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Only visited Thorpe 3 times this season and went today - it was a nightmare. When we go we always leave to get there later than opening in hope that the majority of the bag search is done and this is usually the case. Not today - arrived and it was heaving to the point where I had a panic attack and spoke to a staff member whilst crying like an idiot - credit to him as I explained that I have anxiety and RAP so he asked to see the RAP card and then sent us down a different queue with about 3 people in. Got into the park - Tidal Wave shut, Inferno shut, Stealth shut, Walking Dead shut and the queue to get RAP was ridiculous - we walked around for about 40 mins (didn’t get on anything as the queues were pretty long) then went back to RAP queue which had got even longer. So yeah, first time I’ve visited Thorpe and only used the toilet - my niece and I decided we’d have a better time going shopping so we walked an hour to Staines. I don’t like to be negative but today just made me dislike Thorpe even more - my first visit this year I didn’t enjoy, the last 2 were ok but today was just terrible. I’m grateful that the guy at the queue for security let us go into a quicker queue but the whole place just feels shambolic at the moment. Massive queues for bag searches, massive queues for the poor sods buying day tickets, massive queue to get RAP. Yes I get that at this time of year it will be busy but surely the park can manage the queues a bit better? More staff doing bag checks, more ticket kiosks open, maybe split the RAP queue between where it is now and Island help. Oh and the cash machine at the front now charges you to take money out which is nice ? If I were a day guest paying full price (if anyone even does) or BOGOF I would be narked - having to spend a large chunk of time just to purchase a ticket is a joke. I fully agree with bag checks but they just need more people doing them to speed up the process - the queue today for bag checks at an estimate must have been at least an hour (probably closer to 90 mins) as the queue was actually coming out of the queue and snaking around. I used to enjoy visiting Thorpe and maybe I’ve just visited the place too many times over the past 6 years but it just feels meh - no new rides this year - the confirmed loss of Loggers and now Saw Alive and in return we get an inflatable obstacle course which frankly looks hideous, naff gaming events and a pay for escape maze. I love the rides at Thorpe (most of them) so I’m in no way slating them but the place just doesn’t have the same feeling that it used to - would love to see it turn around and I get that a lot of people will feel differently but for me recently the main enjoyment I get out of a day there is spending time with my niece

I thought refurbishing a log flume meant putting wooden fences up in front of it and pretending it doesn't exist? In all seriousness though that looks amazing.

I think the security / RAP queues are a tricky one to solve - particularly RAP - I’m guessing it was moved from Island help so that wasn’t clogged up so much in the morning so that guests with different issues were seen quicker - this should in theory have also made the RAP queue quicker as you are in a queue just for RAP rather than mixed with people with other issues. I think the whole RAP system could do with looking at - I know they’ve introduced cards to try improve it but maybe some sort of online q bot system , maybe like the reserve n ride system they used would be perfect for it. As for security it’s another thing which has sort of been rushed in and forced on them - I think the current setup is better than it was in the tents when they first had to start searching every bag but the current entrance area isn’t really designed for everyone to be bag searched. Shame to hear about rides being closed - they’ve stepped their game up this year compared to previous with ride availability - particularly with getting rides open on time and at full capacity- hopefully today was a bit of a blip in that!

Tbh, it is backwards to bring back an old maze unless its to celebrate the anniversary of fright nights with a remake of one of the original mazes !

The Big Top will not return. Id quite like to see thrope going down more the towers route - charging per maze rather than all included - it generally means you get a better quality experience due to the fewer people being rushed through and in turn less wait time.

