Stealth at Thorpe Park: Stats, Height Limit and Ride Tips

What Stealth is and where to find it

Stealth is a steel sit-down launch coaster in the Amity Speedway area of Thorpe Park, themed around drag racing with cars, a start-light sequence and a launch that is visible from the queue line. The park itself describes it plainly as a giant accelerator coaster that combines speed and height into its top thrill ride.

Because the track climbs well above the rest of the park, Stealth works as a landmark: you can see the top hat from across the park and use it to orient yourself, and the plaza at the ride entrance gives a clear view of the launch before you commit to queuing.

For a full view of how Stealth sits among the rest of the park's coasters and flat rides, the Thorpe Park guide is the sensible starting point before you build a ride order.

Ride stats: launch, height and track

The headline numbers come from Thorpe Park's own ride page: a top speed of 80mph, a launch from 0 to 80mph in 1.8 seconds, and a track that reaches 62.5m at its highest point. The ride also carries a maximum torso restriction, which is unusual enough to matter for larger riders.

The Roller Coaster Database records Stealth as an Intamin installation with 1,312.3ft of track, 205.1ft of height, a 90-degree vertical angle and zero inversions, running three trains of five cars with 20 riders per train.

In practical terms, that layout means a short, intense circuit rather than a long multi-element layout: a launch, a tall top hat and a final airtime hill before the brake run. A rider review describes the circuit as finishing in around 29 seconds, which sets expectations for anyone expecting a lengthy coaster.

One detail worth knowing is that Stealth uses magnetic brakes and a hydraulic launch system, and the park states the ride is not suitable for guests with a pacemaker because of strong magnetic fields. If anyone in your group has an implanted device, that is a hard stop rather than a judgement call.

Height limit, torso restriction and who can ride

Thorpe Park sets a minimum height of 1.4m to ride Stealth. Measure children at home rather than at the entrance, because a child who is close to the line can be turned away after queuing and there is no junior version of the ride to fall back on.

As well as the height limit, the ride lists a maximum torso restriction of 51 inches. That figure is worth reading carefully before you travel if any member of your group is broad across the chest or shoulders, since the restraint has to close to a set position for the ride to dispatch.

Thorpe Park publishes rider requirements for every ride, and checking the Stealth entry alongside the rest of the coaster line-up avoids a split group discovering at the turnstile that two members cannot ride anything big.

Accessibility and ride access

Stealth is listed as suitable for non-ambulant riders, provided the guest can transfer into the ride seat with assistance and has full upper body strength including head and neck control to brace against the forces.

The ride also applies limb requirements: riders need a minimum of three full limbs, limb differences or amputations must be below the elbow or knee, and prosthetic limbs must be secured or removed before boarding. Some rides require a ladder evacuation, so the park's accessibility guide is worth reading before you set your route.

If you use a Ride Access Pass, the park issues a time card listing ride restrictions by attraction, and the Stealth page points to the full accessibility guide for the definitive list. Build your day around the rides on that list that actually suit your group instead of treating every coaster as a guaranteed fit.

What the launch and drop feel like

The launch is the defining moment: the train holds briefly, the start lights run, and the hydraulic system pushes you from a standstill to full speed in under two seconds, pinning you into the seat before the track climbs to the top hat. At the crest the train slows noticeably, giving a view across the park before the drop.

After the drop, the circuit finishes with a smaller airtime hill and a magnetic brake run. Rider accounts describe the whole experience as fast and intense rather than disorienting, because there are no inversions and the layout is easy to read from the queue.

For anyone nervous about their first launch coaster, the useful framing is that the intensity is concentrated in the first two seconds and the top hat, with the rest of the ride comparatively gentle. Riders who dislike sustained g-force often find a single short launch easier to manage than a long multi-loop layout.

Front row versus back row

Where you sit genuinely changes the ride. The back row gets the full effect of the launch pulling the train away from you, so the acceleration feels strongest there, while the front row gives an unobstructed view over the top hat and a smoother, cleaner arc through the circuit.

The trade-off is queue time: the front row and back row are the most requested seats, so the station often splits into separate waits for each. If you only plan to ride once, decide in advance whether you want the launch sensation or the view, and join that queue rather than defaulting to the shortest line.

The ride runs three trains of five cars with 20 riders each, which keeps throughput reasonable for a short circuit and means the queue usually moves in steady batches rather than in long stalls.

Queues and when to ride Stealth

Stealth rewards rope-drop. Head there as the park opens, because the launch sits near the front of most visitors' plans and the queue builds faster than on the smaller rides, so the first hour is when you are most likely to get a short wait or a re-ride.

