Alton Towers visitor figures through the years

[Squiggs]

The concept of "Towers 2" was certainly introduced in the 1990s, which was the ability to spend an additional £5/£10 or so (when in the park) to come back the next day.

Depending on what you mean by the 'concept of Towers 2', a 2 Day ticket for Alton Towers was introduced as early as 1984.

It was rebranded to Towers Two in 1993. I'm not 100% sure, but it looks like the old two-day ticket had been discontinued after 1990, in which case Towers Two would have been a relaunch of sorts.

 

[rob666]

The method was...
You get in on your sunreader ticket for free, then keep an eye out for a discarded entry ticket receipt over the day, then take that in to guest services for a bounceback ticket, if I remember the term correctly.

My sister also often used the after 2, less than half price ticket, that was never advertised.
She was most bemused when they stopped it.

 

[Matt N]

As much as I'm loathe to suggest it, I wonder if the increase in visitor numbers has more than a passing correlation with the growth of the theme park influencer cult/industry. Far more platforms, far more influencers (some with legitimately sized audiences), far more targeted social media channels. Whilst we're past the exciting peak of the social media early days of the early 10s, the entertainment form has certainly started to become dominant. Bundle that in with affordable passes and away you go.

This is an interesting point, but if it was a significant factor, wouldn’t we have seen increased guest figures long before 2022? The likes of TPW were already big by the mid to late 2010s, so surely we would have seen the vlogger effect come in to some degree in the mid to late 2010s rather than in 2022? I dare say that the vlogger effect should have come in pre-COVID if it was a significant factor.

I also debate that the reach of theme park vloggers outside of enthusiasts and the general audience that already visits theme parks anyway is big enough to have any sort of notable effect on theme park guest figures, but I guess the likes of TPW do have enough subscribers that it could have some effect…

 

[GooseOnTheLoose]

This is an interesting point, but if it was a significant factor, wouldn’t we have seen increased guest figures long before 2022? The likes of TPW were already big by the mid to late 2010s, so surely we would have seen the vlogger effect come in to some degree in the mid to late 2010s rather than in 2022? I dare say that the vlogger effect should have come in pre-COVID if it was a significant factor.

I also debate that the reach of theme park vloggers outside of enthusiasts and the general audience that already visits theme parks anyway is big enough to have any sort of notable effect on theme park guest figures, but I guess the likes of TPW do have enough subscribers that it could have some effect…

I'm thinking along the traditional lines of channels like Theme Park Worldwide, but more along the lines of TikTokkers or social media adjacent influencers. The pandemic forced a lot of people online more and changed watching habits faster than anything else before it.

Whilst the concept of the vlogger is nothing new, or even really the influencer, I think it's morphed and changed into something else now. Influencers before, or YouTubers, were similar to broadcast television. Guaranteed content every X period, the occasional Twitter update. TikTok, Instagram Reels, Snaps and YouTube Shorts have changed the game slightly. I'm thinking more of a mobile first type of influencer, someone who designs their content around short attention span and infinite scrolling.

Internet shopping has been a thing for a while, Prime's been in existence in the UK since 2008/9. It's only really since the Pandemic that online shopping has completely dwarfed everything else. Heck, even sites like Temu are ripping up the rulebook and changing things again.

There's never a fixed point where things are at their peak and that's it. Vlogging also won't be the only factor. Combine it with the exiting of a pandemic, an increase in domestic tourism, a struggling economy (which helped Merlin in the late 2000s) and I think you have a perfect storm.

 

[Matt.GC]

I'm inclined to agree with the figures and what others have said with the story behind them.

Since Merlin are no longer a PLC, they're not hamstrung by having to report these things accurately in the public domain. So they could well have included all second gate admissions in that figure, but I doubt they've changed how they are reporting these numbers since then. Bearing in mind that they are being published to argue the case to planning authorities for new attractions and their impact on attendance. Cooking the numbers all of a sudden wouldn't help achieve that.

I have doubts that that's purely for the park itself, but I'm happy to be proven wrong. Merlin would have had to report to their shareholders how they calculated these numbers in the PLC days, so does anyone know if that included second gate back then?

If it does include second gate, it's only in recent years that they've been giving away free golf with hotel stays. These numbers would have also included the spa.

It wouldn't surprise me if park attendance was higher in general either due to the £80 pass. As a fellow previously off-peak regular like @rob666 I concur that there haven't really been many true off-peak days since 2022. Some of the terrible queues due to poor operations have masked this, but general pathways and the car parks feel much busier than they used to. Not having entertainment and having 6 hour days was always the off-peak trade off, partially made up for with walk on rides and no wait for food. Now it's just miserable, where you still have 6 hour days but have to wait 20-45 mins for all the rides, queue for the Monorail, and hike around without a Skyride. You can't even enjoy some food anymore.

Pile 'em high and flog 'em cheap, the seemingly terminal downgrading of Alton Towers continues.

 

[Slugjc]

Towers 2 was the 90s. As I remember it being pushed alot when I went as a teen/early twenties. Especially with the hotels in their early pomp.

The growth in towers is astonishing. I'm sure they are external factors involved. The rise in staycationing. More folk owning cars and the micro economy that has evolved around the site, B&Bs and hotels extra will help. The biggest issue when I first went, was the difficulty in getting there and staying near by.

Don't forget, the draw that is Cbeebies. The amount of people I know with very young kids going just for that.

