TheMan
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- NemiLerVion
First off the positive.
There is much to love about Towers. The Towers themselves for a start, the wonderful gardens whom a rather more knowledgeable member informed me yesterday designed by Capability Brown. I don't recall knowing this, but it does explain their majesty. In coaster terms, we have our own "Capability" attractions in the theatrical genius and frankly ridiculously re-rideable Wardley creations.
We also have a commitment at present it appears to get rides running well, there was a fluidity to most of the dispatching yesterday Smiler at times notwithstanding. Even Rita seemed some how reinvigorated, the launch felt forceful again, and they seemed to be getting the rides out quick.
The staff, cheery and welcoming on the whole as ever, including the "wave challenge" with one of those police lady "ents" people that I decided to take on. Yes, on exit I CAN wave at you for the entire duration of Towers Street and exit in the crowd of people heading out of the park in crappy weather
- and the daft grin of the lady on CBeebies land watching two grown blokes coming for a nose around the area I'd yet to see - which was, by the way, to a very good standard! Obviously she could see the enthusiasm to view the new area plastered across my face lol (Squirrel nutty being the only one I wasn't really keen on). With no queue. I was WAY TOO TEMPTED for a go on Pats van!
So, well done Towers. As usual, there are things to be lauded at our beloved park. A place I have been visiting long before Merlin came along (if you don't like Anti-Merlin - look away now).
Now we have the obvious bad, and they ARE BAD.
Food and Beverage - The standards are getting diabolical. Really just crap food no other way to put it. Why would you DECREASE the quality and offerings year on year? Who decides that? It is madness. I ran over some ideas yesterday that I have had (and will not simply give away, you want my ideas, come and pay me Merlin) with another member I think proving I'm not just full of bluster. Let's put it this way, there wouldn't be a bloody ball game, Fried Chicken would be thrown out, and I'd be increasing prices... because people WILL PAY for high quality. Always.
The park in places just looks drab, not sure why that is, and whilst CBeebies is an obvious and rightful success, it lacks the theatre and dynamics of Wardley Era Towers. The Smiler is a great ride, it really is, but it lacks class and polish that have endeared to us the great Towers rides through it's development. I do however believe if they'd released more for the budget to finish the job properly, it would have been a truly world class attraction - but because of the surroundings and cost cutting, it isn't. Foolish.
Scarefest. Well. Prepare to be disappointed is my advice. Two days before and the only thing that really made it noticeable was some decoration down Towers street, the signs on some ents near hex, and the ubiquitous generators with not a coloured bulb in sight and certainly no gels apparent. My peep at Scary Tales did not inspire any kind of confidence. Totally unacceptable if this is once again to be the case.
There is someone/something resulting in these ridiculous short sighted penny pinching decisions throwing a great team once again into reverse gear.
I continue to ask, has this person got the bottle to sit in a room and talk to me face to face and justify to someone who understands business/service industry why they are unable to see further than the end of their noses? Who is the imagination hoovering, creativity stomping, inspiration leeching person ultimately responsible for letting this occur?
A prime year, two potential huge demographics and cross demographic to market at, and instead of seizing this moment and creating a pinnacle event it's once again going to be done as cheap as possible.
But why?
How can these events SHRINK?
I cannot make sense of this. I have tried, but all I see is opportunity for increases in revenue, growth, and quality in the face of shrinking events, quality and standards.
I know there is enough passion at Alton to make this is world class event, so WHO is stopping it?
If I was Nick and saw that entertainments team, I'd double the budget, ask them to put a 1/3 of it into upsell attractions of a high quality and premium price the the 2/3rds remaining increase into building the event and seeing what happens. Ensure it's marketed as a massively improved event. And oh, I don't know maybe use it as a chance to sell the attractions for next year and get people buying annual passes with a cheeky little discount as an incentive...
Not all ideas work like this admittedly, sometimes the best ideas on paper fall flat for no reason other than external commercial forces, you keep experimenting till you find the right formula and when you do, you are minted. Simple. Don't take huge risks, but to continue to not expand the event, increase it's quality, I just cannot understand. And of course, there's the other issues I mentioned above and more besides.
Bit of a long lecture, but I wanted to get people's ideas in one singular place, about what they think is genuinely to blame for this illogical and disrespectful attitude towards it's customers and the park itself, so this is the place specifically for the discussion of all the problems and where the cause of this may ultimately reside.
Who knows, with enough pressure in this thread, maybe we can attract more attention to is and affect some change - and let some of the more talented members of the backroom staff at towers more freedom to REALLY let rip and show us what they can do.
I HATE stifled creativity by men in suits. What the suits need to realise, is this is a CREATIVE INDUSTRY, and the two can actually work exceptionally well together when there is equal input. Right now. There isn't.
