2021: General Discussion

[John]

It is pretty hard to do a like-for-like comparison between how the park is operating now and how it would be doing if everything was running normally, but I'd guess that the major coasters are running at no more than 2/3 capacity on average. At one end of the scale you have Rita running almost normally with full trains whilst right next door you have Thirteen running at about 1/3 capacity. It's a similar story elsewhere - Enterprise is basically entirely unaffected (though the throughput is so bad anyway so it doesn't really help the overall park capacity), meanwhile Blade running with only 5 groups per ride cycle.

If we assume a 1/3 reduction in ride capacity park-wide, that'd turn a 2021 capacity day into a >20k day. I'd say based on the queue times we've been seeing that guess sounds about right. The only difference is that a 20k day is RARE in normal times - since 2015 it's only really the occasional day in summer and scarefest/fireworks weekends where they get that sort of figure. This year as the park capacity is lower they're far more likely to reach it and the exception has become the norm.

To get to a situation where queue times are in-line with people's expectations they'd have to cut capacity quite a bit further, probably to around 10k. That'd be equivalent to a 15k with the rides running to capacity, which pre-2020 would be a busy day but not a horrendously busy one.

 

[Steve74]

Not sure if this has been mentioned but you can walk around the ruins at the moment....including part of one of the scaremazes from last year

You shouldn't be able to walk around the scaremaze. The door at the top of the stairs in TPWW's vlog is bolted shut but on Saturday someone had forced it open and it wasn't able to be shut (I think the door had shifted slightly on it's hinges). I was tempted to try and force it shut but didn't want to in case someone was wondering around in there!

 

[jon81uk]

I think many guests see "limited capacity due to covid" at the park and therefore expect lower crowds, without realising that it also means many rides are also running at limited capacity.
Then the combination of the first school holiday since re-opening, good weather and holidays abroad not happening means they are getting as many guests as a normal half term.
I don't think the queues looked that bad all things considering, expect on the days where there were a lot of breakdowns.
It is the perception that limited capacity means low crowds that is that has lead to the problem.

 

[Steve74]

I'm guessing what they expect is a park running a meaningful reduced capacity, you know, like they say they are.

Like theatres and cinemas actually are.
Like Paultons actually are.

With the queue times and crowding we've seen it is clear that too many tickets have been sold for the actual capacity the cumulative parks attractions acan cope with.

I disagree with you. It is reduced to a meaningful reduced capacity, from what I saw on Saturday it was purely the ignorance/rudeness/arrogance/general lack of intelligence of some people that caused crowds in various places. All the social distancing things were still in place, one way systems, chevrons, announcements - it was purely the public that were largely ignoring them.

And I have been to the theatre since the April unlock and believe me even with reduce capacity they struggle too. At the end of the performance I was at we all exited out of the main front door of the theatre so the "please only leave your seats when the row behind you has left theirs" rule went out the window because of the bottle neck at the main entrance (and then subsequent hanging around because it was raining hard).

So nowhere is getting this perfectly correct no matter what their reduced capacity is.

 

[CherryBerry17]

I think it's important to remember that you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.

General public are never going to follow arrows and stand 2 metres away especially children that are under 10 or so, they have no concept of it and I doubt the parents will challenge it. Staff can only repeat themselves so many times and they're aware that they aren't being listened to. The general public that are complaining about the social distancing are the problem with the social distancing.

I think those people leaving reviews and complaining that it was 'busier than a normal weekend' need to remember that if there weren't pauses between rides to clean and make sure all is up to the 'hygiene standards' that they have to follow in order to be able to provide the ride then yeah - maybe it would knock a good total of minutes off the que, but you can't go to a theme park, in the middle of a pandemic, only a month into it being reopened, where they need to follow certain guidelines in order to be able to provide you with the nice day out you've paid for, and then complain that it's taking too long.

If you were that bothered you should have given it a few more months and waited after the alleged June 21st deadline and gone on a random Wednesday in September. I've checked the queue times for the last 4/5 days so I have a rough idea on wait times and what times certain rides are less busy for when I go Thursday, if these reviewers were really that bothered, they could have checked too.

 

[Ethan]

I've checked the queue times for the last 4/5 days so I have a rough idea on wait times and what times certain rides are less busy for when I go Thursday, if these reviewers were really that bothered, they could have checked too.

I'm going Thursday aswell. Hope you have a good day! What order are you doing the rides out of interest?

