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I have said this time and time again. A fan forum will almost certainly reflect the current state of what it is dedicated to which in this case is Thorpe Park. If Thorpe Park was performing and delivering to its potential, this forum would reflect that with members getting real excited about the place. As it is, the park has been a shadow of its old self for a few years now to the point where many who once loved it are now staying away as they are fed up. So ofcourse this forum reflects that. It would be nice to see positivity.....but when the park is leaving little to find positives in, its hardly surprising that you see more constructive criticism on here

We can’t all be positive when there is nothing to be positive about.

WELL! There goes my hope for an RMC coming our way any time soon.

To raise the online booking price when EVERYONE will have to book online is dodgy however you slice it.

And here’s a reminder of what the dome used to look like. It’s not perfect but definitely better than the mediocrity shown in the newer pictures. Everything looked so much better pre-2019.

As a back alley frequenter I can confirm this is correct.

So I actually had a good day today, I’ll admit after the first hour everything felt a bit weird, but after that getting more used to things I actually enjoyed it. Carrying on from above, the arcade from that angle does look bad - I’ve no idea I can only assume it had to be done very quickly for some reason or work wasn’t able to be completed due to corona - I do hope something is done to improve it as it don’t look great. On a more positive note - Firstly with the social distancing I think the park did really well - there are markers literally everywhere spaced out 2 m anywhere there would be a queue - there are sanitiser stations everywhere and I didn’t find one which had ran out all day, on rides there’s social distancing where it’s needed - some rides seem odd such as quantum which literally runs 3 rows - others do make sense, but obviously this is new and will be tweaked over the next few weeks. There’s signage everywhere - again it’s all been done professionally and properly, proper signage throughout, information videos on screens and park wide announcements. For guests following it it’s a mixed bag - some queue lines seemed to follow it better than others, ride ops did step in at times and make announcements reminding people which jogged memories and people would then distance out more. Did notice some not wearing masks on The Swarm, at the same time someone at stealth didn’t have a mask and the staff quickly found one, disposable masks are also on sale in the shops as well as Thorpe branded ones. Entrance to the park was efficient- those without bags skip security queue and go straight to temperature check - the ticket window queue to the right of the entrance is repurposed info a holding queue for those waiting to get in before park opens to allow people to be socially distancing whilst waiting. Park audio has had so much work, probably more than its ever had, its not finished but it’s already significantly better, queues like colossus which have needed work for so long have had it, areas which never had audio before now have it, its really so much better. A few tweaks are needed with some volumes too loud or quiet but that will come over time - you need the general noise of the park to get these levels right. Ride availability wasn’t bad - rides in old town were closed along with rumba, I expect these to open over the next Few weeks, as expected Ghost train and walking dead closed. Shutdown wise only actually saw Stealth and Vortex go down which isn’t bad for “first day” of season - all rides full capacity too which is obviously more important now with reduced seating. New brand signage around entrance / dome looks good - much more professional and suits the park well - Infinity looks really good too, sadly they seemed to have some struggles in there today so didn’t get to try it but definitely will soon! New car park system was good - passes scanned quickly, I do wonder if eventually pass holders will be able to register a car reg? Was also happy to see fastrack not on sale - they easily could have sold it, and people would have bought it - but not selling it definitely is a big plus for guest experience especially when staff are getting used to the new procedures on rides. All in all I had a good day - it was rough around the edges in some places but open day ALWAYS is - with the added part of the vast majority of staff spending the last few months on furlough along with all the new procedures needed it ran significantly smoother than i thouht it would - am happy the parks able to reopen!

Given the park are still leaving Loggers Leap left to rot, Slammer left to rust and Saw Alive left to sink... is anyone surprised by this? I can confirm that this stripping of the arcade canopy looks as grotesque in-person as it does through an internet image.

Who loves before and afters? Here's one of the back of the arcade, opposite Ghost Train.. Second image from: https://live.themeparkguide.biz/ One would like to hope this is part of some long term project. Hope. I don't expect it though. I don't know what's worse. The removal itself, the cheap paving working or the ugly look.

This looks awful. The Dome always looked amazing as "Port Atlantis", now it just looks run-down. Why would they remove all that fantastic theming and leave it looking so dull and bland? Unless it was dangerous or falling down, I can't understand it. See this parallels with what's happened at PB over the last 5/10 years, removal of theming and "fun" features in favour of a bland, corporate look.

New 2020 perspectives. Now including bloggers and vloggers. - People who think preferring Nemesis Inferno to Nemesis is some kind of hot take and controversial. It's really not. - There's a certain level of humour out there that think calling a ride 'Nemesis Inferior' or 'Poo Fire' are the peak of humour. The only rollercoaster name adaptation that is acceptable is 'Intrimidator' - LONG videos. I'm sorry, most people don't even spend 30 minutes in the Alton Towers Gardens so how in the hell can I be expected to watch a 42 minute video on the subject, NO. - RMC THIS, RMC THAT. My god, can we just have an old style wooden rollercoaster that people just leave alone. RMC are a fantastic ride manufacture but there is room for both types of ride.

