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The Sinking Ship: (Un)Love Letters to Merlin

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It is also important to note that now Merlin have fallen out of the FTSE 100 they will be quite literally cutting everything possible regardless of its impact on guest experience.

MakoMania said:
Music to Mandy's ears.
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Quite rightly so, I must agree.

For far too long have Merlin gone without any decent competition. Hopefully Blackpool can outperform Merlin this season.
 
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WickerManiac said:
It is also important to note that now Merlin have fallen out of the FTSE 100 they will be quite literally cutting everything possible regardless of its impact on guest experience.
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This. Brace yourselves!

It is a shame, Towers was really on the up at the end of 2017 however Merlin are determined to ensure this does not continue.

:)
 
I am waiting for the 'is this the end of merlin' article in the business section

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When it comes to cuts in 2018, anything could happen. If I were Towers I would close down the whole of CCL and fence it off (with posters advertising a new 'exciting area for 2019') to save a little.

I think we'll probably see more stagnated openings and some cuts to operating hours on quieter days.

Thing is, Towers will no doubt perform well this year because of Wicker Man, and in 2019 we will see even more cuts... the only reason they just about get away with cuts each year is because of the new attractions which draw guests in.
 
AstroDan said:
Hopefully the whole park suffers terribly in 2018, Varney gives it up and Alton gets a management buy out.

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Out of interest, which do you think were worst?

These recent Merlin years or the late Tussauds?

:)
 
Unfortunately the Merlin way is to expand as quickly as possible on the cheap, buying up midways and opening Legolands as quickly as possible.

Aside from the potentially exciting Wickerman ride, more cuts will surely take place throughout the resort (which could go as far to be called a regional park with top quality hardware). I expect further reduction to ride offering/running, hours and food.

Complaints and negative reviews won’t stop it unfortunately. Only when something happens that prevents the corporation from running like it does (likely selling of the park).
 
I think it's no coincidence that their removal from the FTSE 100 and their ever increasing "cutback" model have come about at the same time.

Cutting all the costs to an extent it actively incentives people not to visit is not a good model in the short or long term.

I have noticed that although there have been cuts Merlin have persisted with employing capital into its parks. See the numerous hotels and rides. Perhaps they trying to load it with lots of hotels to drive up a re-sale value.

We can only hope.
 
IanSR said:
Isn't that what bought us Merlin in the first place?
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Yes. However the first few years under Merlin were no where near how bad the latter Tussauds were.

In fact, I recall the 2010 season being an excellent season. There was extremely high visitation and a really buzz about the place, especially with the installation of TH13TEEN.

From 2012 there has been a slow decline, accelerated by The Smiler crash in 2015.
 
Towers reached a new low in 2016, and then managed to somehow beat that low in 2017.

Even the pessimist inside me thought there would be a slight improvement in 2018 and that it would be business suicide for them to do anything else.

With a new coaster on the way I think it's unreasonable to AT LEAST expect no further ride closures, the reopening of Toadstool, reopening of Dark Forest fast food outlets on busy days, reopening of Towers Street Grill, park closing time to be 17:00 minimum with longer hours on busier days.

Any less than that and I don't see the point in them going on if I'm honest with you and urge them to give it up and seek a buyer for the park.
 
This is what I don't get. What business let's their product deteriorate and thinks they can get growth of business? I don't think I will bother renewing my MAP later this year. I will get our breakfast on the way toby or harvester in Stoke on the way and tea somewhere similar on the way home take some bottles of water, crisps and sandwiches with us and we don't need to spend a penny in the park. That's the way to run a business eh?

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AstroDan said:
Sub Terra, 4D and Toadstool will absolutely not be opening this year.

2018 will be dire. The worst yet.

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Sub Terra was a bad investment decision in the first place. Low throughput and cost a fortune to run. It quite enjoyed it, but AT in general and the king of rollercoasters in particular deserve better.

Ice Age 4D to me was an utter waste of money and an example of an investment with zero imagination. Spent a fortune on an IP to show shorts clips from a boring movie that you could have seen in full at the cinema, years before. Bubbles, wind a fake snow do nothing for me.

Twirling toadstool. I don't visit AT for rides similar to those that I could experience at a travelling fun fair. I don't think that many people do. I'm in a minority on these forums, but I don't think a great theme park needs many if, if any flat rides. I did have a soft spot for Ripsaw in its prime, and enjoy the odd go on Blade, though Submission and Enterprise never did anything for me.

I don't mind the removal of these rides at all - CAVEAT - PROVIDING THEY ARE REPLACED WITH ATTRACTIONS BEFITTING OF A LEADING THEME PARK - ROLLERCOASTERS (THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS TOO MANY), LOG FLUMES (WE REALLY NEED ONE), DARK RIDES (NOT. VR), AND OTHER RIDES WITH AN ACTUAL PROPER TRANSIT SYSTEM.

By the way, in the recently posted John Wardley TT session he said he had created a concept for a world's first water ride, virtually in the same breath as B and M. No one asked him about it. Sounds really intriging. Does anybody have any more information on this, please?

Could it see the light of day?
 
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themeparkfan said:
This is what I don't get. What business let's their product deteriorate and thinks they can get growth of business? I don't think I will bother renewing my MAP later this year. I will get our breakfast on the way toby or harvester in Stoke on the way and tea somewhere similar on the way home take some bottles of water, crisps and sandwiches with us and we don't need to spend a penny in the park. That's the way to run a business eh?

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Totally agree, I won’t spend a penny at the parks this year. We have family MAPS and will be taking picnics and flasks for hot drinks. I didn’t mind spending when the quality deserved it, however I won’t pay the prices for absolute bloody crap food. Especially as a veggie family.
 
themeparkfan said:
This is what I don't get. What business let's their product deteriorate and thinks they can get growth of business? I don't think I will bother renewing my MAP later this year. I will get our breakfast on the way toby or harvester in Stoke on the way and tea somewhere similar on the way home take some bottles of water, crisps and sandwiches with us and we don't need to spend a penny in the park. That's the way to run a business eh?

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This.
 
Merlin's pricing policy relies on secondary spend as they're practically giving away season passes, but with F&B so poor and the opening hours so lousy, people are likely to spend less in the park than they were doing.
Meanwhile cuts continue, and the product is visibly worse year-on-year (behind headline capex). I've been worried about the future of the park for a few years now, and I'm not seeing any real signs that things will or could improve under current ownership.
 
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