2013 has been a very busy year for Alton Towers, and TowersStreet have been bringing you all the latest news from the Resort. Take a step back in time for our forth and final 2013 roundup, where we look back at the final months of the year between October and December…
October
October saw the beginning of the transition from Old McDonald’s Farm to the new 2014 area, with the closure of Riverbank Eye Spy and Dung Heap from Monday 7th, and new hoarding appeared to explain to guests that a transformation was taking place.
A mysterious and unannounced Front Row Fastrack ticket appeared to be being sold from October, covering The Smiler and Air, with rumours that it was also available on Rita and Nemesis. No advertising was ever seen for the ticket, but guests were seen using them on The Smiler.
Of course the biggest event every October has to be Scarefest, with two weeks of frightening fun for all guests being unleashed in the 2013 season from 19th October. Carnival of Screams became the year’s free maze, and Terror of the Towers became ticketed along with The Sanctuary.
Freedom Passes were available for purchase as per 2012, though along with this came a new Freedom Ticket, giving the same unlimited maze access but for one day only. The event itself had some fairly major changes including Fountain Square being turned into Franklyn’s Freaky Fun Zone, comprising Trick or Treat Doors, Skelvin’s Spooky Storytime, Patch’s Brilliant Bug Barn and the two shows ‘Patch’s Trick or Treat Party’ and ‘Phil and Franklyn’s Ghoul School’, along with a twice-daily ‘Spooktacular Fancy Dress Competition’.
Unfortunately the first weekend of the event saw some power issues resulting in long delays for many guests with poor communications from the park staff, as well as low cast numbers which caused poor maze run-throughs for some guests.
With a nod to Scarefest queues, scare mazes were added to the large queue screens at the bottom of Towers Street this year, giving guests a clearer indication of what to expect when planning their day.
The Fastrack merge point for Carnival of Screams (free for Freedom Pass and Freedom Ticket holders) was moved from its original point of before to the Picsolve photo to just after the photo point, following complaints from guests experiencing an extended wait (30 minutes+).pricing changes also seen to the Freedom Pass.
CBeebies Land was announced on 15th October, confirming the much speculated upon change to Old McDonald’s Farmyard. The new development, which has since been slated for a May 2014 opening, will cover over 5 acres and will incorporate characters such as In The Night Garden and Postman Pat.
November
Scarefest carried through to 3rd November, meaning the park returned to normal opening hours for a week until Friday 8th November. The finale to the 2013 season was welcomed with one of Alton Towers’ most popular events, Fireworks.
This year saw the introduction of a Fireworks VIP experience, priced at £90 for adults and £60 for children or £55 and £40 with annual passes. Perks included express parking, theme park entry, fastrack tickets for Nemesis, Th13teen and Runaway Mine Train, access to an exclusive outdoor seating area, unlimited food (a nice piece of hog roast!), hot and cold drinks as well as a complimentary glass of champagne.
The fireworks display itself had a theme based upon ‘Memory Collection’. These memories were centered around the 6 coasters currently on park; Th13teen, Nemesis, Rita, Oblivion, Air, The Smiler as well as featuring the now removed classic coaster, Corkscrew. It was an explosive display of colour and noise, smiley faces and hearts, alongside a playlist that suited the personality of each coaster.
The main season may have ended on 10th November but Alton Towers were eager to announce details of their February Half Term 2014 event, including the ride line-up, dates of the event and prices. Due to make an appearance are Air, Nemesis, Sonic Spinball, Nemesis Sub-Terra, Runaway Mine Train and Duel, amongst others! February Half Term will take place between 15th – 23rd February 2014 and will once again feature Moshi Monsters.
December
The park’s winter event kicked off with a brand new entrance, and a different offering to previous years. With the loss of the farm to the CBeebies development the event’s entrance was this year via the coach park and straight into Katanga Canyon, with the accessible area heading down to Mutiny Bay and ending at Heave Ho, as well as up towards Cloud Cuckoo Land. Christmas trees, baubles and fairy lights were set up to give the park a little Christmas magic, along with music playing around the areas. On offer to guests were Heave Ho, Sharkbait Reef, Marauders Mayhem, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Wobble World, Driving School, Frog Hopper, Gallopers Carousel and a special edition of Ice Age 4D. Wobble World Café, Burger Kitchen, Mutiny Bay Donuts and Eastern Express were all open to feed and water guests.
On 26th December, an e-mail was sent out to passholders from Merlin announcing some changes to the pass structures. Merlin stated they would be introducing a new VIP Pass with a lot of exclusive perks including backstage tours, unlimited fastrack and access to all Merlin attractions including those abroad. These passes will not be launched until March 2014, however people can apply to be on the waiting list. Only 1000 VIP passes are to be sold and the cost of this pass is cited to be £500.
In addition to this, the Premium Pass also had some new exclusives. Premium passholders now receive a new Privilege Pack featuring; a special Premium lanyard, plus a £5 Fastrack voucher for Chessington, Thorpe Park and Alton Towers, as well as Birthday Club vouchers allowing passholders to bring 3 friends with them at £10 per person, a kids eat free voucher for Legoland Windsor (only) and finally, a Premium Pass guide.
It wasn’t long after this, on 28th December, that Alton Towers announced on their official website that CBeebies Land would be opening on Saturday 24th May 2014. This opening date coincides with the first weekend of the Whitsun Half Term as well as being a bank holiday weekend – the perfect time to open the area, which is set to be a huge hit with families and younger children.
Meanwhile, construction was ongoing for the area, and photos were published on TowersStreet which were taken by community member Rob. Some of these updates show the removal of the green big top which was previously used for the ice shows, and a re-theme of outdoor facade of the old ice show building to fit in with the new area. Exciting updates so far!
It has certainly been a year of ups and downs for Alton Towers, owing not just to the numerous inversions and drops on The Smiler! We hope to bring you more exciting news during 2014, including coverage on the launch of the brand new CBeebies Land! Our popular TowersStreet Talk forum is the perfect place to reminisce about past events, and also a great place to catch up and get involved in the latest news and gossip from Alton Towers Resort and beyond!