Sad to read but I can definitely relate to this. I have followed Thorpe and the forum for many years (often just a reader) - but I really feel the park just has nothing left to offer for me. Maybe I have grown out of it, but then again this shouldn't be the case for a "thrill" park, plus I love going to many other family parks, Disney, Europa, Alton to name a few. I just feel the park now has very little to offer compared to most others. It looks run down, the rides are in general ok but nothing outstanding, and I feel my money is better spent elsewhere. Yes I now have the money and freedom to travel wherever I want, but Thorpe as a business should be still trying to draw me in as a person who loves themeparks. You have to spend money to make money, and whilst they may be short of it at the moment, the money they have spent over the last few years may as well have been thrown down the drain. Poor management and poor decision have led to the park becoming what it is today, a shadow of what it once was. Even with "average rides" the look and feel of the place can make a huge difference, and all I see is poor maintenance, rapidly deteriorating quality, and a "that will do" attitude. As James May would say, it just doesn't give me "the fizz". I will still follow this forum and the park, and I do hope it can turn things around, but changes in its management and direction are clearly needed.

Okay, so it has little impact on anyone's day. But it's a theme park for goodness sake. This looks like something you see whilst walking down a back alley in Staines. No level of enjoyment whatsoever. And this is off a main walkway in the park. I think there's a wider issue though. This is opposite Ghost Train, which will inevitably be closed all year. You've also got Walking Dead just a bit further down, a ride which will likely be closed for a while. And the other end of the pathway, you've got Jungle Escape, another experience that will be closed for a good while. In the centre of the park, you have a complete dead zone. Of course, it's not Thorpe's fault everything round there is closed, but this doesn't help. It might be part of a redevelopment, but it begs the question why do that now? I honestly can't think of any other theme park I've been to that would leave a guest-facing wall looking that glaring bland.

Well think of it this way. Atleast they put in this rather than a damned bouncy castle!!

I swear just before the 2019 season started we were told through another one of Sickstone’s pre-season videos that the Dome’s interior was going to be be completed in two “phases”; presumably the first part ripping out the old Atlantis theming early last year, and for 2020 by modernising the interior? Yeeeeaaaahhhhh, something tells me that idea might have been scrapped. So we are now permanently left with a poor man’s version of the Alton Towers Dungeon - black walls galore.

I miss the days of the bad Thorpe Park ride names. Boretex, Zodicrap, Thrush, Colossus, Sore, etc.

I've seen mention that Phantasialand also upped their capacity limit and chaos ensued. So it's a very tricky balance when you have a small park. At least Chessie have the zoo and Towers is HUGE. As for not bothering to be an enthusiast anymore because Thorpe is a bit rubbish. I would've been out the game years ago.

Updating, featuring top hat...

Why an Indian tourist? How is this relevant?

Think your name ideas are awful. Nothing wrong with what they’re called now.

Some updates from today: -You no longer need to queue in the main cattlepen for Nemesis Inferno. They have removed the fence so you bypass it, and the first extension is now going to remain open. (This does open up the problem where people will end up queueing in the cattlepen in the first extension, but you know, baby steps) -Inferno is no longer loading every other row. When I was there, Row 4 was left empty for some reason. Also saw Row 3 left empty too. Not sure why. -Colossus is now loading a group, then leaving a row, then loading another group, rather than every other car (as is Stealth). -Since Saw is basically running as normal (both rows loaded, since I believe it requires a minimum of 4 people to ride), it makes you wonder what the point of social distancing on rides even is. Does coronavirus not exist at Saw? -Most people were obeying social distancing in fairness. I never saw a person not wearing a mask. -The park was very quiet. And it felt very lifeless too. I've been on quiet days in the past. I've been on days where things go terribly wrong and loads of rides are closed. But this felt different. It still very much felt like you were living in a world where a pandemic was going on. There was no escapism. (Be interesting to see if I think that about other parks or if this is Thorpe-specifc). This further isn't helped when areas like Derren, the walkway by Fish, etc feel so dead, with no music or...anything really. -All water rides were testing today. I believe some of them are hoped to be opening within the next few days if all goes the park's way. -Timber Tug Boat opened today. I believe Lumber Jump is due to open tomorrow now too. In terms of face covering. I was wearing a reusable one I bought from Lidl (2 for £2.99, 2 layers with space for a filter). It stayed on all rides fine, except for my back row ride on Stealth, where it came off my nose (front row was fine though!). As for non-Covid stuff... -I had my worst ever ride on Saw today. Was very painful. -Swarm felt very vibrate-y. -The vegetarian place by Ghost Train is alright for what it is. Does diversify food choices a lot. -There's some new music in Old Town. Well, kind of new - it's the Old Town-soundy excerpt from the bridge loop. But it fits. All in all, an okay visit. The park are doing well enough with the Covid-restrictions. They're still learning and getting stuff wrong, but it seems they're ready to fix it. Hopefully as time goes on things will be better. The park itself is the same old same old really. Some of the branding refreshes are nice, others aren't. It's hard to judge the park under such weird circumstance, but it does just feel a bit...meh.

