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Ride Availability/Operations 2022-24

BigShadowtinytree said:
I’ve only been to Towers twice this season, for Nemesis’ reopening day and another random weekend day in the weeks after that.

On a personal level I’ve had a challenging year so that has been a contributor, but usually when I’m having a tough time, I go to places like Alton Towers as an escape. I haven’t done that this year because with how poor ride availability has been, long queue times, overselling (and to be honest the mere existence) of fast track, RAP abuse, staff not enforcing RAP properly which makes queues miserable for everyone else, overpriced, poor quality food offerings and the effort it takes to actually get to the park the first place, I just can’t be bothered quite frankly. It feels like a lot of effort for not much gain at this point.

With my kids being over 1.2 but not yet 1.4, too old for CBeebies but not tall enough for the ‘big ticket’ stuff, there’s only so many times they can reride wickerman and 13 (and one of my kids doesn’t even like 13 that much) only so many times they can get enjoyment out of the flat rides and driving school in Walliams area. There's not enough for them to do to warrant regular visits anymore, the novelty has worn off for them. They do ask to visit occasionally but I fear they will only end up disappointed with how things are currently. If wickerman goes down, that’s a huge loss from their perspective as it’s one of only two ‘big coasters’ they can go on.

If my partner and I want to enjoy some of the bigger coasters we have to split up, but x-sector and FV don’t have enough to keep the kids busy whilst they wait. Blade makes them both nauseous and there’s literally nothing in x-sector for them. So the parent not riding has to take them to a whole different area of the park which means we are split up for way longer than necessary due to how spread out everything is, and no skyride makes that even worse.

Maybe it’s my current mental state at play but I have felt like I’ll end up coming home more stressed and annoyed after a visit than I already was before so I haven’t bothered. I have a merlin pass so non of these things should be an issue as I can always ‘come back another day’ but how many times can you ‘come back another day’ before you admit that going to Alton Towers just isn’t a fun day out right now. I feel sorry for anyone who may be having their only visit of the year, paying for tickets for one day which cost more than the 4 passes costs for a month, only to experience the complete shambles that this season appears to have been.

Things are supposed to be getting better not worse. I was optimistic at the start of the season with Nemesis coming back, that didn’t last long. Two years to get Hex up and running is actually a joke.

Edit: I forgot the kids can also go on spinball and they do enjoy that, but it’s capacity is shot and it’s queue is one of the slowest moving. We avoid unless the queue is 40min or less.
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I feel your pain here. I'm also a passholder but I've only visited a handful of times this year. Each time I've gone away thinking "hope it's better next time". I travel a fair distance to visit the park and it's frustrating if I've not managed to get on the rides I'd planned to do (even now, in October, I've still not done Rita once this year because it's either broken or has an unacceptable queue). I have a chronic pain condition so every time I walk across the park there's a cost in pain and energy and putting in all that effort for a ride that's broken down when you get there is hugely demoralising. I can't benefit from the ride access system as it's basically inaccessible now and in any case I'd feel uncomfortable taking slots from people that can't visit at all without it, so I just have to manage as best I can. I used to be able to do that by farming short queues and taking regular breaks but now you're just at the mercy of what happens to be open when and you can no longer be proactive in planning your day.

I completely agree that there's just not enough attractions for children in the 1.2-1.4 height bracket. This has been the case for years and the park have added nothing to address this in recent years other than a very mediocre dark ride. Project Horizon would likely have given us a more family friendly (and weather proofed) ride so it's disappointing for this age group that this has been delayed. Closing the rapids before Scarefest has also made things worse and makes no sense from a guest experience - it's not a superwet water ride like Tidal Wave and loads of people would still have enjoyed it, plus it would have helped to spread people around the park at the busiest event of the year.

I've got one more visit this year over Fireworks weekend for the park to convince me it's worth renewing my MAP. Though I suspect I'll cave in regardless because for some reason I can't shake off that "next time" sense of optimism...
 
NuttySquirrel said:
I feel your pain here. I'm also a passholder but I've only visited a handful of times this year. Each time I've gone away thinking "hope it's better next time". I travel a fair distance to visit the park and it's frustrating if I've not managed to get on the rides I'd planned to do (even now, in October, I've still not done Rita once this year because it's either broken or has an unacceptable queue). I have a chronic pain condition so every time I walk across the park there's a cost in pain and energy and putting in all that effort for a ride that's broken down when you get there is hugely demoralising. I can't benefit from the ride access system as it's basically inaccessible now and in any case I'd feel uncomfortable taking slots from people that can't visit at all without it, so I just have to manage as best I can. I used to be able to do that by farming short queues and taking regular breaks but now you're just at the mercy of what happens to be open when and you can no longer be proactive in planning your day.

