JoshC.

I was about to mention Swarm here, but then I realised one could probably class Swarm as a good few years ago. I'm beginning to feel old. But I wonder definitely agree with you that whilst not world class by any means, this is definitely a good-looking, seemingly completely themed, and most importantly fun investment; something we don't see enough of in the UK.

I'd like to know what rock gardens you're visiting to see the likes of a crashed plane... However, I must admit my big fear with this has always been that the dinosaurs will always look a bit too plasticy and 'fake' when seen in the area, and perhaps stick out too much compared to everything else (which feels a lot more 'real'). At this stage I'm happy with that there is at the moment though!

Couple of photos of Raik, which is now complete, from the best Dutch website ever looopings.nl: The last photo shows the park removing some of the rockwork theming which was in way of Raik. Whilst there's no photos of it, the lift hill and end of the track have apparently been fully enclosed.

Theming update: http://www.looopings.nl/weblog/5001/Zeecontainers-als-decoraties-bij-nieuwe-achtbaan-Walibi-Holland.html Let's not bother with the "With all those shipping containers, I thought this was a Merlin park lol" comments shall we, even if it looks a bit tacky at the moment...

A 5 minute preview of Galactica's queue line music: http://www.towersalmanac.com/features/multimedia.php?id=44

The best thing about winter is snowy pictures of roller coasters... (Pictures from RMC's FB)

By not working in a theme park environment, do you simply mean by the fact it's a low throughput attraction? I only ask because I feel that an attraction like this - a themed, interactive, walk through experience - can and does work in a theme park environment. So curious if you disagree with that, or of it's down to something else?

Oooh, interesting (and somewhat unexpected)! Not getting too excited as I doubt they are major changes to any of the trials, but instead just changes to the bits inbetween the second and third trial; Dingo Dollar Challenge could replace the "reptile" tanks after the pipe scene, and the Outback Shack could be the room before the inflatable corridor. Still, nice to see some attention to it over closed season. Hopefully some of the planned effects can come to fruition too

If Walibi Holland is of a similar standard to Walibi Belgium, then they are lightyears behind Efteling (and since they're not even aiming for the same target market, pretty incomparable anyway). Walibi haven't been bought up / taken over to my knowledge. They've just had a few years of nothing, followed by adding ALL THE THINGS now. Like even Walibi Rhone-Aples is getting a Gravity Group woodie out of nowhere this year... Good thing mind.

Video posted by Thorpe given Clues 1-6 of mindswanted competition: So Clue 7 remains a mystery. And, if I remember correctly, the actual answer to Clue 7 isn't on the forums, so it has remained as secret as possible! Competition closes in a few days too, if anyone is still thinking about taking part!

If you're the super-organised enthusiast, you might want to circle early 2019 for a new unique coaster... http://www.looopings.nl/weblog/4980/Walibi-Holland-opent-weer-grote-nieuwe-achtbaan-in-2019.html Yep, Walibi Holland have said they're planning to open a new coaster for the 2019 season which "you cannot find in another park". Along with that, they're opening a new thrill ride next year, and doing some refurbs to rides over the next couple of years. And despite all this information, we still don't know what Lost Gravity *actually* is!

It hasn't been "confirmed" in the sense of Thorpe have said on their site / social media that the Lionsgate mazes aren't returning (unless I've missed it). However, one of the Entertainments staff members at park told a group of us during a BTS tour that they're not returning (hence why a non-film based maze was introduced last year, to have an established maze on park). Take that for what you will, but personally I feel no reason to disbelieve what he said, since everything else he said was true. They haven't "lost" the Lionsgate connection (they still have Saw for example!). The Fright Nights mazes (BWP, Cabin, MBV) were on a 3 year contract - again, the source being from a BTS tour, but in 2014. That contract ended last year and, for whatever reason, it seems it hasn't been renewed or extended or anything. It could be that one of the parties felt like it just wasn't working out, or Thorpe just wanted to go back to original ideas - no one really knows! --- A VR maze could be interesting. And when you consider that Thorpe did Freakshow 3D, which tried to combine live action with 3D effects, it isn't a totally absurd idea to suggest. It would take a lot of work to pull off and be very risky, but if it did work out, it could be amazing. Not sure if we're at a stage where that can happen just yet though.

Finally! We all knew it would happen, jay a case of when. Looking forward to seeing what direction they take. I remember some of the executive producers of Saw 7 said if/when it comes back, they'd like to go back to a point in time when Jigsaw is alive, and focus on that. But since there's no confirmation yet that they're involved(?), I wonder if that'll happen. I loved the majority of the Saw films (only really disliking 5), but the last one was a bit of a rushed and forced of finishing that story thread. Could be interesting to see something completely different / long after then, but then it runs the risk and not feeling like Saw... I wonder if any of the original cast will return? Would love to see Tobin Bell and Costa Mandylor return!

What is Thorpe Park Resort? I only know of a THORPE PARK Resort.

