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Hotels General Discussion

MaxPower said:
It'll be interesting to see how the hotels (and the park for that matter) manage the upcoming surge in energy costs given the already extortionate prices they're charging and overall sub-par quality provided.
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The resort will have one energy bill for the whole site, it won't be split hotels/park, so equally there'll be no separate price hike between the two.
 
You know this as fact?
I was previously told that the hotels are on a separate supply and tab, so to speak.
Business supply costs aren't subject to a limit like residential supply, some business costs have gone through the roof already.
 
It is far more likely that Merlin have secured an energy contract for most if not all of their UK properties to benefit from economies of scale. It doesn’t really matter how many supplies there are or aren’t at individual locations, it would be linked to overall usage.

And as Rob mentioned there is no cap for commercial energy, so depending on their deal, prices have probably been through the roof for months now already.
 
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The hotels must have a separate feed. Theres been a few times where areas of the park have had power cuts but the hotels have been ok. All the heating in the hotels is via electric radiators so I dread to think what the bill will be after this winter is done with!
 
GaryH said:
The hotels must have a separate feed. Theres been a few times where areas of the park have had power cuts but the hotels have been ok. All the heating in the hotels is via electric radiators so I dread to think what the bill will be after this winter is done with!
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Separate feed does not equal separate energy bill.

The resort definitely has multiple electrical intakes, but it won't be paying separate bills for each one.
 
There are 3 substations at Alton Towers. Each one takes a separate feed from the National Grid / local distribution network.

Some years ago, as long as at least 2 - or ideally all 3 substations were "up" for ride startup time of the huge energy consumers - namely the Flume, Rapids & Skyride, the park was fine. They still tried to start these 3 rides separately though due to the load the startup put on the system. Once everything was up and running, the park could technically run on just one substation. [This was a good 20yrs ago]. Since then they have added a Waterpark Hotel. Splash Landings itself won't be a huge drain on the electricity supply, but the waterpark drain will be huge.

Then add on all the other accommodation [electrically heated] and the addition of air conditioning to various places. The power supply / distribution across Alton Towers must be getting stressed, as to my knowledge no further substations have been added [there are no planning applications for any at SMDC - and even if it is the electrical distributor who needs the planning permission, it would show up with a ST10 4DB postcode search].

The Park was - possibly still are - on an un-metered supply, so as it's name suggests, a flat fee is paid irrespective of the energy used. It was very common to see heaters and lights left on 24/7 in workshops - even with notes next to them saying "Do not turn heater off". I would imagine that if they have not already gone out the window, un-metered supplies will be on their way out due to energy costs. (My monthly bill has gone from £76 to £120 in 3 months... and this is in Summer - and I had quite a big credit balance too).

When the park loses an electrical feed, the rides directly linked to the relevant substation tend to go down - at least temporarily.
 
According to the latest menu update on the website for the hotel restaurants, starters are no longer a thing at SGR, Crooked Spoon and The Windmill restaurants, and the options at RCR are fairly uninspired and lacking in quantity.

Could be an operational decision over the summer holidays as a result of limited restaurant capacity, or perhaps a longer term decision. Either way, you’d think they’d actively be trying to encourage a higher ASPH.
 
Some menu items are duplicated, too. Popcorn Halloumi is 50p more in SGR than CS.

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AstroDan said:
Some menu items are duplicated, too. Popcorn Halloumi is 50p more in SGR than CS.

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Yeah it seems pretty rubbish that the Secret Garden and Crooked Spoon menus are almost identical but Secret Garden adds 50p to the price of every dish.
Both offer wild boar sausages, mushroom pasta, battered fish, sirloin steak, blue cheese steak sauce, peppercorn sauce, double burger, stacked burger, bean burger, raspberry frangipane and ice cream in a brandy basket. All 50p cheaper at Crooked Spoon.

I assume none of the dessert cakes are made on site either.
 
Agree it’s daft that the same items have different prices across the restaurants, though at least they’ve managed to get it the right way round this time! Not too long ago, Crooked Spoon’s items were more expensive than their SGR counterparts. It’s nothing new.

Personally I’d rather pay 50p extra for the comparably more comfortable and quiet setting of SGR (and no, that’s not intended as a snobby comment. I’ve simply always found dining at Crooked Spoon to be chaotic and overly loud).
 
I haven’t stayed at the hotels since about 2015, nor do I intend to go back any time. There’s no way I’m willing to pay premium rate for a Butlins level of quality.
 
Enter Valhalla said:
I haven’t stayed at the hotels since about 2015, nor do I intend to go back any time. There’s no way I’m willing to pay premium rate for a Butlins level of quality.
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I think that's a bit of a slight on Butlins tbh. At least they provide plenty of choice in terms of dining.
 
I stayed at Butlins for a festival a few years ago and thought it was far superior to any stay I've had at Alton in the past decade. Well, perhaps not in terms of rides, but you get the idea.
 
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