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Paultons Park: General Discussion

Dave said:
But to be honest I’m not sure why everyone is so desperate to see Paultons as the David to Merlin’s Goliath, can’t we just enjoy it for what it is, a high quality, lovely little regional park?
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It is a combination of wanting to see actual competition in the UK theme park scene and that over the years many enthusiasts have been so utterly burnt by Merlin from cuts, bad additions and all the terrible upkeep that resentment has crept in and here comes Paultons who are doing everything right and have seen many latch on them plus we all have a love of the underdog in this country and Paulton does seem to be in that role against the soulless and monolith block of Merlin.

That being said, they can be a victim of their own success in which a lot of pressure is no being put on them which lets face it, had the likes of PB or Drayton not falling on hard times of late and had been competing with Merlin all this time then I don't think Paultons would have gotten the same attention it has gotten like what it has now. You're right though, we have to enjoy it for what it is but all thanks to Merlin's disappointing choices and such, they find themselves in a role that their owners likely didn't want to be in but if it gets them positive attention then that is what you want.
 
I’ve got an interesting question.

I’m not trying to be goady or provocative for the sake of it, and I apologise if it comes across that way, but I’d be interested to know; does anyone have any kind of criticism or imperfection of Paultons Park to air? Or do we feel that the park is genuinely perfect?

I only ask because it seems that unlikely any other park, Paultons Park never seems to receive criticism or scrutiny of any kind on here. I dare say that even Europa Park receives more criticism and scrutiny on here than Paultons does, and given this site’s love of all things Europa, I think that’s saying something. As an example, you can see it above in the post by @QTXAdsy (I’m not singling you out at all, this is just an example of what I more generally notice):
QTXAdsy said:
and here comes Paultons who are doing everything right
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There often seems to be an implication on here that Paultons are literally perfect at everything they do and above any kind of criticism. It’s rare to see any kind of criticism or scrutiny of the park, which I find mildly unusual compared to other parks. This site is not afraid to give fair scrutiny to other parks, so why doesn’t Paultons get the same treatment? For clarity, I’m not saying we should go out of our way to criticise by any stretch. I love positivity as much as the next person, and criticism for criticism’s sake would be completely unfair and would dismiss a lot of the very good work they do, but it seems like we don’t scrutinise Paultons quite as fairly as we do other parks. Any flaws or imperfections don’t seem to be commonly acknowledged, and where people do try and acknowledge them, there always seems to be a defence or excuse for it given, which isn’t the case with other parks.

With this in mind, I’d be intrigued to know; does anyone have any flaws or imperfections of Paultons Park? Or is the park genuinely perfect, and above any kind of criticism? When reading here and other places, it sometimes feels like people think the latter.

I’m not saying that Paultons doesn’t offer a very good product and doesn’t deserve praise, but I do find the complete lack of any kind of criticism or scrutiny quite odd at times.
 
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QTXAdsy said:
It is a combination of wanting to see actual competition in the UK theme park scene and that over the years many enthusiasts have been so utterly burnt by Merlin from cuts, bad additions and all the terrible upkeep that resentment has crept in and here comes Paultons who are doing everything right and have seen many latch on them plus we all have a love of the underdog in this country and Paulton does seem to be in that role against the soulless and monolith block of Merlin.
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If the rising power Paultons Park didn't put the frighteners on complacent Merlin (alongside Drayton Manor getting turned around by new owners after its downfall) we likely wouldn't be seeing the sudden recent burst of activity with Merlin's parks getting spruced up (when I was round Legoland Windsor the WCs were basically brand new, the Pirate Bay area looked freshly repainted, I saw construction cranes round the semi-derelict office block at the main entrance, etc).

Alton Towers still seems far enough away from the depressing, dilapidated state that Oakwood is in now (plus Pleasure Beach is getting into the trouble of not playing to its strengths of being Barry Island on steroids, trying to be something it isn't) but it has still been embarassing it got to the state it did in the years after the Smiler tragedy.

And Merlin got overstreched or distracted with many other parks worldwide, likely falling into the trap of robbing Peter to pay Paul (Paultons, Efterling, and Phantasia are tighter ships).
 
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Matt N said:
I’ve got an interesting question.

I’m not trying to be goady or provocative for the sake of it, and I apologise if it comes across that way, but I’d be interested to know; does anyone have any kind of criticism or imperfection of Paultons Park to air? Or do we feel that the park is genuinely perfect?
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The entrance looks like a motorway service station.
 
Matt N said:
does anyone have any flaws or imperfections of Paultons Park?
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There's alot of things things that aren't right at Paultons, the whole Cobra area very much looks its age for starters.

Many of the rides, despite being well themed, aren't landscaped in the fantastic way some of the rides at the Merlin parks are.

None of the coasters at Paultons use the terrain in the way the Runaway Minetrain or Vampire do, and is something that elevates those rides to another level.

The park as a whole isn't as interesting to walk around either. There certainly isn't as much going on compared to any of the Merlin parks despite how well presented the place is.

Paultons has very little appeal to me as there aren't any proper thrill coasters, so we don't go unless on holiday with family.

There's plenty not right with the place, but when they make such efforts to make the experience as good as possible for guests they get bonus points from alot of people.
 
Matt N said:
This site is not afraid to give fair scrutiny to other parks, so why doesn’t Paultons get the same treatment?
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Now you've finished your dissertation, I recommend that you go back a dozen or so pages and have a re-read of this thread. If one dares to offer any sort of criticism about Paulton's Park, Percy himself swoops down from the sky, gouges our your eyeballs, pecks out your intestines, and dines on them.

