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Grime?

AstroDan

AstroDan

TS Team
Favourite Ride
Steel Vengeance, Cedar Point
Alton Towers is such a grimy place. Everywhere you look: whether it is rides, food outlets or shops - very little really looks 'clean' - even when it has apparently been 'cleaned'...

I don't really get why. Everything seems to be caked in a layer of dirt or just general crust. It's quite unsettling.

Thoughts on this? Do they just need four times the cleaners?
 
AstroDan said:
Alton Towers is such a grimy place. Everywhere you look: whether it is rides, food outlets or shops - very little really looks 'clean' - even when it has apparently been 'cleaned'...

I don't really get why. Everything seems to be caked in a layer of dirt or just general crust. It's quite unsettling.

Thoughts on this? Do they just need four times the cleaners?
Click to expand...
It's inconsistent to say the least. Wicker man is clean and smiler is the worst kept ride I've seen. Surprising bareing in mind smiler is one of the most popular rides, you'd expect them to have it in very good condition
 
Most of the dark green grime is caused by the trees, I think there are efforts to address it but it seems to be a bit of a forth bridge job.
 
Jetwashing would last a week in Altons climate, massive shade and huge amounts of tree cover.
September was wettest for 20 years...it means mould and algae, maybee a bit of meteor jelly if you look hard enough, thrive.
Jetwash then biocide...Algon, vinegar or Wet and Forget works.
Or last year's cider failure.
Then do it again every three months.
Or just leave it for six months.
 
I have always assumed the ‘green’ everything is covered in is down to the fact the park quite densely packed with trees/foliage etc.

I’ve never seen this phenomenon at another park, not at least on this scale (well maybe Colossus).

It’s grim!


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AstroDan said:
Alton Towers is such a grimy place. Everywhere you look: whether it is rides, food outlets or shops - very little really looks 'clean' - even when it has apparently been 'cleaned'...

I don't really get why. Everything seems to be caked in a layer of dirt or just general crust. It's quite unsettling.

Thoughts on this? Do they just need four times the cleaners?
Click to expand...

Are you referring to the theme park, or the hotel rooms? ;)

I can't say I have noticed this grime so much in the park, its surrounded by trees, open to the elements all year around, so a bit of dirt on buildings doesnt bother me too much, its more the bits of rotten wood, broken themeing etc which I tend to notice more.

The hotels on the other hand are a different story. After my last stay in an Enchanted Village Lodge I wont be staying in the hotels again until housekeeping up their game. Reading tripadvisor reviews of the room cleanliess so far this year, it seems things still havent changed.
 
They can't use Cillit Bang, the name is too triggering. The grime also enhances the dark themes with a level of authenticity. I'm surprised they don't use the same cheap paint Thorpe use that flakes off after 9 months for that "abandoned" look.
 
TLC 2.0 incoming? Of course they can’t clean the place without a marketing campaign.

But yes seriously it doesn’t take much effort to keep things clean as long as you have a set routine.
 
The Smiler is certainly the worst culprit. With that said, the exposed concrete on Wicker Man's drop out of the station is also looking worse for wear; less than two years from opening.

It's an embarrassment really. Merlin simply do not believe cleanliness is a contributing factor to the guest experience. My stint with them saw the phasing out of the in-house cleaners gradually, replacing them with a minimum wage agency who simply failed to pull their weight. Yet we as front line staff got the bollocking for it?

Whilst there are prescribed cleaning checks to cover the minimum, particularly on rides, these are never conducted properly and are seen as a hindrance at the end of the day. Why shouldn't they be? Staff aren't paid nor trained in the proper manner to effectively conduct frequent deep cleans; those that do are doing so off their own back, time and passion which Merlin refuse to acknowledge. It's deeply tragic.

Merlin take no pride in the appearance of their attractions, that much is obvious. Perhaps the higher ups and the powers that be need to get off their arses, get out of Poole and actually spend time looking at the state of their front line assets; rather than cowering behind KPI numbers that are largely influenced based on staff asking those who have had positive experiences to fill them out as opposed to those with a negative experience.

Paulton's looks immaculate. Thomas Land whilst looking cheaper and cheaper as time progresses still manages to sustain cleanliness generally. Even Pleasure Beach are at least having a stab at tidying some of the decaying areas of the park; the former Trauma Towers site looks so much better now as does the Bowl-a-drome.

There is no excuse to not have the parks looking great at the start of the season. Disney run the whole damn thing as a 24/7 operation, with an entire night team dedicated to maintaining the cleanliness overnight. Whilst Merlin will never have the budget for that, it is simply inexcusable to pretend to care about making memories and the guest experience when the parks are looking grubbier than a fast food restaurant's bin.

Edit: In hindsight, I should have just left my post as "what do you expect from the company who washes Lego bricks in dirty pillow cases in a washing machine, then throws them straight back out into the attraction with the toe nail clippings and crisps they were swept up with in the first place?".
 
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I think it’s a mix of the environment accelerating mould growth and lack of resource or care in keeping up with maintenance.
 
And the wettest september in twenty years.
Makes a big difference.
Guess what I've been doing all morning...for three different customers.
Big bag of moss anyone?
And I am just off for a new small jetwasher...old one burnt out in a year.
 
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