I agree - I’ve no idea on other Merlin parks but Thorpe did have a number of rides closed - I do not believe it all being down to budget cuts though, In general rides were staffed pretty well. For the indoor rides it seems to be a choice merlin have made across the board - as far as I know it’s the same at all merlin parks - personally at Thorpe I can see why, Ghost Train would be an awful ride to run in these times, Walking dead wouldn’t be much better with its narrow / dark corridors - then the added issue of odd numbers and couldn’t pair Odd number groups together, angry birds could open and I expect will at some point. Along with that Thorpe had Tidal Wave, Storm Surge, Depth Charge, Rumba, Lumber Jump, Rocky Express and Timber Tug closed. From what I understand rush is due to technical problems unrelated to covid. For me personally none of the above really affected my day - I’d open I’d have probably rode Rumba and Rush. I guess I did know in advance, the app was updated to have the open rides but I agree it could have been clearer on the website. As for looking neglected - at thrope at least other than the mess of the rear of the arcade - I didn’t see anything which stuck out, plenty of places have been repainted, shops and food units have been refurbished. I do hope the arcade is sorted soon. That said it don’t detract from the other genuine positives I mentioned across the park for this season.

I think you have hit the nail on the head there. It's exactly why the forum was thriving ten years ago! If Thorpe announced a total multi million pound refurb, major new coaster or even a new buyer then conversations may be different.

With the nature of the allegations, retweeting and sharing the allegations can cause distress to others who have previously experienced sexual abuse. On your point of ‘empty gestures’, I have personally spoken and offered my support to survivors. With allegations coming out like we are witnessing, it’s important that we all work together to raise awareness and give our support to those who have been effected. As well as this it also should be remembered that those who have had allegations made against them as this can have a serious impact on their mental health despite the fact that they have hurt others.

Another Jack Silkstone video detailing what's happening in the park: All the highlights... Admissions Cars will be parked as every other car Self service ticket machines have been introduced The temperature check will be after bag search You can only use every other turnstile As we knew, ANPR car park barriers are in place, which has also meant there's another lane No paper maps at all this year (not sure if that was the plan pre-Covid, but it is said to be to reduce contact) Lots more new signage which looks pretty nice Hotel Improved system for checking in and out Social Distancing Majority of outdoor places have yellow painted dots for social distancing. I wonder how long they'll last before fading.. 'No dwelling' signs at key areas where people usually wait around (The Bridge, outside Dome) The waterski company have agreed to not pass the bridge at peak times to stop people watching The park are encouraging 'walk on the left' in most places, with 'walk on the right' in some places where operationally necessary Rides Face coverings to be worn on 14 rides which will open tomorrow (side note not in video: 15 rides are due to open tomorrow; the exception to the face covering rule is Tidal Wave) Social distancing in place on rides; each ride has own rules There are 3 hand sanitising points available for all rides: at queue entrance, just before boarding, and after the ride No Fastrack at open. Implied that it won't be in operation for the whole season. With reduced capacity, it's hoped there won't be a need for Fastrack anyway Ride Access Pass is still a thing Stealth, Swarm and Saw will still have photos Food and Shops All food places will be operating as 'grab n go', with the exception of Infinity and KFC, which will have limited seating The self serve Coke Freestyle machines will still be in use, though maybe not from start of season. They won't have ice though, for hygiene reasons.. 'Most' places will be cashless. The park obviously have tried this for a couple of years now, with limited success. But Covid has made many places cashless now of course Shops to have one way systems The refurbished Megastore will force everyone to have a basket whilst they look around. The baskets act as counters for the maximum number of people allowed in the shop The Colossus shop, which is the only shop open where guests are forced through the shop after the ride, has been changed so that people walk through. The shop remains open though, and people can ask the staff member for whatever they want to buy, with all stuff on display behind a barrier Events The park are still planning to hold some form of Fright Nights, though do accept it will be very different Oktoberfest will be a day and evening event Nothing particular striking or surprising really. I'm surprised the Merlin parks are mostly going for painted distancing markers - they either fade reasonably quickly or are rather permanent (and I expect they'll have gone for the fading paint). Means they'll regularly have to repaint them. Hopefully the walking / one way rules are all very clear. Operating food places entirely as grab n go is odd. Indoor restaurants are allowed to open tomorrow too, so why not at least have that option there, with reduced table numbers. Will be very interesting to see how it all works out tomorrow. I've decided to wait a little while before going back, to at least judge what I think of the rules and whether I think it's worth it...

