Rumba Rapids
Thorpe Park’s Rumba Rapids with Stealth in the background, operating in August 2021.
Thorpe Park Resort
Area	The Jungle
Coordinates	51°24′17″N 0°30′47″W / 51.40472°N 0.51306°W / 51.40472; -0.51306
Status	Closed
Opening date	1987 (1987)
General statistics
Type	River rafting ride
Manufacturer	Intamin
Lift system	Yes
Length	460 m (1,510 ft)
Capacity	1000 riders per hour
Duration	4 min 20 sec
Fastrack available
Must transfer from wheelchair

Rumba Rapids (also stylized as Rumba RAPids or Oompah Rapids) is a river rapids ride located at Thorpe Park in Chertsey, Surrey, England. The attraction originally opened in 1987 under the name Thunder River, making it the second-oldest ride still in operation at the park. In 2002, the ride underwent a significant refurbishment, which included various enhancements and re-theming; it was subsequently renamed Ribena Rumba Rapids to reflect its sponsorship by the beverage brand Ribena. Following the conclusion of Ribena’s sponsorship contract in 2006, the ride was rebranded as Rumba Rapids for the 2007 season.

The ride’s boats are designed to accommodate up to eight passengers each.

The ride begins at the turntable loading platform located at the top of a hill. From there, the boats navigate a bend as they descend the course, followed by another bend leading into a tunnel. The tunnel previously featured a waterfall at its entrance, which soaked riders, but this element has since been removed. Inside the tunnel, an additional waterfall feature remains visible, although the boats do not pass directly beneath it. Upon exiting the tunnel, the ride approaches a wave machine.

The course continues beneath a bridge that forms part of the queue line and proceeds toward a tower that formerly featured an oversized shower head intended to drench riders; this feature has also been removed. Near the ride’s entrance, coin-operated water jets once allowed non-riders to attempt to soak passengers, but these were removed following safety concerns related to an accident at Alton Towers. The tower currently houses an on-ride photo camera.

The boats then arrive at the base of the lift hill, where they pause briefly before ascending back to the turntable loading platform. Upon return, a staff member assists passengers in disembarking, and the exit path passes the on-ride photo booth.

If you want, I can combine this with the historical section you gave earlier to produce a full, polished encyclopedic article ready for reference or Wikipedia-style use. Do you want me to do that next?

In the ride's opening year of 1987 a 7-year-old boy was thrown from a boat and lost an ear. The news was broken by Children's BBC TV news programme, Newsround.^[1][2]

• Official website