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Thought we'd do this today as the park was so quiet and could get a booked ticket. So we took the plunge, what could possibly go wrong? Arrived at 1.30pm, the start of our timed slot. Entered the queue and there were already 2 groups batched (2 trains) in the pen, and a fair few in front of us. Queue time on the app jumped to 25 minutes - and we actually got in at 2.05pm so they were about right... my goodness though, that queue is so frustratingly slow. I think people (not me, I hasten to add) expect that you would be able to jump straight on with a timed ticket and not have to queue at all... that's of course not the case. I assume the timed tickets are still happening with DBGTROTD because of a heady mix of unreliability and slow throughput, meaning timed tickets mean a minimum/controlled number of potentially disappointed guests. Someone in front of us asked the batcher how long the queue would be, and she said "We aren't allowed to give exact queue times but it should be about 25 minutes" - clearly that instruction must come from past experience or management above with this ride (which is odd considering the app shows a time but maybe that's just a guess from number of timed tickets "sold") Anyway, we get in and Dezza B appears (he hasn't aged a bit!) and talks about thrillseekers, scaring babies, keeping secrets and all that. We then enter the preshow. A man is on a plinth with a microphone saying he is from Minds Wanted and we are to go on an expedition to investigate with Sub Core and decipher what's real and what's not (or something). He asks for a lead volunteer for the group, asks them to count backwards from 3 and look left and right to test how intelligent they are, much hilariousness. He then gets us to remember a number and repeat it. He then asks if anyone knows what siderodromophobia is. Of course no one knows, and it's the fear of trains. Asks if anyone has this fear. Picks someone and double checks they don't have it... almost as if he's stalling for time... he then asks if anyone knows what arachnophobia is - bit random - much chatter ensues and then finally someone bursts through the doors saying Sub Core are "drilling in to our mind more like" and the Minds Wanted chap tells her to shut up and stop being a nuisance and tells us to ignore her and we go into the train loading. She roams around telling us to go back etc. Now, to be fair to both of these actors, I can't imagine this is a particularly easy role, but my god it just did not work. For a start, that pre-loading room was never meant to have people in it for that amount of time, it just felt uncomfortable and evident they were stalling for time. We get on the train, and put on the headsets (read: me and my mate both have to hold them on because they will not stay on our heads despite all manner of adjusting the straps and velcro). Dezza pipes up "10...9... 8... 7.... 6.... 5.... 4... 3.... 2.... 1...." Here we go... "the night vision" mode kicks in, train starts to move... within seconds "Please stay seated and follow instructions from your ride hosts, we are sorry for the delay" (or words to that effect). I say to my mate - this isn't good, we've barely moved out of the station. Air con goes on, someone asks if it's OK to get off after about 10 minutes, which of course isn't possible because we are stuck in between the two stations. After what feels like forever, the lights go back on with Sub Core on the screens and we get on with our JoURnEy. This first bit of VR had the old guy with the dog as always, and then a young girl - which I hadn't seen before. There was no jump scare as such from her, think she might have warned us to go back and tell us how the gas was effecting her. Anyway, off with your headsets QUICK QUICK QUICK, we are ushered through a few switchbacks of fencing in the tunnels bit, lots of screaming and such.... we congregate in the main room where a couple of actors seem to have gone feral and are jump scaring etc cos of the fumes and that, and to be fair - it's clear who the scare maze actors are and those who are just normal ride ops being forced to try and act. That's no disrespect to those ride ops/staff, it's just a matter of fact, and I don't envy them for trying to have to make this all make sense. DID ANYONE REMEMBER A SET OF NUMBERS? No cos we've been stuck on a tube train for ages mate it's been a nightmare. 5631. 5..6..3.....1 OK, that's right. How does she know? What do these numbers do or where do they go, who is she telling them to, NO ONE KNOWS but it's immersive. Back on the train we go quick quick hurry put on your headsets NO NOT THAT ONE IT'S IN A BAG quick sit down REMAIN SEATED. OK. My headset this time around was only working on the left hand channel. I'm not sure what's gone on here, but the second section of VR was not only a lot shorter, but actually felt like you were just watching TV, not sure how to explain it but previously it did feel that you were moving with it etc. This time nothing. Odd. Anyway, quick take off your headsets. DON'T GET UP REMAIN SEATED EVERYONE REMAIN SEATED. It's clear the train is in the wrong place for whatever reason as the lights are now on and you can clearly feel movement. Maybe that's why the VR felt dead? ANYWAY we are back in the station where we started - can you believe it? No, I can't but no one actually notices and please exit through the gift shop. Announcement from the staff member behind the photo purchase point (what do you mean there was no photo taking point anywhere in the ride, HUSH) - "Sorry everyone, someone's reacted badly to the VR and they've been sick on the stairs so we have to keep you here whilst we clear it up" WHAT. I mean, fair dues, the group behind us believe it but come on.... Suddenly stuff starts to shake, the lights go off and a coughing man appears complete with noises of a demon that appears briefly in the bit of second VR (and also on the ride sign outside) but said demon cannot be seen anywhere in the shop. Exit into actual - very empty - real gift shop. Absolute disappointment and an absolute mess. I KNOW a breakdown doesn't help but even without that - this ride is a complete hotch potch of ideas and a storyline that doesn't make sense, or only makes some sense in parts. The staff are trying their best but please, Thorpe Park, just shut this thing next year whilst you decide how to fix it. My personal idea to get some money back is turn it into an upcharge year round 15-20 minute extreme long scare-maze experience. You could ditch the VR, maybe amongst the fellow passengers you could have actors who look like customers who become possessed/something during the journey I don't know.... Oh and what time did we get out? 2.50pm. We were in there for ONE HOUR TWENTY MINUTES (including the queue). Thank goodness the park was dead! I don't think I'm being particularly nasty on purpose here - like I always say, the Dezza hologram is good. The theming (Victorian train, building, interior, tube train stations) is top notch. The whole storyline, overall experience and VR? A complete disjointed disaster. Sorry. EDIT: Just read Han's review above, so am pleased to see that I'm not going mad/forgetful and the 2nd bit was a lot shorter, and that it is a general shambles xoxox

