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Scarefest 2023

They get a fresh new group of teenagers every year, the first year is a great new experience, then they spend the next five returning to say how disappointing it is compared to previous years.
Busiest time of year, absolute cash cow as it is, why would they dream of altering anything at a cost, when they can do nothing and still rake in the cash.
 
Yeah, it's clear that's how they see the event. Otherwise you wouldn't be seeing the same rotting scarecrows and giant pumpkin (which they can't even be bothered to mount anymore) each year.

I'll still wait for an official announcement but it's not looking good, not surprised at all though. That poor cow has been pruned.
 
I only go scarefest now for night rides and with one of the best night rides being closed (Nemesis) I may not even bother this year and just wait for fireworks. Mazes are stale, Atmosphere is nil, scarezones a distant memory and presentation on the decline every year. Such a shame, this used to be my highlight of towers season! I prefer Octoberfest now.
 
The screenshot TowersStreet posted was not stolen from anywhere. And was taken from one of my personal old scarefest maze tickets which I went through my account looking for.

Seems a lot of people were reporting about it on social media last night.
 
What a disappointment.

I've just realised something, and I'm speculating here, but Towers possibly get a budget for all special events combined, and since the introduction of the numerous events, e.g., the Summer one, Oktoberfest (which is a decent event), Scarefest has been poor / low Capex investment.

Spooktacular/Scarefest and Fireworks are meant to be the kingpins of the events calendar, and the former is a shadow of its former self.

Then again, I see people raving about Thorpe, but I don't think their Fright Nights is any good either. When Towers do it well - despite the unfair advantage with the setting - they still do it better because some of the mazes and shows have been world class whereas - Aslyum aside, I've never felt any of the mazes at Thorpe were on par with Towers' best mazes - TOTT 02, 03, 08, 09, 19, Sub Species, AVMT (when new), Carnival at its best, Sanctuary, Field, etc., were brilliant.
 
I mean they could of done without the “Summer event” and “Smiler take over” to be honest less is more as the quality and offering clearly declining. It was interesting to see coaster studios describe the Mardi Gras’s theming as “looking like there typical car wash” I agree and I feel these events are beginning to cheapening the resort, it’s beautiful castles and heritage. They should just stick to Halloween/Fireworks and Lightopia until they have the proper funding it just seems abit of a mess at the moment along side the temporary flats.

I mean bunting and inflatable tube men don’t really belong in theme parks.
 
TroySmith1 said:
I mean they could of done without the “Summer event” and “Smiler take over” to be honest less is more as the quality and offering clearly declining. It was interesting to see coaster studios describe the Mardi Gras’s theming as “looking like there typical car wash” I agree and I feel these events are beginning to cheapening the resort, it’s beautiful castles and heritage. They should just stick to Halloween/Fireworks and Lightopia until they have the proper funding it just seems abit of a mess at the moment along side the temporary flats.

I mean bunting and inflatable tube men don’t really belong in theme parks.
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Completely agree with you. I know people want more events, but most of them are substandard. Stick to Scarefest, Fireworks, Christmas and Oktoberfest, and bin the rest, at least until the funding and resource is there to properly invest.

It's not just the spread of funding, but it also means that the Ents Manager has to allocate their planning time across 7 events instead of 3/4, which of course affects the quality of the others.

I'd hazard a guess that this is a problem caused by Merlin rather than Alton because the current Ents team showed they can deliver quality experiences with AVMT, The Attic, and the shows on the front lawn.
 
TroySmith1 said:
I mean they could of done without the “Summer event” and “Smiler take over” to be honest less is more as the quality and offering clearly declining. It was interesting to see coaster studios describe the Mardi Gras’s theming as “looking like there typical car wash” I agree and I feel these events are beginning to cheapening the resort, it’s beautiful castles and heritage. They should just stick to Halloween/Fireworks and Lightopia until they have the proper funding it just seems abit of a mess at the moment along side the temporary flats.

I mean bunting and inflatable tube men don’t really belong in theme parks.
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That comment that Coaster Studios made was just referring to the bit they set up by Mutiny Bay/Battle Galleons (as seen here) and they said it without even seeing (or at least commenting if they did see) any other parts of the park where Mardi Gras was except for Towers Street. So to say that sweeping comment based on one tiny area was a little unfair. I mean Mardi Gras is all about colourful bunting, ribbons and the like, isn't it? Later in the video he does eat in the main Mardi Gras area but is more focused on talking to the geese than making any comments about what was there. Whether he does in the second video remains to be seen.

