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Thorpe Park: General Discussion

Bowser said:
I was going to try and have my first ride on Hyperia now schools are back but today it's currently 12:15pm and it's not open. This seems to be a common pattern. Is this just more of Merlin being awful and running rides for as little time as possible?
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Two-Tier Merlin just doing their thing. Kids are back at school so they don't give a damn. Not only are they not opening it early enough, but they're closing it completely soon for maintenance for a week or whatever. I have a day booked at Thorpe for tomorrow and I was wondering whether to bother travelling down to London (basically to ride Hyperia again). I think your post has convinced me not to bother now, and Merlin can shove their pass up their a**e next year. Looks like it's either go and get crammed in when all the kids are there or we'll just run the attractions really badly so it's hardly worth going. Great job Merlin, I hope your profits go through the absolute floor.
 
BarryZola said:
Two-Tier Merlin just doing their thing. Kids are back at school so they don't give a damn. Not only are they not opening it early enough, but they're closing it completely soon for maintenance for a week or whatever. I have a day booked at Thorpe for tomorrow and I was wondering whether to bother travelling down to London (basically to ride Hyperia again). I think your post has convinced me not to bother now, and Merlin can shove their pass up their a**e next year. Looks like it's either go and get crammed in when all the kids are there or we'll just run the attractions really badly so it's hardly worth going. Great job Merlin, I hope your profits go through the absolute floor.
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It's open now, on a random Wednesday, at 80 minutes. Stealth is closed all day and Colossus is down. Think i'll leave it till 2025.
 
It might still be worth it. There's a single rider if desperate, and once the initial run on the thing now being opened it'll become more steady.

Does of course depend on the rest of the park playing ball mind.
 
Benzin said:
It might still be worth it. There's a single rider if desperate, and once the initial run on the thing now being opened it'll become more steady.

Does of course depend on the rest of the park playing ball mind.
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Most of the reports on here seem to indicate single ride operates at a similar length to the main queue and is pointless.

Will keep an eye out the next few weeks but the pattern does seem to be of it not opening for several hours and then retaining a 50 minute minimum queue till closing.

Maybe it'll get notably shorter when universities start properly in October?

I've never been on Swarm either so I would like to give that a go too.
 
Bowser said:
Most of the reports on here seem to indicate single ride operates at a similar length to the main queue and is pointless.

Will keep an eye out the next few weeks but the pattern does seem to be of it not opening for several hours and then retaining a 50 minute minimum queue till closing.

Maybe it'll get notably shorter when universities start properly in October?

I've never been on Swarm either so I would like to give that a go too.
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Just keep an eye out for fright nights dates and any school inset days! But otherwise, early October is usually very deserted during the week.

From my experience (used SR once so not a super reliable measure), we waited 40 minutes in the main queue for my first ride, with not a single person in the single rider line. The host made an announcement on the tannoy basically saying "If you wanna go on the ride right now, join the SR cause theres no one in it".

So while SR is quite frequently used, definitely have a peep to see how many people are in it. If the SR line is just the straight bit of queue towards the batching zone, it's usually a very short wait! 25-30 minutes from my experience using it on my 2nd ride, where the main queue was pushing 100+ mins.

Also I'll add that if you're going with a friend/someone, sometimes they'll even put you together despite being in the SR line which was a pleasant surprise! Got back row with my boyfriend using this queue.
 
Dhev123 said:
Also I'll add that if you're going with a friend/someone, sometimes they'll even put you together despite being in the SR line which was a pleasant surprise! Got back row with my boyfriend using this queue.
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Yeh see I really dislike this. I'm definitely not saying that you did, but on the four times I've ridden Hyperia so far, each and every time there's been a group of two or more people in the SRQ asking to ride together, either just asking once and then dropping it, or pushing the idea heavily and complaining when not allowed.

No one should be queuing in the SRQ expecting not to be split up, that's just not how it works.

If the staff have ever let pairs ride, it's either by chance that there's a spare row and only groups of 3+ in the main queue, or quite frankly the staff member is too worn down to argue because my gosh do they get a lot of abuse at the batch position :(
 
Islander said:
Yeh see I really dislike this. I'm definitely not saying that you did, but on the four times I've ridden Hyperia so far, each and every time there's been a group of two or more people in the SRQ asking to ride together, either just asking once and then dropping it, or pushing the idea heavily and complaining when not allowed.

No one should be queuing in the SRQ expecting not to be split up, that's just not how it works.

If the staff have ever let pairs ride, it's either by chance that there's a spare row and only groups of 3+ in the main queue, or quite frankly the staff member is too worn down to argue because my gosh do they get a lot of abuse at the batch position :(
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Always remember last year, was in the SRQ of The Smiler and for whatever reason there was a long delay letting the next batch of the main queue up the stairs to the platform. So much of a delay in fact that the main queue ran out so they just let a load of single riders on to fill a train!
 
Steve74 said:
Always remember last year, was in the SRQ of The Smiler and for whatever reason there was a long delay letting the next batch of the main queue up the stairs to the platform. So much of a delay in fact that the main queue ran out so they just let a load of single riders on to fill a train!
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Yeh see that’s fine, and in fact a good use of the SRQ! But if you’re a group queuing in the SRQ and this happens, it’s nothing more than an awesome coincidence - no one should ever be asking to ride together from that queue.
 
