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UK 2022 Attendance

E

Enter Valhalla

TS Member
Reading about how dead BPB is, really got me thinking. I know that we don’t know any attendance figures for this year yet (and won’t until at least this time next year) but it really does feel as though all of the UK parks have had a massive slump in attendance this year, following, what I would call, two very, very busy years.

I’m not just talking about my own visits, which have all been noticeably much quieter than last year and also quieter than I’d have expected in pre-covid times. I’m also talking about when I check the queue times on the parks’ apps when I‘be not been there. They almost always look lower than what I’d have expected for the time of year.

2021 and 2020, at the times when the parks were open, were very busy, but this year I think we’ve seen a big slump.

Could it be because more people are travelling abroad now? (virtually everyone I know seems to be on holiday at the moment)

Could it be because the parks haven’t done enough to get people in? They enjoyed two years of people coming in, basically because they had nowhere else to go, but now they have competition.

Or is it because everyone visited the UK parks over the last two years and they’re over it now?

Any shared experiences would be really interesting to hear.
 
I suspect it is a combination of all of factors you raise, plus the current cost of living issues are playing into it too.

Due to increases in food, petrol, energy etc decisions have to be made in terms of spending, there will be some people that simply can no longer afford theme park trips which are expensive across the board.

There may well be another group of people who can still afford some leisure spending, but it isn’t as much as it once was, and so with a lack of foreign holidays over the last few years they may prioritise that activity over a theme park trip. Combined with the low level of capital investment in many parks this year there isn’t really anything to draw people back.

Having said all that, midweek in May has always been a traditionally quiet time for theme parks, so there is still a chance that things will pick up over the summer. Alton Towers extending ride close to 6pm next week suggests they are happy with the prebook levels to a point they are prepared to increase their costs by extending hours.
 
Oh I’m not just talking about the weekdays in May, I’m referring to the entire season so far, being much quieter at all parks compared with the same time in previous years. Weekends, Easter holidays, bank holidays, all been really quiet this season.

It could actually be a nice opportunity to visit the parks without having to put up with the big queues we’ve seen over the past two years, but the parks are really going to have to step up in terms of investment if they don’t want this situation in coming years.
 
I’m going to Devon for 4th nights in August in a caravan and we also booked for 2 adult and 2 children for crealy theme park and Watermouth Castle for roughly £700
Alton Towers for 2 nights and 2 days in the park was quoted £1100.
We get breakfast included at Alton Towers but even you factor that in I got to buy the kids lunch and all of us a meal on the evening and petrol it be closer to £1500 in the end. With Devon as it’s self catering we eat breakfast in the caravan then buy lunch in the park with drinks £50 then eat back at the caravan on the night so it won’t even cost £1000 with drinks brought in the club house on the evening.
 
I think it is pretty universal at the moment.
Family cinema fan said attendance is very low outside of the offers.
Did the usual month end family pub day yesterday...half term, sunny, lovely country pub with bowling green...(Pleasington, for the railway buffs, right by the station, on the east lancs line from Blackpool).
It was on the very dead side of dead when we arrived, and only half full when we left.
Very busy on the sunny weekends before the bills went up.
The other local pub is boarded up, never known it closed before
Crowds are wandering about, but they are not spending.
Especially the Yorkshiremen, who have famously deep pockets and short arms.
 
On my visits to Towers earlier in the season on off peak days, they were noticeably busier I'd say than the same days pre Covid. And this is with midweek closures gone. When I say 'busier' I mean less dead. I usually get a couple of midweek visits in early season and pre 2020 you'd see trains waiting for riders to dispatch and going out sometimes less than 1/3 full. Yet this year, most trains going out full or thereabouts, noticeably more people on pathways, in toilets and restaurants etc. A few coasters even racked up 10 - 30 minute queues here and there.

But what's changed since then is the severity of the cost of living crisis and the start of the holiday season. It's pretty easy to travel abroad to most countries now and, despite cost pressures, many would have booked these trips as soon as they knew they were allowed out. Definitely a pent up demand thing.

