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Merlin vs. Latter-day Tussauds/DIC

I think the tussauds days were the best. I remember 1st going in 1993 I had not long got back from my 1st trip to Florida. I remember from the moment just getting thought the gate it felt like a uk version of the magic kingdom with towers street full of street entertainers. Every area you went in there was entertainment from the parade to the ice show. There was a good selection of flat rides the Astro dancer was my favourite as back then there was a wheel in the middle of the cart. The coasters were off the shelf design but were quite good. When a ride was removed it was replaced straight away by another flat ride/coaster.
It's quite sad now that the only thill flat rides left in the park now are older than me.
 
I don't think DIC can really be held accountable for anything, they owned the park(s) for such a short period that the lack of investment in attractions is more likely to be down to not having any sort of long, or even mid-term plan. Their purpose seemed to be that of "flipping" the business - buy it at one price, then quickly sell it on for a higher price.

Charterhouse don't get enough credit, while not anywhere near as good as Pearson, they did heavily invest in Towers in their early years - 1998 through to 2002 were pretty good - we had Ugland, a few flats, Hex, Air, and they kept up with the entertainment. 2003 we got Europe's first waterpark hotel, a Haunted House revamp (ok its crap, but shoot 'em ups were in demand and the HH was on it's backside). 2004 Spinball Whizzer - I've never understood the enthusiasts hate around this ride, it's a family ride, was located in a family area, everyone loves it, it got decent themeing, no cattlepen queues, interactive games in the queues etc, and it's a much better spinner than the one at Chessington.

I think what can be attributed to Charterhouse's downfall is the almighty sh!tstorm that came about from the Ropers during the 2003 - 2005 period. They'd been on Towers case for years but things really started to come to a head with court cases, noise problems, restrictions in entertainment. It's abundantly clear that these were dark times, leading to much uncertainty about the future of the theme park.

Rita, 2005, was obviously a rushed investment. As much as I dislike the thing, you can't deny it is a substantial piece of equipment which wasn't cheap. In my opinion, this was something scribbled down on paper, rushed through planning consent to push up the value of the park so Charterhouse could exit with maximum profit. Sure enough DIC had a brand new coaster for their first year, backed by the reputation of Towers track record. Why would Charterhouse even care about the finer details when they wouldn't be owners by the time it opened?

So, I firmly believe Merlin are the worst of the worst. Both DIC and Charterhouse were still backing a lot of entertainment (including the huge firework shows) in their dying years.
 
Sorry to bump this thread, but I would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this matter now that the 2018 season has unfolded and has thus far proven to be rather... um... eventful. I didn't visit the park until 2009, by which point Merlin had acquired the park and had begun to build stuff like Mutiny Bay, CCL and Thirteen, so I can't comment on the DIC era.

However, I would say that investments under Merlin have been better than they were under latter-day Tussauds. For example, I would definitely take the likes of Wicker Man and Smiler over the likes of Rita and Spinball Whizzer.
 
AstroDan said:
Alton Towers has worse operations now than it did in 2005/6.

On the flipside, new ride attractions are far better now than they were in the same period.

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That is so true.

They seem to be unable to grasp the concept of a theme park. Coherent themeing with fun and entertainment..

We have a bunch of aging rides glosses over by a new shiny investment every now and again.

The park used to be Waitrose - it’s now Aldi at best
 
Matt N said:
Sorry to bump this thread, but I would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this matter now that the 2018 season has unfolded and has thus far proven to be rather... um... eventful. I didn't visit the park until 2009, by which point Merlin had acquired the park and had begun to build stuff like Mutiny Bay, CCL and Thirteen, so I can't comment on the DIC era.

However, I would say that investments under Merlin have been better than they were under latter-day Tussauds. For example, I would definitely take the likes of Wicker Man and Smiler over the likes of Rita and Spinball Whizzer.
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Well, my opinion earlier in thread is now completely turbo charged!

Since this thread went cold, the major investment has turned out to be much better than expected, but the park operations far worse.

Therefore, Merlin are definitely better at capital investments than latter Tussauds, but now hold the undisputed title of worst park operators by far!

Also, I know it's a bit late, but I'd also like to back up the point @PeteB made - I also think Spinball gets too much stick and is superior to Fury.
 
I agree i think spinball is a great ride, howver it's operations/capacity is absolutely attrocious. Just a question though, and i'm hoping this is kind of on topic. Merlin now have MMM (Merlin Magic Making). When was this created? What is there purpose? Do you think MMM is a good idea when it comes to making investments in the park? How does compare to Tussauds/DIC/Charterhouse?
 
Benzin said:
For all the flaws that come with Merlin additions, I'd rather those than Rita, Spinball, etc.
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I really can’t- Rita was a bad move I agree. Although it’s not a bad ride in itself. Clearly it’s meant to be attached to Stealth though ;-)

Spinball is fine in my opinion - why the negativity ?

Merlin miss that the park is more than just coasters. Odd consider they crave ‘experiences’ in their headline rides
 
JB1985 said:
I really can’t- Rita was a bad move I agree. Although it’s not a bad ride in itself. Clearly it’s meant to be attached to Stealth though ;-)

Spinball is fine in my opinion - why the negativity ?

Merlin miss that the park is more than just coasters. Odd consider they crave ‘experiences’ in their headline rides
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Not a terrible ride, but it's an eyesore in completely the wrong area of the park and has absolutely horrendous capacity especially given its proximity to the park entrance..
 
Martin said:
Harsh on Aldi, that. Aldi is great, quality that's often just as good if not better than the main supermarkets at a fraction of the price and treat their staff well in comparison to them. If anything, Towers is like the Tescos of a few years ago - an empire built on a sand of dodgy business practices.
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Aldi ain’t bad I suppose - maybe the Aldi of ten years ago.

Budgens perhaps ?
 
Merlin would be Kwik Save and Alton Towers would be it's own brand, No Frills...

334u1p4.jpg

You get too much value for money at Aldi to be associated with anything Merlin.
 
MaxPower said:
Merlin would be Kwik Save and Alton Towers would be it's own brand, No Frills...

334u1p4.jpg

You get too much value for money at Aldi to be associated with anything Merlin.
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If we’re going to be honest it’s Arkwrights - shabby looking, old and out of date and ran by a bunch of tight fisted gits

Absolute classic Ooen All Hours was.
 
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