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2018: General Discussion

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venny said:
I sort of think that opening times have got to be governed more and more by the accommodation offering with Merlin seemingly relying more and more on this revenue stream. There’s therefore got to come a point where the cost savings of closing the park eat into accommodation bookings too much.

Whether they’re even making this link is another thing. It could well just be another blinkered decision of ‘if we close the park more days we’ll save more money’. If they have made the link then surely the number of closed days is now at a critical point of impacting people booking into the hotels.
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I agree with this. These decisions seem at odds with Merlins pro accommodation strategy as they've effectively taken a lot of value out over night stays. With the park closed an overnight stay is a substantially devalued product.

It is typical behaviour however as Merlin have increasingly relied on accommodation for income and have quite bullishly been dismissive of seeing the parks as a substantial draw to their resorts. Whether we have seen the tipping point of this or not is yet to be seen.

Since Merlin have been reluctant to talk openly about their RTP performance as of late, we may well have already passed that tipping point, with Merlin wanting to just plow on regardless.
 
I wouldn’t expect there are enough accommodation bookings on September weekdays to make it worth opening the park. Better to push the weekend accommodation for park guests and then try for corporate conference bookings on weekdays.
 
Yes, it seems increasingly that they are moving park operating days to days that they can fill hotels the most easily.
 
Sorry to keep asking questions, but do you guys think that there will be any ride lineup changes next year? I think that Twirling Toadstool might have been having an off-site refurbishment and might reopen for next year, as instead of just removing it from the website like they did Ice Age, they have listed it as undergoing Towers Loving Care. Although I'm unsure what they would do to it that would take a whole year and two closed seasons...
 
Matt N said:
Sorry to keep asking questions, but do you guys think that there will be any ride lineup changes next year? I think that Twirling Toadstool might have been having an off-site refurbishment and might reopen for next year, as instead of just removing it from the website like they did Ice Age, they have listed it as undergoing Towers Loving Care. Although I'm unsure what they would do to it that would take a whole year and two closed seasons...
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With visitors packed into less days, meaning it should theoretically be busier on average, I'd like to see the cost savings off set against ride openings or re-introductions.

To keep enthusiasts and the GP on side, the re-introduction of Nemesis Sub-Terra & Twirling Toadstoole wouldn't go amiss. Coupled with the opening of SW8, this would make for a better season no doubt.

If Toadstoole is no introduced, I can see that becoming part of the 2019 CCL Re-theme (possibly to Lego) product.
 
AstroDan said:
Fireworks should be 10/11 November.

It's stupid having them the 3/4th.

The park would be packed for Scarefest on the 3/4th anyway!

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They had them on these dates in 2012 too. Nothing's changed there. Apart from the lack of the Friday.
 
Matt N said:
They had them on these dates in 2012 too. Nothing's changed there. Apart from the lack of the Friday.
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Yes, but there is a crucial difference.

Staffordshire Half Term in 2012 was a week earlier. In 2018, their fireworks is during the half term - when the park would be packed anyway, whether they did fireworks or not.

If they put fireworks the following weekend, they would easily get 40,000 more guests.
 
GaryH said:
Ok so what I would like to see in 2018....


Hotels

1. Either a reduction in the prices to stay over back down to realistic prices which represent the quality of the product, or failing that, the reintroduction of the deposit system when booking.

2. The Dragon Bar area to be sorted out once and for all because everytime I go in there, its just a mess. Maybe have fixed tables and round fixed comfy seating areas in the middle section.

3. Waterpark to be expanded to accommodate the extra guests from all the hotels.

4. Demolish the monstrosity which is CBeebies hotel and bring back the nice garden areas at the rear of ATH.

5. Totally refurbish the spa and have some conservatory area once again to make the place feel brighter again.

6. Better lighting at night on the paths around Enchanted Village (illuminated cats eye style lights perhaps around the edges of the paths)

7. Keep Splash Landings open as it did offer some cheap deals compared to the other hotels.

8. Perhaps introduce an "all inclusive" package when staying in the hotel which includes, well, everything, so people can book and turn up without worrying about all the extras they have to fork out

9. Find a way around the monstrosity which is CBeebies hotel to re-open the woodland walk. Maybe call it the "magical or enchanted" woodland walk, with some fairy lights and music etc, and advertise it as a special perk of staying in the hotel!

10. Food and length of waiting for it has gone down the pan in Secret Garden. Needs sorting out to bring back the quality and the service.


Theme Park

1. Remove the vinyl coverings off the windows of the monorail. They are dirty and you can no longer see out of them.

2. Clean up and repaint etc inside some of the monorail cars which look scruffy and dont give a good impression of the park to guests just arriving.

3. Introduce touch screen kiosks at the entrance where guests can easily collect pre booked tickets or buy tickets without having to queue

4. Sort out the gardens, they are looking overgrown and scruffy in places

5. Would love to see the Swiss Cottage re-opened as a place to go for a hot drink and a cake (great place for a Costa outlet perhaps)

6. General maintenance around the place - in particular all the closed outlets, consider at least opening one of them in an area as it makes the place look very run down when all you see is closed shutters

7. Consider installing turnstyles at the Rollercoaster restaurant entrance and suggest all those with their tickets or annual passes use this entrance - this will reduce queues on the monorail and give guests with tickets easier access from the car park

8. Sort out the food in Rollercoaster restaurant. One day it can be good, next day, dire. Needs to have consistency.

9. Close and refurbish Duel. Not just a half assed attempt either, lighting, effects, sounds etc all need sorting out, and the zombie end section should be replaced with something else now.