Statement on behalf of myself and the rest of Attraction Central:

I think its awful. Chessington is compact and small too, but that is priced modestly.. Thorpe Park does not warrant that price jump. It should be the lowest in price IMO, as it has the least to offer. Lets also consider that the park has not received a proper new ride since 2016 (and that ride will most likely be closed for sanitary reasons and also because its terrible lol).

On another note, I was looking on Thorpe's website just now at information regarding their reopening procedure and couldn't help but notice the price of a 1 day ticket has suddenly shot up in price this month which I believe should be highlighted. As soon as the 10th June just 13 days ago, their website advertised a day ticket as £33. Now however, it is a whopping minimum of £39; an increase of £6 for an advance online booking. To make it worse, this price applies to everybody over the age of 3 now, so there is no longer a discount for those aged 3-11 which was classed as a child ticket previously. Chessington and Legoland I've noticed are also now doing this new ticketing system, but Alton Towers is not strangely. Here's a breakdown of all prices for a 1 day visit to each of the Merlin parks as of today: • Alton Towers (Adult) - £34pp • Alton Towers (Child) - £28.50pp • Legoland (1 size fits all ticket) - £29 or £33pp • Chessington (1 size fits all ticket) - £29.50pp • Thorpe Park (1 size fits all ticket) - £39pp So it appears Thorpe Park is now officially the most expensive theme park in the UK, finally surpassing Alton Towers at long last, yet still no "proper" new ride hardware since 2016...

Decided to create a piano cover of the original Vampire theme.

