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I really like the sound of this. I’m glad they’re trying something different. I think a ‘more intense’ maze is something they’re currently missing from their lineup, especially since Survival Games got toned down. So I’m hoping this will fill that gap. I just hope they get it right, and I think a lot of that will be dependent on how much they limit capacity for this, especially if it’s smaller groups. £12 is very steep considering there is no AP discount too. Can get 1 shots for the others for £7 so this is a £5 difference. Halloween packages/stays have been released, but they just don’t include the mazes this year unlike other years unfortunately.

I had an account here yonks ago and posted in relation to Fright Nights, but must've been attached to an old (now defunct) email address, as I can't seem to recover it! Anyways, mainly just wanted to have a moan, haha. Cos A: Why is Thorpe always so slow to release all the information on Fright Nights, especially so in recent years, with rushed VIP extras, etc. As someone who tries to fit in as much as possible in the way of scream parks & scare attractions during spooky season, TP make planning it all extra difficult compared to other places, who have all their packages up nice and early. I have been asking support for weeks when the hotel/short break packages will be sorted, and they keep telling me they don't know, to check back in a few days o.O Cos they've been selling short breaks with FN included for a while now, but with no free maze entry on the 2nd day like they've had in previous years, so the main thing I wanted to know was if that will be added at all, or if it's gone for 2026. Support just kept saying "short breaks packages for Fright Nights have not yet been finalised, keep checking back" ...then don't sell short breaks including FN then? Because people who book early will be screwed over when potentially better packages are launched! I almost booked one of the dates, just to make sure we had SOMETHING booked in, and to help organise the calendar better for October, when I did one last check of the TP website and saw the addition of Short Break RIP Stays "coming soon" that DO include the mazes + more. Now I'm stuck waiting again, because it doesn't tell you dates/availability, full t&cs of that package. I'm so sick of the "coming soon". I just want some solid info so I can have everything planned T_T Never have this issue planning a trip to any other scare event in the UK! And B: What is the point of even being subscribed to a newsletter anymore, when they're sent infrequently, and everything is just revealed on social media? I don't care for teasers or social media hype, I just want solid information T_T

hey spooky, how you doing, oh since the light went out there's nothing going light, I just can't sleep alone at night a do do do do a doo!

Seems as though you're right Cal, though nothing officially confirmed... Couple of extra bits: Only available as a one shot ticket (£12-£14, so £2 more expensive than the other one shots) or VIP packages Actors will touch you and you will be split up. It's a cool concept and I'm intrigued by it. It feels slightly...un-Thorpe like? Which I mean in a positive way. That probably makes sense given RWS are more in charge this year. Throughput will be an interesting one. Lots of darkness, being split up, plus the presumed torches. Some mazes that have used Haunted Lantern have gone for very small groups (eg Purgatory at Tulleys), others keep group size the same. But I'm not aware of any that have split groups up before. So yeah, intrigued and excited.

Another teaser tonight for Project Blackout, full reveal at 9am tomorrow. My guess is a torch maze which turns off and on throughout the maze, using the same technology the Purgatory at Tulleys uses. More information on their website - https://www.hauntedlantern.com/ Could be why they've decided to do tickets for this one separately and not as part of a bundle, as I imagine this would have a lower throughput.

I can't remember the exact questions on the survey, but one of them asked something along the lines of would you be more likely to attend if there was a well known DJ there, so maybe thats something they'll explore.

I got pretty lucky with the crowds, but having to watch that preshow before every ride is a pain 🤣 I seem to rate it higher than most, but when I was comparing it with Toutatis, I think Toutatis is all about that swing launch, but felt like Batman did everything else better. I don’t like the trim on Toutatis, but on Batman, the trim feels more like a holding brake than an actual trim, and I think it works much better. It’s got everything I love - ejector airtime, whippy transitions, and really enjoy the stall. The trains are very stupid for capacity, but I found it also means it consistently delivers no matter where you sit.

now something to replace ready player one PLEASE IT'S NEARLY BEEN THREE YEARS.

Conjuring 4D replaces IT 4D: Good addition, and nice to refresh the film offering.

I suspect that there is a large majority of visitors to the Park have travelled a considerable distance, therefore, have to plan their travel around their departure time. As Cal says, there is not much interest in DJ's perhaps due to visitors' interests being in rides and TP entertainment, not what they can sample elsewhere.

Hyper Coaster is probably not talked about much as it isn't that ridden. Looks like a solid ride all round though. I really enjoyed Batman GCE, but it didn't hot the upper echelons of my list. I can't describe why really, as it has lots of what I like. I'd love to have ridden it more, but my god the throughput is rubbish.

I believe they own that stage and have done since the mid 2010s (when they purchased it for the Thorpe Sounds event... I'm getting deja vu...)

I feel this one is quite important. No one there seemed particularly interested in the DJ on the two evenings I went. They were paying for the DJ and a couple of techs by the looks of it, then there’s the stage as well. I’m not sure whether they hire the stage or own it, but it does make you wonder whether they’re getting much value out of it. I do think they need to do a better job of advertising the whole thing beforehand though, as I didn’t really get the impression that many people knew much about it. Social media posts seemed to be really last minute. I’m not complaining anyway, as I said, Saturday in particular had a lot of people staying. Launch Pad all the seating was being used and there was a really good atmosphere.

Every time the parks do a late night summer opening we have the same discussion. Just doesn't appear to be the appetite for it from the masses.

