Hot on the heels of yesterday’s The Smiler roundup, we take a look at what else has been going on across the resort in the run up to the start of the main season. In today’s bumper roundup:
- Alton Towers pullout in The Sun
- Visit England Annual Pass Offer
- Planning applications for new fencing
- Alton Towers Live
- Moon Voyager Rooms
- The Smiler Rooms
- Join us on our theme park opening meet!
Alton Towers pullout in The Sun
In what has become tradition in recent years, an Alton Towers pullout was included in Wednesday’s The Sun aspart of their Alton Towers ticket giveaway. An updated park map was included which features the park’s new ride The Smiler.
The Sun is currently giving away 2 free tickets to Alton Towers when readers collect tokens published daily. There’s also the option for 50% off hotel stays on selected dates.
The map has already been subject to much discussion over on our forums, so make sure you head on over and let us know what you think!
Visit England promotion
If you haven’t got a Merlin Annual Pass and missed out on the January sale, VisitEngland are offering 25% off standard Merlin Annual Passes. The reduction makes an individual standard pass £119.25 instead of the usual walk up price of £159. You can take up the offer by heading over to the VisitEngland website and following the links from there. The offer ends 28th March!
As well as the Annual Pass promotion, a team member also spotted a joint Alton Towers and VisitEngland billboard advertisement in Salford today advertising Alton Towers and the Peak District.
Planning application for new fencing
As we reported last Thursday, planning applications have been submitted for new fencing across heritage areasof the resort. The areas covered include the upper and lower gardens, the Gothic Prospect Tower along with areas around the Towers themselves, and the lake which holds Battle Galleons.Temporary fencing consisting of rope with wooden posts was erected in many areas of the gardens last year, and the applications cover replacing this with more permanent metal fencing. There are also plans to replace some of the older fencing, such as the steel cabling around the Towers. You can check out the plans over on TowersPlans and we’ve included a few images of the proposed fencing below.
Alton Towers Live
February 25th saw Alton Towers announce the return of Alton Towers Live, which is set to please crowds on Saturday 6th July 2013. The concert will feature Olly Murs as the headline act, along with Rizzle Kicks, Little Mix, Labrinth, Conor Maynard, Stooshe, James Arthur and Union J. Tickets went on sale on 1st March and packages were released for park entrance and concert access combined, as well as standalone concert tickets for Annual Pass Holders.
Theme park entrance tickets with concert access are £55, along with a ‘golden circle concert ticket’ option with theme park access for £75. All package options incur a £4 booking fee plus a £5 postage fee (special delivery). Annual pass holders have the option of buying concert tickets at £40 plus a £4 booking fee, and do not need to pay a postage fee as tickets are picked up on the day.
The concert arena will open from 2pm and is expected to close at 10.15pm – Olly Murs is scheduled to perform between 9.15pm – 10.15pm. Tickets are likely to sell fast with such a fantastic line-up (and hopefully a lot of sunshine!), so we advise anyone interested to book soon to avoid disappointment!
Moon Voyager Rooms and hotel improvements
One area of the Resort which has seen a lot of attention recently is the hotels. This year sees the introduction of two new themed rooms, one of which is the eagerly anticipated Moon Voyage bedrooms. The rooms, located within the Alton Towers Hotel, are thought to be marketed as a premium product and are situated in their own exclusive corridor.
As we reported on Saturday over on our Facebook page, the main corridor is now finished, with new wallpaper, carpets, doors and even light up room numbers! You can only access the corridor with a swipe of your room card (shown below), a feature not seen at the Alton Towers Resort before.
Elsewhere, repainting is continuing in Splash Landings, and new curtains have been fitted in the atrium of the Alton Towers Hotel.
The Smiler Rooms
The Sun gave us a sneak peak into The Smiler rooms in Wednesday’s pullout. The image shows a medical theme, with the style taking elements from Scarefest maze ‘The Sanctuary’, which returns when the theme park reopens in March. The bright lights above the bed are reminiscent of ‘The Flasher’, one of the 5 mind manipulating elements which form The Marmaliser structure on The Smiler.
TowersStreet theme park opening Meet
Our opening day meet is getting ever closer, and it’s not too late to join us! TowersStreet members are on resort on Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th March to celebrate the theme park reopening for the 2013 season.
Everyone is welcome, and if you’ve not joined us before, take a look at what some of the newcomers to our February Half Term meet (pictured left) said after coming along. If you’d like to join us, you’ll find more information on our forums and on our Facebook event. We look forward to seeing you!
That’s all folks!
That’s all for this week’s bumper update, be sure to check out our forums for plenty of discussion and speculation on what’s to come at Alton Towers this year. Our Facebook page and Twitter will be updated with breaking news and updates as they happen both in the run up to 16th March and live from the Resort across opening weekend itself.
