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Drayton Manor Park

Double post, whip me. Checked Drayton's Annual Pass page today and Gold Pass now has a 20% discount on food, drink and retail. I don't know if it's an update, or an error, but purchasing it today should secure these terms at least. cc @DistortAMG

www.draytonmanor.co.uk

Tickets & Passes | Annual Pass

Introducing our brand-new three tiered pass structure - allowing the ultimate flexibility! Experience a whole year of fun from just £89!
www.draytonmanor.co.uk www.draytonmanor.co.uk
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A bit annoying that they're cheaper now as I bought a Gold pass for £115 less than a month ago. Might send them a message asking if they can do anything nice for me 🤔
 
Bowser said:
Weather permitting looks like we are going to Drayton next week!

Any general tips for a first visit?
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Maintenance and ride availability was a bit of an issue last year. It's not normal wisdom but if Stormforce 10 / The Wave / Rapids are open when you arrive you look to do them early. You may find that the opportunity isn't there later in the day.

Be wary of the queue lines for Accelerator, Storm Force 10, Submarine Splash and the Wave. They are mainly out of sight from the entrance and so you can find yourself joining lines which are much longer than you initially expect.

Barrells, Wave Swinger and Flying Dutchman noramlly have high turnaroudns so if you ever just need a ride after queues then head to one of those.

Loki looks great and is a lot of fun, but the throughput is pretty poor. If you see a low queue then just jump onto it.
 
Skyscraper said:
Do The Haunting early as it operates with one group every 15-20 minutes.

Hope you have a good time!
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Not strictly true anymore, in November last year they had two groups in at once. Group 2 was getting the briefing as 1 was in the Mad House.

Bowser said:
Weather permitting looks like we are going to Drayton next week!

Any general tips for a first visit?
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Maelstrom for you. Stormforce 10 has/had one of the best themed queue lines around. It's small enough that no particular order is really needed. Loki is awful for loading times.

Enjoy the adequacy! It's perfectly pleasant. It won't blow your mind, but it's sweet enough. I hope you have a great day!
 
Bowser said:
Drayton are doing a deal this week where if you buy a dated ticket you can get a second ticket for £20 up till August 16th.

Would be a lot more appealing of course if you knew the new rollercoaster was going to be open.
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I’m taking that offer as meaning that the new coaster isn’t due to open until sometime after the 16th of August at the earliest…
 
Relife said:
If it's not due to open until mid August I'm tempted to say leave it until next season. The latest it needed to be ready is the start of the summer holidays. Anytime after that seems pointless. The track flew up but the rest of the construction has been so slow.
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I'm reading John Wardley's second book and i noticed that he mentioned October is now the busiest month for AT. I wonder if that is reflected across other parks in the UK? If so then having it open from mid August would still potentially cover their two biggest months of the season.
 
Bowser said:
I'm reading John Wardley's second book and i noticed that he mentioned October is now the busiest month for AT. I wonder if that is reflected across other parks in the UK? If so then having it open from mid August would still potentially cover their two biggest months of the season.
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I’d imagine this is largely due to Scarefest at Alton. Correct me if I’m wrong, but Drayton doesn’t have quite such a big Halloween event, does it?
 
Bowser said:
I'm reading John Wardley's second book and i noticed that he mentioned October is now the busiest month for AT. I wonder if that is reflected across other parks in the UK? If so then having it open from mid August would still potentially cover their two biggest months of the season.
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It would only give them three months of operation though, at the most, which isn't exactly the big boost in numbers that the park needs. The ride should be open for your busiest period, yes, but it needs to be open for your quietest period to get people through the door. Visitors are already going to go in August and October, as you've pointed out.
 
That looks to me like testing is imminent. Looks like water dummies loaded in to the train and if the switch track is moving, the electrics and ride system are going to be in place. Once the scaffolding is down from the station and other buildings, it’s going to look a lot more complete bar the landscaping and wider themeing. But as Vikings showed, Drayton can knock that together pretty quickly when they want. Or in the case of Thorpe park, not bother at all.
 
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Skyscraper said:
Do The Haunting early as it operates with one group every 15-20 minutes.

Hope you have a good time!
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On busy days they been running it every 7 mins on average. As they loading the group on to the ride another ride host is letting the next group into the trailer. We were by the 1st gate but was in the pre show within 20 mins.

Someone been to the park today and confirmed they been testing out the motors on the lift hills and the Transfer tracks. Not sure if it’s the same train but it’s been testing going in and out of the station. If you look at my picture last week.
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The Scaffolding was only round the back side of the Maintenance building and on the sides of the launch building so they could have been testing it.
They also started to install the queue line fences now so I do think July is more likely
 
The 4D cinema at Legoland is now my sons favourite attraction and i see they have one at Drayton. How does it work there, is it on at certain times?
 
Bowser said:
The 4D cinema at Legoland is now my sons favourite attraction and i see they have one at Drayton. How does it work there, is it on at certain times?
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Sadly The Thomas & Friends 4D Cinema Experience at Drayton Manor Park & Zoo is no more. A hero of an old poster, who sadly never came back due to allegations of strict censorship, which he didn't vote for, told us about it. The attraction temporarily became just The Drayton Theatre last season, not sure what it was showing. Now The Falls Theatre, at Drayton Manor Park and Zoo, offers a 4D Cinema experience once again, but this time with Looney Tunes.

It's been an exciting year for 4D cinemas, with the Thorpe Park 4D Cinema also getting a new film, though not the sale film as shown at Drayton Manor Park and Zoo.
 
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