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The magic has disappeared!

The main problem with air was you were "flying" over muddy pebbles, a car park, a maintainance shed and then a brake run filled with sick and spit.

I wouldn't choose that flight path lol

I think merlin were focusing on new investments to bring crowds in. They wanted the 3million guests per year.

Also a big chunk of rides go to digging and the world's first aspect
 
Something that has changed for the better is that, with the exception of the legitimate (and high quality) use of IP in Cebeebies Land and Ice Age, there are a lot less visible brands tacked on to things on park. At times there have been Air Sponsored by Miniature Heroes, Ribena Berry Bish Bash, Peugeot 207 Driving School, The Imperial Leather Flume Unplugged, the Oblivion Fanta thing, Sonic Spinball, etc.
 
Apart from blivvy, I cant say I mind the brands too much. Air with Cadburys was fine. The Flume was fine because it added new life into the ride, particularly riding in bath tubs, the driving school looks cool with the mini Peugeots etc.

It doesnt bother me if they company ploughs a lot of money into the ride and the ride gets a decent theme as a result.
 
Apart from blivvy, I cant say I mind the brands too much. Air with Cadburys was fine. The Flume was fine because it added new life into the ride, particularly riding in bath tubs, the driving school looks cool with the mini Peugeots etc.

It doesnt bother me if they company ploughs a lot of money into the ride and the ride gets a decent theme as a result.

The problem comes with things like Bubbleworks at Chessington where the logos are peeled off and then you are left with a ride that doesn't make as much sense. The Flume didn't look as bad when the Imperial Leather sponsorship ended, but I don't think it worked out as well for Bubbleworks.
At least with the Miniature Heroes on Air it was just sponsorship, so was easy to remove the logos and the actual ride is no different.
 
The magic was lost when they decided to close midweek during school holiday period (the week after next!!) very unhappy!! Merlin don't seem to be interested in catering for kids during school holidays!! very little available at half term no blackpool tower circus, Alton towers not open as theme park with some ride availability and LEGOLAND discovery centre in CHAOS!! What is the point of the M.A.P and what are Merlin doing to improve the situation going forward??
 
The magic was lost when they decided to close midweek during school holiday period (the week after next!!) very unhappy!! Merlin don't seem to be interested in catering for kids during school holidays!! very little available at half term no blackpool tower circus, Alton towers not open as theme park with some ride availability and LEGOLAND discovery centre in CHAOS!! What is the point of the M.A.P and what are Merlin doing to improve the situation going forward??

Most school terms are re-starting on the 10th April or earlier. For kids to be off school the week beginning 10th April is unusual and Alton Towers is still open all five days that week. It's the week beginning 17th April when they start closing on Tuesday's and Wednesday again.
I checked Staffordshire (the county AT is in) and kids go back to school today 7th April https://www.staffordshire.gov.uk/ed...e/Term-Dates-2015-2016-Printable-Calendar.pdf
And in Derbyshire (next county over) kids go back Monday 10th April https://www.derbyshire.gov.uk/images/School Term Dates 2015-16_tcm44-241895.pdf
Birmingham children also back to school on 10th April http://www.birmingham.gov.uk/termdates

Blackpool seems to be the exception with the Easter break starting 10th April and the kids back to school in the 25th https://www.blackpool.gov.uk/Residents/Education-and-schools/Blackpool-schools/School-dates.aspx but the Blackpool Circus is doing two shows a day this week and next week https://www.theblackpooltower.com/attractions/the-blackpool-tower-circus.aspx However there are no shows on some dates in the week beginning 17th April when some schools in Blackpool may still be off.
 
The magic comes from the degree of contrast between the real world and the AT world.

When you live in a mining village, eat 1980s school meals, have only 3 channels on a black and white family TV, go to bed by 8pm, clean cars and deliver papers after school for pocket money, simple pleasures can be magical.

But when you have huge HD televisions, 500 channels, computers, games consoles, trips to the coast, trip's abroad, expensive toys and games, designer clothes, etc you are harder to impress.

Today's kids don't appreciate the magic, because they see magic every day.

Life for me is far more comfortable now than then, but I still felt the magic at AT on so many levels.
 
...jumpers for goal posts
...grass stained knees
...a Chopper bike with playing cards pegged to the forks

Happy Happy days ... :p
Exactly.. when you get up at 5 in the morning, chop sticks outside in the freezing cold, rake clinkers out of the fire, and do a paper round in the snow, then collect every pop bottle in the area and take them back to the depot to claim the deposit on each one, before school just to survive, the weekly treat of a penny chew seems magical.