@Matt N blimey that was a pretty vivid and detailed dream! The only theme park related one I can remember was going to Thorpe on a really windy day and Stealth had blown over so it was essentially flat - it still had a big queue which confused me!

26th April 2022 (Travel) Hi guys. Today was a very exciting day; the start of my first ever trip to Europa Park! This might possibly be my most significant theme park trip in some time, and it’s quite a significant change in tune compared to the bulk of my recent trips, with a number of new experiences in store for me; my first time travelling abroad post-COVID, my first time at Europa Park, my first time in Germany full stop… I could go on, as there are so many firsts for me this trip! So join me over the next 5 days as I visit Europa Park, a major bucket list park I have legitimately wanted to visit for the past 7 or 8 years, for the very first time! This was only our travel day, so I haven’t set foot into the park itself yet, but I’ve already gotten some glimpses of what Europa Park Resort has to offer. So let me start today from the very beginning. Interestingly, today started out with the longest single leg of the trip there; a 3 hour drive from Gloucestershire to London Stansted. The drive actually felt quicker than expected given it was 3 hours, and my dad said it was very easy, so I guess that’s all you can ask for, really! After that, we went into Stansted itself, where check-in & security were surprisingly quick; we were through it all very quickly compared to what I always remembered Manchester/Gatwick being like, which is always good! It felt very weird being back in an airport… the last time I flew abroad was to Florida in April 2019, so after the few years we’ve all had, it felt almost surreal being back travelling abroad again, with surprisingly few differences compared to pre-COVID! It was exciting, though; even though an airport in itself is perhaps not the most pleasurable of experiences, being in an airport preparing for a foreign holiday does give you a certain buzz that I can’t quite put my finger on, particularly when your destination is a park you’ve spent years dreaming of visiting! After a wait of around an hour in Stansted’s departure lounge, we headed to our gate and boarded our plane to Baden-Baden: This flight was my first ever Ryanair flight, which I’m led to believe is somewhat of a rite of passage for any theme park enthusiast, and I’ve got to say, it was quite good! The seats were perfectly comfortable, the flight was short (only 1h 25m); what more can you really ask for? After getting off our flight, we headed through immigration in Baden-Baden, which was fairly quick, and that’s when it hit home that Europa Park really was well within my reach: Wow, seeing that was exciting! After that, we got our hire car and headed down to Europa Park itself from Baden-Baden airport, which my dad described as a surprisingly easy drive. It took around 45 minutes, and I must say, I was stunned by quite how convenient Europa is to reach from the motorway; when people described it as being in a town/village, I was expecting something like Alton Towers, where you wind your way through all kinds of country lanes and villages for miles on end once you leave the motorway, but it was literally a case of “exit the motorway… wow, there’s Europa!” in an almost America-style fashion! I was also surprised at how much Europa Park dominates Rust; I was anticipating it being a case of Europa Park being in the middle of a large town that engulfed it, but it’s almost more like Rust is an add-on to Europa Park, which I found very interesting! Then, we headed onto the resort itself. I have to say, first impressions are very good; the hotels are stunningly themed, and they’re all very grand in scale! My first view of a Europa Park hotel was the lobby for El Andaluz, where we checked in, and I must say, it’s stunning: We’re staying in a Standard Room Plus in Hotel Castillo Alcazar, and the room is very nicely themed, as well as surprisingly big. The park view is also fantastic, and gives Blackpool’s similar park view a run for its money for sure: After getting settled into our room, we decided to take a stroll around the Europa resort and see what some of the other hotels had to offer. We firstly stopped at Hotel Colosseo, where we loitered around the piazza for a bit: And then we went up to the top of the Colosseum replica, where I got some views of the piazza from above: As well as Rulantica: And also some of the surrounding Black Forest area; EP is surprisingly rural and in a surprisingly nice forest setting for such a huge resort: After that, we strolled past Hotel Bell Rock: And finally, we ended up walking past Colosseo again and going back to El Andaluz: After our little stroll around, we headed into the Castillo Restaurant in Hotel Castillo Alcazar for an evening meal, which it must be said was very nice; the restaurant is also very nicely themed. I didn’t take any photos of the restaurant, but my mum did catch a photo of the very nice corridor leading up to it, which is very well themed indeed, and certainly sets the tone for the restaurant: Finally, I caught a few photos of the stunning night time view from out of our window; Europa really does look stunning at night: So, that was the first day of our trip! Apologies that this was a bit of a boring report today; I hope the next few days’ worth of reports are a bit more interesting, seeing as we’re going to be in the park itself on tomorrow, Thursday and Friday. I’m incredibly excited; I can’t wait to see what Europa has to offer after years of wanting to go! What I’ve seen of the resort so far certainly bodes well for what I’ll think of the park, as it’s all very nice! Tomorrow, we’ll be stepping into the park for the first time… I can’t wait!

