JoshC.

Powerpark's new Gerstlauer has a name, Pitts Special, and it opens this afternoon: (For those curious / unaware, Pitts Special is a type of aerobatic plane, which is going to be the light style for the ride...though don't expect any real theming)

You mean it's almost July and we don't have a Fright Nights thread? What's going on?! (what do you mean there's a pandemic??) Following yesterday's updates about theme parks being allowed to reopen, the Thorpe Breaks website tweaked the Fright Nights information: Originally, Fright Nights had been planned to start October 3rd, but that's now been pushed back by 2 weeks. Obviously the very idea of scare attractions in the traditional sense this Halloween is still very much up for debate right now. There's plenty of smaller events which are debating about running at all. Many are thinking of drastic changes. I wouldn't read into any descriptions yet as these almost always end up as placeholders, but it will be interesting to see what the park have planned up their sleeve.

Standard Annual Passholders can get anyone into Thorpe for £27.50: https://www.thorpepark.com/?promocode=mapff/ It's no longer branded as 'Share the Fun'. The Season Pass thing is an interesting one. In the current climate, it may make more people buy them, especially if people don't holiday abroad / they decide to go to visitor attractions more often. But yeah, equally could mean less people buy them. Bit of an unknown at this stage. The Season Pass always has the same problem in that it becomes less lucrative the later into the season you buy it. But even with all the discounts available and whatever, if you're planning on visiting the park twice during the season, the chances are it does work out better to buy one.

Drayton Manor's phased opening approach is as follows... So, from 4th July-17th July, the following will be available: Thomas Land Carousel Jolly Buccaneer Accelerator Flying Dutchman Zoo From 18th July, the following will be available: Thomas Land Carousel Jolly Buccaneer Accelerator Flying Dutchman Zoo The Bounty Maelstrom Air Race Shockwave Polperro Express Buffalo Coaster Pandemonium Apocalypse Drunken Barrels Sheriff’s Showdown The following are closed until further notice due to COVID restrictions: Dodgems The Haunting Emily’s Adventure Play 4D Cinema Bryan’s Museum Thomas Exhibition Spencer’s Outdoor Adventure Play Stormforce 10 Terrence’s Driving School Tiny Tots Play in the Zoo Farm Reptile House Zoo Experiences Meerkat House https://www.draytonmanor.co.uk/tickets-and-prices/rides-20201 The park is also making masks mandatory everywhere I believe.

I mean, she wasn't really wearing it properly, so it was bound to fall. But it raises a great point of how many people actually know how to wear one properly, as you say. From what I've seen at parks across Europe, and from people I've spoken to, you can easily wear masks on rides and have them stay in place the entire time. And let's not forget people have done this in Asia before coronavirus anyways. It's not something that any park could really do. To commission such a study would be very expensive. It would be difficult to find people who could do this (ie - are properly qualified to give an opinion and conduct any research) as well as people who would (anyone who could would likely be putting their efforts into something which has wider appeal / more useful to the public). Also, such a study would be insanely difficult. People are less likely to cough or sneeze whilst a roller coaster is in motion, so that means you need to focus on studying people's screams and breathing. It's less known how droplets spread during these situation, as generally speaking there's less droplets and they're less regularly spread out. You then need to take into account the speed of a ride, direction of travel, etc. As these things are ever-changing, it means you have to do millions more calculations compared to, say, how you'd model it for someone riding a bike. As a result, any study that could be conducted would likely just reaffirm the benefits of wearing a mask (in that it would use the same ideas as in any other study of motion, from riding a bike to standing still), and demonstrate how a suitably fitted mask can stay on whilst riding a ride. And why bother with a study to show that?

The park have said that Hex, Duel and the Dungeons will not be open when the park reopens. The closures of Hex and Duel are massive hits in my opinion. It really dents the number of rides available to the older audience. Perhaps a slightly 'spoilt' viewpoint to say "I can only go on these 9 coasters and some smaller rides", but it really does highlight the need for a couple more filler rides at the park imo

Ah yes, Thorpe Park with it's 5 large roller coasters, 1 family roller coaster, 4 water rides and one of the best selections of thrill rides in the UK (and arguably Europe) offers the least out of the 4 Merlin parks. Sure, they haven't added anything *new* in a while (which is bad), but they still have a very solid selection of rides. I think people overlook that sometimes. Let's face it, the price could be £60 and the first day would still likely have sold out. People are pent up. People want to go out. They'll pay above and beyond to do that. When things balance out after a couple of weeks we can start judging if the demand is there. There's certainly some understandable logic in the whole "we're having to reduce the number of people who visit, so we have to increase the price". The issue comes when seemingly Thorpe are the only ones to do have done this. Also, with a higher price comes higher expectations. Coronavirus will impact people's days in a variety of ways, but if the park can't offer the best possible experience in the situation, paying such a high price can lead to people thinking 'Well it wasn't worth it'. How any company pitches itself over the next few weeks and months could affect their reputation for years to come.

