• ℹ️ Heads up...

    This is a popular topic that is fast moving Guest - before posting, please ensure that you check out the first post in the topic for a quick reminder of guidelines, and importantly a summary of the known facts and information so far. Thanks.

Potential New Universal UK Park

Matt N said:
There’s a chance that they could just be saying that publicly, though. There’s a chance that the project may be more advanced behind the scenes than Universal are letting on.
Click to expand...
I expect it is. I don’t think they would have bought the land if they didn’t think they’re in with a good shout of getting permission. Even if they can sell it on without losing much money.

They’ll be being very careful what they say though as the next several months will be all about trying to win as many locals over as possible.
 
At this point, it is confirmed that Universal are working on a project to bring a park to the UK. That is different to confirming what the outcome of that project will be.

A little bit like when the government 'confirms' that they are working on something, but that doesn't mean that whatever they are working on will come to fruition.

It's a subtle, but important, difference.
 
Cryptocoaster said:
I expect it is. I don’t think they would have bought the land if they didn’t think they’re in with a good shout of getting permission. Even if they can sell it on without losing much money.
Click to expand...
They bought the company that owns the land, not the land directly - probably to try and stay under the radar. And they probably would have remained so if it wasn't for those pesky rumours that caused people to start people digging.

As for why they bought the land - the fact this has become public knowledge long before they've even submitted plans should demonstrate why this has been the case. For example, the price per acre for Walt Disney World's land once the Orlando Sentinel rumbled them skyrocketed to $80,000 an acre vs the $120 per acre average they paid for the majority of it. Even if they took a hit selling the land it'd be less of the cost of buying the land once their involvement was known. They could just be hedging their bets for all we know.
 
This article from blooloop gives a bit of insight into ground up feasibility for a theme park in Portugal that was announced last month at IAAPA (scroll down to the Guiding Principles section).

For timeframe reference, the investors bought the land approached the design firm for feasibility at the back end of last year. Given the location and the much smaller size, it'll vary massively to Universal, but is now in Blue Sky after over a year from land acquisition. That means there is still a concept phase and everything after to come for a projected 26/27 opening.

There's going to be a lot of waiting around here for something to happen in Bedford.
 
Potentially extremely exciting news. The idea posited by generally reliable sources that suggests this will avoid Orlando clones is also desirable, and I really think Alton in particular would absolutely have to up their game significantly to retain a decent market share. LOTR, Jurassic World, Minions, Bond... industry-changing stuff. And who knows what Gulliver's Land will be cooking up down the road in competition?!

Still bizarre to imagine this is happening just outside of Bedford. I was reading earlier that the formerly-industrial site earmarked previously housed 163 different chimneys, which have now all been collapsed without trace. Might this have been shortsighted?

Universal-City-Walk-Toothsome-Chocolate-Emporium-and-Savory-Feast-Kitchen-1-700x551.jpeg
 
Just been reading that the local Mayor is massively behind this project. No idea how popular he is with locals but that's definitely encouraging news. Local government is key to projects like this. If he can convince local businesses that this project will increase their revenue significantly then it's got a great chance of happening.

I'm sure we will get some resistance from grumpy locals worrying about traffic concerns at some stage.
 
George W said:
Merlin must be quite ruffled by this news it'll be interesting to see what they do as a result it's obvious they wouldn't even try to match universal quality or theming which they wouldn't have to anyway because their day tickets are £35 but they would certainly have to up their game if these plans came to fruition.
Click to expand...

Will be curious what the price point will be. Universal in Singapore and Osaka come in at a similar price to a Merlin park, think it's only the Orlando one that is a lot more expensive and doesn't sound like this would be anywhere near the same scale.
 
Yeah circa £100 a day ticket prices aren't going to work here for families. Hardcore fans would find the money but that's not enough to keep a presumably 365 day a year park operational.

But then again this park, if it happens, might not open until 2030 or later. £100 a day by then might not sound as expensive as it does today.
 
I'm a bit late to the party - but as a 'Bedfordian' I cautiously welcome this though share some of the skepticism as to whether spades will actually get into the ground.

Completely agree with @Rob re the Bedford Independent doing excellently here, and yes they're a fully independent local news site well regarded within the community; their editorial team has a number of people from previous 'print' local papers (one owned by Reach!) - I've had the pleasure of dealing with them a couple of times and they really seem to know what they're doing.

Benjsh said:
Just been reading that the local Mayor is massively behind this project. No idea how popular he is with locals but that's definitely encouraging news. Local government is key to projects like this. If he can convince local businesses that this project will increase their revenue significantly then it's got a great chance of happening.

I'm sure we will get some resistance from grumpy locals worrying about traffic concerns at some stage.
Click to expand...

The Mayor is Conservative and a bit of a 'Boris-lite' unfortunately, but the Labour MP and Lib Dem-majority Council have also both expressed their support - so there seems to be wide consensus on a local level, at least politically, that it would be a welcome development.

Also, to speculate a bit re transport, I'd like to think there'll be Wixams on the MML and Kempston Hardwick on what by then should be EWR serving the site - can see one, or both, taking Universal in their name if the project comes off.
 