Some love it, others love to hate it. That’s Thorpe Park! Home to numerous attractions, some are delightful, others are worse than that Hunchback Of Notre Dame sequel and a few are just alright. Here’s my honest and “potentially” spoiler inducing opinions on the Island’s current offering. 27/ Wet Wet Wet Literally says what it does on the tin. You go down a slide and then get wet, wet, wet. Mind blown, who would’ve thought it! Next you’ll tell me it’s only intended for kids. Oh wait, it is. Pros/ It’s existence Cons/ It’s not for adults. Sorry Martin! 26/ Amity Beach Who needs Brighton when there’s a whole beach to explore on here. If you ignore the ageing rock-work and everything behind, it feels like being at the sea side minus the good parts. Forgot the kids? Keep walking! Pros/ It’s flat settlement gives you a view of the better attractions when you enter the park Cons/ Serves no purpose for the majority of park goers 25/ Lumber Jump “He’s a lumber jump and he’s ok, he sleeps all night and he works all day!” Ok, I’ll cut to the chase, I haven’t actually ridden this and it had to go somewhere, so here it is! Yay, mini drop towers! Pros/ Ideal if you are a kid or hate large rides! Cons/ Somewhat out of place and largely overlooked by adults, unless your a donut! 24/ Derren Brown’s Ghost Train Rise Of The Demon One of the thins once largely talked about was how Thorpe was lacking a proper dark ride/experience attraction. Sadly this wasn’t the ride that would resolve this. Don’t get me wrong, there are some cool features such as the floating carriage and added finale. However a lot of the attraction is purely a tonne of ideas executed in the wrong way, temperamental and already dated technology plus one of the most bland and tedious attractions to queue for! Not to mention it’s budget, resources and evidential failure have prevented Thorpe getting any noticeable investment until the end of time! I’m usually someone who loves dark ride type attractions, but not this. Such a shame one of the best themed shops was paired with one of the worst rides. Plus given the state of things, I can’t really see this surviving much longer, if it hasn’t already received it’s death certificate. Darn I miss Wicked Witches Haunt! Pros/ It keeps you out of the rain and has a shop themed almost as good as the Disney store Cons/ Almost everything, making it the biggest failure in theme park history since Disneyland’s Rocket Rods but actually much worse in the long run! 23/ Timber Tug Rockin Tugs are remarkably popular and pleasantly themed in some parks. Sadly this isn’t one of them and sits as a reminder questioning most of the park’s choices in recent years! Pros/ It’s better than Derren Brown’s Ghost Train (for what it’s trying to be) Cons/ The ride looks like it came from a sea life attraction and was shoehorned into whatever space was physically available. Oh wait! 22/ Storm Surge This ride seems to have a cult of hatred from enthusiasts. It’s literally located slap bang in the middle of the park, looks worse than Staines on a Friday night and spends most of the ride soaking your feet like some strange paddling pool. Still theres some positives. It’s fun for groups , gives you decent views whilst you slowly ascend with a foot massage amongst a short part of the ride actually being enjoyable. Pros/ It’s the nearest I might ever get to Florida Cons/ If I wanted to get my feet wet I’d jump in a puddle! 21/ Depth Charge Many Thorpe classics from the pre-Tussauds/Merlin eras have bitten the dust over the years. Depth Charge since however long has managed to the bullet. It’s lengthy queues, low throughput and short duration don’t put this high on many lists. Even the staff probably don’t enjoy working on it. However as RMC’s (not the manufacturer) footprints on the park lessen over time, one must still look in awe over this attraction contributing to what’s there today and remembering park days of old. This might well be the last of it’s time to meet the bulldozer! Pros/ The ride hasn’t changed a bit in it’s almost 30 years of existence Cons/ Some of the better RMC era attractions met wits end before this one! 20/ Mr Monkeys Banana Ride The lone surviving attraction belonging to the parks long forgotten mascots. The banana ride isn’t the biggest or the best of it’s ride type but for now leaves guests with one of the last examples of what the park used to be before taking on it’s thrill seeking routes. Pros/ Is conveniently located opposite Inferno’s shop/exit Cons/ It’s not much of a pirate ship! 19/ Zodiac The ride that turned Thorpe upside down. Primarily because it was the first inverting ride for the park. The original was actually replaced in 2006 with a newer model from Drayton Manor due to reliability issues. It isn’t as scary as it looks, however the lack of restraint can be intimidating and may make you feel more nauseated than a heavy night out in Staines! Pros/ An ideal ride to progress with for wannabe thrill seekers Cons/ Likely a flat supporter because it no longer goes 360 18/ Angry Birds 4D Years after the Pirates finished their voyage, a new flock of inhabitants took over the theatre. The attraction is simplistic yet effective and follows a quest between good and evil featuring a few effects along the way. It’s cheesy but makes for a pleasant break from the thrills. Pros/ Offers some great staff interaction on a good day Cons/ Watching Pirates 4D in German is still marginally more enjoyable 17/ King Pig’s Dodgems Essentially a fairground ride but fun nonetheless. The setup of bird verses pigs helps for some fun and tactical bumping. The rubbery smell is strangely appeasing. Pros/ The Power pedal feels decent Cons/ The old ride bell sounded better 16/ Saw-The Ride We’ve reached our first coaster. Sore, I mean Saw. They really nailed the horror theme with the waiting times, gum infested queues and rough rattly experience. I actually like (not love), the indoor section and the airtime Hill is quite fun too I suppose. As for the rest, it’s a little bit uncomfortable. Yay to the park’s most successful ride! Pros/ It features one the few working Park animatronics Cons/ Shamefully stands where a GCI should’ve been alongside a saved Loggers (RIP) 15/ Rumba Rapids This attraction features some of the most rapid (pun intended) history of the surviving attractions. It’s theme was simple yet effective when it opened in 87 before becoming more vibrant and whacky with Ribena sponsorship fifteen years later. Sadly the ride has become watered down (I’m sorry :p), thanks to removed effects, an absence of TLC and an unsuccessful retheme in recent years! Sadly the track record of these rides hasn’t helped either. Pros/ Doesn’t soak your feet like Storm Surge Cons/ Water quality leaves a lot to be desired, plus doesn’t run at night anymore 14/ Samurai This is a sick ride, because it can make you vomit. I almost did on my first time which I blame on sweets and cola. The U.K. has lost a lot of flat rides over the years, especially top scans which makes Samurai top class now. I rarely ride but I know others do and they like it a lot. Pros/ Has cheated death more than James Bond Cons/ Worse at parking than Mr Fish 13/ Storm In A Teacup Bow ye tops lads because we’re on to a right Classic now! Before the Tetley invasion the ride was known as the Teacup Twisters before losing it’s handle when it was rethemed to fit in with Stealth. It’s also the oldest attraction, having opened in 1986. This ride needs a pin! Pros/ Probably the most iconic surviving RMC attraction Cons/ The cups are difficult to spin these days, especially being stiffer than Merlin’s Park budget 12/ Rocky Express Some say it has cult status with Park fanboys and you’d be right. Rocky dominates what’s left of this ailing area giving off a perfectly balanced cycle to the soundtrack of Beetle Juice. It’s almost enough to distract you from the Loggers graveyard next door! Pros/ The best ride in the park that features trains in the theme Cons/ Doesn’t get enough ridership due to being in a ghost town these days (pun intended) 11/ Flying Fish The park’s only non-thrilling roller coaster. Originally from outer space and the across the pond, the Fish lives on in it’s third form. Lacking the interaction and scenery from it’s last home it’s a bit like a movie remake, it isn’t as good as the original but still serves enjoyment value. Pros/ Snazzy yet comfortable trains Cons/ The announcements are almost as annoying as YouTube ads! 10/ Colossus A ride that put the park on the map and firmly lead the park into the thrill market. Ten inversions lie ahead to riders, some more comfortable than others and that’s if you can fit in the trains which are more tightly packed than a cotswold sleeping bag. It breaks records but breaks down too sometimes. Pros/ Features some of the best park landscaping Cons/ Might have one of the worst designed coaster trains. Thanks Intamin! 9/ Vortex Part of the flat pack that began the park’s thrill seeker journey. It may not reach the levels of newer model types such as Loke but still holds it’s ground relatively well. It’s dome and lakeside views make for some fitting interaction. Pros/ If you look at the floor correctly when it lowers, it’s like you are lifting up Cons/ The ride’s restraint system has a grudge against people of a certain build 8/ Rush When playground swings become less exciting Rush is the best thing. The lap bar restraints certainly provide a unique feeling especially on it’s top three swings! Pros/ This ride actually still intimidates me to this day Cons/ Sky Hawk is better because you can actually see the seat numbers 7/ The Walking Dead The Ride A ride which has seen almost as many regenerations as Dr Who. It started backwards, then forwards and then became horror themed returning it’s original height restriction, so backwards. However I actually enjoy this ride and the new theme makes it something of an experience now. Pros/ The park finally has an experience attraction it has always needed Cons/ I think the park might have just a few too many dark themes now! 6/ Quantum Arguably the most underrated ride in the park. As most attractions dominate the sky line, Quantum quietly waits in the corner for riders before doing it’s thing and what the ride does is great indeed. It’s fast, thrilling but most importantly fun. If I had to bulldoze all of Lost City and save just one attraction I would easily choose this. No joke. Pros/ Packs quite a punch Cons/ Was closed for almost all of 2019. I feel robbed! 5/ Tidal Wave Given the state of things, this may be the best (operating) water ride in the country. It’s position dominates the surrounding area with criminally underrated theming, even if some has been ruined a little! But more importantly it gets you soaking wet, like a hundred tipping buckets hitting you at once. Pros/ The soundtrack is something of a masterpiece Cons/ Can only be ridden for two months of the year for most because it isn’t America! 4/ Detonator I’ve done drop towers across the world and few come close to this one. You get some great aerial views here before you are released with a unique free fall feeling perhaps comparable to a reverse rocket lunch! Pros/ A free fall like no other! Cons/ The original music was better! 3/ The Swarm Swarm is a quality ride. It’s smooth, reasonably themed but most importantly a B&M which has already become better with age (not Dragon Khan). Shame it wasn’t as successful as first hoped. Pros/ The ride works better running forwards Cons/ It’s station is an apocalyptic mess given the removed and dilapidated theming 2/ Stealth Launching into second is the park’s accelerator (and arguable icon). Stealth really dominates the park and can even be seen from the M25! It may be a one trick pony to some but the launch packs a punch and the views/feelings from above being astounding. I actually prefer this to Red Farce and I’m not saying this because I mostly detest Port Av. Pros/ Probably my favourite accelerator coaster that isn’t Top Thrill Dragster Cons/ It Isn’t Top Thrill Dragster 1/ Nemesis Inferno The ride that made me fall in love with Thorpe Park again, not to mention B&Ms. I still remember first going on this and given I did it six times on the same trip perhaps says volumes in it’s self. All these years later and Inferno has only gotten better with age. Pros/ The mist tunnel is sublime when running properly Cons/ The Inbetweeners Thorpe Park episode has some inaccuracies Thanks for a reading a review like no other! TLDR- some photos not mine.