I completely agree that there's just not enough attractions for children in the 1.2-1.4 height bracket. This has been the case for years and the park have added nothing to address this in recent years other than a very mediocre dark ride. Project Horizon would likely have given us a more family friendly (and weather proofed) ride so it's disappointing for this age group that this has been delayed. Closing the rapids before Scarefest has also made things worse and makes no sense from a guest experience - it's not a superwet water ride like Tidal Wave and loads of people would still have enjoyed it, plus it would have helped to spread people around the park at the busiest event of the year.

I've got one more visit this year over Fireworks weekend for the park to convince me it's worth renewing my MAP. Though I suspect I'll cave in regardless because for some reason I can't shake off that "next time" sense of optimism...
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A fellow 1.2-1.4 parent here so i feel both your pain. Our visits tend to revolve rotating between Wickerman, Curse, RMT andThirteen with vast swathes of the park unvisited. It's not worth trekking over to FV just for The Blade and usually same with Spinball due to the hideous queue times. Honestly one of my biggest bugbears with the Merlin parks are the stationary queues. Just standing around making no progress is so psychologically draining.

Hex is a nice return at least! Would disagree on Rapids though, our one ride on that i got soaked so would have been miserable on a cold winters day! For the most part i find water rides in the UK baffling though so that's partly a personal preference.

We're visiting next week but at this point the Water Park is more of a draw than the theme park. I'd certainly be an advocate of the speaking with your wallet mentality but the reality for us is that MAP offers absurd value, at least in terms of quantity if not quality. We're fortunate that the more local southern parks seem to be offering a somewhat superior experience atm.

GaryH said:
We were due to go tomorrow actually for two nights. I cancelled my hotel booking and will change ticket dates. I really can’t be bothered to drive for 5 hours, spend all that money on fuel for a sub par day out anymore. A trip to Alton for me with everything is now around the £500 mark. I’ve bought PS5 instead with the money.
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You can get Planet Coaster 2 and build a functional park instead :D
 
That 1.2 to 1.4 period as a parent is painful at Towers. In fact, everything between pre-school and 1.2 is as well. My last baby (they will always be my babies, no matter how tall, clever, and mouthy they get) reached 1.4 last October. I never wanted to wish her time away. She'd been on the likes of Taron, FLY and Wodan a year and a half before Towers were going to let her have any such fun.

And it's been a lot worse recently. Enterprise removed making X Sector now a no-go area. Another 1.4 being inappropriately stuffed into Forbidden Valley. No Hex or SkyRide for 2 years. Family boat ride turned into an upcharge horror dungeon. Spinball consciously closed mid season to fiddle with the queue line? Wickerman closed for a few weeks. Years of Thirteen not being able to run in the rain. The decreasing operating hours of the Rapids over the years, now it seems to be just a seasonal attraction! The decline of the monorail necessitating a hilly hike at the beginning and end of the day for little legs. The fencing off and lit up concrete tunnel on the Mine Train.

Decisions alienating families, and they're still making them.
 
BigShadowtinytree said:
Edit: I forgot the kids can also go on spinball and they do enjoy that, but it’s capacity is shot and it’s queue is one of the slowest moving. We avoid unless the queue is 40min or less.
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Anecdotal evidence of one trip, in the first Sunday of Scarefest. Since the installation of the Single Rider Queue for Spinball Whizzer, the operations on it have been extremely good and the queue is now fast moving.

One better ride loading experience does not make a visit, however.
 
I’m glad it’s not just me. My 9 year has been on Iron Gwazi yet it’ll still be a couple of years at least before she can go on the likes of Rita, Nemmy etc and whilst wickerman is one of her favourites, it doesn’t really compare. As time goes on the 1.2-1.4 gap becomes more apparent, especially when you visit parks in other countries and see that they have a much wider variety of offerings for that height bracket.
 
BigShadowtinytree said:
I’m glad it’s not just me. My 9 year has been on Iron Gwazi yet it’ll still be a couple of years at least before she can go on the likes of Rita, Nemmy etc and whilst wickerman is one of her favourites, it doesn’t really compare. As time goes on the 1.2-1.4 gap becomes more apparent, especially when you visit parks in other countries and see that they have a much wider variety of offerings for that height bracket.
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She can't go on Rita even if she was tall enough. Seems like it's closed for a few days. None of this surprises me anymore.

You're right about being abroad and seeing how much better some parks cater for a wider family demographic. Phantasialand only has Black Mamba and Talolcan 1.4 and above. Only Towers, Thorpe and Portadventura seem to give this such little consideration.

What we did is just laid off the Merlin parks, including Towers as they weren't meeting our needs. Maybe consider binning off the MAP? All the Blackpool woodies and Valhalla are 1.2, Icon is 1.3. Sik is 1.2. Speed and Megaohobia at Oakwood are both 1.2. It's only really Alton Towers that seems incapable of understanding the gap between 1.4 attractions and toddlers.
 
