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Major Operational Changes for 2018

boweso said:
They should never have spent the money on a new CBeebies hotel when they could have saved money by re-theming rooms in the other 2 hotels and maybe changed some of the theming in the main AT Hotel, would love to know what % of rooms are actually filled across the resort at any one time
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The issue with this is that the Splash Landings rooms were built too small to start with and therefore cannot be turned into the sensible useful family sized rooms that CBeebies offers. Of course with hindsight they should have built better Splash rooms to start with.

Enchanted village is ridiculous though. Neither small and cute enough to be camping style or sensible enough to be a proper hotel. More genuine self catering would have been more family friendly.
 
AstroDan said:
With all due respect, families have CBeebies Land and Mutiny Bay. The loss of Cloud Cuckoo Land would be fairly minimal.
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Families don't have Cbeebies Land, families with pre schoolers do. There's a massive difference. The "loss" of CCL would only be minimal because there's minimal open.

I'm confused, are you suggesting CCL is closed until 12 in exchange for FV or are you advocating it should be closed all season? If it's the former, I agree with you. The latter would be a disaster, families have already suffered worse from the cuts.
 
matthewgcole said:
Families don't have Cbeebies Land, families with pre schoolers do. There's a massive difference. The "loss" of CCL would only be minimal because there's minimal open
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I agree that CBeebies Land doesn’t help many families with older kids. But neither does CCL. Frog Hoppper is a small kids thing and Driving School not much better. Twirling Toadstool should be open really and that would add a decent attraction. But Ice Age (or another entertainment show) and Charlie aren’t coming back any time soon. It would be better to mothball the three remains CCL attractions and focus on getting Katanga canyon, Mutiny Bay and Forbidden Valley fully open for the entire day.
 
EuroSatch said:
The truth is very likely that Alton Towers are perfectly profitable, but not to the margins desired by Merlin.

Merlin will have spent a lot of money on business consultancy to develop a target operating model for all RTPs; an objective, streamlined, cost efficient model. It won’t factor in any variables for individual parks, because why? It’s a theory, it works on paper, and will be calculated based on square footage, guest numbers, number of assets etc etc and will demonstrate exactly how much funding a park needs to operate based on its size. It’s then down to Alton Towers to make it fit.

And what happens if it doesn’t work, if a park doesn’t perform to the margins set by Merlin’s Magic Spreadsheet? Merlin aren’t going to pull funding, and they won’t allow a park to become illiquid. So the fall comes to the management to conform, or get out. And then it’s down to another team to meet these demands. So two sets of people need to make a decision.
A) are the demands being placed in my role unreasonable, and can I justify putting these demands in place for the business I operate, or
B) are these parks worth the profit we’re receiving to keep in our group.

Until the latter is decided by Merlin, they will continue to place these demands on Alton Towers, and it’s down to them to prove to Merlin that the demands are unreasonable, be it by refusing to conform to them, or by offering resignation.

I’m not calling for the resignation of any staff. I understand that walking away from a position you were the most passionate about until recently is not a light decision, and has severe consequences for personal lives too. But I am questioning how much management care for the place if they continue to obey Merlin’s demands


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I so want to like this as it's so true for the most part.

But I just can't warm to this whole "management making a stand" thing.

I have implemented ruthless and shortsighted cuts that have damaged the part of the business I have run. More than once in fact.

I could protest and quit over it. Or they would just sack me. only for them to find someone else to do it with the click of a finger who will give the business what they want but do it in a far less empathetic way than I would.

If I quit or got sacked every time I was tasked to do something that I thought damaged the business, I wouldn't have a job.

Businesses get bought and sold. Boards come and go. Strategies are devised then replaced. You're option is to either ride the storm or find another job when the time is right. Merlin will get their cuts come hook or by crook and the management making some righteous stand for justice will only hurt themselves personally.
 
Right guys. We are all ranting on here (quite rightly so!) However it doesn't make much of a point to those "upstairs ". So why aren't we all emailing merlin hq ( not AT) but we could cc them in. Looking at the comments on here if they received that many emails in the inbox they would start to panic on the backlash. Lots of us saying no to MAP renewals this year, lots saying they won't bother going wicker man or not. And questioning how they are going to cope especially after last year's scarefeast crowds. They might think oh dear customer numbers are down and we can't blame terrorism! Let's face it this is all down to the midway attractions not performing well last spring /summer and autumn! So they should get the cuts! But wait how do sealife make cuts? And they won't want to upset londoners at Southbank and hence why they are not as hard on TP.

I am sooooo angry :-(


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themeparkfan said:
Right guys. We are all ranting on here (quite rightly so!) However it doesn't make much of a point to those "upstairs ". So why aren't we all emailing merlin hq ( not AT) but we could cc them in. Looking at the comments on here if they received that many emails in the inbox they would start to panic on the backlash. Lots of us saying no to MAP renewals this year, lots saying they won't bother going wicker man or not. And questioning how they are going to cope especially after last year's scarefeast crowds. They might think oh dear customer numbers are down and we can't blame terrorism! Let's face it this is all down to the midway attractions not performing well last spring /summer and autumn! So they should get the cuts! But wait how do sealife make cuts? And they won't want to upset londoners at Southbank and hence why they are not as hard on TP.
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Because it's been done before, and they've quite literally stated that enthusiasts have too high expectations. We're nothing but a thorn in their side. They could not care less about us.
 