It's been a long while since I've done a proper blog post, but I've dusted off my keyboard to do one I'd been thinking about for a while.. Over the past couple of years, there's some rides I've done which are a ton of fun, but don't really seem to get the attention they deserve. Mostly for reasons that they're rides in parks that aren't high up people's lists, or there's better rides at those parks. So I figured I'd just throw a little list out there. This isn't going to be a list of "under-hyped" rides; I'm not necessarily saying any of these are top-tier rides which everyone should ride. But these are just solid rides which deserve a bit of limelight cast of them... 5. Gaz Express, Parc Bagatelle Situated about an hour from Calais, Bagatelle's ease to get to doesn't compensate for the fact the park is quite meh. However, Gaz Express is a shining beacon of light. Manufactured by French company Soquet in 1987, Gaz Express is a really fun family-thrill coaster which is situated largely over water. It's not particularly high or fast, but features a couple of nice pops of airtime, some nice helices, whilst also diving in and out of buildings. And you get to go round twice too! To top it off, there's loads of water features around the ride, as well as a really cool fire effect, making it a really nice-looking ride for spectators too! 4. Discovery Club, Avonturenpark Hellendoorn It's no secret that I look shooting dark rides, and this one is really quirky. Sitting in outward-facing circular cars, the idea is that you're basically exploring a house with loads of spooky stuff that could come alive. It's a classic storyline which works, and with a fun soundtrack and sound effects, good theming and the unpredictable, and sometimes wild, spinning of the cars, it makes for a great experience. Hellendoorn itself is a decent park, a little under-rated in my opinion, but this 21 year old Mack dark ride is probably the crowning jewel of the park! 3. Kyöpelinvuoren Hotelli, Linnanmäki This ghost train has no right to be as good as it frankly. For a city park like Linnanmäki which doesn't really *do* theming, it stands out really well. And inside, it's just immaculately themed and styled - it's creepy from the word go. The ride itself is pretty fantastic. Good length, no dead spots, lots of turns and plenty of surprises and special effects. It just hits the nail on the head at every point. I believe it was refreshed a few years back, which, along with the likes of Taiga, shows that when the park sets itself a target, they hit it perfectly. 2. Popcorn Revenge, Walibi Belgium I've talked about Popcorn Revenge a lot on here, so another paragraph or two won't hurt. Popcorn Revenge is genuinely bloody brilliant. Early I said this list wasn't necessarily going to be about top-tier rides. Popcorn Revenge is perhaps the exception here. For those who don't know, this is a trackless, screen-based shooting dark ride, which takes around a movie theatre where pieces of popcorn have come alive and have taken over the film. You have to shot the popcorn with different flavoured sauce guns to take back control. The ride is non-linear and where you go depends on what car you get in. The scenes on the screens are brilliant. The real theming is great as well. This all just comes together for an absolutely brilliant ride experience. I truly hope I'm not over-stating this and setting anyone who eventually rides it up for a disappointing, but this is genuinely one of my favourite rides and it's a damn shame it's not talked about more frankly. 1. K2, Karls Erlebnis-Dorf Elstal This is also something I've talked about a bit before in the past. Karls is, primarily, a strawberry farm business. However, they have branched out over the years to have permanent farmer markets, which have also integrated 'amusement park' style sections. The one in Elstal, just outside Berlin, is the most developed, and by far the crowning jewel is K2. K2 is an abc tube coaster, which also has wooden cars. The ride is themed to potato farming, and features an underground dark ride section where you see potatoes being grown, amongst other surprises. The ride then goes up 80ft high - which feels a lot higher when you only have a seatbelt as your restraint in a wooden cart! - before going round twists, turns and mini airtime hills. The ride is killed a bit by a MCBR, but is still great fun, and a real surprise. The quality of the theming is amazing too, and wouldn't look out of place at the likes of Phantasialand (indeed, the queue is of a similar style and standard to Maus au Chocolat). Just in general, this ride ticks every single box and it's an absolute joy and treasure to experience. If you ever head to Berlin and want a quick theme park-like fix, this really is the place to go (certainly much better than the nearby 'proper' parks!).

