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2024: General Discussion

The_bup said:
Hmmm. I Wonder why that could be…
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They are wasting their money on the cheap signs from Leek signs. They will just be ignored by most of the clientele, By contrast look at US parks where compliance with smoking / vaping is both enforced & adhered to by the guests. You are made to look like a pariah over there if you smoke or vape.

Magic Kingdom - not my favourite park I hasten to add - is a total ban within the park. All the other parks both at Disney & Universal have very well tucked away smoking areas, and as above compliance is high.
 
Kraken27 said:
Magic Kingdom - not my favourite park I hasten to add - is a total ban within the park. All the other parks both at Disney & Universal have very well tucked away smoking areas, and as above compliance is high.
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All Disney US parks have banned smoking within the parks, all smoking areas are now outside the gates. Universal has reduced it to one smoking area in each park.

I agree though that the Merlin parks need to enforce their existing policy and eject people from queue lines for smoking/vaping. Generally it does seem that vaping in queue lines is the bigger issue as people don't seem to smoke as much.
 
jon81uk said:
All Disney US parks have banned smoking within the parks, all smoking areas are now outside the gates. Universal has reduced it to one smoking area in each park.

I agree though that the Merlin parks need to enforce their existing policy and eject people from queue lines for smoking/vaping. Generally it does seem that vaping in queue lines is the bigger issue as people don't seem to smoke as much.
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I actually find vaping far more offensive than smoking due to the huge fog clouds that vapers emit (especially if they have one of those "industrial" vapes where the liquid tank is near the size of a cigarette packet.

But let's face it, particularly at Towers due to it's remote location practically no-one gets booted out by security for queue jumping, so they are hardly likely to trouble themselves with smokers & vapers.
 
As someone who does vape, I still find it infuriating that people are inconsiderate enough to vape at towers in queues and indoor spaces.

Like it's so unfair to those who don't want to be exposed to it, and when you're in a queue or indoor space, it's not like you can just 'leave' - you're stuck next to a vaper.

For that reason I exclusively use the 'smoking areas' - the fact that some people just can't help themselves but to vape in queuelines is ridiculous and can pose a H&S risk, especially to those with respiratory/breathing difficulties.
 
Kraken27 said:
They are wasting their money on the cheap signs from Leek signs. They will just be ignored by most of the clientele, By contrast look at US parks where compliance with smoking / vaping is both enforced & adhered to by the guests. You are made to look like a pariah over there if you smoke or vape.
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But walk around SFGAd in the evening and you could smell weed every 10 minutes!
 
I know I’ll probably get shot down for this but we’re here for opinions right?

Am I the only non smoker who likes the smell of vapes? they honestly just don’t bother me at all and don’t produce the same side effects such as passive smoking from normal cigarettes or have that awful smell. I feel saying it affects others breathing outside is abit dramatic in my opinion so can anything, pollution?

However i do think there should be a better policy now, especially on the wicker man for checking Vapes or maybe even a Que line video (way before the pre show) explaining the implications and flammable aspect. They could even emphasise the “fear value” explaining if anyone is caught with a vape in their pocket before they ride or after they will get an automatic ban from all the Merlin parks. Maybe a nice themed wicker man screen in the station with a static vape ban picture to remind, I feel for Merlin it’s worth investing in this idea for next season and probably has cost the park alot of money and adds to there capacity issues.

I do congratulate how quickly they acted and how they acted so fast to get this and the smiler back up and running. Along side Spin-ball single rider it’s clear they are very aware of operations at AT, next year if the sky ride opens, Hex up and running and potentially 3 new flats including Sub species that new management have got back up and running. It could be a great season for them and definitely the year to wait out for!


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Problem is with vapes...what chemicals are there in that vapourised liquid you are secondary ingesting?
Lots now contain spice as well as nicotine, and that lovely fruit flavouring is of course completely synthetic, so more questionable chemicals you are being forced to consume.
Also very large numbers are being imported from dubious sources in the east...so there is no real safety control.
 
rob666 said:
Problem is with vapes...what chemicals are there in that vapourised liquid you are secondary ingesting?
Lots now contain spice as well as nicotine, and that lovely fruit flavouring is of course completely synthetic, so more questionable chemicals you are being forced to consume.
Also very large numbers are being imported from dubious sources in the east...so there is no real safety control.
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Totally agree - the users have no idea what is in the vape liquid. I don't smoke or vape, but I would not trust the packaging ingredients list on any imported from the far east. The world had an infamous import allegedly originating from China back in 2019.

