Hello Kitty Secret Garden, Drusillas Park’s brand new attraction for 2014, started to take shape this week when the first of three children’s rides was installed ready for the hugely anticipated launch this spring.  

Over the past few months, the Hello Kitty tea cup ride has been carefully constructed at the Zamperla factory in Italy. By the time it arrived at the award-winning zoo in East Sussex the ride had travelled approximately 900 miles; the installation took 5 days and was overseen by a technician from Zamperla.

A second ‘reach for the sky’ hopper ride will also be fitted by Zamperla shortly. This will be followed by a Hello Kitty car ride manufactured in Germany by Metallbau-Emmeln; the company who designed and built the hugely popular Thomas the Tank Engine for Drusillas.

Drusillas has always been a mixture of animals and attractions. The popular family day out is enjoyed by all ages and attracts over 350,000 visitors a year.

Partnering with the UK’s number one girls brand represents the Park’s single biggest investment to date and is expected to top £1million. The deal was completed with Japanese company Sanrio in 2013 and Drusillas will now be home to the first permanent Hello Kitty attraction in Europe.

Hello Kitty Secret Garden replaces Jungle Adventure Golf at Drusillas. The new area will be themed within an English country garden and in addition to the three rides, will include Hello Kitty’s house. There will also be the opportunity to meet Hello Kitty herself on twenty special dates during the year, the first of which will take place on Monday 5th May.

Located just off the A27 in Alfriston, Drusillas Park is open daily from 10am. For more information please telephone 01323 874100 or visit www.drusillas.co.uk

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For more information, please contact:

Claire Peters  - Head of Public Relations . Drusillas Park
01323 874112  claire.peters@drusillas.co.uk  www.drusillas.co.uk

About Sanrio
Shintaro Tsuji founded Sanrio in Japan in 1960 with the motto "Small Gift, Big Smile" and the aim of bringing happiness to people's lives through inexpensive fancy goods. Throughout the years his company has created and licensed over 400 characters appealing on ages 0 to forever. It is indeed not only home to superstar Hello Kitty, but a global brand concentrating on marketing classic characters like My Melody, Kerokerokeroppi, Bad Badtz-Maru, Little Twin Stars, Cinnamoroll, Pompompurin, Sugarbunnies, Chococat, Tuxedo Sam, Jewelpet, Kuromi, Charmmykitty and new acquisitions like British icons Mr. Men Little Miss. Sanrio today joins forces with the most respected companies in fashion, streetwear, cosmetics, hi-tech, toys to bring smiles on the coolest brands: as Hello Kitty says, you can never have too many friends! 

About Drusillas:
Drusillas Park was named Visitor Attraction of the Year by Tourism South East in 2010/11 as well as Company of the Year in the Sussex Business Awards in 2009. It was the first attraction in Europe to have a permanent Thomas the Tank Engine train ride (the leading UK boys' character brand) following a deal with HIT Entertainment in 2007.  Drusillas was established in 1925 and acquired by Laurence and Christine Smith in 1997.