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Scarefest 2024

Benzin said:
Oh yay so I have to figure out how to keep little one entertained given there's naff all in the park. Especially when rest of our group are doing mazes from 4pm.

Definitely a trip to GS to plan in. And I bet I won't be the only one.
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I have just got a full refund from a stay we booked. I spoke with live chat before booking if cbeebies would be open like previous years until 7pm to be informed there was no plans to change so booked for a few nights as a treat for my daughter it was over £800 for the themed room. My eldest is 19 and wanted to do the mazes so when she and my wife was doing that I was going to treat my daughter to all her favourite rides. Such a shame cuts have been made yes understand it wouldn't be crazy busy but they have done it in previous years. Even spoke to a member of the team last week they said it would be open until dusk a quick look on Google shows dusk as 6.30pm.
 
Surely even if they just did most rides to 6.30 and then one final Monster Ball show at 6.30pm it would be something to extend the day, especially would make sense having that one final show in for those that age at the end of their day.
 
Alix said:
But still 12+? So can’t be *that* intense surely? And still wheelchair accessible so the tunnel can’t be *that* restrictive? Also, what’s the deal with the latex?? What are they doing in there? 😳
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Wheelchairs would be sent a certain way though, not all routes will feature crawl spaces.
 
Oh ok. Thanks both. I’m quite curious about the whole thing - I can’t see how it can be all that scary with only a 12 rating, but maybe the average 12 year old is braver than the chimp.
 
Alix said:
Oh ok. Thanks both. I’m quite curious about the whole thing - I can’t see how it can be all that scary with only a 12 rating, but maybe the average 12 year old is braver than the chimp.
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It's worth remembering / considering that Alton Towers are unlikely to use the same specifications as the BBFC does for film age recommendations. BBFC ratings are restrictions influenced by public taste for censorship purposes, they're quite restrictive as they were written for mass media.

BBFC ratings also restrict what you can show on screen, rather than how you can make someone feel.
Threat and horror

There may be scenes of moderate physical and psychological threat. Although some scenes may be disturbing, the overall tone should not be. Horror sequences should not be frequent or sustained.

Violence

There may be moderate violence, but it should not dwell on detail. Occasional blood and injuries may be shown, but gory images should be infrequent and justified by context (for example, medical detail, fantasy).

BBFC | BBFC

www.bbfc.co.uk www.bbfc.co.uk
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Rather than seeing this as a "12 rating" as you would for the cinema, see it as an absolute minimum age restriction where the park feels your child is mature enough to understand what's happening to them / process the trauma.

Edit: Although it would appear as though Alton Towers have previously brought in the BBFC to rate Nemesis: Sub-Terra. It gave it a 12A classification, which isn't of course binding with it only being a theme park and not a cinema. Typical Merlin marketing stunt.
www.independent.co.uk

Nemesis Sub-Terra: Are you feeling scared yet?

On Saturday, Alton Towers will unveil its new attraction for thrill-seekers, Nemesis Sub-Terra. Simon Calder gets a sneak preview of what's billed as a nightmare underground and finds that he's not as tough as he thought
www.independent.co.uk www.independent.co.uk
 
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Yeah but even taking that into consideration, ghost train and TWD are rated 13+ (or were last year at least) and I don’t think they’re that bad?
It just makes it very difficult to judge whether to do it or not - I am curious but also don’t want to make a tit of myself and pay £12 for the privilege.
 
It sounds like Sub-Species 2.0 to me (which is good). Multiple routes, intense and the possibility of being split up. I guess they have a specific wheelchair-friendly route to avoid any issues. I'm looking forward to seeing what it's like!

Regarding the age rating, I assume they will tailor it to the guests. Keep it scary for the 12-year-old and intense for the 30-year-old walking through.

When we did Darkest Depths in 2019, it was an 8+ age rating. In our group, there were five adults (all over 18). It was far from the expected family-friendly experience, and the actors were brutal with us! I remember TOTT and Mine tours being less intense than our experience in Darkest Depths that year! So, I wouldn't necessarily read too much into age ratings. It depends on who is in your group, and the actors tend to adapt depending on the people they are scaring.
 
I was just reading back through my old posts, and see I said I wouldn't bother with Scarefest this year because our experience last year was poor (packed park, only got on 6 rides, unlucky with breakdowns, poor RCR experience 🤣)

I'd forgotten all about the bad stuff. Of course we're going this year 😆
 
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