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Paultons Park: General Discussion

So no hotel or the like in the next 10-15 years certainly and possibly never (though take far future ownership and other developments into account).

They say they've got a firm relationship with local hotels to house guests, with their long term winning strategy to reinvest, properly maintain, and expand the park's attractions and rides into the 2030s.
 
I think Paultons not building a hotel is a good bet for them.

It was often said that the hotel was part of what started to cripple Drayton Manor financially, and I don’t think Paultons is really a big enough park at present to warrant on-site accommmodation. If they built a hotel now, I think it would perhaps be premature.
 
I think taking an alleged statement as gospel that something is never happening is at best naive as there are so many variables that could reverse that decision at any point.

Whilst it's evident they have no immediate plans, history dictates that virtually every theme park with ambitions of expansion eventually results in some form of on-site accommodation. Focusing on Drayton's issues is relatively arbitrary as the majority of theme parks appear to successfully enter that market.
 
Bowser said:
an alleged statement
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Nothing "alleged" about it, I heard it with my own ears, as did many others at a Q&A.

"Do you have any plans to build accomodation in the future?"

"We have no medium or long term plans to build accomodation."
Bowser said:
Whilst it's evident they have no immediate plans
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Not just immediate, medium and long term.
 
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A verbal answer at a fan Q&A is not gospel for a theme parks long term plans. And as i say, accommodation need not necessarily be a hotel, some form of lodging could be more appropriate as the park grows.
 
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Bowser said:
Whilst it's evident they have no immediate plans, history dictates that virtually every theme park with ambitions of expansion eventually results in some form of on-site accommodation. Focusing on Drayton's issues is relatively arbitrary as the majority of theme parks appear to successfully enter that market.
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YMV: Drayton Manor has bounced back under new ownership, while Alton Towers' onsite guest accommodation in the Tussauds/early Merlin years worked well enough until it suddenly just didn't sometime during the 2010s, and now Alton Towers is in a worrying transition period following a decade of slow decline (with a similar story for Chessington and Legoland, while Disneyland Paris' main financial problems were allegedly its gigantic hotel complexes).

A risky and heavy commitment for Paultons' management powering ahead with their perceived leapfrogging of Merlin with their exciting new dark ride this year and dramatic Vikings expansion next year.
 
GooseOnTheLoose said:
You won't see a hotel because they've literally stated that they're not interested in building one.

They're not. On the record; no plans, no discussions.

Because they have absolutely no plans to build one.
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This is 10 years we are talking about and what is said in 2024 could change by 2035.

Things can change a lot over the years. I don't think in 2015 that Paultons were thinking about a massive Gyro Swing followed by a coaster with inversions.

Definitely no plans at the moment, you are right. Whether that changes in a few years is a very different matter.

Matt N said:
I think Paultons not building a hotel is a good bet for them.

It was often said that the hotel was part of what started to cripple Drayton Manor financially, and I don’t think Paultons is really a big enough park at present to warrant on-site accommmodation. If they built a hotel now, I think it would perhaps be premature.
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I don't think they need a hotel in the immediate future and it's a massive risk to take which they are sensible to not be planning it at the moment.

Whether they'll ever do it is a very different matter but onto the now, it's not happening right now.
 
MaxPower said:
You would imagine building a Peppa Pig hotel would be a fairly safe bet considering how big of a draw it is.
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We'd be falling into the trap that Drayton Manor had with Thomas.

Their hotel has a lot of Thomas theming which would be of limited appeal to the wider audience. If they wanted to do Peppa, themed rooms would be fine but keep it out of the wider hotel unless it's completely dedicated to the pig which would shoot themselves in the foot.

If it's me, a smarter move may be to do something like Splash Landings and do an aquatic theme with a water park attached if it ever happens.
 
Skyscraper said:
You're missing out, Rob, it's a lovely park!
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Maybe he'll change his mind when they announce the inverting RMC next year :D

Ghostly Manor looks to be a lovely addition but i don't think it's going to be drawing many new visitors to the park. I think there's becoming quite the expectation for next years coaster to be a landmark ride (at least amongst the enthusiast community).
 
Paultons is very accessible (compared to AT) and will have no shortage of nearby hotels. Personally I only book the AT hotel if we're there 2 days - and then only because I'm lazy. Certainly not because the experience is first-rate (and it's ridiculously expensive).

Problem with a hotel is it's a huge investment over years before it starts to generate revenue. A bit like building a new theme park (like Universal).
 
GooseOnTheLoose said:
Nothing "alleged" about it, I heard it with my own ears, as did many others at a Q&A.

"Do you have any plans to build accomodation in the future?"

"We have no medium or long term plans to build accomodation."

Not just immediate, medium and long term.
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If it is this Q & A then they only said no short term plan, nothing about medium or long term and said it had definitely been thought about and can't be ruled out.


From: https://youtu.be/TIcYPfiCOug?si=XPEVpYwAZrODXmyi&t=1764
 
They will have a good idea of the demand based on the short stay breaks going through their website. I would imagine when they can see there is enough demand it might become part of their plans for the future. It's a gamble, if done well it can create a high income revenue stream. Just look at the merlin parks expanding accommodation so there must be money in it. On the flip side it could bankrupt them so Paultons will need to tread very carefully if they ever do consider building a hotel. Outsourcing to nearby hotel chains seems to be a low risk strategy that's working well and arguably fills most of this void allowing guests to stay over with 1 simple booking. I don't see them being in a huge rush to build a hotel.
 
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