Jb85 said:
For me the Midlands seems a better choice. Great motorway connections, and airport connections. Somewhere say Coventry way? Cheaper land as well.
Click to expand...

Joking aside

Somewhere along the A50 corridor

Near a train station (Uttoxeter perhaps)

Equidistant between M6/M1

2hrs to London on a train (considerably shorter near WCML)

Served by Manchester, East Mids, Birmingham, Liverpool airports

If only there wasn’t a pesky competitor on the doorstep

20million people within 100km radius.

Basically the same as London/SE
 
I'm optimistic, but in the space of a few weeks, this is far more exciting than the London Resort was at any point over the past 11 years.

I know there's been a lot of discussion regarding the impact on Merlin. I think Alton Towers would be the only park directly affected by this. The remaining Merlin parks are domestic parks and could quite easily operate the same if a Universal park becomes a reality. Legoland could perhaps see a bigger investment as that may have more scope to attract a wider audience (but I'm not sure if that would be necessary). Alton Towers would suffer as it's the major UK park that could potentially become overshadowed by this. It costs a premium to stay at Alton Towers; if you could stay at Universal Great Britain for a little extra, with superior attractions, entertainment, and well-known IPs, it would be a no-brainer for most Brits. Alton may need to step their game up if this progresses further. The only advantage Alton Towers has at this point is being an established park of 40 years embedded in generations of families.
 
I think one aspect that overlooked is the current cost of getting a family of 4 to Orlando and do many of the parks. I was planning to take my family back in 2020 but covid put a stop to that. When I got a quote for the following summer do 9 nights at Easter we were looking at 12k all in which is utterly ridiculous and 2k more than the previous year.

Florida parks are some of the absolute best but it's getting so expensive for the average family to go there. If this goes ahead in the UK it will appeal to a significant section of families who can't or won't pay the money needed for Florida.
 
Relife said:
I think one aspect that overlooked is the current cost of getting a family of 4 to Orlando and do many of the parks. I was planning to take my family back in 2020 but covid put a stop to that. When I got a quote for the following summer do 9 nights at Easter we were looking at 12k all in which is utterly ridiculous and 2k more than the previous year.

Florida parks are some of the absolute best but it's getting so expensive for the average family to go there. If this goes ahead in the UK it will appeal to a significant section of families who can't or won't pay the money needed for Florida.
Click to expand...

Yeah i think this is a good point in contrast to the concerns of Universal "cannibalising" their existing markets.

The costs really are astronomical at this point and they're not going to get better. I just don't think there's going to be much crossover in reality and you're opening up to vastly more people than you're potentially putting off.
 
Bedford huh? Not a particular fan of the location to be honest.. It's too far from the massively touristic and overpopulated London and too close to what it would be it's main competitor, Alton Towers.

In order for a resort like this to have massive success I think it should be somewhere near London outskirts (and the closest to central London the better) and promoted as one of the main attractions of the city just like the London Eye is. I can't see any tourist doing the 1 and a half to 2 hours worth of travel just to get there. Some of them do the travel for the Harry Potter Tour. That's the farthest I would go.

But Universal would know better, ofc
 
HectorLucas said:
Bedford huh? Not a particular fan of the location to be honest.. It's too far from the massively touristic and overpopulated London and too close to what it would be it's main competitor, Alton Towers.

In order for a resort like this to have massive success I think it should be somewhere near London outskirts (and the closest to central London the better) and promoted as one of the main attractions of the city just like the London Eye is. I can't see any tourist doing the 1 and a half to 2 hours worth of travel just to get there. Some of them do the travel for the Harry Potter Tour. That's the farthest I would go.

But Universal would know better, ofc
Click to expand...
The location is about 35-40 mins by rail from central London - well within distance of what a tourist would be prepared to travel. Also, the rail line connects to Luton airport making that connection extremely viable with cheap flights from Europe. The rail and road connections also make travel from the rest of the UK quite good.
 
HectorLucas said:
Bedford huh? Not a particular fan of the location to be honest.. It's too far from the massively touristic and overpopulated London and too close to what it would be it's main competitor, Alton Towers.

In order for a resort like this to have massive success I think it should be somewhere near London outskirts (and the closest to central London the better) and promoted as one of the main attractions of the city just like the London Eye is. I can't see any tourist doing the 1 and a half to 2 hours worth of travel just to get there. Some of them do the travel for the Harry Potter Tour. That's the farthest I would go.

But Universal would know better, ofc
Click to expand...
Actually, you can get to London from Bedford in under an hour via the Thameslink. London Luton Airport is a stone's throw away. I live in a London borough, the proposed location is about 35 minutes away from where I am.
 
McCarthyB said:
The location is about 35-40 mins by rail from central London - well within distance of what a tourist would be prepared to travel. Also, the rail line connects to Luton airport making that connection extremely viable with cheap flights from Europe. The rail and road connections also make travel from the rest of the UK quite good.
Click to expand...
It surprised me but you're right! Didn't considered this thing called EMR...

Getting there by car from London is still a bit of a faff though...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top