If they have rides which struggle in high winds, you have to wonder why they feel confident enough of advertising them to be ready in February; a time traditionally known for cold weather, high winds and the like.

This is almost too simple a question to answer for me. I haven't visited many different parks, so the key reason for visiting new parks is for new experiences, new rides and so forth. But that hasn't meant I haven't returned to ones I have already visited. However, for a better answer to the question... I'm in the process of planning what parks to visit on a road trip this year, after doing a larger one last year. I'm returning to some parks, but not all of them, and visiting a couple of new ones. The reasons why the group of us decided not to return to certain parks is because we felt like we'd "done" the park sufficiently (and there was nothing particularly new that caught our attention), and even if we enjoyed those parks, the same amount of money could be spent to visit entirely new parks, which goes back to meaning we can ride different rides, get new experiences, etc. So I guess the reason why I visit new parks is because it means you get to try something completely different. It's not a case of a park being bad, but simply wanting to explore more. Definitely, yes. All the parks I visited last year that I'm visiting this year in the aforementioned trip are adding in new, major, attractions. So, they are a big factor for returning (especially so quickly). Whilst I wouldn't want to say I wouldn't have visited some of those parks if they didn't have major new additions, it certainly would have made the decision of whether to visit them less clear cut. It's less a case for visiting a different, new, theme park, as everything is new to you at the end of the day. Of course, some parks can get a ride that makes you think "YES, I need to go here", but that's not always the case for me. Things like mobile apps / technology make no different on me wanting to visit a park or not. I visit for the parks themselves, and whether they have an app, a Fastrack style system, virtual queueing or whatever bears no decision on whether I visit. As I say, I'm not that bothered by things like mobile apps and Fastrack, so those things tend to not bother me. I'm more a paper map person, I prefer to find out when a ride opens / closes, and how long its queue line is, by looking at the park's queue time boards, or looking at the length of the queue itself. As long as a park offers those sorts of things, I happy. If not, it makes the day a bit more awkward to plan (especially if the park is busy). New rides are only a factor I think of when returning to a park. If I like an new ride, then of course, it gives an additional positive experience. If I dislike it, then I guess it depends on how much I was looking forward to it as to whether it's truly affected my overall experience at a park. Themed restaurants are an interesting one. If a ride has an associated food place / shop (especially if it is truly incorporated into the overall experience of an attraction), I like to go there and try it out. It completes the overall feel of the ride; by not going there, you miss out. It's not a must for me, I don't feel like I've missed out if a (major) ride doesn't have an associated food place or shop. Stand alone themed restaurants are a little different. Since you're usually there for quite a while (if you're sitting down and eating in there, chances are you'll be in there longer than you're on any ride), the surroundings can leave a lasting impression on you. So themed restaurants are a great way to help make sure guests have memories of the park in their heads for longer. --- Sorry for the rambling; hope they are of some use to you. Best of luck with the dissertation!

A very curious response.. I guess it's possible that if it's only open on peak days, it won't be classed as a 'permanent attraction'.

The game is actually available now (on Android at least); search "Galactica Alton" and it should come up. Unfortunately, it's not as good as the likes of Smiler and Oblivion Black Hole games, or indeed as good as games of a similar type. Nonetheless, it is at least nice to see marketing material like this. A completely free game, with no adverts, which gives regular opportunities to win prizes. A good thing in my books.

Somewhat apt for today:

This thread:

Ordinarily, I'd be happy to take statements like this at face value and accept it, but I just can't when: 1) https://oami.europa.eu/eSearch/#details/trademarks/013767801- This link suggests Merlin haven't acquired distinctiveness of 'Raptor'. 2) There's no evidence to support Raptor is trademarked. 3) It seems like too big an oversight for Paulton's to make (they'd surely be extra careful about doing things right after not properly applying for permission to build Edge). If it is trademarked by Merlin, then really there should be no fuss about it. Merlin would have the rights to the name and Paulton's shouldn't be allowed to use it. It's not Merlin having it in for the park or anything; unless they got wind that Paulton's were planning to build a coaster called 'Raptor' over 5 years ago...

I heard that too, but after having a look, I can't see anything to suggest that is actually the case? More sounds like a story of someone trying to needlessly bash Merlin than anything else...

The link also shows the park map for this year, and it seems the Junior Boomerang is being called 'Velociraptor', rather than 'Raptor'. Because, you know, they want everyone to struggle to spell the names of their new coasters

POV seems to have been taken down. The idea of bunny hops on a flying coaster sounds so wrong to me. It just feels like it wouldn't work. I see what you're saying about the second half of the ride though; it looks very different to the first half, which seems to be all about the force. However, I think when it's open, and you've got people in the area, walking through the pathways and the like, it will feel brilliant.

^In fairness, there could be several possible reasons for not all rides being open; it doesn't necessarily mean a reduced maintenance budget. Since they're only open on selected dates for the time being (weekends, half term), maybe they should advertise it as "selected rides" being open, or some words to that effect, to cover themselves for things like this.