If they are to slim down the entertainment offering - and I can't believe I'm saying that seeing as before Covid we were screaming out for any entertainment - they should scrap Festival of Thrills and invest that budget into the other 3. I think the current Summer of Fun, while not up there with Oktoberfest or Mardi Gras is a nice addition for the school holidays.

I think ultimately, Towers want (or Merlin are forcing them) to have all these events but aren't being provided the budget to host them properly.
 
We've just booked our annual Towers trip (always for Scarefest to take advantage of longer opening hours), and are staying onsite for the first time which we're super excited for. After seeing Thorpe Park (our local) has started their FN marketing, we've been checking AT socials every day for updates from them. Reading the supposed 'leak' has really dissapointed us.

If the leaked line up is true, or the lineup is exactly the same as last year, it will really put a downer on the trip. With no Nemesis or Hex, a lackluster maze line up will probably make it the most disappointing trip we've done. I don't want it to be, as AT is still one of the most magical parks for me, probably because I can't visit it that regularly.

Also, as someone who works in marketing, I can't imagine what the AT Marketing team are going through right now. Seeing Thorpe start all their advertisements and now facing a potential leak before their announcement...wonder how they will handle this!
 
It's important to note maybe more mazes will change only thing that's 100% confirmed from the leak is that mine tours is staying but it'll have a slight twist, however if they updated 1 name on the system why didn't they change the rest, are they all staying including the invitation or are they yet to update the names of rest? That's what we'll find out soon.

However if you follow the downward trend of this once top tier event, it wouldn't surprise me if it wasn't a coincidence and It's the same stale line up.
 
SkinSnatcher said:
We've just booked our annual Towers trip (always for Scarefest to take advantage of longer opening hours), and are staying onsite for the first time which we're super excited for. After seeing Thorpe Park (our local) has started their FN marketing, we've been checking AT socials every day for updates from them. Reading the supposed 'leak' has really dissapointed us.

If the leaked line up is true, or the lineup is exactly the same as last year, it will really put a downer on the trip. With no Nemesis or Hex, a lackluster maze line up will probably make it the most disappointing trip we've done. I don't want it to be, as AT is still one of the most magical parks for me, probably because I can't visit it that regularly.

Also, as someone who works in marketing, I can't imagine what the AT Marketing team are going through right now. Seeing Thorpe start all their advertisements and now facing a potential leak before their announcement...wonder how they will handle this!
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I wouldn't read too much into the leak; wait until Towers officially announce the line up before getting really disappointed! However stale Scarefest has been over the last few years, there is always more to it than just the 4 mazes - the Garden Lights walk, the stage shows, Trick Or Treat Town, Alton Ancestors etc. And this year, they'd be daft not to do something with The Curse and Nemesis.

I can't help but think Thorpe's marketing is all style but no substance - sure the mazes look great on the promo videos, but many think the mazes aren't up to much in reality and don't live up to the videos. Towers have never really done the same amount of marketing for Scarefest in my opinion - and if that means the quality of the mazes are better because of that (even if they are the same), then I'm all for their way of doing it!
 
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Steve74 said:
I wouldn't read too much into the leak; wait until Towers officially announce the line up before getting really disappointed! However stale Scarefest has been over the last few years, there is always more to it than just the 4 mazes - the Garden Lights walk, the stage shows, Trick Or Treat Town, Alton Ancestors etc. And this year, they'd be daft not to do something with The Curse and Nemesis.

I can't help but think Thorpe's marketing is all style but no substance - sure the mazes look great on the promo videos, but many think the mazes aren't up to much in reality and don't live up to the videos. Towers have never really done the same amount of marketing for Scarefest in my opinion - and if that means the quality of the mazes are better because of that (even if they are the same), then I'm all for their way of doing it!
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I'm trying not to, the wait is agonising! Yes the other offerings are good, loved the Garden Lights walk last year, and the stage shows are always great entertainment when we're having some food. We are scare maze lovers though - they really make our Halloween season, so of course those will be our personal highlights, apart from the coaster night rides. I'd love for AT to introduce scare zones! Those really make the difference at Thorpe.

That's an interesting point, last year I actually met the Head of Marketing for AT when we visited - she was scanning tickets at the entrance of Darkest Depths! I should've asked her about their strategies :tearsofjoy:
 
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