Car Parking

[Rob]

I would say that over 99% of single day visitors to Alton Towers visit for what is effectively the whole day and not just for a couple of hours late in the afternoon. Therefore there is no reason for Alton Towers to have a seperate parking charge for the very few that do come for a couple of hours at 3pm. It would make pretty much no sense and would cost more than it is worth to implement.

In terms of the lines on the roads outside of the park. Who paid for them? Quite obviously it was the council. I'd imagine that they recieved some complaints from local residents regarding people like you Enter Valhalla parking on the road and causing a nusiance.

In terms of parking in general, I do not really get the big deal about having to pay for it. You have to pay for parking everywhere now. In comparison to a day out at some city centre shops, £6 at Towers is good value. Pretty much all major theme parks charge for parking, and the prices are higher over in the USA.

 

[GaryH]

I think the point Enter Valhalla is trying to make is that if you pop in for a few hours in the afternoon, which, some people living nearby are lucky enough to be able to do, it does seem a bit unfair to have to (a) pay the same price to park as if you were there all day and (b) having to park so far away from the entrance which will take you another half hour to get into the entrance.

Maybe AT should open up the express parking area after a certain time (say 2-3pm) and people can park in there for free.

However, in the general though, if you are lucky enough to be a frequent visitor then yes, it does make sense to have a premium pass.

 

[smudge]

If you think £6 is expensive for a days car parking, then it's a good job you don't work in a city.

 

[Rob]

Maybe AT should open up the express parking area after a certain time (say 2-3pm) and people can park in there for free.

It's rare that entry Express Parking is checked after 2pm as it is.

 

[Enter Valhalla]

In terms of the lines on the roads outside of the park. Who paid for them? Quite obviously it was the council. I'd imagine that they recieved some complaints from local residents regarding people like you Enter Valhalla parking on the road and causing a nusiance.

Well as I said, I wasn't causing a nusiance, I parked well out of the way of the road and tucked my mirror in. If there were no spaces, I would go and park in the main car park. Luckily spaces were usually available so I didn't need to. As I've already said this road was also unrestricted and I was doing nothing wrong by parking here. Why are you making out like I was?!

Yes but my point was that it used to be free for all annual pass holders, now it's only free for those with a premium annual pass.

Anyone with a standard annual pass now has to pay despite the fact that many only visit for a few hours after work, school, college etc. It's likely that I will only visit for full days now to avoid having to pay £6 a time, unless I can find somewhere free to park for the afternoon. That means considerably less visits for me this season and therefore I wont be gettign the same value out of my pass which I used to.

You knew when you bought the standard annual pass that parking wasn't included. The pricing hasn't suddenly changed this week, its been at least 2 years since only premium passes had parking included. If you are thinking of making more than 7 trips this season then just pay the £40 upgrade to Premium

To be honest I think you're missing my point here. You're right that when i bought, and subsequently renewed, my standard pass I knew that I had to pay for parking. However i also knew that there was a road right next to the park which offerred completely free and unrestricted parking so I went ahead and purchased the standard pass knowing that the vast majority of my visits would be after 2pm as both me and my partner work early mornings till lunch time making this few hours at the end of the day the best time to visit the park. Now that these restrictions have been put in place along that road it's only worth me visiting for full days as I don't want to pay £6 for a few hours parking.

I am not having a go at Alton Towers or at the residents of Farley for putting up these barriers and painting lines. I see why either party would welcome the lines and barriers being there.

All I'm saying is that I wish they weren't there and that I think it's a cheek that Alton Towers no longer let all passholders park for free. Yes, I do visit more than 7 times a year, but why should I have to pay to upgrade my pass for the "privilege" of parking further away from the entrance, when I used to be able to do this for free? It's not just the charge I object to, it's the fact that, unlike the road, the car park is miles away from the entrance and if I'm only on site for a few hours, I don't want to waste even more time getting on the monorail. As I say, I'm not criticising Alton Towers or the locals for this, I'm just saying that this will mean that I will visit alot less this year. I really wasn't expecting to create this much of a reaction from a simple post about how barriers have been added to a road!

Definitely think this is the wrong place to moan about the lack of free parking which was obviously going to be withdrawn eventually due to people using it anyway.

