Sheepie

I saw that last night and had to stifle a scream. It's the whole silence thing, them not speaking, not doing anything, but just being there. (have they always been there?)I'm too excited for tomorrow. I'm also loving the Beeb for the viral marketing they're creating for Who. Are Real!

Really? ^_^If I'm being honest Han30, going by what you're saying, it doesn't sound like you're going to enjoy Thorpe Park very much, especially as most of the rides are designed to intimidate and impose fear in their audience. Although if you like water rides I guess it's possibly the best park for you to go to.I would have thought Chessington would be more your thing, where most of the attractions are designed to be fun and want to appeal to everyone, which in theory would help with your anxiety and you may end up enjoying your day more? Just a thought for you.

Next time I go to Chessington, I'm going to buy myself one of those Vampire bears. They're just too cute. There's a lot of merchandise I'm tempted to buy this year actually.

Paedophiles.. disgusting, manipulative and just wrong.

I don't know what Chessington have put in the food/ drink this season; or perhaps they've put additives in the various smell pots in their rides, but I literally cannot get enough of the park this season.I've been three times and I want to go back there again. I've thoroughly enjoyed all of my visits this season; on my third visit, I really tried to analyse what it was that just draws me to the park and makes me leave on such a high every single time.The park has no new rides this year, much like Alton Towers, however, Chessington have made various improvements over the last season and during the closed season which really puts the magic back into a once neglected park.The most notable change this year for me lies in Forbidden Kingdom. The Rameses shop has returned, along with a new addition opposite where guests can sit and get involved in African (Egypt is in Africa, right?) drummers. Gone are those absolutely crap, tacky, unthemed arcades that honestly do not belong in a theme park. I was so excited when I properly looked and took note of it all and is such a huge leap into awesome sauce.Vampire has some pleasant additions to its queueline, including some talking gravestones which speak out riddles where guests have to guess the answer. They look good; you have to really look for the speaker to see where it is and is much better than just having nothing there. However, if I was nitpicking, I would say that the sound quality sounds rather amateur. Sadly, on all of my visits, I didn't get to experience the queueline rats, however, they may have been munching on the sweets in the shop just opposite? :angry2:I must say, as I did at the end of last season, Vampire is a fantastic attraction and is actually pleasant to queue for with lots of interaction between riders and queueline and awesome views of the coaster. I still adore the blue lighting motif in the station and I would argue that it's now my favourite out of all the colour schemes we've had in there. My only gripe about my experience with the ride during my three visits was the ride operator. All the ride attendants were great and working their backsides off on three train operation; however; there was one particular operator who was just too loud over the PA. When I mean loud, I mean, it was hurting my ears and making people cover their ears whilst at the gates. It's great that she's enthusiastic and the language she was using was excellent, just the volume needs to be toned down slightly. The actual music soundtrack still isn't loud enough though! :DMystic East- I don't think there have been any noticeable improvements this season, but it only fully struck me during my visits just how beautiful this area of the theme park truly is.If the merge into Wild Asia ever happens, then I would say this will be the best themed environment in England, forming the continent of Asia. As long as they sort out that back entrance into Wild Asia!Small features such as all the planters around the area containing area appropriate planting and stylised to fit in with the area, to the area in the photo above which speaks for itself. It's brilliant, it evokes mood and atmosphere and that's exactly what it's all about folks.Wild Asia, I thought looked even better this year; photos do not do the area justice. What's even better is that the whole area is bursting with a positive atmosphere and is designed to be fun for everyone, the area brings people together.There really are too many details to pick up on, so I'll summarize a few here quickly. Wanyama is still disappointing for me, the first half of it is brilliant but the second half leading up to the observation platform is too "metal fence-ish" and screams of a low budget affair which was rushed.The zoo is a major staple in the CWoA experience and deserves the investment it gets. I would love to see Giraffes or some new animals soon. The Chicken Shack looks Nando-tastic, I may have to venture in there for food next time I visit.Bubbleworks exterior has Vampire music blasting out, presumably for its birthday, it provides a buzzing atmosphere but just doesn't feel right with Bubbles being there. Although as I mentioned, this may just be for the Vampire 21st celebration. There was a bubble machine pumping out bubbles periodically from a window on the rides facade which was a neat feature.The new smells in Bubbleworks are great, along with the music returning. I do think it's improved, but only because it brings back memories of what the ride was and not because of what the ride is today. Still, I'm glad families love it and I hope it inspires Merlin to invest generously in dark rides in future developments, particularly with our British climate; it's always good to have indoor attractions.I do believe that it is no secret that the UK Merlin attractions are a lot quieter this year in terms of attendance figures. The longest queue at Chessington was 60 minutes for Vampire and the rest ranged from 15-25 minutes. Apart from Truckers of course. I hope this proves to Merlin that they need to keep investing in their UK parks to entice people to go. Especially as we head out of the economic recession and people begin to venture abroad rather than have domestic holidays. People need more reason to stay in the UK. I enjoyed my visits so much this season, I'm willing to pull a blind eye to the addition of Fastrack; the operational facepalm towards the Toytown rides. Some final thoughts; Chessington is amazing. The rides appeal to huge age-ranges, they're interactive and fun. It has fantastic themed areas that are constantly improving, the staff there are arguably the best theme park staff in the country and with the funding from Merlin along with the passionate management team at the park, that's a winning partnership and successful formula to success to what could be the UK's best theme park experience.I'll leave you with my Vampire on ride photo from Monday.

