MikeyT

End of Season Trip A little bit of spontaneity doesn't hurt anyone. It was late yesterday evening that I found out I'd be going to Chessingtpn for the last time this year. I've visited a good handful of times this year and have enjoyed all of them on some level, this one though, was particularly special.I don't usually get excited about visiting Chessington anymore, I look forward to visiting, yes, but to say I get that same excitement that I get when I visit Alton Towers, for example, would be a lie. I arrive at the park with my friend James and we agree to make our way over to Transylvania. Unlike Alton and Thorpe, Chessington actually still operate their Halloween attractions for their last day of season, I assume this is because it seems a bit silly to just have one day of park operation with all the event infrastructure still evident.There are some small, yet effective touches throughout the whole park that help link the theme of this event together. The more prominent presence of the witches this year meant that guests knew the brief backstory of the event, which I feel gives it some depth, and helps it stand out from some of the other Merlin parks. A lot of the props and sets have been recycled from previous years, which makes sense, though I liked the additional bits and bobs such as improved lighting, improved Trick or Treat Doors and the best of them all.... the Wild Asia Voo-Doo Dolls... how creepy were they?! :(Bubbleworks- oh dear. Probably the lowlight of the day in terms of ride experiences. This is for me, a sub standard attraction that seriously needs all of the sets, effects, lighting rig, sound equipment ect; completely gutted and started over afresh (as have been mentioned a few times by members). The Fountain Finale in particular, has been absolutely butchered within an inch of its life now, with most of it in complete darkness (one red and one green light are left illuminated). The fact that there is a Prof. Burp poster on show is in my view, a further insult to the fantastic ride that it once was.I thoroughly enjoyed the event attractions that were on offer, Trick or Treat doors looked impressive, the characters were pretty neat in it too. Black Forest Haunt, which we did in the day time, was a delight. Keeping the target audience in mind, I found it actually a cute experience and children seemed to think it was pretty cool judging by their reactions as they exited. Stand out characters were the grave digger and of course, the Vampire. :(Gorgeous meal is Pizza Pasta... I can't really speak highly enough of the two pizza buffet restaurants at Alton and Chessie. The place was packed, whilst other outlets across park were left unloved ().I do think very highly of Chessington, The park needs to keep going as they are, ie; recover from their period of no investment from their parent company. I think many fans of the park will know that they do have big ideas, ambitions and plans for the park to ensure that it goes places within the Theme Park Industry. Of course, they can't do everything at once, and I would ask that we're patient and understanding whilst they prioritise and organise their investment plan. It's clear things are bubbling behind the scenes, the evidence is across the whole park through the little additions that have been added throughout the year. At the moment it shows, very bluntly, which areas have been neglected and need some new life injected into them, still, I have faith in the park and look forward to see what they're planning next.I have so much to say, I want to type all my thoughts out at once; so much so, that it's actually difficult to think of what to say next and how to construct it all. A few bullet point statements, then:I prefer Griffin's to Kobra The park love smoke machines The constant loop of the Halloween track, parkwide, became annoying ...... Although saying that, I loved how it was a variation of Towers Suite/ Call to Adventure theme I can't wait for some of the attractions to receive an audio upgrade, some of the staff can be so tacky and "fairgroundy" over the PA.... Guest interaction is indeed awesome, if you know the correct way to do it and that it also doesn't clash with the attraction's theme Vampire in the dark is epic. Indeed, night-time falls and we enter the Vampire queueline as spooky silhouettes of gravestones, figures and ride vehicles soar through the night sky. I will admit, I was pretty scared walking though that queueline, through the thick smoke that filled the air, a beautiful, haunting palette of blues and purples draws you in, the atmosphere is actually stunning. There was something about that ride on Vampire, that was just so epic. The theatrical queue was sublime, only to then be topped by the station. With no natural light managing to seep through; it was beautiful, really powerful. Music blasting, a remarkably good ride operator with a silky, deep and dare I say it, almost seductive voice set the tone perfectly. I was impressed. The tunnel was the icing on the cake with those lighting effects- very surreal and disorientating. So there we have it, great trip, re-sparking my passion for the park that never went away, but has just made it stronger, positive and poised for the future. This park has some fantastic times ahead, you mark my words. :(Chessington: onwards and upwards!

It really is a shame that your experience was sub-standard, it does sound as though this hasn't been as good as some of his other attractions, like has been suggested elsewhere. Especially for £8 a ticket, I'm not surprised you feel short changed.I don't know Tom very well at all really, but you can tell that he has a real passion for the industry and does put a lot of effort into his attractions to ensure that they're unique and different to anything he's done before. I suppose it's very much an experimental thing, sometimes you take a risk and come up trumps, sometimes they don't work out so good.I also think this highlights the importance of the role the actors have in these type of attractions, especially if you're expecting huge amounts of interactivity and a high amount of one-on - one time with the actors, much like his other attractions, then, again, if this isn't the case when you went through then it will affect your experience.I also found it interesting that he deleted some of the comments made on Facebook. I'm not sure I found that necessary. Still, I hope his attractions continue to grow in scope and scale as well as popularity, they offer something very different to what we can expect at the theme park events.

Spent the majority of the day at the park today. I'll post a trip report in a while once I've come down from the high I'm on. Great day and awesome end to a cracking season for Chessington.