OK but lets just make out some of us are general public who were going to book a short break but not now as we picked up on the information from Facebook.

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Danny said:
Because it's been done before, and they've quite literally stated that enthusiasts have too high expectations. We're nothing but a thorn in their side. They could not care less about us.
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Agreed. We're just a drop in the ocean to them. They won't listen to a handful of us. They won't listen to the MAP community as they already have their money.

They'll listen to thousands of customers, but by the time they realise they've been robbed it will be too late and the cuts would have been implemented.

They won't see a decrease in guest attendance properly until the year after the cuts when people don't return. Then they'll just make some bullshit up about terrorism in London or something, rinse and repeat every year until it doesn't wash anymore, then sell there shares and retire just before the share price crashes and then sit on a beach alongside the ex board members of Carillon.
 
I've already left a disgruntled post on both Merlin and Altons FB page. The sad truth is that they can't see past their noses. They can't see why everyone is up in arms over this, like they said, they been operating staggard ride times for a few years now and this year is no difference.

They will call our bluff and guest will still turn up in droves, scarefest and the fireworks will be a success.

Next winter us mugs will renew our passes and book our over priced resort stay in the winter sales only to find out a few weeks later that more cuts will be made to our full half day trip out.

The cycle will keep going, each year our fun will keep diminishing, people will still pay the premium to visit in hope that things will get better.


I keep seeing post on FB with the general public asking "What Cuts?"



 
Also can someone please make a spoof ad using past ad clips from you tube etc but saying ride unavailable or something along those lines (the nemisis come back at lunchtime was ace!) We could have it plastered all over Facebook. The tag line can be where the magic never starts. let's think NST # your worst nightmare in Staffordshire oblivion; don't look! Nowts open! Air; prepare for nothing available to do! Etc....

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themeparkfan said:
Also can someone please make a spoof ad using past ad clips from you tube etc but saying ride unavailable or something along those lines (the nemisis come back at lunchtime was ace!) We could have it plastered all over Facebook. The tag line can be where the magic never starts. let's think NST # your worst nightmare in Staffordshire oblivion; don't look! Nowts open! Air; prepare for nothing available to do! Etc....

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Here is one that I personally prepared earlier

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And this one that I saw on FB yesterday, I've put it under a spoiler as it's not for under 18's or if you are easily offended

Ie7lrLb.jpg

Anyone visiting on open day, should enlarge these, print them off and make plaques, have a protest outside the entrance, maybe also arrange a protect outside Merlin HQ too
 
Also does anyone know how to set up a petition and how the message can be shared so we can warn the general public about their visit and what to expect so they can sign it

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themeparkfan said:
Also does anyone know how to set up a petition and how the message can be shared so we can warn the general public about their visit and what to expect so they can sign it

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There is already two, for what it's worth, it won't make a difference but I signed it any way, just to make me feel better :tearsofjoy:

Just share it on social media

https://www.petitions24.com/stop_cut_backs_and_staggered_ride_opening_times_at_alton_towers

https://www.thepetitionsite.com/en-...-towers-fair-opening-times-to-reflect-prices/
 
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I am reading some tripe here.

PLEASE, do not bother, nor waste your time, singing petitions, staging protests or photo-shopping images.

Do you really think Merlin will care about some nasty comments on a forum and petition with 100 signatures?

ALL they care about is YOUR money.

If you do not agree with their 2018 operating cuts, visit their competitors. CREATE some competition. Visit Blackpool, Paulton's, or Drayton Manor. Even use your savings on passes or tickets and put it towards perhaps a European trip to Europa Park or the Efiteling.

Treat it as a super market. If the products are not value for money, try somewhere else.

THEY DO NOT DESERVE YOUR CUSTOM. THEY ONLY WANT YOUR MONEY. WAKE UP AND SHOP AROUND.
 
It's not our money they want or need, they get it from the general public who fail to realise there are better quality offerings out there and are fleeced into handing their money over to Merlin each year.
 
Thinking on is that the ultimate protest? If our MAPs are due for renewal. We have already hammered them (well I have London in October TP, legoland, and chessington last June, blackpool in August and I lost count of visits to AT. So they have paid for themselves. So if I hammer it over spring and I dont spend anything there where do merlin make their money?

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themeparkfan said:
Thinking on is that the ultimate protest? If our MAPs are due for renewal. We have already hammered them (well I have London in October TP, legoland, and chessington last June, blackpool in August and I lost count of visits to AT. So they have paid for themselves. So if I hammer it over spring and I dont spend anything there where do merlin make their money?

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By filling up the queue lines so the next mug purchase fast track for the family ;)
 
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