Later in the day, the practical approach is to use the official app to watch live queue times and move toward Stealth when the posted wait drops, rather than committing to a long standby line in the middle of the afternoon.

Opening hours change by date and by event, so confirm the day you plan to visit against the published calendar before fixing your arrival time.

If you are visiting during Thorpe Park Fright Nights, expect the evening atmosphere around the park to change the rhythm of the day, with scare attractions drawing crowds away from some coasters at points in the evening.

Fastrack and how queue-jump works on Stealth

Stealth has Fastrack available as a paid extra, alongside car parking, digital photo packages and VIP experiences on the park's ticket pages. Fastrack gives you access to a shorter queue line rather than instant boarding, so you still wait, just for less time.

Before buying, weigh the cost against how many coasters you actually plan to ride: a single-ride Fastrack on a quiet morning is poor value, while an all-day product makes more sense if you are visiting on a busy date and want repeat goes on Stealth and the other big coasters.

The park bundles Fastrack into some short-break packages, with an hour of Fastrack on your second day on its overnight stays, which can be a cheaper route to queue-jumping than buying it separately.

Rides to pair with Stealth

Thrill-seekers should build a circuit that links Stealth with the rest of the big coasters, since they sit within a walkable loop and each offers a different kind of intensity. Nemesis Inferno delivers an inverted layout with inversions, a very different sensation from Stealth's straight launch.

Colossus is the other classic to pair with Stealth, a multi-inversion layout designed by Werner Stengel that gives a longer, more sustained ride than the launch coaster. Riding both in the same day makes for a good comparison between short-burst intensity and a longer circuit. If you are comparing short-burst launches across the country, our Alton Towers guide puts Rita and the park's other coasters in the same frame.

SAW – The Ride and The Swarm round out a full thrill-seeker's day, and both are worth reading up on before you go so you know which requirements apply to each member of your group.

If you are chasing the park's newest headline coaster as well, Hyperia at Thorpe Park sits at the other end of the scale in height and layout, and it is worth deciding in advance which of the two you rope-drop.

Stealth for families with younger children

Stealth is a 1.4m minimum-height coaster, so many younger children will not clear the bar and the rest of the group needs a plan for the wait. The usual approach is for one adult to ride while the other waits with the children nearby, then swap if rider swap is available on the day.

Because the ride's plaza gives a clear view of the launch, waiting at the entrance is more entertaining than a typical queue-side wait, and children too small to ride often enjoy watching the trains fire away. Pair it with a nearby gentler attraction so the day does not become a series of waits for the youngest member of the group.

Food, shops and the Amity area

Stealth sits in the Amity Speedway area, themed around American drag racing, and the surrounding park has a range of restaurants and shops that the park lists on its dining pages. Restaurants and shops are concentrated in the central areas, so it is easy to combine a Stealth ride with a food stop rather than trekking back across the park.

If you are planning a full day, check the park's eating options in advance so you know whether to book a table or grab food between rides, particularly on event evenings when the park stays open later.

Tickets, annual passes and short breaks

Stealth is included in standard Thorpe Park day tickets alongside the rest of the rides. The park sells day tickets online with a saving on the gate price, and the official page quotes a lead-in online price for a one-day ticket, so booking ahead is the cheaper route.

Annual passes make sense if you plan to return, since the ride line-up rewards repeat visits and passholders get prebooking access to event dates. Overnight stays in the Thorpe Shark Cabins bundle two-day park entry, breakfast and some Fastrack on the second day, which suits anyone wanting to ride Stealth twice without paying twice for entry.

Compare the short-break packages against separate tickets and a nearby hotel if you are staying more than one night, since the on-site bundle is convenient but not automatically the cheapest option.

Getting there and using the app

Thorpe Park sits near Chertsey in Surrey, close to the M25 and served by train links to the local area with onward bus or taxi connections. Driving gives you flexibility, and the park lists car parking as a bookable extra alongside Fastrack and photo packages.

The official Thorpe Park app shows live queue times, ride availability and a park map, which is the simplest way to time your Stealth ride once you are inside rather than guessing from the entrance.

Check the day's opening hours on the official calendar before you travel, since times shift with the season and with events such as Fright Nights.

Plan Your Stealth Ride

Stealth is a short, sharp thrill built around one extraordinary two-second moment, and it rewards planning: check the 1.4m height and the torso restriction at home, decide whether you want the front-row view or the back-row launch, and rope-drop it before the queue builds.

Pair it with Nemesis Inferno and Colossus for a full coaster day, use the app to time a second ride, and check the official opening times page for the date you plan to visit before you book anything.