 

[Matt N]

I've had another thought; could the events in 2022 and 2023 have driven greater off-peak attendance?

In both years, you had some sort of event on for much of the year; you had Festival of Thrills in April, Mardi Gras in June and Oktoberfest in September, as well as the typical Scarefest and Fireworks. Surely this might have had some sort of effect on off-peak attendance?

 

[Bowser]

I've had another thought; could the events in 2022 and 2023 have driven greater off-peak attendance?

In both years, you had some sort of event on for much of the year; you had Festival of Thrills in April, Mardi Gras in June and Oktoberfest in September, as well as the typical Scarefest and Fireworks. Surely this might have had some sort of effect on off-peak attendance?

I would say it’s more likely that post Covid the dramatic rise in working from home and other flexibilities means fewer people than ever are tied to traditional working hours.

There’s also lower attendances at schools post pandemic. I think people have less qualms about skipping a day if it saves money and means you’re not queuing for 2 hours per ride.

 

[Squiggs]

@Matt N Another figure for your databank. The Alton Towers 1986 Education Guide lists the 1985 attendance as 2 million.

 

[GaryH]

I’d love to see a graph that plots income against attendances and I would bet while over the years attendances is going up, income is going the complete opposite direction and going down.

Look back to the 90s and 00s and eating in the theme park was part of the experience. Used to look forward to a trip to Pizza Pasta by RMT back in the day. Wouldn’t get me through the door now at those prices.

 

[Bowser]

I’d love to see a graph that plots income against attendances and I would bet while over the years attendances is going up, income is going the complete opposite direction and going down.

Look back to the 90s and 00s and eating in the theme park was part of the experience. Used to look forward to a trip to Pizza Pasta by RMT back in the day. Wouldn’t get me through the door now at those prices.

I hate the fact it’s buffet only. We would probably eat there or the other equivalents every trip if you could just buy a few slices of pizza or a bowl of pasta

 

[GooseOnTheLoose]

I’d love to see a graph that plots income against attendances and I would bet while over the years attendances is going up, income is going the complete opposite direction and going down.

Look back to the 90s and 00s and eating in the theme park was part of the experience. Used to look forward to a trip to Pizza Pasta by RMT back in the day. Wouldn’t get me through the door now at those prices.

The park didn't see any income from the franchised outlets, aside from ground rent, as they were run by third parties.

 

[GaryH]

The park didn't see any income from the franchised outlets, aside from ground rent, as they were run by third parties.

Surely they would have received a percentage of their takings?

 

[rob666]

No, just rent, as said above.

 

[Jb85]

Income per guest has probably fallen though…. A lot of annual pass users now. More than then.

 

[GaryH]

Even with just rent, which they wouldn’t be getting now from their own outlets , probably spend on food and drink has dramatically decreased this year. I’d be really interested to see the fill rates for the hotels this year too, I would expect these to also be down

 

[Squiggs]

Hi @Matt N, a few more for you:
1981 - 1.6m+ (from Alton Towers newsletter)
1983 - 1.6m+ (from World's Fair Trade newspaper)
1988 - 2.5m+ (from Alton Towers newsletter)
1989 - 2.5m (ish) (from Alton Towers newsletter)

A couple of notes, the first three are direct pronouncements of one form or another (i.e. the point of the quote is to directly announce the attendance), the 1989 figure is mentioned in passing as an aside, hence the (ish).

Also, whilst they are both announced as 1.6m+, the precise 1983 figure must be higher than the 1981 figure, as it is revealed in an article reporting Alton Towers 'best season ever' (some things never change, eh?)

 

[Zeock]

1988 - 2.5m+ (from Alton Towers newsletter)
1989 - 2.5m (ish) (from Alton Towers newsletter)

A couple of notes, the first three are direct pronouncements of one form or another (i.e. the point of the quote is to directly announce the attendance), the 1989 figure is mentioned in passing as an aside, hence the (ish).

Also, whilst they are both announced as 1.6m+, the precise 1983 figure must be higher than the 1981 figure, as it is revealed in an article reporting Alton Towers 'best season ever' (some things never change, eh?)

I still find the large drop between 1989 and 1990 interesting. According to the figures gleaned by @Matt N on Page 1, the drop started between 1988 and 1989, so I assume that the development of Coaster Corner led to the high attendance figures, but I am still surprised that Thunder Looper's opening in 1990 did not lead to an increase in attendance from thrill-seekers.

 

[AT86]

I still find the large drop between 1989 and 1990 interesting. According to the figures gleaned by @Matt N on Page 1, the drop started between 1988 and 1989, so I assume that the development of Coaster Corner led to the high attendance figures, but I am still surprised that Thunder Looper's opening in 1990 did not lead to an increase in attendance from thrill-seekers.

Factor in the economy at that time.

The country was in a recession with the Bank of England rate knocking 15%.

Folks were more focused on paying the mortgage than visiting Alton Towers. I suspect it will have heavily influenced attendance in 1990.

 

[GooseOnTheLoose]

Factor in the economy at that time.

The country was in a recession with the Bank of England rate knocking 15%.

Folks were more focused on paying the mortgage than visiting Alton Towers. I suspect it will have heavily influenced attendance in 1990.

The implementation of the Poll Tax in 1990 will also have had a knock on effect on expenditure too, as I'm sure @rob666 will be around to remind us of shortly.