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Benin

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Everything posted by Benin

  1. That will be a MASSIVE investment for any park, let alone one the size of Hansa... But I really hope it works out for them, lovely place and they seem to have the right idea of improving most of the existing park area... I hope that this gives them that real kick that they need to really push on...
  2. What's scared me most is that someone thought the best company to go to in order to have new trains on a Vekoma SLC were Kumbak... I mean... What? In regards to the Gerst stuff, considering there are only 2 variations of the Infinity coaster, it doesn't surprise me that both have their own 'tag' as it were... I would imagine that it's basically to show off the potential of the thing, and potential customers can contact them and ask for a variant of the 1170 or 700 whilst being able to visualise what the ride will look like... There might be a time when other parks build a Smiler clone, it happened with Colossus (although that was a lot more off-the-shelf than Smiler is)...
  3. Having done sommat to this degree before, I'm most certainly the former Though it was very awkward when we were effectively asked at every ride "Which row do you want" and then proceeded to annoy several Americans... I wonder if Thorpe will limit the row choosing to front or rows reserved for exit riders... Backstage will probably literally be workshops and control boxes... With an engineer/TL around to explain the finer points in their lives working on the rides... This does remind me though, really need to get on a Tower of Terror backstage tour next time I visit Paris...
  4. I did one of these at Kings Island a few years ago now... It was basically the same thing, only no lift hill tour... And for about $300 a head... And ice cream included (they have famous blue ice cream for some reason)... Be interesting to see how much take up there is on the full package, because it is a lot of money... Though I'd love to see a butler service in KFC...
  5. Well let's be honest, has anything B&M ever done been over the top crazy? Bar Starry Sky Scrapper's layout, I can't really think of anything...
  6. Benin

    The Smiler

    If the whole thing had been that colour it would have looked VILE... I'm glad they left it as the trim colour... Wonder if that model sinks or stalls though...
  7. RIDE TRAINED MY SON TO BE A SERIAL KILLER!
  8. What is that in comparison to? The ride itself (which hasn't been maintained well for many years) or compared to any other dark ride in the world?
  9. It won't be missed really, besides, it'll fall down of it's own accord at the rate it's upkeep is going...
  10. So I’ve discussed the UK parks, but what about the foreign ones I visited? Well here we goooooo! Disneyland Paris Well it snowed, oh BOY did it snow. Not that it ruined the enjoyment of course, there’s nothing more hilarious than riding Tower of Terror, getting to the top and the doors opening to a mini-blizzard. The park did extremely well dealing with the heavy snow and I take my hat off for the way they dealt with our booked restaurant situation. The parks were their usually selves really, though it’s hard to judge due to the weather playing havoc with staff numbers and rides in operation. The real highlight of the trip was the Tower of Terror staff, which were constantly fantastic and provided the funniest moments of the week. Also Disney Dreams, which is fantastic <3 Denmark This was an exciting trip, especially to somewhere rarely visited by enthusiasts and had a fair share of ups and downs over the week. Although really it peaked from the offset with Eurovision-mania taking a real hold on Copenhagen and Tivoli in particular. Other highlights from Tivoli were Vertigo (terrifying thing of DOOM), the cuteness of Daemonen and the absolutely awesome Fun House. Classic Rusty Banana was an instant hit with us too, proving you don’t have to have all the latest technological advancements in the last 100 years to be a good ride. Unfortunately the next two parks were not very good, Bakken in particular we all loathed and spent 2 hours there. Bon-Bon Land had one joke and it wasn’t very good, although the drop towers were an amusing time as was Fantasy World, the rest of the park was just mediocrity beyond measure (Fabbri Giant Swing aside ride-wise). Bakken was just dire. That simple, with the worst Intamin in existence within its grounds (yes worse than Baco, having now experienced it I can give that opinion) in the shape of Tornado, which wasn’t even the worst ride in the park, as their Rusty Banana had been Kumbak’d. I shudder just thinking about them. And you know there’s something wrong when your best ride is a flat, and after you’ve spent the morning at the Carlsberg factory. Fortunately, the other island proved more fruitful in our ride endeavours. Legoland was quite good; with the Robo-Arms probably the best ride there, although the Powered Dragon and Polar X-Plorer were both very suitable rides for the park. Viking River Splash was also pretty good, I look forward to their dark ride attempt next year mind, which looks AMAZE <3 Djurs Sommerland was the best park out of the 6. It had the best rides, the best dogs roaming the park; it had the best play-areas (bouncy pillows for the win). It was quite simply, very, very good. The standard of theming was surprisingly high for the only traditional theme park (bar Lego) we visited, and Piraten and JOYvelen were certainly worth the admission fee. JOYvelen especially was a complete surprise to us, as we weren’t expecting such a solid family coaster, but that’s what we got, and more parks need to buy one. We finished with Farup Sommerland, which was a random place, filled with a