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I don't expect to ride any more notable new rides this year, so here's my current Top 10% (with new in bold): Rank Coaster Park 1 Toutatis Parc Asterix 2 Taron Phantasialand 3 Taiga Linnanmäki 4 ArieForce One Fun Spot America Atlanta 5 Untamed Walibi Holland 6 Skyrush Hersheypark 7 Oz'Iris Parc Asterix 8 Helix Liseberg 9 Der Schwur des Kärnan Hansa Park 10 Kondaa Walibi Belgium 11 Lightning Rod Dollywood 12 Iron Rattler Six Flags Qiddiya City 13 Phoenix Knoebels 14 Falcons Flight Six Flags Qiddiya City 15 Twisted Cyclone Six Flags Over Georgia 16 Hyperia Thorpe Park 17 Balder Liseberg 18 Lost Gravity Walibi Holland 19 Joris en de Draak (Water) Efteling 19 Joris en de Draak (Vuur) Efteling 20 Jersey Devil Coaster Six Flags Great Adventure 21 Colossos - Kampf der Giganten Heide Park 22 Manta SeaWorld Abu Dhabi 23 Kingda Ka Six Flags Great Adventure 24 Candymonium Hersheypark 25 Goliath Walibi Holland 26 Nemesis Alton Towers 27 El Toro Six Flags Great Adventure 28 Troy Toverland 29 Black Mamba Phantasialand 30 Mahuka Walibi Rhône-Alpes 31 Fønix Fårup Sommerland 32 Mystery Mine Dollywood 33 Flying Aces Ferrari World Abu Dhabi 34 Hyperion Energylandia 35 Lisebergbanan Liseberg 36 Van Helsing's Factory Movie Park Germany 37 Juvelen Djurs Sommerland 38 Batman Gotham City Escape Parque Warner Madrid 39 Pulsar Walibi Belgium 40 Voltron Europa Park 41 Silver Star Europa Park 42 Goliath Six Flags Over Georgia 43 Shambhala PortAventura Park 44 Nitro Six Flags Great Adventure 45 Nemesis Inferno Thorpe Park 46 Storm - The Dragon Legend TusenFryd 47 Colorado Adventure Phantasialand 48 Wild Eagle Dollywood -ArieForce One is filled with aggressive air time, but doesn't do it to a level that it becomes uncomfortable. It's very much what I like in a coaster. -Lightning Rod is similar, and has the added bonus on a gorgeous terrain. It's a shame it doesn't have a launch any more, but it's still a heck of a coaster. -Iron Rattler is the definition of New Vekoma. Sleek, smooth, fast-paced and a TON of fun. Plus on a first ride, the tilt at the front is pretty unnerving. -Falcons Flight is a weird one. But it's filled with some incredible moments, such as the second launch up a cliff (taking you to speeds of about 100mph and heights of 600ft+), the hang off the cliff, THAT third launch and then a finale at huge speed. Those moments are enough to bring it to such a high standard, even if the overall package isn't the most imaginative or cool layout. -Twisted Cyclone comes alive in the second half. I'd have loved more than the 2 rides I ended up with, but I got rained out of the park. -Mystery Mine isn't exactly the best coaster in the world. However, the overall package is something I adore. -Goliath creeps in nicely with the majority of the B&M Hypers I've done. It's just great fun. -Wild Eagle makes such brilliant use of its terrain and has a cool layout. Plus some pops of airtime is cool.

Overspeeding is a b*tch XD

I agree with basically everything you said about the park. I was left a bit underwhelmed by Mecalodon - I think because I expected a bit too much when I went on it. BUT there's no denying it is a good fit for the park. Loup-Garou has a special place in my heart as it was my first major woodie, and even last year I enjoyed it still - I think a retrack would have been enough for it. But again, there's no denying that the RMC treatment will be a huge benefit for the park. The park has been on a huge upward trajectory the last decade, and it seems to just be continuing.

After last weeks annoyance of the Service, a new cable and train 3 refurbished, yesterday Stealth ran really well and the team were pushing the trains through quickly, even in the high temperatures. Both trains had also been cleaned.

