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Chessington World of Adventures Resort

I love the sound of the proposed changes to Runaway Train but can't help feel for £14 million they could of got a better coaster.

Even if just £2-3 million of the money is spent on Runway Train it is still a lot to spend on a basic figure 8 layout Mack powered coaster.

Not that they have anywhere to built a better ride, but still.

:)
 
I reckon the extra money is mainly for the hotel. But who knows?

As for Dragon Falls, I'm sure that'll be announced in good time. :)
 
CoasterCrazyChris said:
I love the sound of the proposed changes to Runaway Train but can't help feel for £14 million they could of got a better coaster.

Even if just £2-3 million of the money is spent on Runway Train it is still a lot to spend on a basic figure 8 layout Mack powered coaster.

Not that they have anywhere to built a better ride, but still.

:)
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There is some space opposite Dragon's Fury which looks like you could easily fit Runaway Train/Scorpion Express there. So imagine they could have built something at least bigger there.

But I do see what you mean, with £14 million we could have gotten something better with a new coaster/ride. But I'm not complaining too much. I'm still very much looking forward to see what Scorpion Express turns out to be like.

=)
 
Clearly the £14million figure includes the money to build the hotel extension. The extra money won't be spent on a new ride/theme. Bumping up figures in such a way to sound more impressive is a traditional marketing ploy, don't fall for that old trick! :twirly:

I'm really no financial expert but the vast majority of that figure will be spent on the new hotel and connecting (?) monkey enclosure. A significant amount of the original £5 million figure has already been spent on the cost of removing the original designs from Runaway Train and Dragon Falls, as well as the facade renovations in Transylvania and Forbidden Kingdom; that probably leaves much less money than the website makes out for the new redesigns next year (but still enough, presumably!).

If they really had £14million to spend on rides alone, then they'd remove Runaway Train without a moment's hesitation and would be advertising its replacement with a lot more fanfare than just a notice on their website.

However, I think this sounds very positive for Chessington. The Runaway Train has been dying of old age for as long as I can remember, and finally some is being done about it! So far "Scorpion Valley" sounds interesting... Well at least they haven't just called it "American-a", changed vowels from A to U, or added a Z where there should be an S. :twirly:
 
Sounds like they are inflating the budget with hotel expansion but it should be good for the park.
 
I personally think that 2014 will be a huge year for Chessington.

They are getting Rameses Revenge & RMT (Scorpion Express) back into operation.
A brand new Hotel/Extension with a really cool theme
A new animal walk through.
Re-theme of Mexicana
And hopefully a retheme of Dragon Falls.

I don't think that they would announce the Dragon Falls re-theme yet as it is a few months behind the Scorpion Express re-theme. Although I doubt they would leave it in that state to 2015? Would they...
 
This is really exciting news; I'm intrigued to see how extensive the retheme will be. I'd imagine there'll be a change of style if nothing else. Plus the integration of the hotel with the new Monkey and Bird Garden sounds promising, the interaction between the existing hotel and the Wanyama Reserve makes it my favourite of the Merlin hotels I've visited.
 
I think that is likely that if this year's updates go well, Chessington might get a higher visitor numbers than last year, which was a major investment year.

Oh, and they may struggle to fit everything on the map this year! :p
 
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They need a better map design anyway...

And if they DIDN'T get higher visitor numbers next year with an expanded hotel then clearly they might as well give up at running the place...

The name of the trail is AWFUL... Seriously bad, who names things at Chessie these days because they're useless...

Scorpian Express won't sell me until I see what they do with it... Seen enough Merlin PR descriptions to be wary of such a well-sold attraction...

Of course, they need to improve their operations, otherwise it'll be like a cheap tiny version of Port Aventura, where it looks nice but below the surface it's rubbish...
 
Chessington Resort and Zu?

With this naming strategy, I would genuinely not be surprised if they announce ROARLLERCOASTER at some point in the future.
 
I'm really starting to like the idea of Scorpion Valley, Mexicana has been looking worn for a few years now, and slowly lost it's magic. With the Rattlesnake refurbished over the last year, the new area should look amazing.

I also hope that they changed the different types of games around the area as it makes it look boring and cheap, i also really hope the build on the theme due to the name.
 
Quetzal said:
Chessington Resort and Zu?

With this naming strategy, I would genuinely not be surprised if they announce ROARLLERCOASTER at some point in the future.
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Shhh you will be giving them ideas!
 
BenBowser said:
I'm really starting to like the idea of Scorpion Valley, Mexicana has been looking worn for a few years now, and slowly lost its magic. With rattlesnake refurbished over last year, the new area should look amazing. I also hope that they changed the different types of games around the area as it makes it look boring and cheap, i also really hope the build on the theme due to the name.
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Wait a minute...

Chessington Update said:
Scorpion Express is a brand new ride experience for 2014 set within Scorpion Valley - a land of sweeping sands and gold mines. Adventurers must board the old train of the Scorpion Express as it’s the only way to cross the sands, ruins of the mines, and abandoned town. Watch out for surprises at every turn though, as with unstable mines guarded by the Scorpion anything could happen – try not to get too close!
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Ahhh, THERE'S the good old Merlin excuse for lack of effort bit...
 
Quetzal said:
Chessington Resort and Zu?

With this naming strategy, I would genuinely not be surprised if they announce ROARLLERCOASTER at some point in the future.
Click to expand...
I think they're competing with Mingo for most unimaginative, uninspiring names. Unsure which one wins that title.
 
Isn't it just a little depressing that an animal walk through and some theming maintenance is seen as a big deal at a theme park?

Is the UK theme park industry getting worryingly mediocre :(
 
Am I the only person that likes the name Amazu? When people heard of Wild Asia's name, you all thought it was pants, now they're thinking of imaginative names people are angry that it isn't a proper word.

Am I the only person that thinks you purposely want to abuse these park's decisions. Another thing, is this time last year you were all practically crying about the state that the park was in, now that they are spending a hell of a lot of money on it, you all get angry about the fact that your favourite rides are changing (Dragon Falls), and that works were done in the open season (Runaway Train) and even if they were done in the winter, it wouldn't have been the thorough job that they are doing this time.

It is like you will find a way, one way or another, to hate Merlin. I actually think that the only thing they haven't done to their best is Zufari, other than that, they really seem to try and create the best rides and theming, look at The Swarm for example, brilliant ride, brilliant theming. Same with Wild Asia, while it might not have the best name ever, it has a great selection of family and thrill rides, excellent atmosphere and decent music. Do we all have to be so negative? Am I honestly the only person that is pleased about this?
 
BenBowser said:
Am i the only person that likes the name Amazu. When people heard of Wild Asias name, you all, thought it was pants, now they're thinking of imaginative names people are angry that it isn't a real word, I'm I the only person that thinks you purposely want to abuse these parks decistions.
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No, Amazu is actually an awful name, but not because it's not a word. It's because it's unimaginative, they've already used up the 'zu' thing too many times, it isn't memorable, it doesn't tell you anything about the attraction and looks, sounds and is thoroughly stupid. I also don't remember anyone hating Wild Asia's name?

The thing is Merlin do create good rides (and I'd argue that the only really great rides they've done are Smiler and Sub Terra), but they ruin that with piss-poor park management.

You're not the only one pleased about the whole thing, I am too. I worry, however, that Merlin's track record of 'retheming' park areas will slowly erode the atmosphere and integrity of some of the original areas.
 
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