All the random fanpages using these allegations to plug their brand with empty "In light of recent events we would like to say..." posts is pretty sad. If people want to support others, use your platforms to retweet or share the stories themselves, comment support on the stories. Or post if you actually have something genuine to add, like some perspective, experience or if you were involved with the people the allegations are about. I've seen more fanpages doing these empty gestures on Twitter than the actual allegations. "We at Theme Park World Attraction Guide Podcast are shocked by the allegations" well thank goodness for that, problem solved then. On the whole, there has been a lot of real support from theme park fans which is great to see.

All Belgian theme parks are reopening today. I'm rather confused how Bellewaerde managed to open Wakala for some sort of previews yesterday given the rule was that theme parks couldn't open before today. I guess they found some sort of loophole given they have a zoo, but I was under the impression that they weren't opening the zoo only at any point prior. Not the end of the world either way though..

Looks a very good giga despite all the negativity towards it. Looks to keep a good speed, the speed hill looks epic and I can imagine the final turn will be quite forceful. Only critique I suppose is that it looks a short coaster. Look forward to this on my next trip to Ohio!!

Did some quick calculations: Thorpe are open for exactly 95 days (as of time of writing). Their reported limit (2012 LC12 planning permission) is ~ 20,000. (Realistically that is completely full queues on every single ride) Taking a 1/4 of that (realistic limit to allow some semblance of social distancing + profit) = 5,000 people max a day. 95 * 5,000 = 475,000 people if they max out every single day (including the days which we all know won't be busy in Sept). The park'll get just over a quarter of their reported attendance in 2018 (1.8 mil). I mean we all know the park isn't planning on any major investment any time soon some interesting numbers up top cos there's nothing else to talk about.

Sorry double post! I know! This a good idea, I think something akin to the street at Tulleys would be so good at Thorpe. Though I guess it does pose some challenges as roaming actors do tend to be more at risk from troublesome guests. I guess maybe thats why they have been doing them in large groups over the past few years (or, not at all?) I do think having some dedicated outdoor scare zones would be a good idea, maybe add some comedy like Tulleys do and make the event just more about being fun.

Can completely understand why Thorpe would charge more than the others. Got to get the money back from the ghost train somehow I guess!

It’s an offer I’m tempting to make, but I might be broken eventually.

In all seriousness when will this park be converted into a Thomas land + Zoo.

Disneyland paris is reopening on the 15th July, both parks, disney village and one hotel (Newport Bay) will be reopening. Guests aged 11 and over are required to wear a mask. They seem to be going for the 1 metre distancing rule.

You should get Merlin to hire you and play the organ all day in the Vampire station @Matt Creek, now that would be immersive.