Thorpe's online price is more expensive than Paultons and Blackpool. So it's not debatable - they are the theme park with the most expensive online ticket. This is an online ticket at a time when online pre-booking will be pushed more than ever, perhaps even be essential. So regardless of what percentage of people bought those tickets beforehand, that percentage will be increasing. It may be part of a bigger push on buying season / annual passes, but it doesn't stop the price being high in its own right. Weird to compare a theme park price to a gig price? Sure, there's some similarities, but they're both very different markets. When you look across parks in Europe, £39 is at the premium end of theme parks. And whilst, in fairness, the ride hardware on offer at Thorpe is pretty premium, is the overall experience a premium one? Arguably not. Looking at these differences (for adults only, I think it's crazy that child prices aren't cheaper tbh) is really interesting. Legoland and Chessington are pitched just right, and even Towers' I can accept. But Thorpe's is the one that's off base here. It just doesn't fit. Unless the other parks are increasing their prices too and Thorpe are ahead of the game, it just feels off.

Yes, this will be it. It's an unfortunate side effect of having the bridge. Ideally they'd create some sort of tunnel feature so it feels like a natural way of hiding it. The hedge thing looks fine in its own right, but awkward in context imo. I'm all for the brighter / fun push. It does look good. But as you say, it is a complete u-turn to what they've done in the past. Let's hope they actually stick with it, instead of doing another u-turn 2-3 years down the line. As for the video, which focuses primarily on the new commercial stuff.. Russ is clearly someone who has his head screwed on, and there's definitely some positives. Some things he mentions: -They've reviewed food prices, and reduced about a quarter of their prices compared to last year -More than quadrupled their vegetarian and vegan offering -Introducing more alcohol offering -Karaoke available for hotel guests in the evening (though likely postponed till next year) -The park want to eliminate single plastic usage by 2021 KFC and Burger King are here to stay for quite a while too by the sounds of the video.. Now some screenshots from the video A look at the Infinity Bar and Kitchen, the rebrand of Fin's The bland dome signage sadly continues. The inside looks nice enough, but again bland. Interestingly in the video, Russ says the park want to create units which feel like they belong in each area of the park, yet I think this looks exactly like something out of the highstreet? Quite standard and bland. The feel is a step down from Fin's imo. Cantina, which replaces Crust and will be run by the park: This looks nice, and will serve rice and pasta dishes A new vegetarian and vegan only place near Ghost Train This will be run by a third-party. I hope to god that the signage improves the look of this, because it looks bloody awful right now. New Megastore sign: The inside matches that sort of style too And, as mentioned above, an unbranded Teacups: There's other refreshes around the park in other units too. There's definitely some nice touches and refreshes around the park. The dome feels like a glaring problem, which is a shame since it is such a focal point. Perhaps my expectation are a bit high in that these sorts of things should be done yearly anyway, but it is nice to see all the same. As I said earlier, one can only hope that the branding direction they're stepping into they don't drop in a couple of years time. And, also, it'd be nice if there was some further direction with the developing the park itself, but that's another story...

Winter Wonderland has grown tremendously over the years, and a big part of that has been the increase in the theme park / attraction side of things. There's a reason why Olympia Looping, one of, if not, the, most famous travelling rides in the world, comes every year. And it's the only place outside of the official Oktoberfest setting where it uses 7 car trains. That's not just because of "a few enthusiasts". WW works well because it has everything - the rides, the beer tents, the music, the market stalls and everything else. Take away any one of those things and it won't be as popular as it is. Also, 2.5m people every year aren't flocking all the way to Hyde Park to drink in a tent.

Legoland have listed rides which will not reopen when the park reopens: https://www.legoland.co.uk/explore/theme-park/rides-attractions/ The following are listed as "currently closed": -Sky Rider -Deep Sea Adventure (the refurbished Atlantis) -Laser Raiders -Scarab Bouncers -Play areas, including Lego Reef, Model Making Studio, Games Zone and more These are all listed as such to aid social distancing. The following are listed as "returning in 2021": -Haunted House Monster Party -Squid Surfer -Dragon's Apprentice Monster Party is listed as such to aid social distancing. Squid Surfer and Apprentice are closed "for refurbishment". Squid Surfer is going to be integrated into the new land for 2021 (assuming there's been no delays to that), whilst I understand Apprentice is closed for other reasons. Those closed rides are a big chunk of the park, especially since many of them are in the same part of the park.