At the moment if you can get there, after 3p.m. Is a good period to attend, but the queue size seems to fluctuate and I think a lot of that is the flow caused by people relying on "the App". I agree that Park seems to be operating efficiently, with staff reacting to minor hiccups, I.e. Illnesses, very quickly and without hesitation.

Pulsar 😍

Had my first visit this past weekend. This had become a bit of a bucket list park over the last few years and was glad to finally get out there. Great rollercoaster collection to start off with. I thought Kondaa was fabulous, an outstanding attraction. Intamin were really cooking around this time. I've seen it described as a modern day Expedition Ge Force. Well yeah, it has similarities but whereas EGF always left me feeling underwhelmed, Kondaa was sublime. Also loved Mecalodon. I love family Gerstlauers, there's just a lot of innovation and experimentation with the model. This being the latest one, it just has so much for family groups and is so much fun. Tiki Wawa is okay. It's not an amazing version of the ride type unfortunately. Not worth the regular 45 minute waits. Turbine is amazing. Absolutely loved it. Great theme, great ride. Pulsar also impressed. I didn't think it would be my kind of ride but actually, it was really fun. The backwards air time was lovely and it wasn't too wet. Just enough. Calamity Mine was great, Boomerang was a boomerang. the SLC was fine, I'm now pretty used to riding these defensively so therefore I know when to brace. I still really like the layout on these things, even though the trains really do make them a battle. Loup-Garou was a big reason for the trip, I wanted to get on it before it says goodbye at the end of the year. To be honest, I'm a big defender of these horrible janky woodies. This was hilariously bad. I can see why its being renovated by RMC, but it still has a charm. The dark rides were also of really high quality. I shall be back..

I do agree. The buzz we had with Hyperia and the Passholder Group has certainly gone, and we're technically 2 rides down with Rumba Rapids permanent closure and Zodiac being SBNO for over a year. I'd love to see some new flat rides to bring some excitement back into the park, but there are also some pretty significant issues that need addressing, such as the security/entrance procedure and the Ghost Train. One thing I will say though, is that although we've had nothing new and not much excitement, it's still the best run Merlin park in the UK by far in my opinion, and it continues to have the best opening hours. Operations are always on point whenever I go, and I always have a pleasant day. I can't say the same for most other parks in the country. I usually avoid the park most of July and August but will certainly be going to a couple of the 9pm closes in August.

Not sure whats up with it, but it has been testing on and off so hopefully nothing too serious. Personally my favourite flat at the park in recent years so hopefully be back soon!

So does anyone know what’s up with Vortex? Think it’s been closed almost a month now, makes that area of the park seem almost abandoned with the continued closure of Zodiac next to it too!

My excitement towards Thorpe has gone downhill recently too. I’m definitely going to contribute a decent chunk of this to me moving to Nottingham for Uni so I’m no longer a 30minute drive from the park; but I’ve still not looked into booking a trip for this season while I’m back home for the summer which considering I used to visit 10-15 times a season before I moved is quite a stark contrast. The period from 2021-2024 seemed to be so full of change and engagement from the park. Changing fright nights lineup, sparkle project, passholder group, multiple events from park vibes to mardi gras and of course everything surrounding Hyperia. It seems at the moment, the park has hit a stagnant phase - the only new investment we’ve got recently is the new launchpad area, which (not entire due to the parks fault) is rather underwhelming to say the least, and not really drawing me back to the park.

Yeah kinda. I personally don't feel that hard done by though, the amount of investment that is going on across Europe right now, even here in the UK, says to me that Thorpe is just a bit dormant right now. These things come in waves and the reality is, Hyperia needs to be the big thing for a while. At some point they have to address Rumba and the Slammer sites as well as the flat ride section of Lost City. Vortex and Zodiac just seem pretty dead right now with Quantum not far behind.

The issue of nothing on the horizon hasn't helped. You'd presume SOMETHING will happen on Rumba site but then Slammer's old spot is still decaying. The "rest area" is just so badly executed. Was always a hard sell for it to be the exciting new addition, especially when there's no events happening to utilise the space. Hyperia could've done with a couple support rides to keep the interest going. Surprised they didn't go for the spinning or backwards car on it (though given the ride experience probably for the best that they didn't). Even the influencers barely seem to visit Thorpe. Guess it doesn't get the hits that Towers does or has something new to regularly update like Chessie or Lego.