Unpopular opinion but I love then new modern design on the dome looks so minimalist, modern clean and fresh! Perfect for the park and hopefully they go round the rest of the park when they have the time to minimalist the design of many areas, making them more clean and modern!

So people don't share opinions and discuss things people say the TPM forums are dead. We then discuss things and people share views (which is what this place is for) and people don't like it. I give up and will say no more.

Pleasure Beach have extended their season and will now close on the 13th December (weekends only Nov-Dec) and have also extended season passes free of charge. They are also offering the option to defer 2020 season passes to 2021 or receive a (not yet announced) discount from next year's passes. The promenade illuminations are also being extended until 3rd January. All in all, an excellent response to a difficult situation in my eyes.

Can understand a lot of the woes there. I think the people calling it Poo Fire for the sake of humour and opinion are being a little silly. I completely understand why some people might dislike the ride given it’s not the biggest,fastest or even most exciting (gasps) but that doesn’t mean it’s no good. Whilst I personally prefer Helix and even Icon (controversial maybe), there are still a lot of things I like about the ride, from it’s launch/dark ride section, ride interactions and last inversion. Not to mention it’s a throughput monster (pre-covid at least). On the note of unpopular opinions, here’s mine. Blackpool has the best collection of dark rides in the U.K.

I think you just stole my top list from Thorpe Park and put it as your own. I first got wind when Quantum (god tier attraction) was at number 6. I pretty much completely agree with this order. I can't decide if its damning or its amazing that two Fabbri rides are near the top.

Coaster groups are very white male dominated. Especially the forums. Only about 1 or 2 forums actually have a half decent female presence, but that is down to a fair amount of work on the members part to become an established part of the community and then part of the site's team. A lot of the time the females at meets have been dragged into it by boyfriends or family members. Very rare to see girlfriends dragging their other halves along (does happen though). BAME is even lower in numbers. I might not even need additional hands to count how many I've seen or met on meets over the 17 (Jesus I've been in this game a while). At the end though you cannot flat out force people to join a forum on what is an incredibly niche interest. People like theme parks as a general visit thing but do they LIKE them? It's an incredibly difficult situation for many industries. Engineering has a very similar issue in terms of a lack of numbers in diversity as it was always seen as a bloke's thing to do (current company has 1 female in the engineering side, the rest are admin or finance). And with a lot of management at the companies being an old boy's club made it hard for any women involved to advance unless you had the right people in charge (this isn't a point at the running of this forum). But you've got to build the interest in it first before demanding that there be diversity, as you are then potentially promoting people to senior roles who aren't always best suited for them as a tick boxing exercise. If there's one thing I have noticed about the coaster community; it's the very prominent number of LGBTQ+ members. Which is a fantastic positive to consider.

You didn't just make that point though, did you? By the way you worded it and where you posted it you attacked the team of the forum. This is a hugely inflammatory and frankly unfair way to approach the subject. I can't believe you are stupid enough not to know exactly what you were doing. There are lots of relevant conversations to be had about diversity in this forum, in the wider community, possibly in the industry itself. I have no idea what the demographics of each are. That conversation is absolutely encouraged but barbed comment in a thread called rant is not a sensible way to go about that. As has been mentioned, the team can only be recruited from the user base and the user base is what it is, it is not targeted to anyone in particular with the sex and race of users not known. Your is likely to be detrimental to the cause you purport to support. If the only way the diversity of the forum, and by extension the team, can widen is by organic member sign up do you think insinuating there is a racism and sexism issue here is going to help that? Would someone coming to the forum and seeing your comments think this would be the place for them?

Makes post heavily implying that there is some casual sexism and racism at play in the running of this site. Blames the responder for pulling the race card. Genius. I can't speak for the admin, but this is a small site which is basically used by those who find it, and in turn modded by those who are here. There's no marketing, there's no targeted effort to attract anyone in particular, it's just here. The mods can only be selected from those who are here and who apply, it's not like it's paid or advertised elsewhere. What just might put new people off getting involved is obnoxious hateful posts, like some the ones you make. Even if the recipient of 'banter' (or whatever you would call it) is in on it, how does it look to outsiders? Not welcoming The content is theme parks and basically devoid of race in any meaningful way; as it's largely anonymous I don't see how we could ever know the demographic that is here and you don't know who you are engaging with. I suspect that might be why @StevenVig hadn't really thought about race in that way in the community as he said? I might not be as alert to it myself, would be interested to know if there has ever been anything here that you have found offensive or discriminatory if you are happy to talk about it?

The thing with being the best is that there can only be one. And the thing with Inferno is the more unique features such as the pre-lift tunnel, the smoke effects and the actually pretty decent theming make it stand out now to me more then other. At this point I've done quite a few inverters (humble brag) and Inferno always has something about it that makes me happy. Whether it's because it was my first B&M or because it has a certain magic I don't know. I still maintain it should have just been called Inferno, because it just gets endlessly compared to its older sister. IMO it is one of the UK's finest rides and a night ride one of the best experiences.