A further look at the Taron clone, which does look impressive: https://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNDcxMjQ2NDU4OA==.html

https://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=83&artikel=7500295 Swedish parks are still not exempt from the "no crowds larger than 50" rule, meaning parks still don't have a date for reopening. Zoos are exempt from this rule and can still open - in particular, Kolmarden, including Wildfire, have been able to remain open because of this rule. EDIT: Skara Sommarland have said they will be closed all year. https://www.sommarland.se/information

Maybe I'm playing devil's advocate a bit here, so forgive me if I am, or if I'm just over-simplifying the problem, but.. Would parks not more or less be the in same place they were in March, assuming all staff come back? The parks were either already open, or a couple of days away from opening. They should have already been in a position to have all rides open. If they're not in that position post-Covid, is the over-arching uncertainty of whether they can reopen and when they can get staff in the heart of the problem? I know that staff will need the time to readjust to operating rides (I've heard rumours they're looking at tweaking the rules to suit the situation re. how often you should work the ride to be certified to work on it) and need to get used to new procedures, but these things can be turned around quickly. Obviously in an ideal world there'd be a lot more time though. I don't have much experience or knowledge when it comes to all this, so there's every chance I'm over-simplifying. And ultimately I feel for all the staff on the front line and those immediately above them, who will be bearing the brunt of the pressure. I don't want to downplay that.

This depends on how it's handled up to that point by Merlin. Companies will have ideas of what is going on. Many within the entertainment and leisure will have their own liaisons with the government which are giving them further advice. Whilst no one can know exactly what is going to happen, a clever company would be open with staff and relay conditional plans to them. Or they would gauge staff opinion on how much notice they would need to start work again. They have to make the best out of the situation with the information they have. If on Thursday they're told they're definitely allowed to open on the 4th, they could probably get training underway from Saturday (even Friday afternoon if they pushed it) if they've been smart with it up to now in my opinion. It's not necessarily retraining though, it is more refreshing. It depends on their stance of how to go about it, and how comfortable staff feel, but they could do it in a short period. One could argue that theme parks shot themselves in the foot by announcing so early their intention to reopen on July 4th with no concrete idea of when they could get staff back in. I guess, equally, you could say they were given the impression they could manage it appropriately from the government and they want to reopen as soon as possible. It's a six of one, half a dozen of another sort of situation there.

I get your point, and I shouldn't have downplayed how it will be difficult and stressful to pull off. From my experiences, I've seen waves of people trained extremely quickly and more or less immediately put into their roles and working with guests once that training is completed. In many ways, this isn't that different. And as it's a case of refreshing people, that is something that will be done very quickly too. When we look at parks abroad too, they had similar turnaround times with similar closed periods. Obviously there's differences there, but if parks have made things work with similar challenges, it's reasonable to think our parks can do similar. It won't be easy, and there will be a lot of pressure on staff. Hopefully some of that can be balanced with reduced numbers of guests.

This is a great point. And it's weird they haven't at least tried to do something a bit different outside of Dutchman. Sure, the park gets busy and cattlepens are the easiest way to get the most queue in the least space. But it's not like they're exactly pressed for space, nor do they lack creativity. It feels like a bit of a disconnect in their process. And, frankly, I don't think added a whoopie cushion organ in the queue is the best way to improve a queue either... You could say the same for Joris. And beyond the on ride pre-show, the same for Baron too (which is very, ahem, barren when it comes to landscaping). Also, surprised at comments to the effect of "they've only really themed the station". The station looks fantastic?! Brushing that aside feels like it's ignoring the work that's been done there. Anyone who rode Flying Fish in it's Stealth-location will no doubt remember that having greenery surround a powered coaster makes the experience a lot more fun. As a more modern example, albeit not powered, Th13teen received criticism for its barren outdoor area, but now the trees have regrown, it's a more enjoyable, slightly denser forest section. Once the greenery grows, no one will care about the lack of theming outside the station.

The park do have staff back, off furlough, either working on park or working from home. These are largely managers who are preparing as best as they can with the information at their disposal. In terms of actual training, not much really needs to be done. Thorpe were 2 days away from having their first guests before Lockdown. They'll have had a solid foundation to open the park in terms of staff being trained to operate the park. So in theory (and hopefully in practice), staff only need a short period of time to re-acquaint themselves with their job roles. They'll also need to learn about what the park is doing re. coronavirus and what has changed in their roles. The issue is that staff can't learn about that until the park gets government advice, as has been said above. For reference, I don't think any of the UK Merlin parks have their seasonal staff in, outside of Chessington/Towers who will have some for their current open days. The parks aren't leaving it till the last minute, they've been forced to wait until the last minute.