The second day of our USA trip took us to Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey, my first Six Flags park. Having heard a lot about the park over the years I was expecting El Toro and Kingda Ka to be the stand-out rides, but wasn’t expecting too much in terms of overall park presentation and operations. As it turns out, the park was presented very well for the most part with a nice plaza (past the entrance), lots of greenery with some moderate theming and there was a viewpoint looking across to El Toro with Kingda Ka in the background which was absolutely stunning. I would say that some of the more recent coasters felt shoehorned in and that perhaps the park doesn’t put the same level of quality into their more recent attractions in comparison with some of the older ones. The park was fairly quiet on our visit with fantastic operations for the most part which surprised me. All coasters were running two/three trains, staff on Bizarro were literally giving people seconds to enter through the gates before closing them and rushing the trains out even with a 5-minute queue. Now, onto the ride reviews; Kingda Ka This ride has been on my bucket list since becoming an enthusiast, purely for the fact that it’s the world’s tallest roller coaster. I wasn’t sure what to expect in terms of how it would differ to something like Stealth, but in my opinion it was incredible. The launch was strange as it felt like it was broken up into phases. It launched to a speed, then stayed consistent before having one final burst just before you reach the end of the launch track; it was unexpected and surprised me a lot the first time. In terms of the height and speed, it was everything I expected really and justifies being short through how impressive it is (a merit I can’t give to something like Stealth or Rita, for example). Overall a very good coaster, I did prefer Top Thrill Dragster (it’s worth mentioning that I hadn’t ridden Top Thrill at this point in the trip) but Kingda Ka is still fantastic. Zumanjari: Drop of Doom Possibly the best single drop tower I’ve ridden, it was quite unnerving being attached to the side of a coaster and it felt as though it just kept going and going, as I was thinking “we must be about to hit the brakes” it just kept dropping. It is a bit of a farce that it affects Kingda Ka’s operations, though. El Toro One of my most anticipated coasters due to the promise of insane levels of airtime and yes, it delivers. The first three hills are absolutely MENTAL. The ride delivers incredible airtime, the turns have force and whilst there are some tamer sections, they feel needed before the next moment of crazy airtime/fast paced turns. One particular hill dropping into the ground level turns provided crazy levels of unexpected airtime, the coaster then meanders its way into the brakes at the end. Overall, I really liked El Toro but I didn’t enjoy it as much as most people seem to. It suffers from the same issue I have with Balder, which is that it doesn’t feel like a natural wooden coaster. The turns don’t flow with the hills in the same way that a GCI does, for example, and it feels very much a case of “airtime, airtime, airtime, turn, airtime”. With that said, there’s no question that it has some of the best airtime around and is overall a very good coaster. I found it strange how the ride had obviously been fitted in around Rolling Thunder, only to remove that ride a few years later. There are random gaps in the supports (and even a part where track from RT remains in place!) – weird. Bizarro A very good, solid B&M multi-inversion coaster. It wasn’t a stand-out ride for me but did everything it needed to; the fire effects added a lot too as you could actually feel the heat from them. Runaway Mine Train I mean, it’s Arrow, so it’s already a winner in my books. Of course, it had strange transitions, funny square turns, but it was good fun and there was one airtime hill which came from out of nowhere which nearly ejected us into the lake below! Skull Mountain A family coaster in the dark except that there were gaps in the building and a weird coloured laser. The queue line and station were well themed, the ride not so much. Nitro I’m not sure what to say about this really, it was my first experience of a B&M hyper coaster and whilst I enjoyed the ride, it wasn’t a stand-out for me. Everyone raves about the floaty-airtime on these but we didn’t really get that with Nitro, there was some airtime but I was in the seat going over the top of most hills, the ride lacked character and whilst there was some force in the dips, it just felt like a standard smooth B&M coaster but on a larger scale. Not a bad ride by any means, but I’d take the charm and rattle of an Arrow hyper over this any day. Batman: The Ride WOW. This ride absolutely blew me away, the force and combination of elements in the layout was fantastic, the “pullover” of some of the corkscrews in the back few rows was just insane. It’s just proper old school B&M, an incredible ride. The Dark Knight Coaster I really enjoyed this, standard layout but the theming and effects made it something special IMO. Superman: Ultimate Flight Dull and boring but the signature inversion was good. Better than Air. Green Lantern Amazing layout with some different elements to most B&M coasters, awful stand-up trains ruined it. Ouch. The Joker Yuck, yuck and more yuck. I’m not sure why people like these but it felt as though I’d been put in a blender. Disgusting coaster, the only jokers are the people who decided to build it. The log flume and rapids were good fun and we ended up soaked, the park also had some decent flats and a good Marvel themed dark ride… definitely worth making time for if you’re there. Overall Six Flags Great Adventure exceeded my expectations massively in terms of park presentation and operations. The coasters were excellent for the most part, the park had a good atmosphere and I’d definitely return if I did another America trip in the future that covered that area.

Glad to hear this park was operated well, but still a shame on the farce with Kingda Ka.

I’m also so totally excited for Big Top‘s triumphant return. But, I’m afraid, it’s gone. RIP #theydontbuildemliketheyusedto

This is hilarious