2025: General Discussion

[Ash]

Not great publicity for the park. Voted the world's most disappointing attraction. I'm not entirely sure what this is based on but maybe Merlin will start to take some notice how far they have let Alton Towers fall from it's former glory as a flagship park.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/lifestyle/...rlds-five-most-disappointing-tourist-34921313

The idea there’s nothing fundamentall wrong with the park is blatantly not true.

The delusion about the quality offering has finally hit reality.

Marketing vs the customer experience.

Trip advisor tends not to lie.

Isn’t this what we’ve all been saying for a while?

The Merlin operation of the theme parks and resorts is nothing short of atrocious.

No amount of bullshit on LinkedIn can cover this up.

Peoples eyes, ears and nose don’t lie.

Maybe the current MAP business model is crap?

Whilst the organisation mistreats the towers complex and its gardens, I’d like to think this is their curse.

 

[Danscott22]

There’s a lot wrong with the place but worlds worst day out is a massive insult I think

 

[MrTowers]

There’s a lot wrong with the place but worlds worst day out is a massive insult I think

Remember its saying the most disappointing attraction. There are much worse days out, but Alton Towers has a certain reputation which it is not living up.

It's pretty common in the UK to think of Alton Towers when you think of a theme park. We all remember the old tv commercials and the theme song is instantly recognised as the Alton Towers song. It's part of British culture so many are left feeling disappointed when they visit and spend most the day queuing, rides breaking down everywhere and poor food options. To top it off they charge you £12 to leave the place at the end of the day.

It's probably over hyped but it was the best we had got so we all have found memories of the place. In reality it's not a patch on some of the theme parks in Europe or the US but it still means so much to people in the UK.

 

[rob666]

There’s a lot wrong with the place but worlds worst day out is a massive insult I think

Depends on your personal experience though.
I walked away on my last visit at 2pm, no skyride for access with all the breakdowns (and there were lots), no new nemesis, all open rides had at least an hours queue on a weekday in termtime, due to the cheap passes and poor operations.
Nothing like the day I was hoping for, three rides in total.

Compared to other paid attractions, maybe it is.

 

[Bowser]

Depends on your personal experience though.
I walked away on my last visit at 2pm, no skyride for access with all the breakdowns (and there were lots), no new nemesis, all open rides had at least an hours queue on a weekday in termtime, due to the cheap passes and poor operations.
Nothing like the day I was hoping for, three rides in total.

Compared to other paid attractions, maybe it is.

Yep. This time last year we had left by 4pm (at After Dark) with my son in tears after getting on perhaps 2 rides all day. That’s not how a theme park day out should end nor can I think of any other trip ending in that manner, let alone one we had spent several hundred pounds on,

It’s quite apparent when you visit a park and the philosophy is “how can we monetise this” versus “how can we ensure our visitors have a good day”. Now we have lower expectations so in that sense it’s no longer going to be disappointing but that’s a sorry state of affairs to be in.

 

[Jb85]

Yep. This time last year we had left by 4pm (at After Dark) with my son in tears after getting on perhaps 2 rides all day. That’s not how a theme park day out should end nor can I think of any other trip ending in that manner, let alone one we had spent several hundred pounds on,

It’s quite apparent when you visit a park and the philosophy is “how can we monetise this” versus “how can we ensure our visitors have a good day”. Now we have lower expectations so in that sense it’s no longer going to be disappointing but that’s a sorry state of affairs to be in.

@Bowser my son is severely autistic- non verbal but loves theme parks. We’ve done plenty of the quieter ones but tried him with Alton last year.

It was a total overload. The high of queuing for a thrill soon wears off when the rides breakdown several times a day.

The cattle pen cages lead to severe anxiety

Honestly - we left after a few hours as well spending similar amounts to you.

Whilst I think availability is an issue all round - the park has very little to accommodate sensory needs.

 

[NuttySquirrel]

Whilst I think availability is an issue all round - the park has very little to accommodate sensory needs.