Why is this the wrong place? Discussing something Alton Towers related on an Alton Towers forum? If you read my first post, all I did was report the fact that it's been removed and say that it will mean I visit less. I never once said that the council or Alton Towers were wrong to do this. I do however dislike the Premium and Standard pass system. Why shouldn't I? People discussed this at great length when the system was changed and the issue of parking came up.

Seriosuly if I'd known people were going to go crazy at me for simply posting that we can no longer legally park on the road next to the park I would never have bothered to post it in the first place. Why people have decided to defend the park and accuse me of annoying the locals when I always parked legally and well out of the way of the traffic is beyond me!

 

[James]

I would assume Alton Towers make the assumption that those who live nearby visit regularly so therefore hold an annual pass. Lets not forget there is an Alton Towers pass priced at £120 that includes free car parking too.

I would assume the majority of regular visitors do indeed have an annual pass.

With the way paying for parking currently runs it would be pointless investing in some new system to allow a very minimal amount of guests be able to visit and pay less (for parking) for 2 hours in the afternoon. The majority of people that visit the park will be day guests and nearly all afternoon/short stay guests will have an annual pass of some description.

 

[Ian]

Yes, after about 2pmish they tend to give up on Express Parking and anyone can drive in. Similarly, if you're stopping until the end of the day if you leave the park after ride close and just head back to the hotels they will normally have stopped checking parking about an hour- hour and a half or so after ride close.

The only reason I ever get a premium pass is for the parking, because it more than makes the £40 difference back over the course of the season, especially if you visit the other parks once or twice a year. I don't really care about the lack of restriction dates, or the sometimes free/reduced price events, though they are nice to have.

Alton have always asked that guests be considerate of the locals when parking. I remember a few seasons back when the price went up and the Standard/Premium parking divide was introduced, and the amongst other comments the reply from the resort was had was that they hoped guests would have sense not to cause problems for the locals, or park on the roads/lanes surrounding the park. It doesn't do the park any favours with the residents, because as far as some of them are concerned if the park wasn't there they wouldn't keep having these issues. It gives them another reason to object to the park being there at all.

Personally, I think that blocking up Wootten Lane should have had lines and bollards put on it long ago. It's really not fair on those who live there having to put up with not being able to get in and out of their homes for the sake of a few people trying to save a quick buck. We are all well aware that the parking charges are enforced, and the park also offers a way to avoid paying them with the premium passes (Both Merlin, and the cheaper Alton Towers one). It's not as if it's a small detail they try and keep secret.

Either way, the decision to block up the parking on the lane will no doubt be the councils decision, and hardly some grand scheme by Alton to try and get everyone paying the £6.

 

[GaryH]

If you think £6 is expensive for a days car parking, then it's a good job you don't work in a city.

Indeed - but in a city you have buses, and trains, sometimes trams, and in some cases you can cycle into them rather than drive.

Alton, hmmm, its a bit remote, no real public transport links, so you have no option but to pay to park.

 

[jon81uk]

Things change, prices go up, we have to adapt and live with it.

On the annual pass changes maybe they should of had labelled them as standard and discounted passes so they standard one still includes parking but the discounted pass has no parking and blackout dates? But I think Premium sounds better. I don't think they would have kept a standard price including parking at that price, it would have gone up to a similar price that the premium is now.

 

[Rob]

In terms of the lines on the roads outside of the park. Who paid for them? Quite obviously it was the council. I'd imagine that they recieved some complaints from local residents regarding people like you Enter Valhalla parking on the road and causing a nusiance.

Well as I said, I wasn't causing a nusiance, I parked well out of the way of the road and tucked my mirror in. If there were no spaces, I would go and park in the main car park. Luckily spaces were usually available so I didn't need to. As I've already said this road was also unrestricted and I was doing nothing wrong by parking here. Why are you making out like I was?!

It may have been legal but it doesn't mean that it's not causing a nusiance. You may have parked well out of the way but others who thought to do the same thing may no have done. Clearly it has been causing a nusiance otherwise the restrictions wouldn't suddenly appear.

Whenever I drive through Alton I always try and be as considerate as possible to the locals. I never speed, I always let people cross the road. I'll let cars turn in and out of side roads. The local community is key to the park going forward so if I can do my tiny bit to help with that I will do. They get so much extra traffic and I doubt many people who visit Towers do think of the effect they have on the locals. That is all an additional point, I'm not saying that you are not considerate to the locals Enter Valhalla.

