Is Alton Towers too cheap?

[Matt N]

Quite a sad day when these are the comparison points for what was once one of the worlds best theme parks.

I wasn’t comparing these to Alton now per se. I was offering an example of the sort of niche Alton could fall into when Universal arrives.

There’s nothing wrong with any of these companies, but they definitely fall on the cheaper end of the spectrum within their industries. They are competitively priced and provide good value for money, and that’s why they’re so successful.

Not every park has to be a mega expensive Universal-calibre extravaganza. The Merlin parks will be just fine being reasonably priced parks and resorts appealing to a more local crowd.

 

[owenstreet7]

I would say this is because the hotels at AT are still a little too expensive. Although due to the inflation rising faster than their prices its not as bad as it was a few years ago. But in general I think the AT hotels have always been a little overpriced and definitely expensive. But the day ticket is currently too cheap.

I'm getting the idea it might be part of the strategy because it's isolated in the middle of nowhere so people who aren't nearby could stay for the "premium" experience

At the same time, with incredibly limited non-car connection to the park, that could also be why the hotels are so expensive because they know it could get more hotel guests at a higher price. Not sure if anyone agrees but it's just a thought

 

[MaxPower]

I think they just price the hotels to what they can get away with. They'll have done market research to see what people expect to pay and price it at the upper end of that scale.

I also imagine Merlins business strategy is so heavily structured around the bargain basement annual passes that they'll be reluctant to dramatically change those going forward, especially with the economy as it is at present.

 

[Bert2theSpark]

I think they just price the hotels to what they can get away with. They'll have done market research to see what people expect to pay and price it at the upper end of that scale.

I also imagine Merlins business strategy is so heavily structured around the bargain basement annual passes that they'll be reluctant to dramatically change those going forward, especially with the economy as it is at present.

Rumour has it that the Spa closed because they were looking at building a new hotel, however this was explored when the data from 2021/2022 said the hotels were near full capacity across the resort, with staycations at the forefront of everyone’s mind.

The economic situation at the moment means that international travel is often cheaper than staying in the UK, when I went to Liseberg there were so many Brits. Many of who were saying “this is so much better than Thorpe Park or Alton Towers”, so it’s clearly not just us enthusiasts who are disappointed with Merlin.

They need to offer a better product if the park wants to grow, Alton Towers has one of the most comprehensive ride lineups in Europe, reliability is the issue. I last went to Towers during Alton After Dark and ignoring downtime of rides which was already pre-announced, I had one of my best theme park trips ever. However the park is never consistent, which is is the biggest issue with the park and will only get worse with an aging lineup…

 

[Bowser]

when I went to Liseberg there were so many Brits. Many of who were saying “this is so much better than Thorpe Park or Alton Towers”, so it’s clearly not just us enthusiasts who are disappointed with Merlin.

I think this is a good point because whilst anecdotal, I encounter it from fellow travellers too (and feel the same) on our European jaunts. The likes of Plopsaland and Efteling are beginning to market more heavily in the UK as they offer superior experiences often for less money. The future increase in direct European train services is only going to make it easier for them to compete too.

 

[SuperMuscleMan]

One thing is like to ask you guys is what if we looked at this differently... What if Merlin heavily invested in Alton and had 2 tier parks?

With Alton being the premiere destination resort end but not included with the Merlin Annual Pass (or an extra) with day park pricing and investment reflecting that.

The southern parks are then aimed more towards the current value - 1 day visit parks.

This would mean Alton would still be a cheaper visit than universal but would differentiate itself to it's sister parks but would need a proper period of investment.

Annual passes are still possible but are either an upcharge per visit or entirely different.

 

[pluk]

The headline price is too expensive for the experience offered.

The price people actually pay is too cheap to allow them to run the park properly at a standard most would expect, especially with the headline price in mind.

The park try to close this gap by blatantly ripping off their captive audience with the atrocious food, inexcusable parking prices, rampant overselling of fastrack, and not spending moneybl on even basic entertainment and upkeep.

So it is both too expensive and too cheap. A mess.

 

[AltonLover123]

When on the day Blackpool tickets are £50 in off peak, yeah they charge too little.

You could argue that blackpool has a lot to do, but the quality is lesser.

Towers has a lot to catch up on, but the base quality is far better than Blackpool as a direct comparison.

 

[DistortAMG]

There are some good points put across in this discussion to be fair. Got me thinking.

In one way, as is, Alton Towers is worth the money for what they offer.

If they could sort out their opening hours, availability and food, I would say it would be too cheap, for sure.

If the themepark was ran like, well, a proper theme park, where it did not feel like you was being absolutely rinsed of your cash at every single opportunity, whilst getting the absolute bare minimum in return, I would say yeah, it is too cheap.

The ironic thing is, myself and I am sure many others would happily pay more if we did not feel like we were being ripped off in the process.

 

[rob666]

Cheap passes and fasttrack...that fantastic invention, ruin the park.

The cheap passes crowd out the park with people who have paid a few quid in reality for entry.

Long queues for the rides, made much longer by creating a two tier park, those who can afford fasttrack, and those that can't.

Things have never been the same since the arrival of fasttrack..."Want to push in ?...just pay more and get on here, now"...becomes...on busy days...
Pay a lot more for a half hour queue, which is what you used to do anyway for the entry price, but you now pay a lot extra for the same service.

Top notch capitalism.

