Drayton Manor Park

[rob666]

Sorry, lots of people know me and talk coasters with me.
99% of my punters know of Alton Towers.
99% of my punters have not heard of Drayton.
All the kids I took to Drayton had never heard of it until I told them of it.
Drayton is local, Alton is national.

 

[Squiggs]

It's a slightly odd discussion topic, tbh. The UK only really has two national parks: Alton and Legoland.

Drayton is definitely a contender in the second tier of theme parks, however. Not least because it has a pretty huge catchment area, with a rather large chunk of the population within.

 

[Shaggy_Dog_]

It's a slightly odd discussion topic, tbh. The UK only really has two national parks: Alton and Legoland.

Drayton is definitely a contender in the second tier of theme parks, however. Not least because it has a pretty huge catchment area, with a rather large chunk of the population within.

I think this is definitely the case. Without wishing to turn this in to a tiers thread you’ve got Towers and Legoland that are the big two nationally known parks.

I’d then put Thorpe and Blackpool Pleasure Beach in a group just underneath them in terms of their significance to both enthusiasts and to the wider public that may have some knowledge of them.

And then you’ve got the chasing pack of Drayton, Paulton’s, and Chessington, parks that are making investments and adding significant new areas and rides. Certainly there’s an argument to be made that some years back in the 90s Drayton and Chessington would have been in one of the upper groups (due to the likes of Vampire and Shockwave) but years of gradual decline took their toll on the parks but happily now they both appear to be moving in the right direction.

 

[Matt N]

Personally, I’d say that the Merlin parks are a tier above the rest in this country in terms of how well known they are, and I’d say that’s the case for all of them, from what I know.

I’m from the South West, and in my area, the 4 Merlin parks always enter the conversation. Even Chessington, which is 2.5-3 hours from my region and arguably not quite as “significant” as the others, appears fairly well known and visited within the circles I know. In fairness, Drayton does enter the conversation occasionally, but only really because of Thomas Land. And probably because I’m less than 2 hours from Drayton Manor. Paultons also gets mentions (although again, only really because of Peppa Pig World), and Oakwood gets the occasional mention too (unusually for a place outside of Wales, I’m only based about 2.5 hours from Oakwood, and I knew a lot of Welsh people through secondary school who were closer again).

Blackpool Pleasure Beach isn’t really heard of at all down here, and those who have heard of it often assume that it’s a small pier like the parks in Brean Sands, Barry Island or Weston.

 

[Trooper Looper]

I believe that Drayton Manor has HUGE potential nowadays with Looping Groups to contend Alton, in different manners of course outside of their Thrill Factors.

Drayton is easily the better Park for families, which Alton Struggles. I think Vikings shows that families prefer more unique themes as well, as I believe it's been more successful than TWODW so far.

And there has been word that PAs showbuilding is going to receive a new roof where the Galleon invasion is (yes, that scene is still fully intact, along with the pre-drop scene, excluding signs and figures) this will give them a huge amount of potential to use that space, as the UK really lacks dark rides of proper quality outside of Blackpool Pleasure Beach. I heard that the ride system was also in good condition, the main reason it closed I think was lack of maintenance and lack of fire exits, AND the fact that the props and buildings in there are made of materials you wouldn't use nowadays in terms of safety standards.

If they use that space wisely, Alton will have competiton I think with The HH potentially back next year, and another new dark ride in PAs place the following year.

I couldn't see DM returning the entire Pirate area as those rides are quite popular and offer a decent capacity. It would be nice if they have that showbuilding the same treatment that Mack gave to Piraten In Batavia.

I believe if Drayton Stick with there current course and don't do things cheap like AT has been doing In the last couple of years, they could be on a league just below Alton, but carry near identical quality in terms of family attractions and themed experiences.

Alton Towers will always be the superior in the thrill factor, but in everything else, Drayton surpasses them personally, even Theming in some areas of the park.

 

[Matt N]

I think Vikings shows that families prefer more unique themes as well, as I believe it's been more successful than TWODW so far.

Out of interest, what metric are you using to declare that Vikings has been more successful than TWODW? I don’t believe either park has released visitor figures since the lands opened, so I’d say it’s hard to call at this point if you’re looking at it from that standpoint.

As much as enthusiasts hate them, I’d argue that IPs are often more successful in terms of both guest figures and secondary spend than original ideas. IP-themed rides and lands are easier to market, and will have a natural fanbase for the IP to tap into, therefore will often incur greater increases in guest figures. They are also often easier to find secondary spend opportunities within, as the park can allow people to have experiences from their favourite books, films or TV shows through an IP-themed area or ride (take Ollivander’s or Butterbeer as lucrative secondary spend opportunities within WWOHP at Universal, for example), whereas those secondary spend opportunities might be a bit of a harder sell for an original idea.

 

[Trooper Looper]

Out of interest, what metric are you using to declare that Vikings has been more successful than TWODW? I don’t believe either park has released visitor figures since the lands opened, so I’d say it’s hard to call at this point if you’re looking at it from that standpoint.

As much as enthusiasts hate them, I’d argue that IPs are often more successful in terms of both guest figures and secondary spend than original ideas. IP-themed rides and lands are easier to market, and will have a natural fanbase for the IP to tap into, therefore will often incur greater increases in guest figures. They are also often easier to find secondary spend opportunities within, as the park can allow people to have experiences from their favourite books, films or TV shows through an IP-themed area or ride (take Ollivander’s or Butterbeer as lucrative secondary spend opportunities within WWOHP at Universal, for example), whereas those secondary spend opportunities might be a bit of a harder sell for an original idea.