I've always wondered if that's why the RAP system has such high demand at Merlin parks as compared to other parks in Europe.

There are of course some visitors that will need some kind of access pass for any park they visit, but I've generally heard that autistic and other neurodivergent children tend to cope a lot better in other parks such as Efteling and Europa Park where queues are fast moving and themed and there are a lot of smaller attractions and quieter areas of the park to allow for sensory breaks.

The design of some of the queuelines at Alton Towers beggars belief really - I find the Rita queue pretty claustrophobic with all those high wooden fences, there's nothing to look at and the queue just crawls. Smiler seems to be designed to push as many people into the RAP queue as possible... which now holds users in that awful sensory overload room for far longer than the main queue even. And the Nemesis queue is just a test of physical endurance now.

If the access system is oversubscribed, really they have no one to blame but themselves.

 

[Mick]

Had many a great day at Towers even in the last couple of years, but the problem is that there’s no guarantee you won’t have a shocker. Of course there’s no guarantees anywhere, with the complexity of operations and the unpredictability of the weather, but Towers and by wider extent Merlin really don’t seem to help themselves.

Some of the vlogs from the opening Saturday would put me off ever going back if I’d have been there at considerable cost and it’s no wonder than people would leave negative reviews after a day like that. Since then the park seems to be settling into the season pretty well but the damage can already be done.

 

[AltonLover123]

If the access system is oversubscribed, really they have no one to blame but themselves.

Really? They try and be as inclusive as possible which leads to greater numbers of RAP being handed out which leads to less people getting slots.

If they were more strict they’d be accused of being discriminatory.

I’m not saying it’s a perfect system, but they are damned if they do, damned if they don’t.

 

[QTXAdsy]

Not great publicity for the park. Voted the world's most disappointing attraction. I'm not entirely sure what this is based on but maybe Merlin will start to take some notice how far they have let Alton Towers fall from it's former glory as a flagship park.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/lifestyle/...rlds-five-most-disappointing-tourist-34921313

If only they bothered to look at M&D's and Towers would surely be forgiven.

Interesting to think it had that same reputation in 2003 though part of me wonders if maybe the infamous calamitous opening of Splash Landings might influenced the survey that year. Let's be honest, as bad as the 2025 opening day might have been a calamity to some, I do have to wonder if it compares to what happened with Splash Landing's unfinished state?

 

[Bowser]

@Bowser my son is severely autistic- non verbal but loves theme parks. We’ve done plenty of the quieter ones but tried him with Alton last year.

It was a total overload. The high of queuing for a thrill soon wears off when the rides breakdown several times a day.

The cattle pen cages lead to severe anxiety

Honestly - we left after a few hours as well spending similar amounts to you.

Whilst I think availability is an issue all round - the park has very little to accommodate sensory needs.

It’s a shame because in other ways it’s the best UK park in that regard. Lots of open spaces or quiet areas to wind down away from the crowds.

But ultimately you’re there for the attractions.

 

[TBoy535]

You have to also remember social media and bloggers wasn’t a thing back then.

They also don’t help them selfs with having Alton After Dark on opening weekend drawing more attention to them selfs.

Cattlepen ques are at various Theme parks and Merlin parks not just AT with the smiler Que being part of the Theme they going for. But you have some truly beautiful ones bedded into there landscapes like Curse, Thirteen, Nemesis Etc. Which all utilise their surroundings and ride layouts very well?

I think they just need to build a giant gyro swing then it will keep all the enthusiast quiet and all is forgiven… where have I seen this before?

 

[Alsty]

There’s a lot wrong with the place but worlds worst day out is a massive insult I think

There's a nuance between saying Alton Towers is the worst day out vs most disappointing day out.

It's disappointing in the sense that what should be a great enjoyable experience failed to live up to the hype. Whereas worst day out could be a visit to an overcrowded beach, but you likely have lower expectations for the day to start with.

 

[tech]

But ultimately you’re there for the attractions.

And the entertainment….oh wait, there isn’t any.

