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Park Hours: Updates and Discussion

Matt N said:
Regardless of goings on at the park, it can’t help matters that the summer weather so far this season, like last season, has not been great. This June has been a very wet, cold month compared to a usual June so far; it’s already 20th June, and I was still wrapping up in winter-y clothes earlier this week!

That does not explain why Alton Towers have suddenly sliced the waterpark hours in half, though; surely an indoor waterpark would be brilliantly popular when the weather is poor?
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The weather last year was very poor overall Matt...you can't blame the weather.
One stark statistic, about 40% of the population has some form of mobility issue.
The skyride at the Towers has now been shut for the best part of two years.
Maybe the less mobile are just sick of excuses, and aren't visiting the park anything like as frequently because of the issue...constant walking causes pain for many, and regular closures of other rides makes the issue far worse.
I'm certain I'm not the only one.
Repeated crap service always ends up with fewer punters...they vote with their feet and limp off.
Merlin have had £21 out of me this year, BPB £0 too.
You can only put up with so much bad service overall.
 
Don't forget the RIDICULOUS food prices and pre-booking nature of everything. Not bothering to get rides open on time or even at all. No actual major new ride experience since Wicker Man 2018 (overhauling Duel & Nemesis doesn't really count). Hey, maybe people are finally getting fed up of the bull.
 
rob666 said:
One stark statistic, about 40% of the population has some form of mobility issue.
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In fairness, this number is skewed heavily by age and the older you are the less likely you are to visit a theme park. All your other points about service are very valid of course regardless of mobility.

Also worth pointing out that the introduction of the RAP capacity will have quite literally reduced the number of daily visitors. Whereas previously you'd have an unlimited number of users visiting we now know there are far fewer so that's likely to have had some impact on attendance, though i suspect fairly modest. Certainly don't think we can attribute that to reduced Water Park opening hours.

BarryZola said:
Don't forget the RIDICULOUS food prices and pre-booking nature of everything. Not bothering to get rides open on time or even at all. No actual major new ride experience since Wicker Man 2018 (overhauling Duel & Nemesis doesn't really count). Hey, maybe people are finally getting fed up of the bull.
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Something i was thinking is that Merlin have essentially made their parks a subscription service. Pay for a year, get unlimited access and discounts etc. The model relies on people making multiple visits. The more you visit, the less special it becomes, the more people notice the flaws.

Whereas outside of the hardcore enthusiasts, i think people who visit a theme park say once a year are more likely to enjoy their visit and brush off any negatives.
 
It feels like the resort side of things is perhaps suffering more than the theme park.

They invited every vlogger and their dog into the Waterpark a couple of weeks back to show them a new floor and let them record the place for some free publicity, they have brought back early ride time for the first time since covid and are running a kids swim free and 10% off rooms sale going into the summer holiday. All in an attempt I assume to drive up bookings.

Now they seem to be reducing hours to cut costs too.

This all tracks of course, since peoples income is obviously squeezed by inflation and mortgage rates. An expensive night away at Alton Towers is an easy candidate to drop from plans. Either replace it with an offsite stay, or just come for the day, or not at all.
 
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Bowser said:
In fairness, this number is skewed heavily by age and the older you are the less likely you are to visit a theme park. All your other points about service are very valid of course regardless of mobility.

Also worth pointing out that the introduction of the RAP capacity will have quite literally reduced the number of daily visitors. Whereas previously you'd have an unlimited number of users visiting we now know there are far fewer so that's likely to have had some impact on attendance, though i suspect fairly modest. Certainly don't think we can attribute that to reduced Water Park opening hours.



Something i was thinking is that Merlin have essentially made their parks a subscription service. Pay for a year, get unlimited access and discounts etc. The model relies on people making multiple visits. The more you visit, the less special it becomes, the more people notice the flaws.

Whereas outside of the hardcore enthusiasts, i think people who visit a theme park say once a year are more likely to enjoy their visit and brush off any negatives.
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Actually I think those that visit only occasionally can be pretty discerning, especially when you consider they've often had to pay over a hundred pounds for their group to attend that day, not even including food etc. They might not see the tiny details such as whether a specific ride has been repainted that year, or how many effects on Curse are broken, but they do notice the late opening of attractions, rides going up and down all day like a yo-yo, extortionate and poor-quality F&B and the general feeling of grime and lack of upkeep. If they have a poor day just once then it's likely you have lost their custom forever.

I actually think passholders put up with a lot more because we're more invested and less likely to just "not go back next time", and because one bad day doesn't feel like such a colossal waste of money as we can always go again and hopefully have a better day.

If you start losing the passholders as well then you've really got problems.
 
