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Media Coverage of Alton Towers

Robert Jones said:
Alton Towers are have shared an article the Mirror has written about the Cbeebies hotel. Is this a start of a beautiful friendship between the two? 2-4-1 in The Mirror this year?
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Ha I doubt it, now that the Mirror have slammed them for the prices.

The Mirror said:
Excited parents rush to book new CBeebies hotel - then discover why it's not for the average family
If you felt a ripple of excitement spread across the UK yesterday, it's because parents everywhere were excitedly sharing photographs of the new CBeebies hotel.

But that didn't last long when they started pricing rooms for short stays.

The 76-room hotel, based at CBeebies Land in Alton Towers, will be opening in the summer and will basically make all British kids' dreams come true.

Uniquely designed with children in mind, young guests can enjoy a jam-packed entertainment schedule that runs from 7am until 9.30pm, where they can join in treasure hunts and meet their favourite characters.

The rooms also look like they've been plucked straight out of the television.

But there seems to be one huge catch, as parents have pointed out - it's more than a little pricey.

When Mirror Mums posted the news on its Facebook page yesterday, parents excitedly started trying to book rooms for special occasions - and got the shock of their lives.

Lucy Crookshank commented: "It does look good but for an octonaut (sic) room for 2 nights is £892.00 STARTING price.

"I would rather put an extra 500 quid and go all inclusive to Tenerife for a week.....I'll even buy an octonaut poster and stick it on the hotel wall for my boy!

"Lovely idea but unobtainable for us 'regular joes'"

Kerry Leahy wrote: "As much as it is amazing! (sic) Maybe it would make sense for alton towers to greatly reduce the cost!

"£295 for one night 2 adults and our not even 3 year old!!

"And that doesn't include the price of getting into Alton towers!! Which means to go to CBeebies land within Alton towers you have to pay park entrance prices on top per person!!!

"By the time you've paid that, travel money, park entrance tickets, food money etc it's going to cost around £600+ No thank you!! I'll put that towards Disney world and go there for 2 weeks."

Becki White said she had priced a room with the idea of taking her little girl for her birthday, but was put off when the quote came to £482 for two adults and a child for just one night.

Danielle Brewer checked out the Swashbuckle room for a one-night break over the summer holidays, claiming one night with park tickets came to £525.

Donna Dugdale wrote: "Looks amazing! But I priced up 2 nights on the first weekend in August and was coming up £850."

Ashley Wright wasn't surprised by the 'disgusting greed', claiming other parks such as Legoland also charge over £400 for a night's stay in the Lego hotel.

Mirror Online has contacted representatives for the CBeebies Hotel for comment on the matter.
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http://www.mirror.co.uk/lifestyle/family/excited-parents-rush-book-new-9735811

What to do.
 
To be fair, it's location, IP and newness price this at the top banding of accommodation. Also, I don't really see why AT would lower the prices; if people didn't book, then they would - but why would they if people book them?
 
I'm actually pleased that the issue of hotel cost has been highlghted in the press (even if it is the Mirror). The points about spending a little bit more and going abroad to Disney or other holiday resorts are valid. Over £800 for a weekend at Alton Towers is mad!

:)
 
Rob said:
I'm actually pleased that the issue of hotel cost has been highlghted in the press (even if it is the Mirror). The points about spending a little bit more and going abroad to Disney or other holiday resorts are valid. Over £800 for a weekend at Alton Towers is mad!

:)
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I do agree. However, makes you wonder, if it's that mad why are people booking them up. :)
 
Quite, if sales are indeed good (I have no idea if they are) then from Merlin's point of view then the pricing is justified. I still think it's a total rip off and am glad to see them being exposed for it!

:)
 
They'll get away with it this year as the hotel is new and people who have not been to Towers for a while will be unaware of the extent of its decline. They'll get away with it next year because of SW8.

As we all know though, this level of pricing is not sustainable and is yet another action that will do long term damage to the parks reputation. If the Mirror have managed to write a legitimately critical article about the park without mentioning THAT incident and before the season has even begun, just imagine what it will be like later in the season when guests start to feel what it's like being marched back to their hotel at half 4 in the afternoon, £800 worse off than they were the day before.
 
To be perfectly honest I find all resorts ridiculously overpriced and find that Alton Towers isn't any different to Disney or Europa Park in their pricing (quality of offerings is a different matter).

I've just booked a week in Tokyo bay Hilton for half the price of staying on the Disney resort. This is midweek in early March so god knows how expensive it is in the peak times.

However looking at the Facebook comments there are 800+ complaining it costs £400 a night for a family. That just seems completely over the top when you can get a week away for the same price. I can't wait to see all the Groupon adverts just to fill half the hotel.
 