Another double post, sorry to my fellow members of the cOMMuNiTy. Got to experience this today for the first time as it's now not on timed tickets, and just a standard queue. Shout out to the guy batching the queue today who was very good in character - and another shout out also to the guy in the registration room with a fabulous moustache, who made me laugh, as when I saw my photo on the screen, I shouted "That's disgusting" and quick as a flash he said "Participants are reminded that their photograph is of their own face" 🤣 The experience itself was pretty good, definitely has zero re-ride (re-experience?) potential but I feel it's been executed pretty well. The mirror maze bit is good and we did get lost. All the effects seemed to be working, it just needed to be a touch darker in there I felt as the projection mapping effect is lost a little when it's brighter. All in all, it seemed to make sense to an extent, and I did enjoy it. Can't really see it lasting more than another 2 seasons though, personally - but I would assume Thorpe know that.

Casual first post in this thread in 4 years.... park was absolutely DEAD today, don't think I've ever seen it so quiet, with rides on 0-5 minutes for most of the day - longest I saw was Colossus peaking at 30 minutes at the start of the day. Ride/eXpErIEncE count (could've easily done loads more, but I like to keep my food in my stomach cheers huns) Stealth x3 (including one front row, still love love looooove this) Swarm x2 (no queue all day) Inferno (feeling INTENSE) Saw (feeling sore) Colossus (feeling 20 years old) DBGTROTD (don't get me wound up) Black Mirror Purple Boat In The Tunnel Sit Down Please

Double post, call the cops. Got to experience the new for 2022 toilets today (twice, as it goes) and they really are very nice indeed. How come any of the so called vlogstars have yet to mention this amazing bit of tech at the entrance though, see photos attached. And secondly - where are those fabled extra 2 toilets? Are they hidden - an "easter egg", if you will?

You're staying in the best hotel, have a great time. Looking forward to part two.

The whole experience is just a mess and it’s like they never really thought things through that well. The 2 photo points in the queue are no longer in use so the ending part and the photo booth is pointless. They had the bag drop the first year and then got rid of that after just one season. Instead of fixing the mid section which I thought was a really good effect they’ve just hashed up a mini maze in there. The pre show is so long and tedious and they’ve now added almost a second preshow with an actor which seems to go on forever and as a result the second VR section has been cut. The initial second VR section was very odd so I do prefer the updated one but I would rather it have stayed what it was instead of cutting it to accommodate the actors speech which is quite tedious. My favourite part was the exit/gift shop but they’ve fudged that up now that the demon is gone - it genuinely scared me the first time I saw it but now just a person coughing doesn’t have the same effect. Even the shop looks pretty awful compared to how it used to be - half empty and selling other ride merch. Its just not worth re-riding (I only do if I’m with someone who hasn’t been on and wants to try it). There are so many options they could have gone for for a dark ride - even a bog standard ghost train would be better at this point. All the hype surrounding it and it’s just a pile of crud - I guess it was a gamble they took which hasn’t paid off. Wondering at which point it will just be called “ghost train” because I don’t think I’d want my name to be affiliated with it. Maybe I’m being harsh - I just miss the arena in all honesty.

I rode it for the first time yesterday, it was boring and I hated it and there was nothing scary about it

To me, without the demon ending, the whole storyline is completely disjointed. Granted the 'infected' ones are the more promiment ones in the storyline, but after they got rid of the demon in the tunnel/lights on a stick schtick for Rise of the Demon - it kind of makes the demon a bit... irrelevant? They should either scrap the demon idea entirely and just focus on the people 'infected by the gas', or scrap the infected and go with the demon. 'Rise of the Demon' doesn't make any sense anymore - but to be fair, I never understood the idea of why a demon was involved when the gas was turning people infected? Really, really poor storyline.