The cost of living problems will be discouraging those who previously couldn't afford to go abroad to now no longer be even able to afford a day out in the UK. If you live some distance from some of the parks and can't afford a stay overnight anymore, your fuel bill to the park is now sky high so would it be worth it?

I think people's lack of disposable income and the mass exodus abroad are the main reasons for parks feeling quiet at this particular time, but if you've spent the last 2 years visiting them as an alternative to a foreign holiday, there's very little new about in the UK at the moment to entice you in this year.

What will be interesting is the summer holidays and latter part of the season. Flying costs are going up and the news is full of headlines about chaos at airports and cancelled flights (I'm worried about my own tomorrow morning). Fuel prices have now reached a record high, interest rates are going to continue going up now and come the autumn people will be struggling to keep the heating on. Will people continue to clamber to get out of the country? Will people downgrade to a UK break instead? How many people simply won't be able to afford a day out altogether?
 
I think the low attendance is likely caused at least in part by the cost of living crisis, as many have already suggested.

On a side note, I find this thread quite depressing reading. As soon as one crisis goes, it feels like another begins at this point…
 
Been a annual pass holder at Drayton I noticed a few things this season:
1st day of the main season was busy but still got on most of our favourite rides.
Easter Sunday I had to go Drayton Manor just to get my Safari park tickets and the queue to get into the car park then into the park was shocking which took nearly a hour then went again after lunch on May Day weekend and it was empty. Even Today I didn’t get to the park to gone 11 and we parked in row C even when we left only only up to row F was used.
Do u think it’s Annual pass holders and there £20 family and family voucher holders coming to the park more often this year?
 
Neither is Drayton Manor. The park has been quite busy despite the weather.

I am pretty sure this attendance 'myth' is just that, a myth.

Parks are busy, statement of fact. Just go to them and you will see.

The only one that seems to be struggling is the overpriced Pleasure Beach, with baffling operational decisions, rising costs and tier 1 attractions closed. Not surprising it is empty. Everywhere else is doing fine.

The cost of living is not stopping people going out, clearly. It could be argued however, it is pushing people to make sure they get more value for their money on days out, as disposable income becomes more precious. Value for money and Pleasure Beach are unfortunately something that do not go together right now and people can see it.
 
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So this week, attendance has picked up, and perhaps this will continue. But nobody can deny that it’s been a slow start to the season up until this point, especially when directly comparing the dates to the same dates as last year.
 
I saw this on Paultons social media, but looking at the app, no queue at Paultons has been more than 40 mins today, with most under half an hour, which ironically is a lot quieter than when I visited in April 2021.

I guess Paultons are still limiting their numbers to ensure a good guest experience, which is commendable to be fair to them.
 
I’m under the impression that Paultons never had overly long queues before COVID, though. So nothing’s really changed there.
 
visiting in 2020 the day was sold out but outside of peppa pig land everything was pretty quiet with a few trains wait at most.
 
Paultons seem to have consciously made the decision to absolutely slash the annual pass numbers (by raising the price massively) and in doing so protect the quality of the day for visitors paying the gate price by having far fewer people on park, just with a much higher average spend per head. It is a fantastic way to go about things.
 
I think the biggest difference is they know they just a family run theme park but will a great business plan. They have a great working relationship with holiday extras who run the short breaks for them. Hotel extras fills the hotels for 1 or 2 nights and in return Paulton’s offer hotel guests 2 days for the price of 1.
For example last year we looked at staying at Alton Towers but the cheapest room with tickets for the 31st August to 1st September was £850 for 2 adults and 2 children aged 9 and 2. The same dates for Paultons but we went down on the 30th (booked a days inn holiday for £51) We stayed at the holiday inn which is less than 15 mins away from the park and it cost £276. I don’t think we spend £500 which included food, drinks and petrol
 
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