There is much to love about Towers. The Towers themselves for a start, the wonderful gardens whom a rather more knowledgeable member informed me yesterday designed by Capability Brown. I don't recall knowing this, but it does explain their majesty. In coaster terms, we have our own "Capability" attractions in the theatrical genius and frankly ridiculously re-rideable Wardley creations.
We also have a commitment at present it appears to get rides running well, there was a fluidity to most of the dispatching yesterday Smiler at times notwithstanding. Even Rita seemed some how reinvigorated, the launch felt forceful again, and they seemed to be getting the rides out quick.
The staff, cheery and welcoming on the whole as ever, including the "wave challenge" with one of those police lady "ents" people that I decided to take on. Yes, on exit I CAN wave at you for the entire duration of Towers Street and exit in the crowd of people heading out of the park in crappy weather
- and the daft grin of the lady on CBeebies land watching two grown blokes coming for a nose around the area I'd yet to see - which was, by the way, to a very good standard! Obviously she could see the enthusiasm to view the new area plastered across my face lol (Squirrel nutty being the only one I wasn't really keen on). With no queue. I was WAY TOO TEMPTED for a go on Pats van!So, well done Towers. As usual, there are things to be lauded at our beloved park. A place I have been visiting long before Merlin came along (if you don't like Anti-Merlin - look away now).
Now we have the obvious bad, and they ARE BAD.
Food and Beverage - The standards are getting diabolical. Really just crap food no other way to put it. Why would you DECREASE the quality and offerings year on year? Who decides that? It is madness. I ran over some ideas yesterday that I have had (and will not simply give away, you want my ideas, come and pay me Merlin) with another member I think proving I'm not just full of bluster. Let's put it this way, there wouldn't be a bloody ball game, Fried Chicken would be thrown out, and I'd be increasing prices... because people WILL PAY for high quality. Always.
The park in places just looks drab, not sure why that is, and whilst CBeebies is an obvious and rightful success, it lacks the theatre and dynamics of Wardley Era Towers. The Smiler is a great ride, it really is, but it lacks class and polish that have endeared to us the great Towers rides through it's development. I do however believe if they'd released more for the budget to finish the job properly, it would have been a truly world class attraction - but because of the surroundings and cost cutting, it isn't. Foolish.
Scarefest. Well. Prepare to be disappointed is my advice. Two days before and the only thing that really made it noticeable was some decoration down Towers street, the signs on some ents near hex, and the ubiquitous generators with not a coloured bulb in sight and certainly no gels apparent. My peep at Scary Tales did not inspire any kind of confidence. Totally unacceptable if this is once again to be the case.
There is someone/something resulting in these ridiculous short sighted penny pinching decisions throwing a great team once again into reverse gear.
I continue to ask, has this person got the bottle to sit in a room and talk to me face to face and justify to someone who understands business/service industry why they are unable to see further than the end of their noses? Who is the imagination hoovering, creativity stomping, inspiration leeching person ultimately responsible for letting this occur?
A prime year, two potential huge demographics and cross demographic to market at, and instead of seizing this moment and creating a pinnacle event it's once again going to be done as cheap as possible.
But why?
How can these events SHRINK?
I cannot make sense of this. I have tried, but all I see is opportunity for increases in revenue, growth, and quality in the face of shrinking events, quality and standards.
I know there is enough passion at Alton to make this is world class event, so WHO is stopping it?
If I was Nick and saw that entertainments team, I'd double the budget, ask them to put a 1/3 of it into upsell attractions of a high quality and premium price the the 2/3rds remaining increase into building the event and seeing what happens. Ensure it's marketed as a massively improved event. And oh, I don't know maybe use it as a chance to sell the attractions for next year and get people buying annual passes with a cheeky little discount as an incentive...
Not all ideas work like this admittedly, sometimes the best ideas on paper fall flat for no reason other than external commercial forces, you keep experimenting till you find the right formula and when you do, you are minted. Simple. Don't take huge risks, but to continue to not expand the event, increase it's quality, I just cannot understand. And of course, there's the other issues I mentioned above and more besides.
Bit of a long lecture, but I wanted to get people's ideas in one singular place, about what they think is genuinely to blame for this illogical and disrespectful attitude towards it's customers and the park itself, so this is the place specifically for the discussion of all the problems and where the cause of this may ultimately reside.
Who knows, with enough pressure in this thread, maybe we can attract more attention to is and affect some change - and let some of the more talented members of the backroom staff at towers more freedom to REALLY let rip and show us what they can do.
I HATE stifled creativity by men in suits. What the suits need to realise, is this is a CREATIVE INDUSTRY, and the two can actually work exceptionally well together when there is equal input. Right now. There isn't.
