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Gardaland

I would recommend caution when comparing pre-pandemic budgets to current. The cost of raw materials has increased dramatically and it's hard to say how far €20m euros will actually stretch now.

Let's hope for the best with this ride, what we've seen looks impressive. But don't get too excited until we see how it turns out.
 
Do we think this increases the liklihood of a decent dark ride being added to one of the UK parks?
I know we need to see how good this ends up first of course!
 
jon81uk said:
Do we think this increases the liklihood of a decent dark ride being added to one of the UK parks?
I know we need to see how good this ends up first of course!
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If it goes well I imagine we could see something but I think it would have an IP like this ride. I don’t think Merlin would risk building a dark ride without an IP to market it too.
 
Also not convinced we'd see Merlin build a large dark ride from the ground up. You could point to Ghost Train as a reason that they would, but arguably that's a very expensive lesson as to why they shouldn't.

Not least because, at Garda, Heide, Alton & Chessington, there is a dark ride that could (or has already been) transformed.
 
Derrens host train was (yet another) lesson in why VR shouldn't be used. I don't actually see it as a dark ride, its a walk through with a VR section doesn't actually feel like you ride anything.
But yes I think that should put them off trying anything too groundbreaking. A redo of Tomb Blaster (which might work as Jumanji) would be a lot more likely.
 
Had a nice morning at Gardaland today, weekends this time of year are their preview event that comprises the front two-thirds of the park.

Wasn't able to stop too long so i just picked out my favourites. Everything that was supposed to be open was and was running two or more trains (Mammut). Raptor and Oblivion were running great, the foliage has really fleshed out around those since I was last there.

It's a really great park ... by far the best presented park in RTP, I would wager. It's essentially a hybrid of the three UK parks.

I got a comp ticket from a friend, but it would have been €21, which was a steal. 8 rides in a couple of hours.

It also included Sea Life and the Miniland portion of the water park.

Edit - the best thing about Gardaland is that dogs are still allowed in. I can't believe that has endured.
 
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Agreed about Garda being the best presented of the RTPs. It actually feels like it's a part of a totally different organisation in parts. I appreciate, many of the park's most picturesque attractions were built long before Merlin - but they still stand, mostly.

It's just a shame the park's actual rides aren't necessarily the best of their kind, or anywhere near.

:)
 
For those who have been before, do you have any particular tips?

We’re visiting late this year and for such a major European park, there’s not a great deal of unofficial information available.
 
Rick said:
Edit - the best thing about Gardaland is that dogs are still allowed in. I can't believe that has endured.
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I was also happy to spot this. Hope they keep it going.
If Alton was dog friendly I'd actually find time to visit again as frequently as I used to.
 
Out of interest @Rick, when you say that the park draws elements from each of the 3 UK RTPs (implied by “a hybrid of each park”), I’d be interested to know; what elements do you think it draws from each?

Glad to hear you had a nice time, though! Did Jumanji look anywhere near completion, if you were able to see it?
 
Just treated myself to a dodgy POV of this, ahead of a visit there this summer. Will hold off on a final assessment until then, but it appears to be a mix of refreshingly old-school Ghost Train tableaux and trickery, with a few sections of screeenzzzz for the story. The ride system looks cool, as is almost always the case with Oceaneering. I'd like to issue a trigger warning for those sensitive to exposed concrete walls... 👀
 




The exterior and queue line theming looks good and I like the ride system. Now, I’m no lighting expert, but when you have a dark ride with blank spots why would you think ‘I know, lets get some strobes by there so guests can admire the concrete’.

It’s actually not that badly themed, the lighting just ruins it for the areas that have no theming!
 
It's very hard to judge a dark ride by a POV, but I am pretty impressed (I think). Looks to be a vast improvement on what was there before and a good mix of physical theming and screens. Nice ride system too.
 
It looks really good! Lots of theming, nice screen integration, nice looking ride system; what’s not to like?

I have to say, I wouldn’t object to something similar replacing Duel at Towers; I think something like that would fit very well into Alton Towers’ lineup myself.
 
I think it looks decent and great to see merlin using a quality ride system. Yes there will be flaws as its so easy to compare to rides at Disney/Universal and similar parks, but these types of rides are not cheap. Its great to see Merlin try something different to what they have been doing. I would like to see the ride system used at Alton for a Major dark ride, but I still have a feeling they will go with a another coaster for their next major investment, even though a new major dark ride would better fill the gap in the parks lineup currently.
 
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