All I ever hear is about how impeccably themed Paulton's Park is. Let's not kid ourselves, Cobra's station looks like a 1960s era NCP car park. Alton Towers' monorail stations have more memorable and attractive theming and scenery.

I do have criticisms about the park. I don't feel completely comfortable airing them here because, as @Dave often points out, a type of dog piling, shouting down, dismissing and general nastiness can happen when critiquing Paulton's.
 
Matt N said:
’m not trying to be goady or provocative for the sake of it, and I apologise if it comes across that way, but I’d be interested to know; does anyone have any kind of criticism or imperfection of Paultons Park to air? Or do we feel that the park is genuinely perfect?
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For me, the area around Cobra is rubbish, to the point that after the first visit we simply stopped going there.

But i think the main thing is they've spent the last few years improving without fail, whilst certain other UK parks... have not.

The main things people complain about (poor ride availability, long queues, inedible food) elsewhere don't exist there.

When you see a park continuously doing things well, then as a fan of the industry it seems natural to support them as you're confident they will maintain this trajectory.
 
Bowser said:
For me, the area around Cobra is rubbish, to the point that after the first visit we simply stopped going there.
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The area with Cobra coaster and the disco flatride is not rubbish as such (it's not crumbling), but more accurately bareboned and left around as a weird artefact for what the rest of Paultons Park looked like back in the 90s and 00s (no doubt it'll get incorporated into the upcoming Viking area).

Paultons Park gets less criticism than Merlin's parks because it hasn't yet stagnated like Alton Towes or Thorpe Park had done since the turn of the 2010s (with a new ride or new area every few years now), its zoo and garden grounds still get paid attention to, rides run relatively more smoothly, and is more consistent with having inhouse fast food outlets that don't grossly overcharge for what they sell (good "soft" factors that nag the guests less and entices them into coming back more).
 
Don't think anyone truly sees Paultons as perfect, more of a nice oasis within the mediocrity the UK industry has become over the last decade or so.

Plenty of flaws are within the park. Low throughput attractions are plentiful, the newer areas making the old look worse, and even making not that old themed areas look crap (Critter Creek). However due to the management of the park these flaws are often minor aspects of a general visit. Not like when say you go to Towers, half the big rides are shut and you start to notice every little negative about your day.

There's still a lot of work to do for the park. But currently they're on a positive trajectory. And primarily because of a rude child pig.
 
TedShatner10 said:
...If the rising power Paultons Park didn't put the frighteners on complacent Merlin (alongside Drayton Manor getting turned around by new owners after its downfall) we likely wouldn't be seeing the sudden recent burst of activity with Merlin's parks getting spruced up ...
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Two things happening at the same time does not mean there is any link between them...causation and correlation are not the same!
Paultons do not compete with Merlin, both geographically and physically, their size means they are not real direct competition to Merlin, they are simply a quality smaller regional park in an area where Merlin have no comparable facilities.

I argue Paulton's development has zero correlation to improvements in Merlin parks, they are just finally starting to pick up on years of neglect.
 
sock said:
How so? I went with a group of friends (all adults) and everyone enjoyed it. The peppa pig part is for children sure, but the rest of the park I'd say is enjoyable to all ages.
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Yeah, as Paultons carries on expanding and refining its broader theming aimed more at teenagers, Peppa Pig's area and Critters Creek will stick out less (and it's no different to Legoland's Duplo area and Altons' CBBC Land).
 
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I think it’s completely fair to say that Paultons is, at very least, primarily aimed at young families. I perhaps wouldn't go as far as to say that it's only for children, but I definitely wouldn't call it an all-round family theme park that appeals to every demographic in the way that, say, Alton Towers or some of the big heavyweights abroad are just yet.

The park is lovely, it's doing an excellent job for the young family market, and even as an older family or adult group, it is more fun than its RCDB entry would initially imply, but there is not much there that appeals strongly to older members of the family. The additions it has built thus far have been primarily aimed at a younger family audience, albeit the thrill level does seem to be increasing slightly with each successive build. This may change in the future and I will be the first to applaud them and be pleased if it does, but Paultons Park, at its heart, is not currently a park aimed at our demographic. I would currently call it a young family theme park rather than a true all-round family theme park that appeals to everyone, and that is due to the fact it does lack some slightly more thrilling rides. Not that this is necessarily a perfect metric to assess the calibre of a ride, but their current highest height restriction on a coaster is 1m; I would definitely call that family coaster territory rather than family thrill or hardcore thrill.

That is the prime reason why I haven't returned since my one visit in 2021. As lovely and pleasant as the park was and as excellent as recent additions have been, I didn't feel that it had loads for my personal demographic (a single, 21 year old thrillseeker). It would be nice to see some more stuff teetering towards the "family thrill" end of the spectrum rather than just "family", with maybe a 1.2m coaster or two being a nice addition. I doubt Paultons will ever massively cater for "hardcore thrill", and I don't think they really need to either, but a few slightly more thrilling rides would make the park a far more compelling regular revisit for me. As it stands, I only feel overly compelled to revisit in the event that they build something new and major. I will definitely go back for whatever they have planned in 2026, and I may even go back next year for the dark ride, but I haven't felt overly compelled to return in the interim between Tornado Springs and the present day.
 
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