Very sad news. 63 is too young to die. Of course, it means a lot to people because of her prominence in Doctor Who and Sarah Jane Adventures- it would be someone who a lot of people grew up with them being on television.Digital Spy Story

Things like this make me sad. What a huge slap in the face to the creative teams who spent years working on the ride for it to have a huge, fat corporate sponsorship over it.Not only does it look cheap and a rushed job, it just completely contradicts the atmosphere the ride is trying to convey and is totally against everything I believe a theme park attraction should be like.Complete tripe.

I've been extremely impressed with Chessington on all of my visits this year. Taken three trips including the meet and I'm really surprised at the amount of subtle improvements the park has received to enhance the themed environments.Alton need to up their game (so disappointed with them this year regarding sponsorship and Oblivion) or Chessington will take over as the best themed park in England, for me.Full trip report to come once I can be bothered to upload my photos from the last week.

Cool review, it gave me goosebumps. I'm glad you enjoyed the ride and park.I think Raptor may be at the top of my "To Ride" list.

Last night's chat was interesting... many revelations were made about each other. :)Alcohol, internet and I, do not mix!

Fantastic trip report Merky. Made me all warm and fuzzy inside. :(Now I've had some time to recover from the meet, I thought I'd post some highlights from the trip!The Monkey Puzzle Meal: The meal was awesome, including Chris' comment about liking potatoes after Ian complaining that his weren't up to standard.... made me giggle at least. Chicken Paprika at the meal was awesome. Many photos taken including this beaut: Hotel Times:Bubbleworks Finale tribute (awesome strobes). Alcohol. Sausage Surprise! Merky wearing her awesome skirt. Mark9's amazing shadow projections! CWoA!Seeing new members attend their first meet. Managing to keep the group together for the day. Pizza Pasta!! Wild Asia. Group rides on everything. Spending time with everyone at the best southern theme park with beautiful weather! Ellie and Ratlesnake. Ellie and Fury. LowlightsHalf of the group wandering off after Rameses, causing me to have to round people up to keep the group together. Tiredness at the end of the day. Going back to my house alone after spending two days surrounded by people. Saying bye to people. Let's round off this awesome meet with some great group photos:Group pic in front of Tomb Waterfall:The NinesRandom Group Shot:Bubbleworks Tribute VideoMeet PhotosThanks again for an awesome trip everyone.

A big thank you to everyone who attended the meet today. It was a pleasure to help organise a Chessington Meet and I really enjoyed it. Today would not have been possible without Ian's dedication to the community. :PI'll post full meet up highlights when I've had a cuppa and some toast and had chance to actually reflect on the day!

Sorry to hear that Will. Ah well. To be fair you've been chopping and changing your mind so much I kind of expected it. Hope it goes well at the dentist!

Just getting ready to come down to the wonderful place of Adventures. Camera charged, everything set. Bring on the good times these next two days.If your name isn't on the attending list, then I shall take it that you're not attending this meet, for those that are attending, I shall see ya there! :PWooo! X

Hey guys! Less than 48 hours to go! :DYep, table booked for 7:15 thanks to the amazing Skunky who managed to phone them whilst I was sitting in a dark room pressing a go button on a lighting desk! :PYou should have received PM's with a contact number (unless you already have it of course), so please contact me if you need to. Not to worry about the hotel Dan, we'll let you know our room numbers so you can come and knock in the morning, or we'll come and meet you.... whatever! ;)Counting down the hours now.

Your hair is absolutely epic Karys! ;)Welcome to the forums! I hope you enjoy our community!

I do absolutely love Thirteen, as many know. I could ride it over and over and find each ride just as enjoyable as the last. The second half of the outside section is a little bit of an anti climax, but the crypt and backwards portions of the ride are such a giggle, especailly with the reactions of the rest of the train.I've said it before, it has its faults and is far from a perfect experience, but I would happily queue an hour for it.