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Blackpool Pleasure Beach: 2023 Discussion

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Visited yesterday for a bit of daytime & nighttime riding. It had passed me by that it was Glasgow weekend. Busy, busy, busy. So after two rides in two hours, and two minutes of watching the unfunny Bavarian Stompers we aborted for the afternoon to the Velvet Coaster and a walk down the Prom. Went back in the evening for rides on the Dipper, Big One, Icon and the last night of the night of the National.
 
Matt N said:
People often moan about Merlin’s insistence upon a USP and a “killer image” for every new major ride project, but I’d argue that Icon’s failure proved that there’s something in this idea. Yes, the ride could have been marketed more widely, but it also doesn’t really stand out, both from a visual standpoint and from a nationwide/worldwide interest standpoint.
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Alton Towers spends millions on marketing. When Wickerman was installed, a substantial amount of the budget was for marketing. The wickerman roller coaster is a fairly tame family woodie, if it weren't for the [excellent] theming it would be forgettable - but the way Towers marketed that ride makes it what it is. BPB only spent a few thousand marketing Icon, and the theme is lack-luster, but could have been better. One of the core concepts of marketing is to get people to believe what you are telling them - people genuinely believe wickerman is a world-class thrill ride... because that's what Merling have embedded in them.

I think Merlin have an absolutely phenomenal Marketing team. Pleasure Beaches Marketing is absolutely atrocious. A perfect example of this is when Valhalla won"World's best water ride" - we can argue over whether they should have won or not, but they did win it. How was that not all over the news? It would be the easiest thing to get publicised. I honestly believe that if Icon was at Towers, the country would be screaming about how 'world class' it is, simply because Merlin would have smashed the marketing.

I like a lot of what Icon does. The top hat, the zero-g, the pop of air into the second launch, the immelman stall. Where I feel they have missed the biggest trick is just how low to the ground it is. It drops into a trench - but you don't really notice it. Rockwork, theming etc. to make you feel like you are in a trench and going faster than you are would be great.

Ultimately, Icon is great. I love it. It is the right coaster for Blackpool - family friendly and modern. They also done an absolute wonder fitting it into the park the way they did.
 
To be fair, the marketing may have been crap, but to say they only spent a few thousand marketing Icon is a little bit out.
I heard "only"a hundred thousand.
There was quite a lot of advertising in the north west...their main market.
 
Fans of the marketing dept will be pleased to hear the ads for Hot Ice are still on the petrol pumps at my local Sainsburys, despite the fact the show's over. Still yet to see any ad for the park itself in person, and I live about half an hour away.

BPB are open today, not entirely sure why they've picked a seemingly random Monday
 
b2311e said:
Not included unfortunately
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Thats a shame, I can't see any option for Passholder discount either :pensive: at £39 it seems quite a lot considering only a few rides will be operating as far as I can see. Has anyone been before you can give an insight into what Journey to Hell is like?
 
I remember attending a talk with John Wardley, where he said that Merlin always require three things to market a new ride-
1. A USP, 2. The killer image, 3. The ride able to be described in one short sentence.

Now say what you like about Merlin, but this approach does work, even though the USPs can often be spurious.

Icon sort of had a killer image I guess, but there was little of the other two things, and much as I hate to stick up for Merlin’s marketing strategy, it clearly works better than whatever was done with Icon.

Even the name Icon doesn’t fit with what the ride is. Big One is clearly the bigger icon of the park. Just really not sure what the plan was for what Icon was supposed to be and what it was supposed to achieve. With Merlin, you always know what the plan is, even if poorly executed.
 
pjanvil said:
Thats a shame, I can't see any option for Passholder discount either :pensive: at £39 it seems quite a lot considering only a few rides will be operating as far as I can see. Has anyone been before you can give an insight into what Journey to Hell is like?
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It's not a "rides in the dark" thing, it's more a scare maze/zone park takeover kind of thing with a couple of rides thrown in (not sure if the rides are a "your group does them once only" or if you are free to go back round the queues). Limited numbers so with the number of actors the price is going to be on the steep side.
 
Katy said:
(not sure if the rides are a "your group does them once only" or if you are free to go back round the queues)
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Last year guests went around each area on their own and at their own pace, but before that guests were led around in groups. Not sure which way it'll be done this year.
 
Again, look at the marketing... you think you would be concerned that even theme park geeks like us don't even know what Journey To Hell is.

Pleasure Beach has great locations and opportunities to put on 'scare' attractions. JTH is OK, but really should be much better.
 
It was OK last year but after trying it in 2019, 2021, and 2022 I'm not bothering with it this year.
In 2022 you got a book of tickets, 1 for each attraction/experience so just went round at your own pace.

Think at this point I'd prefer them to run the event whilst the park is open. I imagine the reason they don't is some of the mazes use areas that they can't have people in during full park operations. Or they worry guests might flee the ending of a maze and collide with someone minding their own business.

However if that's the case they should really just set up contained mazes inside the abandoned dome arcade and the nearly empty bowladrome. With those 2, the mazes inside inside impossible, and the space invader building that's a decent enough line up. Then have it announced the last couple of operating hours each day ghost train and river caves will be ran in halloween mode with live actors.
 
venny said:
Taron resides in perhaps one of the most intensely foreboding themed areas in the world. How can it be classed as family thrill given its theme and intensity?
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Taron's themed area is huge and impressive, but not scary as such. It has a height restriction of 1m 30, meaning it's accessible to a lot of families whilst also being very thrilling.
 
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