I haven’t yet been to Alton this year which is very unlike me. As such Merlin have had £0 from me this year as yet. Not even been bothered to buy an AP this year. We are heading up in July to take the younger one but I don’t have high expectations.
 
rob666 said:
The weather last year was very poor overall Matt...you can't blame the weather.
One stark statistic, about 40% of the population has some form of mobility issue.
The skyride at the Towers has now been shut for the best part of two years.
Maybe the less mobile are just sick of excuses, and aren't visiting the park anything like as frequently because of the issue...constant walking causes pain for many, and regular closures of other rides makes the issue far worse.
I'm certain I'm not the only one.
Repeated crap service always ends up with fewer punters...they vote with their feet and limp off.
Merlin have had £21 out of me this year, BPB £0 too.
You can only put up with so much bad service overall.
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This was never confirmed, but I was under the impression that last year was also quite a poor season for attendance, so if those whispers are true, then I think you could at least partially blame the current weather. I’m not saying the weather is the sole factor by any means, but a wetter June than usual and a generally colder spring/summer than usual so far may well be a strong contributing factor, in my view. If we look at history, seasons with poor summers tend to be weak seasons for attendance; as an example, 2012 had a horrific summer in terms of weather, and was generally a pretty weak season for attendance across the parks, with Alton Towers, Thorpe Park and Chessington all having attendance slumps to varying degrees in 2012.

With regard to the Skyride; it could be a factor, but there’s not an easy way to know that it’s closed beforehand unless you specifically seek out the Ride Availability page. Also, I dare say you might be overestimating the number of people for whom the Skyride being closed is a big issue for. I won’t deny that the Skyride being closed is bad for guests with mobility issues, but I dare say that a certain cross-section of those with mobility issues may well not have visited anyway. Alton Towers is well known for requiring a lot of walking, and even with the Skyride open, there are certain stretches of the park that require considerable walking. There are also areas like the 15 minute walk to the park if you don’t want to wait ages for the Monorail that have long existed even without the Skyride being closed that may have put people with mobility issues off long before the closure of the Skyride.

I’m not saying that the weather is the sole reason for seemingly poor attendance this season by any stretch, but I think it could be a significant contributing factor.
 
Cost of living is probably the main factor why visitor numbers were down. People can’t afford a £500 theme park weekend anymore.
 
GaryH said:
Cost of living is probably the main factor why visitor numbers were down. People can’t afford a £500 theme park weekend anymore.
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I expect this is similar to what @AT86 was saying too, its the resort side that is suffering, there are probably a reasonable number of people doing day trips, as the single day entry is still an OK price. But not many people staying overnight and doing a waterpark day as well as a theme part day.
 
Bowser said:
In fairness, this number is skewed heavily by age and the older you are the less likely you are to visit a theme park. All your other points about service are very valid of course regardless of mobility.
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In recent personal experience, when nemesis stopped service when I was waiting in line, there were an awful lot of slow shufflers struggling with exiting the queueline.
I let a lot past me with my limp, but there were a lot more struggling at my pace.
I was a long way from alone.
 
Perhaps attendance is lower than previously expected?

I’m not justifying it, but I wouldn’t be surprised if this was the reason for doing it.
 
Poor weather forecast for the next two weeks...either rain or showers, with cool temperatures.
Wise passholders avoid the place due to school trips, schools usually leave at least a little early.
Still crap though!
 
AstroDan said:
This season is a dirge.

Bring back some events between March and summer for goodness' sake.
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I'm convinced that Mardi Gras was only scrapped this year to make way for the CBeebies celebrations. I reckon it'll return next year. I'm sure it was too popular and too much of a money spinner for Towers to just drop.
 
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Steve74 said:
I'm convinced that Mardi Gras was only scrapped this year to make way for the CBeebies celebrations. I reckon it'll return next year. I'm sure it was too popular and too much of a money spinner for Towers to just drop.
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It was the best of the bunch, and the only one that enticed me up to Towers the last couple of years. It felt successful, unless that was decieveing it seems like madness to drop it.
 
pluk said:
It was the best of the bunch, and the only one that enticed me up to Towers the last couple of years. It felt successful, unless that was decieveing it seems like madness to drop it.
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I wouldn't quite go that far - Oktoberfest still is the best in my opinion! ;) But it certainly drew crowds in a time of the year that was usually quiet(er). I definitely would've revisited this month/last month if it was on but as it wasn't I haven't been since just after opening weekend.

It could also have helped to increase opening hours to 6pm - did the park stay open until 6 during the CBeebies event?

But having said Oktoberfest was best, it still didn't have the long-wanted procession and finale!


From: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ca5XTQGMV5w
 
I’m still flabbergasted that there were sections of people karping about how the reduction in events was a good thing. The latest iteration of Festival of Thrills was no loss, but Mardi Gras was a great event.

The end of day parade for Mardi Gras had people sticking around into the early evening, buying food and drink, and having a great time. It supported a later opening time and sent people away happy.

Utter madness for it to disappear in my view.
 
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