 

[Josh]

I can't imagine the people who live on Wooton Road enjoy visitors restricting their access, you can barely fit one car down there as it is!

I dare say you're right, I was just speculating whether it was the locals who paid for this due to the inconvenience which it caused them or if it was paid for by Merlin to make more money.

It was likely paid for by the council to make that lane safer for the locals, it's a nightmare as it is even without parked cars littering the sides of the road. It probs would have cost Merlin more money to have the work done on the road than what money they loose when the odd person parks there rather than paying to park.

EDIT: Just noticed a few people have already answered this... I really should keep up haha

 

[Alastair]

Just split off this car parking discussion to a new thread.

 

[BigT]

I used to park here as well and to be honest it isn't an issue for locals.
Its funny how the wooden posts match the ones on the park if it was done by the council!

 

[Dave]

I used to park here as well and to be honest it isn't an issue for locals.
Its funny how the wooden posts match the ones on the park if it was done by the council!

A theme park can't paint yellow lines on a public road, the wooden posts are also very similar to ones seen further down the lane to attach reflectors and prevent parking which have been there for years. Looks like a council initiative to me.

Towers wouldn't really care for the maximum of 10 cars that could park and avoid paying (especially when it's way too easy to avoid paying on their own land). But it would wind me up if I lived down Wooten lane and park visitors blocked my access (which I have seen happen).

 

[BigT]

I live at the other end of that lane and pay Staffordshire council tax so have as much right to park there as anyone.

The council's contractors will have done the work but it doesn't mean they paid for it.
At the point where the posts have been installed the lane is not even that narrow so I don't see it as the residents complaining.

The problem with the parking charge I have is there is no alternative, no railway station anymore, very limited bus service and it's in the middle of nowhere so you can hardly walk.
I know the car is a dirty word these days but in this case there is no practical alternative so if I'm paying £40 odd to get in then I don't expect to pay to park.
And judging by the state of the car parks and road it doesn't go on upkeep either, it's a total rip off.

 

[smudge]

The car parks are still so much better than thorpes for example.

 

[Rob]

Even if there were better public transport links to the park I'm sure that the vast majority of visitors would continue to drive to the park. It's not just a problem of getting from say Uttox or Stoke stations to Towers on a bus; some people may struggle to get to a local train station from their own homes also.

Surely everyone expects to pay for parking wherever they go these days? I know I do. Free parking at any place where you are likely to be out for half a day or a full day is considered a bonus. Pretty much every major theme park in the world that I have been to charge for car parking. As I've said before in the USA it is more expensive that at Alton Towers. I just do not see the problem in it at all. If you only go once a season then £6 divided by say 4 in a car isn't that much money. If you go more reguarally and drive then you'd be mad not to have a Premium Pass for free car parking.

 

[GaryH]

I just think its a cheek that they expect people to pay £48 for a day out, in the middle of nowhere, then slap on another £6 for parking there, when there are no other alternatives unless you live locally. If anything, they should be grateful for the visitors coming to spend money in their park!!!

 

[Rob]

I just think its a cheek that they expect people to pay £48 for a day out, in the middle of nowhere, then slap on another £6 for parking there, when there are no other alternatives unless you live locally. If anything, they should be grateful for the visitors coming to spend money in their park!!!

Thing is, they don't expect people to come along and pay £48 to get in. They expect people to come along with tickets bought online in advance, BOGOFs or annual passes. I still maintain that anyone who pays the full on the gate price is a fool.

Most theme parks are expensive days out. Are they all being cheeky by charging for car parking? Sure the alternatives aren't great at Towers but even if they were you would still get a high proportion of visitors driving to the park. And chances are with the cost of train travel a train and a bus to Towers could well cost more than driving and parking for some.

 

[jon81uk]

I just think its a cheek that they expect people to pay £48 for a day out, in the middle of nowhere, then slap on another £6 for parking there, when there are no other alternatives unless you live locally. If anything, they should be grateful for the visitors coming to spend money in their park!!!

As Rob said most people would use a 2for1 or book online so nobody really pays £48. Also very very few people will pay £6 each to park, most cars will have 2-4 people so parking is really £1.50-£3 each. The bus to the park would be at least £1.50 each anyway!

As Rob said, you have to pay to park everywhere now even just Westfield shopping centre in London is £8 all day. The American theme parks charge $15 per day parking and have even less public transport options.