• ℹ️ Heads up...

    This is a popular topic that is fast moving Guest - before posting, please ensure that you check out the first post in the topic for a quick reminder of guidelines, and importantly a summary of the known facts and information so far. Thanks.

There's still magic somewhere...

When you are at the top of Oblivion and the few seconds you are hanging over the edge

the Wickerman preshow

Duel when you first enter the building
 
When you are at the top of Oblivion and the few seconds you are hanging over the edge

the Wickerman preshow

Duel when you first enter the building
I know that Oblivion was the first dive coaster but others (Barron 1898 and Valkyria, particularly at night) manage to pull off a better "magic" pre drop moment than Oblivion, especially since I haven't been on with the mist running on Oblivion for years and the holding break is now so short that you don't get more than a second suspended over the pit. The whole theme of the ride feels so dated and tacky now that I just can't find any magic in the ride though it still is my second favourite ride at towers
 
Last edited:
I know that Oblivion was the first dive coaster but others (Barron 1898 and Valkyria, particularly at night) manage to pull off a better "magic" pre drop moment than Oblivion, especially since I haven't been on with the mist running on Oblivion for years and the holding break is now so short that you don't get more than a second suspended over the pit

There was a hell of a lot of mist being pumped out on my last visit in October although on many visits before I agree that it’s been minimal.

Also noticed that the holding break varies, I was waiting for friends to come off The Smiler, sat watching Oblivion and noticed every so often a train would be held a second or so longer than just a quick tip and over. No idea why!
 
Never had a bad day at towers. It's rained all day on a few occasions and we've still had a brilliant time. We keep going back so there must be some magic of sorts.

Staying away on really busy days is a good trick though.

I agree, I don't think I've ever had a truly awful day at Towers. Most of my visits in the last six years have been fireworks time and we've always had a good time and got on enough rides.

Sometimes it felt like there was too much Fast Track, but this has been far worse in US parks. The prices in the Rollercoaster restaurant are a bit insane too (and quality is hit and miss).

The year Air opened we went to ride in in the first few weeks and it rained all day, they found waterproofing issues on Air and couldn't get it running, but despite the main reason for the trip it was still a great day.
This year we went with a friend who had never been before and his reactions on Hex and Thirteen were magical, even if the fireworks weren't quite as good as the year before.
 
The magic in the pricing of season tickets is still there. Only had to pay £65 for premium and even the original price of £75 is a bargain. Includes scarefest and parking so really is great value.

Cheap season passes don't amount to magic. Rather just a corporate decision based on maximising profits and purchases.
 
Lol this thread is so sad. Yeah bits have changed over time etc. and certainly things could be better in some areas (as they could be with most parks), but Alton Towers is still a really fun day out for a lot of people. Not a “cesspool of despair” like some of you have said.

You’re pretty jaded if you genuinely think that.

Room for improvement? Certainly. Awful and totally devoid of any magic? Certainly not.
 
It would be very easy for it to be up there with the best parks to visit in Europe if it were just managed and developed a little differently and if the general day out was less unimaginatively commercial. At it’s heart it’s a beautiful park and has great rides.

The magic that Ug Land, Cred Street area and Duel (well Haunted House) had is totally dead now though and leaves a hole in the park
 
It would be very easy for it to be up there with the best parks to visit in Europe if it were just managed and developed a little differently and if the general day out was less unimaginatively commercial. At it’s heart it’s a beautiful park and has great rides.

The magic that Ug Land, Cred Street area and Duel (well Haunted House) had is totally dead now though and leaves a hole in the park

Even with the mismanagement it's still up there with the best parks in Europe. The coaster line up has the strongest depth in Europe by some margin I'd say. That alone ensures it's in the big league of parks.
 
It would be very easy for it to be up there with the best parks to visit in Europe if it were just managed and developed a little differently and if the general day out was less unimaginatively commercial. At it’s heart it’s a beautiful park and has great rides.

The magic that Ug Land, Cred Street area and Duel (well Haunted House) had is totally dead now though and leaves a hole in the park
Even Enegylandia had more magic than towers last time I went- being waved though the gate by enthusiastic staff and mascots was a fantastic experience and seeing them do their closing ceremony as you walked out was great too even if the rest of the park was fairly tacky and full of Verkoma junior coaster.....
 
Even Enegylandia had more magic than towers last time I went- being waved though the gate by enthusiastic staff and mascots was a fantastic experience and seeing them do their closing ceremony as you walked out was great too even if the rest of the park was fairly tacky and full of Verkoma junior coaster.....

I'm all for sitting in despair at the soul-sucking Towers has been through in Merlin's tenure, but to say Energylandia has more magic than it is a bit much. 3/4 of the park is a tacky fairground. Some of the theming has gaping holes or rot after only a year or two. There is very little atmosphere across the whole park and only a handful of their coasters have broken out of the cookie cutter formula when they placed bulk orders with the manufacturers. Sure, it may have had an entertainment display at the entrance, but even if Towers was left as an abandoned theme park it would still have more magic than Energylandia.

(I appreciate the tone of this post will clash against my previous one on the same page of this topic, but this is one clash I will never justify).
 
because like most of us we became fans way before the decline? And remain passionate about what it was and the memories we had?

These time’s we talk about were probably before you were even born/ visiting the park.

It’s hard to describe if you weren’t there
Smiler opening day was the most magical day since the 90s
 
If the question is, is there still some magic left; then yes, there is. There’s still some left. Left by the genuine care applied by previous regimes and, yes, even the early years of Merlin.

What’s left though is, in the majority, left from quite some time ago. Left by Nemesis, by Runaway Mine Train and Hex, by the beautiful stone carvings in AT Hotel.

There is very little, to nothing, which has been added recently which I would consider “magic”. The corporate stain of Merlin seems to permeate most things nowadays and it has served to wipe away much of the impeccable work which created the “magic” originally.
 
Top