The park evacuation saw thousands spill out of one exit alone, a park-goer claimed (Picture: PETER MACDIARMID 2026)
Chessington World of Adventures Resort was abruptly evacuated and later closed after receiving a ‘threat’.
The theme park in Chessington, about 12 miles south west of London, confirmed the closure in an Instagram story this afternoon.
The park said: ‘Chessington World of Adventures Resort is currently closed. Guests due to visit today are advised that tickets are being accepted at LEGOLAND Windsor or alternatively, you can contact our Customer Services team after 2pm today.
‘We apologise for any inconvenience caused and will provide a further update as soon as possible.’
Chessington Buzz, a social media account covering the theme park, said there had been a ‘parkwide evacuation’.
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‘And, as is often standard,’ it added on X, emergency services attended.
We’re aware there is a parkwide evacuation of Chessington currently and, as is often standard, the attendance of emergency services
Please listen to staff instructions if on the park/hotels
Let the teams do their jobs pic.twitter.com/92qJ6FqKpc
— Chessington Buzz (@ChessingtonBuzz) November 8, 2026
A243 Leatherhead Road, where the park is, was briefly closed between B280 Fairoak Lane and Barwell Business Park at 2.37pm.
‘Around 3,000 of us were trying to use the same exit’
One park-goer told Metro he was heading to Dragon’s Fury when he saw everyone ‘getting off’ the roller coaster and a staffer saying it was closing.
‘As we got closer to the exit, we passed members of management who were saying all staff are to be sent home, so this definitely confirmed that something major was going on,’ he said.
‘Due to the time of year, they were only using the entrance by the hotel, so you had around 3,000 people all trying to get out of the same entrance with very little staff in this area controlling the flow of people.’
The dad said that driving out of the Chessington World of Adventures’ car park was a ‘disaster’, being stuck there for more than an hour.
‘When we see a number of police cars, fire engines and ambulances arriving, it just made things even more alarming for everyone,’ he added.
Chessington World of Adventures Resort will reopen tomorrow (Picture: Reuters)
Chessington World of Adventures Resort told Metro that the park shut due to a ‘security incident’, which has since been ‘resolved’.
‘The hotel will reopen Monday and the Resort will reopen as planned on Saturday,’ the park added.
‘The safety and wellbeing of our guests and staff remain our highest priority. We would like to thank our guests for their patience and understanding, and our teams for their swift response and support.’
The police told Metro that a ‘threat’ was made against the park.
‘The matter has been assessed, and no security issues have been identified,’ the force added.
‘This is believed to be an isolated incident with no wider risk to the public.’
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