I don't think on-park announcements or advertising will work all that much. I agree that using the screens around park to make it clear what time the park closes is not a bad thing. But if people are oblivious to the closing time, think it's 6pm (say), and then rock up and find out at 2pm it's actually 9pm, I don't think that will encourage that many people to stay. I think there's two things to keep in mind with later opening hours. You need to give people a reason to stay. Fright Nights is always packed until close, because there's a reason to stay (scare stuff and night rides). Summer Lates had a DJ and maybe one night ride if you join a queue late on. For many, that's not enough to get people to stay. You have to accept that people will leave early. At similar sized parks (and bigger), people leave before park close, especially when there's late closing. Just as a recent example: I went to Dollywood last month, 10am-9.30pm opening hours. All day, Lightning Rod had 45min+ queue, except in the last hour where it dropped to 5mins. People leave early. And that's fine, so long as you're busy enough during the day and people who stay late get their money's worth. I was on park both Fridays and staying late felt worthwhile. If it translated into people spending money and giving better KPI scores it's worth it. The park just need to come up with a way of making staying later more appealing, and advertising that a bit more.

I agree. Using the bigger queue time boards and the big screen at launch pad would've been a good start. Maybe a park wide announcement or 2.

Ahhh, that all makes sense. Creature Campus could work as a scare zone if they wanted it to. Back in the day, Amity was a mix of both, and I think the location outside Stealth makes more sense for a full set based around the school than Launch Pad, which seems to be used for multiple different things. Not really Fright Nights-related, but it’s funny how Launch Pad suddenly comes alive when there are food units open. Maybe they should have stuck to the original plan and kept permanent food units around the area. I just can’t see Lucifer’s Lair also having a stage and staying show-focused. I think the danger is that there ends up being more shows than scare zones. I think the theme of lucifers lair lends itself better to being a hub of entertainment. I’d be really sad to see it go. I don’t think Purgatory Town should come back unless they move away from the conversation-based approach. Me and my group aren’t really going to interact with actors on that level. I think the actors should be providing scares and approaching us to scare us, rather than just loitering around and having a conversation with people. Alton Towers does scare zones really well with its two free walkthrough scare zones. I’m glad The Crows are coming back, but I think they really needed another one alongside it.

Bit of a curveball that's for sure. My best guess is that Creature Campus and Rebel Ball will alternate on the Launchpad stage, meaning there's always something going on. One of the downsides for Creature Campus is it was pretty much non-existent outside of the performances, so having its space doubled up for something else works. It's worth noting the description for Rebel Ball lists "fire performances" as opposed to a fire show. I'll be disappointed if Lucifer's Lair is scaled back this year. It's been the crown jewel of Fright Nights since it came about in my opinion.

New show has been announced as Rebel Ball with dance, fire, music and Dj shows. I think this is a replacement of all the shows at lucifers lair, so I assume this is going on the launchpad and lucifer is going to take a backseat. This confirms a few things and makes more things confusing What will lucifers lair be? Creature Campus was rumoured to be moving to the launch pad because of the what3words code in the teaser. Will Rebel Ball just be shows or have roaming actors too? It could be the best use of the launch pad for this event and I really hope it’s advertised well as the hub of the event

I arrived at 6 for the evening on Saturday and the number of people leaving was insane. I also believe there was nothing in park or at the entrance telling people the park was open until 9pm which I think is half the problem. Not everyone physically looks at the opening times and assume it shuts at 6. They really should add a closing time sign at the entrance or perhaps the bigger queue time boards.

Knowing this cinema and its love for Warner Bros., I suspect The Conjuring from 2013 will be the next 4D film considering it has the same BBFC rating as It and is a VERY big franchise.

Updating my 10 top as I don't currently have any more trips planned this year, new entries in bold. 1) Batman Gotham City Escape 2) Toutatis 3) Untamed 4) Kondaa 5) Shambala 6) Hyperia 7) Ride to Happiness 8) Taron 9) Balder 10) Hyper Coaster Helix and Zadra now both fall out of my top 10. Batman has always intrigued me, but I didn't expect to like it as much as I did. Every element hits no matter what seat you're in. The tophat works, the ejector airtime is insane, and it's easily my favourite stall I've done on a coaster. I never really see Hyper Coaster talked about, but it's a solid coaster. Pretty traditional hyper layout with an insane first drop and a crazy zero g roll.

Summer lates were great, really hope they build on them and we have more of them next year. I normally completely avoid Thorpe during July and August but I went last Friday and yesterday for the afternoon/evening. Last Friday seemed to be the quietist of the 4, but I think a lot of people left/were put off due to the heat. Yesterday a good amount of people stayed till the end which is good to see. I do think they could do a better job of advertising it though. I don't think theres enough (anything?) on park telling you the park is actually open until 9. I got sent a survey the other day about the event, asking about reasons for visiting, rides being open late, the food stalls, DJs and what time of year is best for rides in the dark. So it's good to see they're at least considering expanding on it.

So Purgatory Town was confirmed as returning this year tonight. On the website, there are two more attractions to be revealed: a scare zone or show, and the maze. The new zone is something of a surprise, since - up to now - there were only 4 placeholders for that slot. All of last year's zones and shows are returning, so this fifth zone is something new (or perhaps something returning). I wonder if they're thinking of doing something like Legacy, but improved having learnt lessons from the Lucifer's Lair fire shows? Edit: Actually, I lie - IT 4D hasn't been confirmed as returning. So it could just be a new film in the cinema. The teaser trailer seemed to hint at a horror film released in 2013, so there we go.

the first uploaded video is available online, I confused it with a later advert which reused some footage (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_NMfRvtnZQ&lc=Ugy1MaKE1RT4R6h9-FN4AaABAg) so it's just the last four that aren't on there...