I've worked in Vikings a couple of times, and even the smallest attraction there, the Horse ride, always gets a big queue, and when I go to THWODW, the only ride there that has a queue over 20 minutes is GG, this includes its opening year.

Trust me, the capacity in Vikings is far greater than TWODW.

 

[Plastic Person]

Trust me, the capacity in Vikings is far greater than TWODW.

And trust me, the capacity of Alton Towers is far greater than DMP, so in relative terms, does this comparison really make any sense?

 

[Matt N]

I've worked in Vikings a couple of times, and even the smallest attraction there, the Horse ride, always gets a big queue, and when I go to THWODW, the only ride there that has a queue over 20 minutes is GG, this includes its opening year.

Trust me, the capacity in Vikings is far greater than TWODW.

I trust that you probably know ridership stats far better than I do, but I’d argue that queue times alone won’t be an entirely reliable comparison between the two lands’ popularity.

For starters, the two lands have very different calibres of ride within them. Apart from Gangsta Granny, TWODW’s rides are small, fairly insignificant children’s rides with quite a limited pool of potential riders, whereas the rides in Vikings are a bit more universal in demographic and have a greater pool of riders to appeal to.

I’d also counter that Vikings is in a far more prime location within Drayton Manor than TWODW is within Alton Towers; one of the main entrances to Drayton Manor falls directly within Vikings, so you might well get a fair amount of passing traffic going onto them entering the park, whereas TWODW is, relatively speaking, in the back end of nowhere within Alton Towers; anyone who’s in TWODW is likely there exclusively for TWODW, whereas Vikings is likely to attract more passing traffic by virtue of its location.

Not to mention that Drayton Manor has less major rides to pick from than Alton Towers does, and the rides they do have are mostly lower in capacity.

 

[Trooper Looper]

And trust me, the capacity of Alton Towers is far greater than DMP, so in relative terms, does this comparison really make any sense?

I'm only comparing the 2 areas here.

Yeah, DM doesn't have the best capacity, does it, outside of Stormforce 10, Sheriff Showdown, and the rapids, I can't think of any other high capacity ride there.

 

[Plastic Person]

I'm only comparing the 2 areas here.

This is exactly my point, you can't compare the capacity and purpose of the two areas without considering how they fit within the broader picture and expectations of the park. I agree that Vikings looks good (not for me personally, but for what the park need right now), whereas TWODWD is supremely underwhelming by Towers' standards, but one represents a relatively major expansion with three different types of experiences represented, while the other is a Garmendale dark ride in a shed. Although incidentally, still a better dark ride than any at DMP right now.

 

[Matt N]

I also think “success” is an extremely open ended term.

As @Plastic Person said, it is hard enough to compare the two areas for their respective parks, as they fill very different roles.

However, it should also be noted that each park’s definition of “success” might be different. It could be judged by how much guest figures increased by. It could be judged by guest feedback. It could be judged by how much it increases profits and secondary spend per capita.

It’s extremely hard to judge, overall.

 

[Dave]

Drayton is a big player in the UK theme park industry it is one of the top attended parks as far as we know. It's definitely viewed by the public as one of the major parks. They do also have the budget for a big investment, if they don't then they can borrow, Drayton is usually very profitable (although it had problems after the rapids incident). There is no reason Drayton cannot be a Looping's biggest money spinner.

Not many people in Yorkshire know about Drayton, excluding Flamingo Land I would say the parks folk know about up here are Alton, Thorpe and Blackpool.

 

[John_P]

If anything the past few years has seen Alton Towers lurching back towards being a regional park, hopefully their current plans reverse this.

 

[rob666]

Yeah, Blackpool Pleasure Beach is world famous...in the North.

 

[Skyscraper]

Yeah, Blackpool Pleasure Beach is world famous...in the North.

And by North I assume you mean the North of Lancashire?

 

[Dave]

If anything the past few years has seen Alton Towers lurching back towards being a regional park, hopefully their current plans reverse this.

Their investment might have been regional but it’s place in the UK public consciousness is as a national park. I would say Blackpool is as well mostly thanks the the Big One and the TV series from the 90’s.

 

[Shaggy_Dog_]

Yeah, Blackpool Pleasure Beach is world famous...in the North.

Actually when I was at Energylandia in last month I was queuing up for my breakfast in the McDonalds just outside the park when I overheard a guy ahead of me talking in Polish who said:

“*something something* Blackpool, *something something* Alton Towers *something*”

Part of me regrets not going over to him, saying hello, and mentioning how intrigued I was that he was talking about Pleasure Beach. I’d love to know what he was saying about it.

 

[JAperson]

Vikings is probably the busiest area in Drayton while Walliams world is probably the least busy in towers, it's a unfair comparison anyway. The parks are on a whole different scale.

Now in terms of Drayton's recognisability, if you ask basically anyone I know to name theme parks, there top ones would be Alton towers, LEGOLAND, Drayton manor and Blackpool pleasure beach, with Thorpe coming in just behind. This is almost in line with visitation, with Thorpe probably being a little higher up the list and Lego just above towers. Drayton's catchment area doesn't really include Yorkshire @Dave or Lancashire @rob666 but rather includes the counties of Leicestershire, Warwickshire, Staffordshire, Derbyshire, Rutland and the county of the West Midlands. Basically the entirety of the Midlands and surrounding area's. This is a huge amount of people to draw from for day visits and they even get people from outside these area's with there hotel.

 

[DistortAMG]

I'm only comparing the 2 areas here.

Yeah, DM doesn't have the best capacity, does it, outside of Stormforce 10, Sheriff Showdown, and the rapids, I can't think of any other high capacity ride there.

Storm Force 10 has awful capacity 50% of it's boats are decommissioned. I do not think Sheriffs showdowns capacity is that good to he fair.