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Is there a future for second tier parks in the UK?

I may be a bit biased seeing as I live there, but I always thought that Gloucestershire would be a nice location for a park in the South West.

It’s within easy reach of some of the key South West hubs like Bristol, Somerset etc, as well as some parts of South East Wales like Cardiff and Newport. However, it’s also far from inaccessible from Birmingham (around 1.5 hours), as well as some parts of London (some Western parts of London are 2 hours or less from here).

Given its reasonably central location relative to the rest of the South West, it does always surprise me that Gloucestershire has never had a theme park to call its own.
 
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Matt.GC said:
1.5 hours to Gloucestershire from Birmingham? Walking pace you mean?
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From me, it’s about 1.5 hours, although I am in one of the westernmost parts of the county (on the edge of the Forest of Dean, and less than 10 miles from the Welsh border at Chepstow).

From certain parts like Gloucester or Cheltenham, it might go down to an hour.
 
Relife said:
Sommeret would be the ideal location as it's the Gateway to the south west
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It would be, but where? Only North or west Somerset would be suitable.

It's choc full of Tory MP's already protesting about essential things like affordable housing being built. Affordable housing which they say they "fully support the need for".... as long as it's not actually built here and is built in the form of tower blocks in Bristol instead where all the Labour MP's are. No chance of anything remotely resembling a second tier park in locations I can think of. Hence why it's mainly small former farms with slides, some small flats and a little coaster or 2 if you're lucky. The only thing I can think of is potential further expansion of Brean, which would still not even bring it up to Flamingo Land levels.

Unless they just demolished Bridgwater and built something there. No one would miss it.
 
The south west has never had the sort of investment you would need to be able to put a top-tier theme park anywhere. Bristol is a sizeable city in terms of population but the poor relation to Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds in terms of development. Look at the fiasco of the supposed 'Bristol Arena' - delayed again, I believe.

The problems are bigger than the theme park industry, this is a part of the world that's been forgotten for so long that people have forgotten it's been forgotten about. Only for 6-8 weeks in the summer do Devon and Cornwall come alive economically and the local infrastructure cannot support it. The M5 is consistently unusable for much of the summer months and other than the A303 there is no viable alternative route from anywhere. The main train route regularly collapses in ever-worsening winter storms and is getting costlier and costlier to maintain.

Much as I wish it weren't the case, the Somerset Resort is going to be little more than a pipe dream for the next few decades if not longer.
 
Pleasure Island looked like a great 2nd Tier Park, really unfortunate they shut it down back in 2016. We need more parks Like Paultons and Pleasure Island to fill on the empty gaps...
 
The two good 2nd tier UK theme parks I can think of are Paultons and Fantasy Island. They both definitely have a future.
 
zeock said:
The two good 2nd tier UK theme parks I can think of are Paultons and Fantasy Island. They both definitely have a future.
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Fantasy Island is an interesting one as it’s essentially a seaside amusement park with two big coasters that were built at turn of the millennium, a great big market running through it that sells a large amount of tat by the sound of it, and an assorted selection of rides from the travelling circuit. Certainly it’s popular but with holiday makers but it doesn’t seem to be a park that draws in the enthusiast crowd. They’ve obviously added some interesting rides recently with the Harrington Flint Dark Ride which sounds very good, and the Robo Arm which doesn’t, but I wonder if we’ll ever see them open a major coaster again like they did in 1999 and 2002? Perhaps not unfortunately.
 
Trooper Looper said:
Always thought Drsypn Manor on the line between a top quality Park and a 2nd Tier Park, and I believe in the upcoming years it'll become a definitive UK 1st Tier park with the massive amount of development its been getting since 2021.
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Absolutely agree, it had a good few years of stagnation in the latter years of the bryans. But since looping group have taken over it’s regained it’s spark! It also has what I consider the second best family zone in the uk in Thomas land (just beaten by Tornado Springs). Another solid coaster to compliment their lineup supported by maybe two good flats and they are really knocking on some doors. I can definitely see them taking some more of the family market away from Towers in the future.
 
I think you got to look at the bigger picture theses 2nd/3rd tier parks are geared to families under the age of 12. Teens/young adults are more interested in their phones and other Technologies then going around a theme park with their parents and when they hit 18/19 they going abroad with friends or as a couple.
None of my friends take their kids to theme parks as they don’t want to pay the price for getting in then queuing 90% of the day then you get food and drink on top. They go to the pub for dinner and drinks instead.
 
Themeparksandy1981 said:
I think you got to look at the bigger picture theses 2nd/3rd tier parks are geared to families under the age of 12. Teens/young adults are more interested in their phones and other Technologies then going around a theme park with their parents and when they hit 18/19 they going abroad with friends or as a couple.
None of my friends take their kids to theme parks as they don’t want to pay the price for getting in then queuing 90% of the day then you get food and drink on top. They go to the pub for dinner and drinks instead.
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Apart from crazy people like me and my coaster loving mother!😂 but in all seriousness you are absolutely right, it’s quite sad in all honesty. Theme parks are one of the only places you can escape your phones or the real world and it seems under appreciated nowadays.
 
Themeparksandy1981 said:
Teens/young adults are more interested in their phones and other Technologies then going around a theme park with their parents and when they hit 18/19 they going abroad with friends or as a couple.
None of my friends take their kids to theme parks as they don’t want to pay the price for getting in then queuing 90% of the day then you get food and drink on top. They go to the pub for dinner and drinks instead.
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I think you are correct; when our class was asked on a school trip to DLP if they had ever been to a theme park before, about 75-80 percent said no.
 
People escaping their phones in theme parks?
I see so many sad faces glued to phones in the queues and bars.
We used to enjoy chatting to complete strangers in queues, it was a real part of the days fun.
Now people ignore each other, even members of their own group, and stare at small screens, twiddling thumbs.
 
I’m thankful for Shawn’s vlogs as my daughter loves watching them and now she’s 1.4m tall she wants to go Thorpe Park this year and it be the 1st time I been in 12 years. My wife hates them but cause she works Sunday’s I take the kids to Drayton Manor.
My mum hates coasters and spinning rides but she always would take us to Drayton Manor, American Adventure and Alton Towers in the summer holidays. She would buy us Wristbands and got tickets for herself as she only want on 3 rides (Splash Canyon, Jungle Cruise and the Pirate Adventure) and watch the Jungle palladium show. She even now comes to Drayton Manor once or twice a year and she loves Thomas land and the rapids.
 
Trooper Looper said:
Always thought Drayton Manor was on the line between a top quality Park and a 2nd Tier Park, and I believe in the upcoming years it'll become a definitive UK 1st Tier park with the massive amount of development its been getting since 2021.
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I think it was a top tier park (obviously not as high up at Alton Towers) but the removal of pirates adventure and then apocalypse has dropped it back a bit.
At the moment Paultons could overtake DM.
 
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