To be honest, some of those prices being quoted to stay in the new hotel do seem pretty outrageous. However, having said that, I'll use my usual mantra of: If you don't like the price of a product, don't buy it. No-one is forcing you. They're only offering a product for a certain price. It's not a human right to go and stay in any such place. And like others have said, if enough people are willing to pay the price, why would they reduce it? Last time I checked they weren't listed as a charity.
 
The thing is there will be plenty of people who will pay this so it probably won't cause a problem for towers!
 
Just in-case you missed it, Vicky appeard on Lorraine Kelly on ITV earlier today

"Alton Towers Crash Survivor Vicky Balch Feels No Anger Towards the Owners"

"I want to do things in the media" Vicky tells Lorraine :rolleyes:



Please feel free to move if posted in wrong place
 
Gold medal-winning British Paralympic swimmer, 29 is BANNED from Alton Towers’ infamous Smiler rollercoaster – because she only has ONE ARM

Headline today from a certain paper


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HSE guidance states that when using a ladder you always need at least 3 points of contact with the ladder. Towers say that they simply cannot go against HSE guidance on the matter, which is totally understandable.

:)
 
Im glad the hotel prices are being highlighted. I have only stayed there once in the past year and that was due to a Groupon deal. I now refuse to pay the asking prices when I can stay in a higher quality B&B up the road for a fraction of the price.

To charge families over £400 to stay in a childrens hotel is just crazy. However, all I will say is this - if people are prepared to pay it, then why would AT reduce the prices.

Its obvious the Alton hotels are being aimed at the wealthy now and not the general public, you only have to wander around the car parks and count up the number of prestige cars parked there.

Such a shame, what started out as a reasonably priced hotel back in the 90s aimed at everyone, has turned into a "resort" of overpriced hotels aimed at those with more money than sense. Dont get me wrong, I love the hotels as such and the atmosphere in them, but £400 a night for a room with not even any air con...... seriously!!???
 
There are a hell of a lot of sales/deals around for the hotels now (more than I've seen in previous years). They seem to have a sale every other week, and I even had a letter a few weeks ago directly from Towers with a 50% off code for the hotels. I bet a fair few hotel bookings are coming via these sales. I know its the only way I can afford to stay at Towers and I'm sure that will be the same for many others.

It would be nice if they had a deposit system back. Or do what Butlins/Haven do, a deposit then monthly payments spread between when you book and when you stay. Whats off putting about Towers hotels is that you have to pay the whole thing right away, which isn't affordable for your average person.

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GaryH said:
Im glad the hotel prices are being highlighted. I have only stayed there once in the past year and that was due to a Groupon deal. I now refuse to pay the asking prices when I can stay in a higher quality B&B up the road for a fraction of the price.

To charge families over £400 to stay in a childrens hotel is just crazy. However, all I will say is this - if people are prepared to pay it, then why would AT reduce the prices.

Its obvious the Alton hotels are being aimed at the wealthy now and not the general public, you only have to wander around the car parks and count up the number of prestige cars parked there.

Such a shame, what started out as a reasonably priced hotel back in the 90s aimed at everyone, has turned into a "resort" of overpriced hotels aimed at those with more money than sense. Dont get me wrong, I love the hotels as such and the atmosphere in them, but £400 a night for a room with not even any air con...... seriously!!???
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They can never ever offer low priced accomodation due to the locals/surrounding businesses which depened on Towers. They'd be in competition with the the very people who have a lot of say over what the park can or can't do. Towers must keep the locals on their side.

That being said, my biggest issue is the severe lack of value for money. If they're gonna charge £400 per night then ok fine, but I expect £400 of value. Currently, the hotels are far cry from the most run down Travelodge which can be had for £50 per night.

They seriously need to up the standards, in all areas. I've stayed at the hotels regularly over the last 20 years and had to watch standards decline over the last 10-12, to the point where I refuse to stay in them ever again now after last October's experience at The Lodges and then Splash - in Splash for example, no heating in the room and the best they could offer was an extra blanket. No refund, no partial refund, just a small discount voucher for a future visit. Told them to shove it up their ass! I'm sick of the rude, unhelpful staff mostly. The service you get is not worth £400 per night.

It's all very well staying optimistic for the future and hoping things will improve, supporting a place you once loved, but eventually it gets to the point where you have to say "that's it, no more" which is exactly whats happened to me.
 
I had a good chat with some of the guys at EP last week about media.

The sort of gutter press that we have here in the UK simply does not exist in the likes of Germany, nor the rest of Europe.

Our parks are watching their every move, worried about the slightest thing ruining the business. It must be horrendous.
 
There was an article in today's Metro, ripping on Towers for being evil.... no mention of ladders, of course...
 
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