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Blackpool Pleasure Beach: 2023 Discussion

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Rick said:
the staggered closing times caused a bit out outrage as they often do.
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I did see a post on social media that some uber fans demanded entry to the Big One after the queue had been closed and were let on.
 
There's nothing wrong with staggered closing for fireworks as long as they're listed somewhere so people know in advance. Although I can imagine PB just close things when they feel like it.
 
siralgenon said:
There's nothing wrong with staggered closing for fireworks as long as they're listed somewhere so people know in advance. Although I can imagine PB just close things when they feel like it.
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They're all listed at ride entrances but the actual time ends up being queue dependent, because they need to clear the queue by the time the fireworks start.
 
It was actually much better last year with covid when they didn’t have the fireworks, and the rides stayed open much later during the late night ride events. I can see how as a member of the public you’ll be annoyed if you pay for late night riding, then the majority of the rides close way before it’s late night.
 
Feels like the fireworks still have their place, aren't they only doing them 3 out of the 9 LNR events this year ?
 
Pleasure Beach was brilliant on the whole on Saturday. The Big One was running so well, both in terms of dispatch times and the ride itself, which was absolutely flying. I found that the queues were moving very quickly, with one exception.

Icon. They have made such a mess of this ride, it now cannot cope on busy days. Speedy Pass now merges straight into the main queue with little to no thought, meaning the main queue went through periods where it didn't move for 15 minutes. Enso causes a lot of confusion in the gates, no-one is telling people what's going on, so everyone gets confused about why they can't board and it causes congestion at the top of the airgates. It was just a complete mess.

Big One's queue closed before 8:30pm, despite being advertised as 9pm on the sign all day. This situation needs sorting out, a massive part of the appeal of going to a late night riding event is to ride Big One in the dark. If there really is no better way to do the fireworks then they need to be scrapped, permanently in my view. So many people were complaining, both at the Big One, and I even overheard people on the Nash commenting on how awful it was "closing a massive roller coaster for some fireworks." And too right! It's a joke.

Grand National is excellent, still wild and raucous but with some of the edge taken off so it's more widely popular. It's a much better coaster than Wicker Man in my opinion, but they are very different wooden coasters really.
 
I understand people wanting all rides to stay open until 10pm, but personally I’d much prefer to sacrifice an hour or so’s operation of a few rides for something which is a little more unique. There are only a few nights of fireworks this year, whereas Big One et al operate every day.

The fireworks are a nice climax to end the day with.
 
I’m so sad to hear that Big One’s queue closing early, without warning is STILL a thing. I’ve been caught out with this several times, and when the closing time at the ride entrance states the park closing time as the ride’s closing time, I don’t see how they have a leg to stand on.

This has become a real issue in recent years and I’m amazed that the park are continuing to allow it. It’s actually disgusting behaviour, and this level of contempt which BPB has for its paying customers really puts me off returning, especially as it’s been going on, unchallenged, for a couple of years now.

Say what you like about Merlin but they don’t just close rides when they feel like it. Even Six Flags don’t do that. I’m really not sure I want to bother visiting BPB this year and I used to rave about the place. This honestly makes me so sad.
 
Enter Valhalla said:
I’m so sad to hear that Big One’s queue closing early, without warning is STILL a thing. I’ve been caught out with this several times, and when the closing time at the ride entrance states the park closing time as the ride’s closing time, I don’t see how they have a leg to stand on.

This has become a real issue in recent years and I’m amazed that the park are continuing to allow it. It’s actually disgusting behaviour, and this level of contempt which BPB has for its paying customers really puts me off returning, especially as it’s been going on, unchallenged, for a couple of years now.

Say what you like about Merlin but they don’t just close rides when they feel like it. Even Six Flags don’t do that. I’m really not sure I want to bother visiting BPB this year and I used to rave about the place. This honestly makes me so sad.
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Sadly it will most likely always be a thing. I totally agree with you, but we've been here before, and the leg they have to stand on, is that I am pretty sure it says in the smallprint / terms & conditions of any visit you book, something along the lines of that they have the right to close any attraction at any time without reason and thus the ride / park closure times are subject to change at all times. But it is pretty stupid of them to put a board up at the entrance to every ride saying "This ride closes at <insert time here>" but then actually close it half an hour before that time. Especially when they starting referring to these times as the "earliest possible ride close time" (not sure if they still do that, but they did for a time). If a time really is the earliest possible closure time, then you simply can't close it before then!

It's poor indeed, but before @rob666 points it out, if you don't like it, don't go back, they will find a fresh set of 'mugs' to rip off every season anyway! It's a strange situation in that it's unacceptable really, yet at the same time we kind of learn to accept it and revisit regardless. One thing that intrigues me is whether or not people who complain to the park have much luck in terms of any sort of apology / refund / discount for next time. I ask because my friend's daughter had a crap school trip to Towers a few years back, hardly got on any rides, they complained to Merlin and got sent free tickets and some merch. It was handled well, but I'd be most surprised if BPB even give you the time of day with things like that as they are not accountable to anyone and thus do as they please. It's a shame as they kind of have people by the balls given the unique and historic ride offering they present. It's not like you can go off in a huff and find a similar park nearby. So we put up with it, but let's be honest, some of it we shouldn't have to.

Perhaps those of us who are season pass holders learn to live with this stuff, but I'd imagine anyone who has paid a good amount of money to take a family there, who wait all day for their night ride on Big One, go to join the queue at 8:30 when it says it closes at 9, only to be turned away, would be royally cheesed off, and rightly so. Perhaps like the train sign "These doors will close up to a minute before departure", they should put on each ride close sign under the closure time "This queue line may close 30 minutes before the stated ride closure time". It would be so easy for them to do that, and would absolve them of some of the flak they get, if they were simply more transparent and honest about these things.
 
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There are nine late night events this year, three have fireworks. If you don't like fireworks go to one (or two, or three, or four, or five or six) that doesn't have them and ride until 10 (the queues will still close early).

The overpass was busy at 2200 - there's definitely a market for the fireworks. I think we might over estimate how many folks outside of this community want to ride stuff for 12 hours straight.

Crevettes was rammed and they probably sold enough flashing tat to pay for the fireworks.

Darude can probably put his kids through college with the royalties he made from them playing Sandstorm on repeat, too.
 
Enter Valhalla said:
Say what you like about Merlin but they don’t just close rides when they feel like it.
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Fireworks nights at Alton Towers often do have earlier ride close too and although they publish approx times it isn’t always exact when rides need to close due to the length of the queue.
The issue of course is that BPB do it on non-firework nights too.
 
jon81uk said:
Fireworks nights at Alton Towers often do have earlier ride close too and although they publish approx times it isn’t always exact when rides need to close due to the length of the queue.
The issue of course is that BPB do it on non-firework nights too.
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Said rides at Towers all reopen after the fireworks display, hence less cause for uproar.
 
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