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!).

Yeah, this is the perfect investment for the park in fairness. It's crazy they never had an entry coaster before, and it's great they've gone for something that's actually got some enjoyment behind it too. Bob's time was up, no denying it. From what I've understood, M&M wasn't planned to replace it, but it's just that the Bob had to go, and they needed a replacement, so what better excuse to add that entry coaster. Most of my 'sadness' about the situation is that time finally caught up to Bob. I mean, the coaster rumoured to go into the expansion area is an Intamin launch. But I can't think of anything worse for Efteling than a big thrill machine coaster. Something like that just wouldn't work in the park really; anything too thrilling would just overshadow the rest of the park imo

Max and Moritz is now officially open: And POVs for those who are that way inclined: The rides looks cute and fun enough for what they are. I'm sure once the greenery grows a bit more it'll be even better too. Station looks fantastic too, in true Efteling fashion. Still sad that Bob is no more, and that a family-thrill ride has been replaced by effectively a kids ride, but it is what it is. I guess in theory the expansion area with the new coaster there is meant to act as the true replacement for Bob, if it ever happens...

I have fears for how well they'll be able to operate their rides in December, but guess we'll see. Wonder if they'll still manage to host a February event given they'll have much less time for winter maintenance? Think the thing that's surprised me the most now I've digested the news is the fact they're not pushing the season till the New Year. I'd have thought they could try and push that Christmas/New Year week a bit more if they wanted to. I guess it's risky as it's hard to tell what demand could be like, but I still thought it'd've been worth a shot.

Please forgive the terrible quality screenshots taken from my phone. I'm too lazy to watch the video again. Jack's video shows some more new signage, which compliments the new entrance signage (which looks good): I like it! Fresh, vibrant and quite reflective of what Thorpe is really (and the sort of brand they should stick to). And then there's this: One of the blandest, dullest entrance ways I've ever seen. The removal of the rockwork and other Atlantis-esque, no matter how decaying it really was, creates such a boring, flat look. The poles holding up the Dome sign feel in the way and yet invisible at the same time. I don't know how common an opinion it is, but I liked the Atlantis theme and still think it worked with the park today (what with the Port / Basecamp / Shark vibe). Sure, it was dated and falling apart, but it had some life and soul in it. After this and the black panels of blackness on the inside, it now feels like a run-down Butlins... Shame, as the other signage we've seen so far is good.

Meh, don't have a problem with this really. You have to store the boats somewhere, and it's largely impractical to create a workshop big enough for holding all boats of a log flume / rapids (especially when you consider you need room to work on the boats too). It doesn't do them any damage, and they'll be cleaned before opening. This sort of stuff doesn't look good out of context, but for the most part, it's never really seen in context. Rumba Rapids boats have almost always been left on the service during winter, and times when they're awaiting work, so that's not a Merlin thing. Similar with leaving a train on a brake run if there's not enough room for both in the workshop: if work needs to be done to station track, there's not always another option. And again, it doesn't really do any damage. It's the same for lots of theme parks, it's just you don't see it. There's a million and one reasons why it could be the way it is. But the point is, it is the way it is and it looks terrible. Also, don't buy the coronavirus reason. Here is the Gruffalo's board from opening day before the pandemic (ie: when most places were open) Source: https://live.themeparkguide.biz/?event=Chessington 2020 Preview Day&_ga=2.174020643.1630671449.1592582375-1327971191.1592582375 Sure, they might be getting new restriction boards and there was a delay. But ultimately, it doesn't matter: it still looks terrible. At least this is better in that they didn't cut a hole that's awkwardly too big a la Room on the Broom... We as visitors, and particularly fans, can be forgiving to a degree (in the sense of every company can hit unforeseen snags, and the pandemic could potentially cause issues), but it doesn't mean we can just brush away what is ultimately shoddy-looking work.

Yes, but actually no. $9m is for the labour and materials, which may or may not include the partial deconstruction of the original Gwazi where required (it's not clear). But there's lots of extra costs, from things to station building, pathways, etc, to other contractors required and other stuff. Not forgetting things like marketing and all that other stuff. Those costs will all add up VERY quickly. To be fair, it's not that surprising that a RMC conversion sounds cheap. The base is there - literally! - so in terms of raw materials, you're paying for significantly less. That reduces costs for labour, groundworks, etc by a lot too. I expect a ground-up RMC is much more expensive.