Coca-Cola and Merlin Entertainments to offer VIP experiences for recycling

This summer, for the third year, thrill seekers will be in with a chance of winning VIP experiences at some of the UK’s best-known family attractions in exchange for simply bringing along an empty 500ml plastic bottle and recycling it at one of the specifically designed reverse vending machines across Merlin Entertainments UK attractions.

This year, prizes are bigger and better than ever before, including a VIP behind-the-scenes tour of Legend of the Trebuchet and private history tour at Warwick Castle, a Royal Box experience at the Blackpool Tower Circus, plus conquering the 127ft climb of one of the UK’s tallest rollercoasters, The Swarm at Thorpe Park. Families and friends all across the UK will have access to these brilliant prizes by recycling one 500ml drink and will get the chance to win a once-in-a-lifetime prize, in exchange for recycling their bottle in the Coca-Cola machine.

Offering guests the chance to be part of the action between the 1 July and 6 September 2024, the vending machines will be available across 11 Merlin attractions, including Alton Towers Resort, Legoland Windsor Resort, Thorpe Park Resort, Chessington World of Adventures Resort, Warwick Castle, Sea Life aquariums in Blackpool, Birmingham, Brighton, and London, The Blackpool Tower, and Legoland Discovery Centre Birmingham.

New for 2024, the innovative vending machines have a vibrant new look to make them really stand out as the place to recycle used bottles. Four extra machines have been installed across several attractions since last year to make them easy for guests to find and be in with a chance of winning special prizes. Machines can also be found by asking staff members at the attraction or using the individual attraction’s app, guiding guests through the parks to recycle their bottles and enter the VIP competition via a website printed on the receipt after recycling.

Coca-Cola has also been a long-time advocate of a well-designed Deposit Return Schemes (DRS) to boost recycling of drinks containers and reduce litter across the country. Together with its bottler, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, the organisation has been working with peers in the industry, governments and NGOs for many years to call for an interoperable DRS.

“We share Merlin’s passion for entertainment, and goals for sustainability,” Elodie Peribere, Marketing Director at Coca-Cola Great Britain. “Throughout the summer, guests at Merlin attractions will be able to recycle their plastic bottles using our reverse vending machines. We’re excited that, as well as being in with the chance to win some incredible VIP experiences, they’ll be helping us with our goal to recycle the equivalent of every can and bottle we produce.”

Jo Padwick, Senior Sustainability Manager at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners GB, said: “We are always looking for ways to work innovatively with our partners to deliver our soft drinks more sustainably. The collection and re-use of bottles through initiatives such as these is a significant step forward to supporting a more circular economy and ensuring more of our packaging is collected and prevented from ending up in waste. This comes as we accelerate the use of recycled plastic, with our 500ml bottles now made from 100% rPET. Through our partnership with Merlin, we’re able to incentivise recycling with a reward we know friends and families will very much enjoy as an added experience to their theme park visits this summer!”