Back to Towers (& all UK parks for that matter), I wish they would do something about smoking & vaping. Things may improve over time (i.e. years) as the new government have said they will resurrect the previous governments Smoking Bill so that the age to purchase tobacco & vapes will ride by a year each year from 2027. That said, every secondary school has a "smokers brigade" of under 18's who smoke, so they can clearly get hold of tobacco products.

Out of interest, do Towers sell cigarettes anywhere on park? I know they don't sell chewing gum & haven't for absolutely years due to the litter problems it causes.
 
Kraken27 said:
Totally agree - the users have no idea what is in the vape liquid. I don't smoke or vape, but I would not trust the packaging ingredients list on any imported from the far east. The world had an infamous import allegedly originating from China back in 2019.
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Nothing to see here, just some casual xenophobia, move along.

Vaping, in the EU and UK, has been controlled and regulated since 2014. The ingredients in vape liquids are typically:
  • Nicotine.
  • Propylene glycol (PG) or vegetable glycerin (VG): Humectants that create aerosols that mimic the smoke of tobacco cigarettes.
  • Flavourings: Food grade flavourings that can be used to create different flavors.
  • Water.
Additional ingredients, such as CBD, are allowed in certain and measured circumstances and must be labelled correctly.

We do not know, for certain, the long term effects of vaping on the individual user. We do know, for certain, that it is immeasurably safer and less harmful than smoking.

Everything we eat, drink, or partake in contains an element of risk. Everything could be considered harmful. We personally measure and assess the risk to decide if it's a worthwhile endeavour for us.

The only real health concern with vaping, presently, is that it's easier to give yourself nicotine poisoning (essentially overdosing) than smoking. The same could be said with patches, lozenges, snuff and snus.

I'm not a vaper. I am an ex smoker. Vaping, as an alternative or quitting aid, is generally (on the whole) better for the individual, better for those in the immediate surroundings and better for society in the short and long runs.

There are two major concerns with vaping. The first is the introduction of addictive nicotine consumption devices to people who have never smoked. The second is the environmental impact / e-waste that's generated by disposables. Precious earth metals are wasted and improperly disposed of, in unthinkable amounts, every day.
rob666 said:
Also very large numbers are being imported from dubious sources in the east...so there is no real safety control.
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In reference to this concern, very large numbers of cheap tobacco pouches, or cigarette packs, are also imported from dubious sources and sold in many local corner shops. There are far more "cheap/fake" baccy pouches, or cigarettes, in circulation and consumption than dodgy vapes.
 
Why are we talking about smoking and vaping? It says on the signs to not do it in the queues so people shouldn’t do it. I don’t care if you choose to vape that’s your own decision but the park make the rules clear that you shouldn’t do it in queues. If you’re seen breaking this rule then in my eyes you should be kicked out the park. It’s like the phone rule. It’s such a simple rule to follow and yet people still ignore it. The park need to be strict on ejecting punters who think they’re above the rules
 
Kraken27 said:
Things may improve over time (i.e. years) as the new government have said they will resurrect the previous governments Smoking Bill so that the age to purchase tobacco & vapes will ride by a year each year from 2027
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That only covers tobacco, not vapes. Under the proposed bill anyone currently aged 14/15 (ie born 2009) will never be able to buy tobacco. But they will be able to get a vape if over 18.
 
This might be a controversial view, but I actually think it would be beneficial for Alton Towers to implement something similar to what they do on the coasters at Universal, where they make you put everything in a baggage hold or locker and scan you through a metal detector before entering the station.

If the Wicker Man fire was caused by a stray object as Alton claims, metal detectors would have prevented that vape or lighter or whatever flammable object landed on the track from getting onto the ride in the first place. Metal detection would also prevent other loose article-related incidents; you only have to look at how many phones, glasses, coins and such are left suspended in the nets below the likes of The Swarm at Thorpe Park to see that loose articles fly out of people’s person all the time on these rides, and in some cases, this can have severe consequences. The reason for Universal implementing metal detectors in the first place was because of previous loose article based incidents, most notably including a man losing his eye after someone on the other train threw coins at him on Dragon Challenge.

This would also have the knock-on positive effect of increasing throughputs across the board, as not having to deal with bags on the platform means that things move a lot more quickly!
 
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