Islander said:
Yeh see that’s fine, and in fact a good use of the SRQ! But if you’re a group queuing in the SRQ and this happens, it’s nothing more than an awesome coincidence - no one should ever be asking to ride together from that queue.
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Oh absolutely, made our day! 🤣

Sometimes it's better being split up because many times I've been put next to someone who's never been on it before. Often more entertaining than with your own group!
 
The only time I ever saw them put two people together from Hyperia’s SRQ was to fill the back row if the final group was more than a 2 and they couldn’t find a 2 quickly enough. I never saw them put groups together consciously or even entertain any request for people to ride together.

Incidentally enough, this was how I managed to score the back row both times I rode in the SRQ!
 
I queued with my partner in the SRQ last week to get on the ride quicker, not to ride together and when four people in the normal queue were next to be assigned they sent us through to ride the back row as they didn't want to be split up. Though once they realised two of the four would have got a back row ride, they asked the ridehost to move us back out of the queue, which was declined! For the rest of our 3 rides we queued in the normal queue and annoyingly missed the front row by two people two times!
 
SRQ is SRQ. Clue is in the name. Whilst I like the front row on most coasters, some FRQs (like Nemmy inferno) are crazy long (no idea why they don't put "10 min" markers or "ride cycles" on the queue barriers). So not having a FRQ is also cool as it's a nice lottery (as is the back row).
 
Islander said:
Yeh see I really dislike this. I'm definitely not saying that you did, but on the four times I've ridden Hyperia so far, each and every time there's been a group of two or more people in the SRQ asking to ride together, either just asking once and then dropping it, or pushing the idea heavily and complaining when not allowed.

No one should be queuing in the SRQ expecting not to be split up, that's just not how it works.

If the staff have ever let pairs ride, it's either by chance that there's a spare row and only groups of 3+ in the main queue, or quite frankly the staff member is too worn down to argue because my gosh do they get a lot of abuse at the batch position :(
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yeah we didn't ask to go together it was just pot luck in our case.

I was supposed to be paired with another single rider, but she basically stood aside and so the batcher sent my boyfriend into the row with me.

I speak more from accounts from others who have said a similar thing has happened to them, where they were in the SRL and still ended up seated together
 
Lovely first ride yesterday.
**** landscaping will be brought in house and improved over the winter...from a very solid source on the park.
There was "disappointment" with the original landscaping, and then a polite silence...
Yes, half a ride, yes the non splash trim kills it, but still worth the effort...unusual coaster with a fun combination of elements...while it lasts.
And yes, very poor ops, one hour in a closed ride queue, followed by another hour of open ride queueing, does not make for a great old gits trip, but it was pretty much expected.
Other operations were very good indeed.
 
rob666 said:
Lovely first ride yesterday.
**** landscaping will be brought in house and improved over the winter...from a very solid source on the park.
There was "disappointment" with the original landscaping, and then a polite silence...
Yes, half a ride, yes the non splash trim kills it, but still worth the effort...unusual coaster with a fun combination of elements...while it lasts.
And yes, very poor ops, one hour in a closed ride queue, followed by another hour of open ride queueing, does not make for a great old gits trip, but it was pretty much expected.
Other operations were very good indeed.
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Yes I think it's fair to say that the planting appears to have been a complete failure, on my last visit pretty much everything had died and the only things thriving were the types of weeds I CBA to pull out of my gravel each weekend.

Not really sure what they were going for in terms of style either, would have though they'd have gone more Mediterranean given the ride theme.

Hope it gets sorted anyway.
 
I think they know the issue is plain, and they intend to put things right properly in the closed season, in house, properly.
Landscaping is often last minute and cut time wise in development.
Stuff needs to grow, and needs space to grow.
As a professional part time gardener and full time thoosie of fifty years standing, I think I can honestly say that the planting and maintenance of the garden areas of thorpe are absolutely excellent compared to the state of everything at the Towers.
I did a sneaky ert of the lovely remaining sunken garden, alone and in peace, for a good hour.
Front row benches, all three, walk on, and stunning.
The garden areas around the rides, Inferno and Colossus come to mind, are excellent and well maintained, proper posh planting of warm exotics benefiting from the mild climate.
All the Hyperia planting is new, and it has been a pretty dry summer, not a time to do successful planting.
Thoosies always want things yesterday...give it time, the ride is open, just, the gardens will come on.

edit...those weeds do need pulling though.

And they have the landscape bark...just dumped in heaps and not where it should be.
 
rob666 said:
I think they know the issue is plain, and they intend to put things right properly in the closed season, in house, properly.
Landscaping is often last minute and cut time wise in development.
Stuff needs to grow, and needs space to grow.
As a professional part time gardener and full time thoosie of fifty years standing, I think I can honestly say that the planting and maintenance of the garden areas of thorpe are absolutely excellent compared to the state of everything at the Towers.
I did a sneaky ert of the lovely remaining sunken garden, alone and in peace, for a good hour.
Front row benches, all three, walk on, and stunning.
The garden areas around the rides, Inferno and Colossus come to mind, are excellent and well maintained, proper posh planting of warm exotics benefiting from the mild climate.
All the Hyperia planting is new, and it has been a pretty dry summer, not a time to do successful planting.
Thoosies always want things yesterday...give it time, the ride is open, just, the gardens will come on.
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Most importantly... HOW WERE THE KEBABS?
 
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