10. Consider scrapping the VR on Galactica, remove the units from the seats and put the ride back to Air again. Sell off all the tech and use the money to sort out the themeing around the ride itself as it should have been from day one.

11. More in park entertainment for the families during the peak seasons, and consider bringing back special events in the park , such as chocolate towers etc from the past , or, have summer nights events like Thorpe do where the park is open until 9pm some summer weekends.

12. Cloud Cuckoo land needs serious attention. Do something with CaTCF and Ice Age cinema and reopen corner coffee!


Scarefest

1. Ensure all lighting, effects etc are ready for opening day and not the week after

2. If ToTT is to stay, it needs a complete overhaul. Its stale and seems shorter each year. Needs to have some storyline to it. I would personally be happier to pay a bit more for the maze should Towers have to reduce ticket sales to get a longer more atmospheric maze.

3. Sub Species was pretty much identical to last year (a bit shorter I thought), again, if it is to stay then it needs some new attractions inside. Either that or replace with a new maze. Scary hospitals or clowns seem to work well!

4. Altonville Mine tours was excellent and there was a lot of new additions this year. Would like to see this return.

5. Freak Zone - while good, Alton ideally needs 2 free scare zones. The zombie scare zone which used to operate up by Dark Forest was always a good walk through. Also, the park needs actors roaming during the peak days and nights.

6. There were no scary cocktails or food options in the hotels over scarefest that I saw.

7. Keep the Alton Ancestors!

8. Consider bring back some of the Live attractions on selected rides. Hex live, Duel live etc. These were always good.

9. Not sure how I would feel about the Welcoming coming back next year. While the themeing was good the maze didnt really do much for me especially for the £8 it cost. Would rather see the other mazes improved and another scare zone.

Fireworks

1. Bring back the 3 day event!

2. Keep the Golden Circle idea, I think it was actually value for money

3. Maybe next year have a public vote on what they would like the theme of the fireworks to be?



Overall however, while it was an OK year at Towers, I do fear what next year will bring given all the cut backs the park is facing. I am however looking forward to SW8 opening.
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This really is everything that is wrong with AT plus filler rides. It’s such a shambles. The thing is a little effort and an acceptance that profit making is not the be all and end all and you have an amazing place.

The park died in my eyes when it became about return on shareholders investment and not the experience. I understand businesses need to make money but theme parks should be about fun ran by people who want to create fun
 
RoyJess said:
I've also notice on the Merlin Holiday Club, that they are charging around £40 more for an accessible lodge compared to a non accessible lodge in the EV :(

On the Alton Towers site, there is no difference between the accessible lodges and non accessible lodges, but obviously at a higher price than those on the Merlin Holiday Club site.

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The good news is that they have adjusted the prices so that the accessible lodges are the same price as the normal ones

The bad news is, that they did it by raising the price of the normal ones to match the accessible lodges :rolleyes:

However, these prices are still cheaper for the same date for what I paid for this season just gone.

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I wonder if this means that they might be opening Spinball over the winter season for hotel guests?

:)
 
Rob said:
I wonder if this means that they might be opening Spinball over the winter season for hotel guests?

:)
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That would make more sense, actually, as there is virtually nothing on there other than Spinball, CBeebies Land, CCL and Mutiny Bay, which I believe is the lineup that's normally open during the holiday season.
 
MakoMania said:
2018 season theme park tickets are now on sale online, no price changes as far as I can see.
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That's surprising considering there's an SW opening! Thank you Merlin! Although I suppose they increased ticket prices midway through 2017 instead.
 
Matt N said:
That's surprising considering there's an SW opening! Thank you Merlin! Although I suppose they increased ticket prices midway through 2017 instead.
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They increased gate prices mid way through 2017 but not online prices. The 241 vouchers and online prices are getting closer together every year.
 
Matt N said:
That's surprising considering there's an SW opening! Thank you Merlin! Although I suppose they increased ticket prices midway through 2017 instead.
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Replacing the Flume, which closed 2 seasons ago and prices have increased since. Since then we've also seen Sub Terra, Ripsaw and half of CCL closed and this will remain the case next season. So I wouldn't be thanking anyone.
 
matthewgcole said:
Replacing the Flume, which closed 2 seasons ago and prices have increased since. Since then we've also seen Sub Terra, Ripsaw and half of CCL closed and this will remain the case next season. So I wouldn't be thanking anyone.
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I don't believe that we've actually had confirmation of a ride line-up yet, so for all we know, Sub Terra and Toadstool could open again. Of course, the attractions that have disappeared from the website (CATCF, Wobble World, Ice Age 4D) and the attractions that have been confirmed as goners and long since removed (Ripsaw, Flume) won't be returning, but we don't yet know about the TLC attractions.
 
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