lot more play areas, including the hour long adventure course. Lynet and Falken were good coasters, but we were spited by Orkanen unfortunately, as that looked quite good fun too. The park played well upon the family picnic market it seemed to, and it was a decent enough closure to our trip. Overall we rode the best AND worst Intamins in the world. No mean feat for a country like Denmark. Belgium, Part 1 My first trip to Belgium was partly cultural, with Bruges being involved. But why be cultural when you can ride creds? First up was Bellewaerde, a weird Chessington like park, only not falling apart at the seams and a relatively decent zoo to go with it. The main headline was a Zierer family coaster, Huracan, which had an epic random dark ride section, but not a very good ride section. Considering the space they had available, it was a disappointment really. Fortunately the rest of the park was quite good really, with the Boomerang being smooth and the support rides being of a decent enough quality to suit the park. Bagatelle was the next port of call since I had never been before. My 300th coaster is now Triops, a Vekoma Invertigo, which was quite good but not as landmark as X (Six Flags) or Beast. The park is pretty poor really (Soquet are NOT a good manufacturer of rides), aside from the best Rapids in the world with their amazing whirlpool of spinning. When you actually lose 5 seconds of a ride due to the complete insanity of it all, you know it’s good. Even if the rest of the ride is a bit meh, it makes it all the more better as you focus on that one element. Not the best parks in the world really, but easy enough to access really. Coney Island Over in New York for another cultural trip (though that’s up for debate when it comes to the USA), and a jaunt over to Luna Park brought to you by Zamperla for the classic Wooden coaster. And it wasn’t very good. A real shame really as it had some promise, but after the first two turnarounds it developed into a rough and painful experience. Perhaps the hurricane had something to do with that though? The rest of the park was unsurprisingly, mediocre; what with everything being a Zamperla, and my first experience of a Volare was one of sheer hatred. It was also VERY expensive, but Nathans was made of joy <3 Port Aventura God bless the Spanish austerity issues, especially if the park is going to have such deals on the hotels and unlimited Express passes! So off we went to sunny Halloween Spain and experience two fantastic B&Ms and 1 god-awful Intamin. I won’t repeat myself much as the TR is still relatively fresh, but it was a good fun weekend overall, though the park needs some lofty improvements and to get rid of Baco post-haste. Belgium 2 – Rock n Plop Even more recently was another jaunt to Belgium to experience more Halloween events. Walibi’s is quite famous and it was also another excuse to go back to Plopsaland because Anubis <3 We shocked a Belgian enthusiast when we all loved Psyke Underground because it’s FAB, as well as enjoyed the new branding, the ridiculous number of actors (40 in one maze alone) and the music battle show. This is a good park with a fair amount of potential but problematic neighbours. Plopsaland has Anubis, therefore it’s FAB <3 Also the new land was amazing and has an awesomely themed Disko Coaster. Again, the TR is still around so check that out for further details. Overall, a decent year of parks for me, particularly abroad, where only 2 were really bad (as in, worse than Chessington bad). And so far next year’s plans are really looking to expand on things as well, which is a good thing considering none of the UK parks at the moment are looking to deliver anything worthwhile visiting for. Roll on 2014!
  11. Saw's simple though, as the ride itself IS a 'trap'... Hence all the TVs going on about us thrillseekers aiming to find the 'ultimate thrill' (if only we'd waited till 13 had opened eh?) and what-not... Certainly easier to translate into a ride (and indeed it's probably a better story than the films ended up having), it's not done very well mind (although that's more a comment of the quality of the theming and general ride appearance more than anything)... It's very clear that a strong brand is the success story, it's up to the parks though if they can create their own one (Smiler worked this year as a brand, Swarm tried but didn't get to very high levels, looking abroad Walibi have had great success with their rebranded characters) or just rely on pre-existing ones (Cbeebies Land, Thomas, Peppa Pig, 2 of which have been insanely successful for their respective parks, and I haven't even mentioned Potterland)... Of course another situation is the timing of the franchise (Merlin's preference for franchises near the end of their life will bemuse me forever, HG excluded), the quality of the attraction (Ice Age 4D/Madagascar) and of course the popularity of the franchise itself (Saw is/was popular at the time of the ride, mainly for being novel in it's originality and then becoming bland)... My personal preference will always be that park's should look to create their own brands rather than use external ones though (Franchise themed parks being an exception, but even then Disney at it's best will always be their 'ride' brands over say Toy Story Playland)... I'm just not sure how they can fit T'Hunger Games into a theme park environment (similarily, Universal trying to build Lord of the Rings into a park confuses me greatly, the source material as a whole would be difficult to translate well, but then again, I'd have more hope in Universal pulling it off well than any Merlin park)... EDIT - I was just seeing film times for Hunger Games as I'm apparently seeing it this week, and the blurb of the film caught my eye... Screams family entertainment doesn't it?