Until large numbers of people realise it is such a rip off, and stop visiting.

 

[Slugjc]

Cheap passes and fasttrack...that fantastic invention, ruin the park.

The cheap passes crowd out the park with people who have paid a few quid in reality for entry.

Long queues for the rides, made much longer by creating a two tier park, those who can afford fasttrack, and those that can't.

Things have never been the same since the arrival of fasttrack..."Want to push in ?...just pay more and get on here, now"...becomes...on busy days...
Pay a lot more for a half hour queue, which is what you used to do anyway for the entry price, but you now pay a lot extra for the same service.

Top notch capitalism.

Until large numbers of people realise it is such a rip off, and stop visiting.

I think you are correct. Although they won't say publicly, I'm sure the owners would like everyone to pay for every trip. MAP is so engraved into the place now, that even they wouldn't be stupid to bin it off.

If I can use football as an example. If you ask the owners of a premier league club would they like to bin season tickets and force everyone to pay for every match individually. They would, more revenue. More tourist, more money in the club shops, bars and all that jazz. They would say yes.

If I could, I would get a pass. But unfortunately due to living in Wakefield. I am no where near any merlin attractions. Towers is a good two hours away. Traffic depending. Then we have the cost of the day. Diesel, food, drink, accommodation if needed, the cost of a days holiday. No chance I will go on weekend.

Is towers cheap. Compare it to other visiter attractions. I would say it average.

 

[SuperMuscleMan]

Do you guys feel it's the Merlin pass that is at fault?

I had my first pass in around 2001 now I'm pretty sure it was for just for Thorpe Park (my home park) but I remember it being around £70 (I saved up hard for it) ... I remember a trip to Alton to ride Submission that year and it cost me nothing so I think I had 1 free ticket bundled in to another park.

Now when you look at those costs you can see the Merlin pass is definitely too cheap. Compare £70 for one park 24 years ago to discovery at £99 or silver £179 (non sale).

Yes parking is not included but at that point parking was free.

 

[Slugjc]

Don't feel it's a fault, like everything in life. It's a negative and a positive.

 

[GooseOnTheLoose]

Compare £70 for one park 24 years ago to discovery at £99 or silver £179 (non sale).

£70 in 2001 is equivalent to £132.19 today.

A Gold Thorpe Park Annual Pass currently retails for £139, and includes free parking.

A Merlin Premium Pass in 2015, equivalent to the Gold pass today, retailed for £159 (when not in a sale). Adjusted for inflation this would be £207.40.

A Gold Merlin Annual Pass today, outside of a sale, retails for £249.

The Annual Passes have pretty much kept up with inflation. Despite what others say I do not think that they're the problem. It's the effective entry price, without an annual pass, that has dramatically decreased in real terms value over the years.

 

[Matt N]

It’s worth remembering, however, that there was a brief period in 2018/2019 and in 2020 before COVID where one-park annual passes were sold for the on-the-gate ticket price (“pay for a day, come back free for a whole year”). While that’s not the case anymore, that period where the price of annual passes plummeted is bound to have had an effect. I also seem to remember the Standard MAP only costing £99 and “[paying] for itself in two visits” at around the same time.

I don’t think annual pass prices are as egregiously cheap as they maybe were 5-10 years ago (the pass prices were overhauled following the COVID lockdowns and made more expensive). However, the period of cheapness, however brief, is bound to have had an effect; during those few years, spend per guest would probably have really fallen.

There has also been the introduction of the midweek Discovery Pass, which is much cheaper than the rest of the passes despite how restrictive it may be on allowed visit dates. Based on recent data on guest figures from Merlin, as well as anecdotes from our members, I think it’s fair to say that the advent of this pass has made the midweek days markedly busier with potentially very little additional profit.

 

[rob666]

The lowest passes have been repeatedly sold at eighty quid in the "sale" this year.
Too cheap.
By far.

 

[Bowser]

The lowest passes have been repeatedly sold at eighty quid in the "sale" this year.
Too cheap.
By far.

The term time passes are even less, think they’re £50.

 

[Matt N]

The lowest passes have been repeatedly sold at eighty quid in the "sale" this year.
Too cheap.
By far.

Are these the Discovery Passes, that are termtime only?

I can’t imagine they make up a bulk of MAP purchases, surely?

 

[rob666]

Usually discovery, but there have been a number of cheap basic offers over time.

 

[John_P]

I think you are correct. Although they won't say publicly, I'm sure the owners would like everyone to pay for every trip. MAP is so engraved into the place now, that even they wouldn't be stupid to bin it off.

If I can use football as an example. If you ask the owners of a premier league club would they like to bin season tickets and force everyone to pay for every match individually. They would, more revenue. More tourist, more money in the club shops, bars and all that jazz. They would say yes.

If I could, I would get a pass. But unfortunately due to living in Wakefield. I am no where near any merlin attractions. Towers is a good two hours away. Traffic depending. Then we have the cost of the day. Diesel, food, drink, accommodation if needed, the cost of a days holiday. No chance I will go on weekend.

Is towers cheap. Compare it to other visiter attractions. I would say it average.

At least with season passes at football the money is directly going to the club.

If you're buying a Merlin Pass what parts of their empire is the cash going towards, just as likely going towards a random sealife centre than it is the theme parks that people are buying the passes to attend.

The Merlin passes are definitely under priced for what value they can offer people.