guided tour by showing an almost-empty queue to enter the attraction as he explains: “I paid £21 for my ticket and we’re in Birmingham, as you guessed by the weather.”
The camera then cuts to show a member of staff packing a purple Cadbury bag up with ‘free’ chocolate bars, but Phil quickly points out that he had to fork over £1 for the bag.
The clip then cuts to one of the exhibitions on the self-guided tour, which appears to have a selection of aged models hilariously demonstrating the Spanish colonists politely greeting the Native Americans and discussing the use of cocoa beans.
Phil explains that this is the area where tourists can “learn about where the cocoa beans grow”.
The camera cuts to show Phil playing with an interactive screen that appears to have colonial trivia questions for children to answer.
The camera then shows statues of the Native Americans, with one appearing to be welcoming two colonists into their home.
Phil sarcastically jests: “It was heartwarming to see that when the Natives welcomed in their European guests, the trade was fair, equal and beneficial to all.”
The video then shows projected videos of the cocoa bean progressing through people of different centuries, including pirates and the upper class of the Middle Ages.
Phil sarcastically adds again: “I did wonder who was growing the beans, but I thought it best not to ask.”
The camera then cuts to another part of the attraction where chocolate is being churned by a machine as Phil says: “The history lesson, like all history lessons, is mildly interesting-“
He then warns parents: “-But good luck if you have young children with you.”
The camera then cuts to a large green screen as Phil explains that he was able to take photos with props because “this is a British tourist attraction, and these things make money.”
He then moves on to the Cadabra – a children’s ride that takes the tourist through an animated journey of how the chocolate is made.
He shows two empty cars as he says: “There was no queue, fortunately.”
He then criticises the ride as he says: “I know a long time ago, someone put a lot of effort into building this but even by young children’s standards, it’s a bit, well, s**t. It sounds exactly like you’d imagine.”
The video then shows dated character animatronics throughout the ride babbling in high-pitched warbles and squeaks as the ride continues along the track.
The clip then cuts to show a short queue for the photos with a sign at the desk which reads: “Order your photos here.”
A couple can be seen looking bored as they pick out their photos as Phil voices over: “The photos were £12. Who guessed £12?”
The video then shows chocolatiers carefully decorating chocolate shoes and other designs with intricate artwork, which Phil claims to be the best feature of the attraction.
He then moves on as he spots old, unfamiliar television adverts, jesting that they are “for anyone under the age of 50 to just stare at blankly.”
Finally, he ventures to the 4D theatre, where he watches a film and claims to feel travel sick from the experience.
He concludes the experience, stating: “The whole thing does feel dated, and it depends on whether you think £21 is a lot of money or not. Let’s be honest, if this was in London, it would be at least £60 to get into – with another £40 for fast track.”
Phil took to social media last week to share the scathing review, writing: “What is the worst value tourist attraction in the UK? Some people think here.”
The post received over 379,200 likes, and more than 4,300 comments from users who were quick to share their own experiences of the visitor attraction.
One person wrote: “I went earlier this year with my mum and sister. I’m 33 – loved it.”
Another said: “My Grandad used to work there and now he hates chocolate. They used to give the workers free chocolate so they wouldn’t steal anything.
“So, he hates it.
A third commented: “I last went to Cadbury World when my son was five. It’s not changed much, apart from the price of the photo doubling in price. My son is now 25.”
A fourth added: “I remember going to Cadbury World as a kid and, to this day it’s the trip our family all say was an absolute shambles and rip-off.”
A spokesperson for Cadbury World said: “Cadbury World provides fun and interactive experiences for thousands of visitors every year.
“The pricing across our attractions is carefully monitored to ensure we offer great value for money.
“Our pricing structure allows greater flexibility for guests booking online to choose discounted prices for selected dates and times while we also offer discounted prices on Merlin multi-attraction tickets and various third-party partnership offers.”