  12. Such a good film <3 Or Battle Royale (as in, exactly the same only no blood because they had to get that 12A rating somehow)...
  13. Shame there's so much awful (the 2 Vekomas) dominating the pics...
  14. Harry Potter land has giant spiders though, which automatically make it more terrifying than anything else in the world ever... Also given the fact that Potter's 'world' has a much wider range of experiences available for a park to actually produce (hence Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade being built)... The focus of Hunger Games story IS the deathmatch with a slight addition of the dethronement of an evil organisation (the perfect family film)... How does one make a appealing ride out of such a backstory? As much as I want to the UK to get a massively themed immersive dark ride, I can't help but wonder if this is the best theme or IP... It's rather limiting as an IP since there are 3 distinct areas (slums/rich place/arena of death) and not really that much to play around with on a thematic scale aside from the rich place... As a full blown attraction, I can't really see it working, as a temporary maze, there's a lot more going for it because that's where the meat of the film/book's stories are, and they can go all out on the grisly bits...
  15. Considering the amount of money Merlin Studios demands, I wouldn't be surprised if external companies are still used (Chessie did so for Wild Asia)...
  16. I particularly like the idea that a film series that does involve the death of many people (both children and adults, as you can see from the trailer of Catching Fire, lots more death is to be involved) is seen as perfect for a family type audience... Indeed, the only reason it's a 12A is to get the maximum amount of target market in, otherwise it would (and probably should have) been a 15... Then again, it's just a Friday night in Croydon or Staines, so it wouldn't particularly work at Thorpe anyway...
  17. Excellent news... I will happily visit there once they get this all up and running... I just hope they don't plan on making the Railway without a brakeman...
  18. Heide Park showing parks how to use social media interaction... Excuse the dodgy translation
  19. A SECOND hotel? They really don't need that... Be like if Chessie built another one... I need more Air Races in my life though because they're FAB <3
  20. You don't need a brand new ride to get guests to come in (otherwise Chessie would be a ghost town every day)... That is an out-dated premise which shows why our parks are so far behind everyone else in the world in providing a quality day out... Get the brand name out as a brilliant thing, and people will come regardless of whether or not you have something new because they then know that a trip out gives them value for money... Additions like Saw Alive/Storm Surge/Mraws, are certainly not under such a remit...
  21. So we come to the end of what has been a rather disappointing year in the UK (there’s no two ways about that) it was up to the park’s abroad to show us how to do things, and that is something they most certainly did. United Kingdom I didn’t actually visit any non-Merlin UK parks this year, I nearly made it to Mingoland but fortunately that didn’t pan out. The additions to the Merlin parks sounded good (at least if you weren’t Thorpe, who seemingly cannot think of suitably well thought out additions when not building a roller coaster), with Zufari being inspired from one of the most engaging Disney rides, and Smiler’s secretive and fantastic advertising showing that when they put their minds to it our parks can advertise things properly. But what went wrong? Alton Towers This one is clear, Smiler was both the best and worst thing about this year for Towers. The positives are simple, it is the biggest ride that has been built in the country for years, it captured the imagination of the public, it is a marvel of engineering/construction, the advertising was going well, it clearly boosted the park attendances upon opening. It was what people wanted. Unfortunately, whoever Towers hired to build the thing probably appeared on that BBC show that sort out dodgy companies in a previous life. The list is longer than the Ultimate of what went wrong, the primary issues surrounding the ground it was built on being surveyed incorrectly which meant they had to delay half the construction in order to concrete the ride it properly. Then of course the winter decided to throw snow onto the matter, delaying it further. Subsidence, flooding, storms, incorrect placement of track, aligning issues, etc. were also major influences on the ride’s construction. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a ride construction be so flawed and have so many external issues added on. One of the few track pieces inserted correctly... Then of course, the ride opened, then closed, then opened again, then threw bolts at people. Gerstlauer’s biggest project became the world’s biggest pain, which is a real shame because the ride itself is fantastic (although still the 3rd best ride on the park), but the rushed construction, poor planning and awful contractors will be this ride’s legacy, in amongst the countless breakdowns and the like. Elsewhere on park, it was a weird situation, as Smiler made the park rather top-heavy in investment. Constant other issues like storms, poor ride reliability and powercuts meant that the park didn’t particularly have good PR for the season (see also the July Smiler breakdown which wasn’t communicated until about 3 days before it re-opened). However, what has been a shining light this year has been the entertainments department, which involved the fantastic pirate show with Roger Ramrod, the new Park Keepers who eventually got a vehicle to tour in, the Orchestra in the Summer; a relatively decent array of stuff for Halloween and the Fireworks. For our parks, where shows are particularly high on the agenda, these were a real joy to see happen; and easily the best part of the year for Towers. I hope that this continues on into the future more than anything. Fantastic ride, a legacy of issues... Chessington Where does one begin? Zufari ended up being a cluster of good ideas badly executed in the worst possible way. Bunnygate. Runaway Train was SBNO all season. Dragon Falls lost its theming. Rameses died. Vampire’s operations got worse somehow. Across the board the park was quite simply, dreadful, and will probably see a very low attendance figure this season (more than usual at any rate). Just when you thought Chessie couldn't get any worse... 