It was grim up north!

Truth is we're all spoilt now!

I actually have carpets now... CARPETS!
 
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But when you have huge HD televisions, 500 channels, computers, games consoles, trips to the coast, trip's abroad, expensive toys and games, designer clothes, etc you are harder to impress.

Hit the nail on the head there for me really. I work in the leisure sector and one thing we are very aware of is that we are competing with everything else, regardless of the type of leisure activity.

Alton Towers are not just in competition with other UK theme parks or Disney, but also in competition with Netflix, video games, shopping malls, cinemas, restaurants, holidays abroad etc etc.

People chose to spend their spare money and leisure time in different ways. And certainly Alton Towers would have been a more "magical" proposition when their was far less leisure competition, just a decade or two ago.
 
Hit the nail on the head there for me really. I work in the leisure sector and one thing we are very aware of is that we are competing with everything else, regardless of the type of leisure activity.

Alton Towers are not just in competition with other UK theme parks or Disney, but also in competition with Netflix, video games, shopping malls, cinemas, restaurants, holidays abroad etc etc.

People chose to spend their spare money and leisure times in different ways. And certainly Alton Towers would have been a more "magical" proposition when their was far less leisure competition, just a decade or two ago.
Well understood. The exact point I was making (In typical over dramatic fashion lol).
 
...jumpers for goal posts
...grass stained knees
...a Chopper bike with playing cards pegged to the forks

Happy Happy days ... :p
You had a chopper bike and playing cards... you were lucky! We had to use our imagination and pretend.

My parents gave me an empty box for Christmas and told me it was an Action Man deserter!

We were poor, but we were happy!
 
You had a chopper bike and playing cards... you were lucky! We had to use our imagination and pretend.

My parents gave me an empty box for Christmas and told me it was an Action Man deserter!

We were poor, but we were happy!
This is turning into the "in my day it was rough" sketch from Monty Python :D
 
Today's kids don't appreciate the magic, because they see magic every day

Who exactly are you speaking for here ? My kids eyes light up as soon as they see the entrance sign and don't stop smiling until they get into the car when they start to cry because they are going to miss it so much :)
 
Most school terms are re-starting on the 10th April or earlier. For kids to be off school the week beginning 10th April is unusual and Alton Towers is still open all five days that week. It's the week beginning 17th April when they start closing on Tuesday's and Wednesday again.
I checked Staffordshire (the county AT is in) and kids go back to school today 7th April https://www.staffordshire.gov.uk/ed...e/Term-Dates-2015-2016-Printable-Calendar.pdf
And in Derbyshire (next county over) kids go back Monday 10th April https://www.derbyshire.gov.uk/images/School Term Dates 2015-16_tcm44-241895.pdf
Birmingham children also back to school on 10th April http://www.birmingham.gov.uk/termdates

Blackpool seems to be the exception with the Easter break starting 10th April and the kids back to school in the 25th https://www.blackpool.gov.uk/Residents/Education-and-schools/Blackpool-schools/School-dates.aspx but the Blackpool Circus is doing two shows a day this week and next week https://www.theblackpooltower.com/attractions/the-blackpool-tower-circus.aspx However there are no shows on some dates in the week beginning 17th April when some schools in Blackpool may still be off.

Most of Lancashire actually - for the sake of a couple of days AT will get quite a backlash when people turn up expecting them to be open!
 
Most of Lancashire actually - for the sake of a couple of days AT will get quite a backlash when people turn up expecting them to be open!
I think this is going to end up being an "invented" outrage. In all likelyhood hardly anyone, or maybe even no one at all will turn up when the park is closed. Almost everyone checks opening times before heading somewhere like Alton Towers. And anyone who turns up finding it closed is more likely to feel very silly rather than outraged.

I am collecting queue times again this season, and will be very interested in seeing how queue times stack up on the Mon, Thurs and Fri of the weeks with closures. My suspicion is they will be very quiet days indeed totally justifying the midweek closures. Those with time off school have other days to choose from, which in all likelyhood will be very quiet as most kids are back at school (even if some areas are not) . This move is to simply consolidate 5 very quiet days into 3 quiet days.

The park has been very quiet all easter holiday so far, it's only going to get quieter, especially with only a couple of counties still out of school. Alton are not losing any money here they are trying to save it. I'll post the results when I have them.
 
And anyone who turns up finding it closed is more likely to feel very silly rather than outraged.

If I'd driven an hour or more and found it shut I certainly wouldn't feel silly I would be breaking the doors down shouting blue murder to have someones head on a spike!
 
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