 

[NuttySquirrel]

Really? They try and be as inclusive as possible which leads to greater numbers of RAP being handed out which leads to less people getting slots.

If they were more strict they’d be accused of being discriminatory.

I’m not saying it’s a perfect system, but they are damned if they do, damned if they don’t.

Not really, the point I was making is that being inclusive is about more than just handing out RAP passes. It's about designing the park in a way that works well for almost everyone and thus only a very small proportion of visitors need to use a special access system. That means designing queues that aren't intolerable to wait in, and operating the rides well so that queues are short and fast moving and queue times can be relied on to be accurate. Fundamentally these things will improve the experience for both nondisabled and disabled guests.

 

[jon81uk]

It’s quite apparent when you visit a park and the philosophy is “how can we monetise this” versus “how can we ensure our visitors have a good day”. Now we have lower expectations so in that sense it’s no longer going to be disappointing but that’s a sorry state of affairs to be in.

This also describes the Disney parks to an extent I think as well.

 

[tech]

This also describes the Disney parks to an extent I think as well.

You’re not wrong - but the key difference is that Disney have perfected the 3 way mix between monetisation, guest experience and quality.

Last time I was at WDW I spent a whole $20 on a sandwich. But it was a prawn sandwich, packed to bursting with fresh juicy prawns. And because I was wearing my “just married” badge they gave me a free pretzel to go with it - “This one’s on Mickey” they said. 8 years ago now but that still stays with me today.

On the face of it I still paid $20 for a take-out sandwich which is unheard of in the real world, but compare my experience and sentiment if I’d spent the same money at Alton Towers for a mystery meat krustyburger and 7 cold fries ordered from a touch screen and eventually thrown across the counter to me by someone who hates their job.

 

[SuperMuscleMan]

Really? They try and be as inclusive as possible which leads to greater numbers of RAP being handed out which leads to less people getting slots.

If they were more strict they’d be accused of being discriminatory.

I’m not saying it’s a perfect system, but they are damned if they do, damned if they don’t.

Totally with you here, I'd say if your taking young people in the first day of the season you need to be prepared for issues.

After dark are a great way of getting the park and staff ready for main season by offering longer hours to cover ride breakdowns. I see it as a clever way of encouraging guests to be more tolerant.

No theme park is perfect and Alton and Merlin is not a premium experience. What's the price of a season ticket at Alton compared to Disney? £90? Compared to £800 for a mid tier locals only wdw one!

Your comparing apples with oranges!

 

[Bowser]

Totally with you here, I'd say if your taking young people in the first day of the season you need to be prepared for issues.

I don’t think this is a reasonable expectation for non-enthusiasts. The park is open, people will rightly assume it’s going to operate as advertised regardless of whether they require RAP. If anything it’s one of the most important dates for the park to get it right as they know all the influencers will be reporting on it.

If they repeatedly can’t get it open to a acceptable standard then they need to modify their opening plans, be it a longer soft opening period or reduced prices, not a lacklustre opening at the public’s expense and certainly not with special events that entice more people than they can handle.

 

[rob666]

Totally with you here, I'd say if your taking young people in the first day of the season you need to be prepared for issues.

After dark are a great way of getting the park and staff ready for main season by offering longer hours to cover ride breakdowns. I see it as a clever way of encouraging guests to be more tolerant.

No theme park is perfect and Alton and Merlin is not a premium experience. What's the price of a season ticket at Alton compared to Disney? £90? Compared to £800 for a mid tier locals only wdw one!

Your comparing apples with oranges!

You can easily compare apples with oranges, they are both similar sized fruit, of around the same cost, with the same purpose!
After Dark is too much, too soon.
All those new and inexperienced staff being made to work longer hours on their first days?
I see that as a way of making the new staff more tolerant to dodgy hours.
I can understand them wanting to keep punters happy with a few rides in the dark, but with all the teething issues at opening, wouldn't it be sensible to make those events on weeks two and three perhaps?