2013 happened... The Halloween event was probably the best week of their season, and even then the not-so-late openings and general park issues couldn’t be ignored. Most of the theming was non-existant based on previous years attempts. Their two mazes were excellent value for their minimal budget though, with Hocus Pocus Hall’s refurb being a complete surprise. However, that cannot skim over the fact that the park has easily been the worst one this year, and with nothing to look forward to next year (though this can be brought to all Merlin parks, though Towers will get LOTS of guests next year), I simply cannot get excited for it. Thorpe In a strange turn of events, the park that did nothing of real value (Mraws is still a poorly designed gimmick and X really isn’t that special) did the most by doing what they should’ve been doing for years. Expanding the social network side and using it to their full potential, whilst creating new events (some which worked well, some which didn’t, Summer Nights variated beyond belief as to the quality of the event, although popularity was non-existant, which isn’t the best indicator of the worthiness of an event from the park’s POV) and just generally keeping a decent improved profile this year. This was the Ice Scream event... Will it improve matters completely? It’s hard to tell, as currently the park’s portfolio of rides and attempt at a new direction are very much at odds at each other whilst they also have to get rid of the old image of unreliable rides (which Slammer doesn’t help), long queues and Fastrack over-selling on a regular basis. The two former issues still exist on the park, even with the random attempt at complete Virtual Queuing for Swarm, which still seemed to have plenty of teething problems. Fright Nights apparently existed, although that wasn’t particularly clear even when visiting the park during it advertised (the second time of the year an advertised event didn’t exist, Ice Scream I’m looking at you). The park-wide theme amounted to a CAD entrance sign, film music and the same announcement on every ride with Detonator being the only modified version. The roaming actors were very good though, both sets (Director and You’re Next), but it just didn’t feel like there was an event going on, which is very disappointing when the park was calling it “the UK’s answer to HHN”, that has plenty of theming on the park, Thorpe did not. Apparently the mazes were good (or not so good, opinions varied across the board for both Thorpe and Towers’ attempts), although my experience of Blair Witch Project was simply diabolical. Fortunately for it Walibi’s Zombie River exists, which was worse, but not by much. Thorpe let me know in no uncertain terms that my feedback is always appreciated... PR aside, the park has advanced to doing the basic minimum I want from our parks. But they made a lot more effort this year to improve the guest interaction and issues, which can only be considered a good thing. Just hope that this extends further in Thorpe’s DNA and also to the other parks. Legoland Legoland still exists for some reason. Miniland is an absolute TIP and needs fixing up as standard. Elsewhere it’s still the usual meh place really with nothing spectacular going on. It really needs a decent new ride in there. Well themed high throughput coaster preferably, but currently I do wonder why I bothered going at all. Still, not that worst park of the season. In another post, I’ll look at all the International parks I visited. Check back soon.
  22. This is going to be so awful isn't it? Instant cult film <3
  23. Be interesting to see if the event is as busy as it was last year... Unsurprising Oblivion hasn't made it back, would imagine (read: hope) the park have some major plans to fix Smiler's constant issues... As for Thorpe doing one, only if it's nothing like the last time they tried... Although I sense they'll always be at a disadvantage due to their island location meaning a complete lack of temperature cover for the rides...
  24. Probably helps that most of the other flats at the park are pretty dire... That said, Samurai and Rush are hindered by only rarely having decent cycles...
  25. Benin

    2013 - A Retrospective

    The park with nothing new 'failed' last year though, perhaps the rest will realise that using an external PR company is the way forward (or at least making the most of social media, like a whole load of other parks did extremely well before this year)... That's what it SHOULD prove to the bean counters in that getting new things is all well and good (indeed, Swarm and Smiler are fantastic additions, Zufari not so much), but what really matters is connecting to the guests and providing a good day out at the same time... Hmmm, I might do a blog rather than clog up Mark's comment boxes of my opinions...
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