Review of Seance by Michael Bolton.13th SeanceDan, you clearly didn't like it because I wasn't acting in it..... :(

It does, to some extent. Though it's more ambient background noise than a theme, as such.

Canada Creek Railway (5)Colossus (5)Detonator (7)Flying Fish (2)Loggers Leap (5)Nemesis Inferno (5)Quantum (2)Rocky Express (5)Rush (6)Samurai (5)Slammer (5)Stealth (7)Storm in a teacup (6)Tidal Wave(6)Detonator +1Quantum -1

Amazingly, the world doesn't revolve around you.... :)Yeah I like the positive feedback option, I personally wouldn't like a negative option as people pre-judge members and their posts by the amount of rep points they have.

Oh dear, did we really just get rid of Saw before Flying Fish, Teacups and Rocky Express? Canada Creek Railway (5)Colossus (6)Detonator (5)Flying Fish (5)Loggers Leap (6)Nemesis Inferno (5)Quantum (4)Rocky Express (5)Rush (5)Samurai (5)Slammer (4)Stealth (5)Storm in a teacup (5)Vortex (5)Tidal Wave (5)Loggers Leap +1Quantum -1

Canada Creek Railway (5)Colossus (5)Detonator (5)Flying Fish (5)Loggers Leap (5)Nemesis Inferno (7)Quantum (4)Rocky Express (5)Rush (6)Samurai (5)Saw - The Ride (2)Slammer (5)Stealth (6)Storm in a teacup (5)Vortex (5)Tidal Wave (5)Rush + 1Quantum -1

Merged with original topic. Please take a brief look to see if there are any similar topics before starting new ones. The original was the second one down, for example.I've never experienced any Breakdance, I know Rodeo has a place in a lot of people's hearts from when it was at Chessington.

Canada Creek Railway (5)Colossus (5)Detonator (6)Flying Fish (5)Loggers Leap (5)Mr Monkeys Banana Ride (2)Nemesis Inferno (7)Quantum (5)Rocky Express (5)Rush (6)Samurai (4)Saw – The Ride (5)Slammer (5)Stealth (6)Storm in a teacup (5)Tidal Wave (6)Vortex (5)X:\ No Way Out (3)Inferno +1No Way Out -1

Urrr omg.... CRINGE! *deletes* . Yes, much better!

I have absolutely no idea who you're on about...... Actually this one is better! ^Awww

HAHAHA!! Oh you guys! Hmm..... this is war...

Depth Charge -1Inferno +1Bye Depth Charge!Canada Creek Railway (5)Chief Rangers Carousel (5)Colossus (5)Detonator (5)Flying Fish (5)Loggers Leap (5)Mr Monkeys Banana Ride (5)Nemesis Inferno (5)Quantum (5)Rocky Express (5)Rumba Rapids (5)Rush (5)Samurai (5)Saw – The Ride (5)Slammer (5)Stealth (5)Storm in a teacup (5)Tidal Wave (5)Vortex (5)X:\ No Way Out (5)Zodiac (5)

Canada Creek Railway (5)Chief Rangers Carousel (5)Colossus (6)Depth Charge (2)Detonator (5)Flying Fish (5)Loggers Leap (5)Mr Monkeys Banana Ride (2)Nemesis Inferno (6)Quantum (5)Rocky Express (5)Rumba Rapids (4)Rush (8)Samurai (5)Saw – The Ride (6)Slammer (5)Stealth (6)Storm in a teacup (5)Tidal Wave (6)Vortex (5)X:\ No Way Out (5)Zodiac (5)Inferno +1Rumba -1

I think you've missed the beat a little... once a ride reaches zero, it's eliminated and then a new round starts. You could keep it going without resetting them, but that's not how we've chosen to do it this time around

Wow I forgot how addictive this was!Canada Creek Railway (5)Chief Rangers Carousel (5)Colossus (6)Depth Charge (5)Detonator (5)Flying Fish (6)Loggers Leap (5)Mr Monkeys Banana Ride (5)Nemesis Inferno (6)Quantum (5)Rocky Express (5)Rumba Rapids (5)Rush (5)Samurai (5)Saw – The Ride (5)Saw Alive (2)Slammer (5)Stealth (6)Storm in a teacup (5)Tidal Wave (5)Vortex (5)X:\ No Way Out (4)Zodiac (5)Nemesis Inferno +1Saw Alive -1

When I went a couple of weeks back the geysers under the loop were still working- every other train like it has been for a few seasons. They look and sound great!

Edited it for you! ;)Canada Creek Railway (5)Chief Rangers Carousel (5)Colossus (6)Depth Charge (5)Detonator (5)Flying Fish (5)Loggers Leap (5)Mr Monkeys Banana Ride (5)Nemesis Inferno (5)Quantum (5)Rocky Express (5)Rumba Rapids (5)Rush (5)Samurai (5)Saw – The Ride (5)Saw Alive (4)Slammer (5)Stealth (6)Storm in a teacup (5)Tidal Wave (5)Vortex (5)X:\ No Way Out (4)Zodiac (5)Colossus +1Saw Alive -1

Hope everyone has a great time tomorrow at the meet. Let us know how it all goes. Sorry I won't be able to make it, though I should be able to attend a Christmas one.... last year's was awesome!

Argh I hate that room. It really is quite a strong smell and like yourself, SawBT, I have a phobia of sick. Luckily you don't see any sick, and that room is well themed enough to try and keep me distracted. Try breathing through a hat or something.