 

[jon81uk]

I think those people leaving reviews and complaining that it was 'busier than a normal weekend'

Also its busier than a normal weekend as there are fewer other things to do at the moment, indoor activities are still more limited and people can't go on holiday abroad, of course what is available will be busy!

 

[Danscott22]

Good to see the Rapids have started opening at 10!

 

[CherryBerry17]

I'm going Thursday aswell. Hope you have a good day! What order are you doing the rides out of interest?

Thanks! Remember sun cream, I think it's gonna be a hot one!

I'm thinking head straight to Rita & Thirteen - I'll take a look at smiler on the way through and if the early morning queue isn't too long (under 40 minutes) I'll probably jump in that. From Dark Forest back to Spinball and then through toward Rapids and Forbidden Valley.

 

[Danscott22]

Thanks! Remember sun cream, I think it's gonna be a hot one!

I'm thinking head straight to Rita & Thirteen - I'll take a look at smiler on the way through and if the early morning queue isn't too long (under 40 minutes) I'll probably jump in that. From Dark Forest back to Spinball and then through toward Rapids and Forbidden Valley.

From my experience on May 28 (term time date) The Smiler is a very good shout if you're there before 9:30, Thirteen and Rita will be walk on or practically walk on if you go there straight after, and then Galactica and Nemesis after that were also both walk on!

 

[Ethan]

I'm doing in this order:
Smiler, th13teen, rita, galactica, nemesis, duel, wicker man, oblivion and then any re rides I can't fit in

 

[CherryBerry17]

From my experience on May 28 (term time date) The Smiler is a very good shout if you're there before 9:30, Thirteen and Rita will be walk on or practically walk on if you go there straight after, and then Galactica and Nemesis after that were also both walk on!

Based on timing it's looking like I'll get to the car park for anywhere between 9:00 and 9:30, I'm hoping the monorail isn't too busy either.

Out of interest, I've never done it before - how long is the walk from the monorail station to the park? If the que is like 30 minutes is it worth walking or waiting?

 

[Danscott22]

Based on timing it's looking like I'll get to the car park for anywhere between 9:00 and 9:30, I'm hoping the monorail isn't too busy either.

Out of interest, I've never done it before - how long is the walk from the monorail station to the park? If the que is like 30 minutes is it worth walking or waiting?

Walk if you decide not to use the monorail takes around 10/15 minutes!

 

[CherryBerry17]

Walk if you decide not to use the monorail takes around 10/15 minutes!

Ah perfect - if it's not too much hassle can you tell me from the monorail station how I go about walking to the park? I've only ever took the monorail so I have absolutely no idea which directions to go.

 

[Skyscraper]

Ah perfect - if it's not too much hassle can you tell me from the monorail station how I go about walking to the park? I've only ever took the monorail so I have absolutely no idea which directions to go.

It's fully signposted from the monorail station. Also, remember that the turnstiles open from 9am so you can get to your first ride before it opens.

 

[jon81uk]

Ah perfect - if it's not too much hassle can you tell me from the monorail station how I go about walking to the park? I've only ever took the monorail so I have absolutely no idea which directions to go.

If you are behind the monorail station facing the golf turn right and follow the marked path.
When you get to the gate near galactica, hotel guests enter there but everyone else follows to the right, then turns left into the coach park.
Follow straight on to the park entrance.

 

[Danny]

Ah perfect - if it's not too much hassle can you tell me from the monorail station how I go about walking to the park? I've only ever took the monorail so I have absolutely no idea which directions to go.

Follow the red line. Other people will be walking typically, especially if the monorail queue is long so you should be fine following the crowd.

 

[CherryBerry17]

Follow the red line. Other people will be walking typically, especially if the monorail queue is long so you should be fine following the crowd.

Thank you !!

I feel like if the monorail is above 30 minutes it's worth walking. I'm more concerned about how hot it's going to be and if I'll be able to cope walking that far

 

[Steve74]

Thank you !!

I feel like if the monorail is above 30 minutes it's worth walking. I'm more concerned about how hot it's going to be and if I'll be able to cope walking that far

It's nothing compared to what you will be walking when in the park during the day!

 

[Steve74]

Follow the red line. Other people will be walking typically, especially if the monorail queue is long so you should be fine following the crowd.

Also, if you end up parking in the car park marked Theme Park Car Park in the picture, you can just walk up the carpark and join that red line where it touches the corner, you don't have to go to the monorail station to join the path.