Matt.GC said:
It's only really Alton Towers that seems incapable of understanding the gap between 1.4 attractions and toddlers.
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Let's be fair, Alton Towers haven't installed a new 1.4m attraction in over a decade.

They also haven't installed much else since either, and have only removed provision for those in the in-between stages, but credit where credit is due...

For the avoidance of doubt, I'm very much typing this with my metaphorical tongue in cheek. Geese don't have cheeks.
 
Matt.GC said:
She can't go on Rita even if she was tall enough. Seems like it's closed for a few days. None of this surprises me anymore.

You're right about being abroad and seeing how much better some parks cater for a wider family demographic. Phantasialand only has Black Mamba and Talolcan 1.4 and above. Only Towers, Thorpe and Portadventura seem to give this such little consideration.

What we did is just laid off the Merlin parks, including Towers as they weren't meeting our needs. Maybe consider binning off the MAP? All the Blackpool woodies and Valhalla are 1.2, Icon is 1.3. Sik is 1.2. Speed and Megaohobia at Oakwood are both 1.2. It's only really Alton Towers that seems incapable of understanding the gap between 1.4 attractions and toddlers.
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Yeah it’s something we are considering. We have thought about getting the top tier pass for Drayton instead, it’s closer to us and the safari park is included if I remember correctly, then of course you’ve got BPB, Flamingoland etc that we can visit, even Paultons the kids still talk about wanting to go again after our last visit a couple of years ago. Drayton doesn’t have the big ticket rides like towers does but at least it they won’t have a large number of headline rides shoved in their face that they can’t go on every time we go.
 
Valley with the new flat should be used almost as a blue print. If Galactica was 1.2 it'd be perfect. Extreme and thrilling coasters with different limits, extreme and family flat, dark ride and an arcade. Chuck a playground down near Galactica and it's great. I feel after the new ride they should add a couple of 1.2 rides, making all areas easier to use with families again. Then again, would reroute Octonauts queue and make Spinball accessible from CBeebies so that area is more balanced too.
 
BigShadowtinytree said:
Yeah it’s something we are considering. We have thought about getting the top tier pass for Drayton instead, it’s closer to us and the safari park is included if I remember correctly, then of course you’ve got BPB, Flamingoland etc that we can visit, even Paultons the kids still talk about wanting to go again after our last visit a couple of years ago. Drayton doesn’t have the big ticket rides like towers does but at least it they won’t have a large number of headline rides shoved in their face that they can’t go on every time we go.
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Maybe worth a try. When you feel obliged to visit Merlin parks because you've already paid for your entry, you get used to their crap.

Not saying that the roster of UK alternatives are bastions of excellence. But Drayton, Blackpool, Paultons, and Oakwood are all far more inclusive for under 1.4 thrill seekers. You can get on rides as a family and actually have a good time. Beats lapping Wickerman and Thirteen (when they're actually open) hundreds of times. You even get a burger made of actual beef at those parks as well!

All have Premier inns that are very cheap reasonabley close by. We used them a lot. So you'll also be guaranteed a better quality hotel than Alton's offerings as well.

I have considered the cheap off-peak MAP just for myself once I have more time. But the family MAP went years ago in favour of visiting other UK parks, and getting to far better parks abroad. I have no desire to go to Chessington as the operations are awful, Legoland is awful, Thorpe is once every couple of years, and Towers is now becoming an extra chore to drag myself up there in the spring to see what else they've ruined since my last visit. The midways are one and done.

There is a life beyond a MAP, and a whole world of attractions for your family to enjoy. If Merlin wants you back, make them work for it.
 
BigShadowtinytree said:
Yeah it’s something we are considering. We have thought about getting the top tier pass for Drayton instead, it’s closer to us and the safari park is included if I remember correctly, then of course you’ve got BPB, Flamingoland etc that we can visit, even Paultons the kids still talk about wanting to go again after our last visit a couple of years ago. Drayton doesn’t have the big ticket rides like towers does but at least it they won’t have a large number of headline rides shoved in their face that they can’t go on every time we go.
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Our plan next year is some combination of Efteling, Disneyland, Europa, Phantasialand and Plopsa. World class parks with dozens of brilliant rides and between them I believe five rides that are 1.4m.
 
The above is exactly why we have not visited one Merlin attraction in nearly 2 years as much as I’ve wanted to for hyperia, nemesis etc.

instead we have visited Plosaland, Efteling, toverland, Phantasialand and DLP about 4-5 times. It’s a welcome change and target market suits us all at DLP- some bigger thrills.

Nothing seems to compare in the uk in terms of big ride inclusivity for young thrill seekers.

In terms of the topic availability, it links in why we haven’t planned a trip towers around 07-09 was a great place to be it was the well maintained park with minimal closures. And Thorpe being 4-5 rides closed al year ….
 
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