There's a few contributing factors I think... -Post-big investment lull. As Benin mentioned, there can be lulls after big investments at parks. Not every park, but it is common. It's funny because historically Thorpe was good at avoiding that by having some marketing gimmick for the year after a big investment (Stealth's "upgrade", Saw with Saw Alive, Swarm's Brave it Backwards, DBGT and Rise of the Demon). Hyperia didn't have that, and there's not been anything to follow up. It happens, but it's very bland, yes. -'Time thing'. I assume by this Matt you just mean getting older, and that does play a part of it too I reckon. You get older, and busier, and times just change. And also ties in with what Benin says about the world being general a bit rubbish right now. -Lack of updates. There's things happening at the park, whether it's little touch ups here and there or bigger things behind the scenes. Admittedly right now that is minimal, but it is there. But there's less noise about it all now. The Passholder Group on Facebook closed down. Jack Silkstone, who has been the main source of such things for a few years now, has moved into a more professional capacity so isn't making the little update videos. Fansites (like TPM) have succumbed to the time thing. And there's just very few places providing general updates. -Lack of anything to be excited about. There's no plans to the council for anything new. There's no rumours of anything new coming. Other parks in Merlin are getting things and Thorpe aren't. We're kind of just ticking on by. It makes it hard to have the same enthusiasm. On a personal level, I found 2024 to be such a huge buzz of a year for Thorpe. New coaster, obviously, but the Sparkle Project invigorated lots of other parts of the park. There was optimism for the future and such a positive. Since then, they've followed that up with a much-needed open space by the front of the park (although that execution has split opinion), and nothing else. The park is effectively exactly the same as it was 2 years ago, even down to food outlets. With seemingly nothing new on the horizon, there's only so long one can revisit the exact same place before a bit of burnout hits.

Typical lull after big investment really. Not helped by general world malaise and not much activity going on at the parks.

This might be a time thing but I’m not sure but does everyone else think the excitement from 2021-2024 has died down now at Thorpe Park. Nothing really happening throughout the year, nothing really to look forward to. I think if Fright Nights stays the same this year, I think maze wise it will. Then it’s quite a boring year and much of the same for next year. There used to be quite a big fan base active on social media but I think that’s completely gone now

Tickets being released in a fortnight... https://x.com/I/status/2079115598530056412

It has now been removed from the app, and still no sign of testing since May. It has now been closed for over a year.

my favourite part about all this is the nespresso machine. you always know where you are with that. no matter how un-affable the weather is, or how much the spanners get into the works, you know you can pop in your lovely nespresso pod and enjoy a luscious, tasteful refreshment. it really is the best thing about the park of the thorpe of the park, and if I had my way, we would be introducing nespresso machines at the entrance to every ride tomorrow. sadly, I do not often get my way. budgets are tight, you see. the benefit of introducing a nespresso machine at the entrance to each ride would be measurable, but it would not be practical to do on a small budget. there is a lot to think about, such as, if the machine broke would the experience actually be worse than it was before? the thorpe park visitor would then know there was something 'missing' as they would not be able to enjoy the refreshing warmth of a nespresso pod whilst queueing. whereas if we do not introduce the nespresso machines, there will never be anything missing. apart from to me, because I know about nespresso. I know about the potential, the huge benefits and the sheer beauty of the nespresso pod. once you have discovered this for yourself, there is no going back and thorpe park will never feel the same again without nespresso.

Can't wait to see those colour coded entrances that SLKSTN loved so much finally in use for an event. Sick!

Hopefully the weather plays ball. Feel like they were unlucky with the weather in the past causing less attendance. 2024 the weather was crap and more recently in May it was too hot.

Nice idea and advertised far enough in advance. Hope it works out for them!

PRESENTING SLKSTN LIVE!!!! It's a vibe.

4 ‘Thorpe Park Lates’ dates have been announced for 2 Fridays and Saturdays in August. 14th / 15th and 21st / 22nd once again staying open till 9pm. Sounds like they’ll be making use of launch pad with live DJ sets. Great to see!

Does anyone else find that last, or second last little turn out of sync with the rest of the ride. Obviously it's lining you up to come back to the station. A bit of an anti cimlax.