Benin

Still have the issue of public transport options being insanely limited (it would take 2 hours from Strasbourg to this new location); and the issue of going to Stansted and flying with Ryanair...

#2Dank4U *dabs away* Honestly it's very typical of a company that thinks it's funny/cool/down with the sickness kids to post stuff like that... The engagements say it all though (low for an account like Thorpe's)...

Which airport though? I dread to think how much work would be required to get this to Basel or any of the other 'major' German airports... Wish they'd get some form of direct train service tbh from the likes of Stuttgart...

Roland's been at the sauce again during board meetings: https://www.handelsblatt.com/unternehmen/mittelstand/familienunternehmer/roland-und-michael-mack-europapark-besitzer-wollen-seilbahn-nach-frankreich-bauen/23585840.html?nlayer=Newsticker_1985586&ticket=ST-351031-XUAdi4MuIWBfZbETCnrd-ap2 Basically in a team up with France's government, plans to build a chairlift to the park from a small village exist to improve infrastructure... Somehow?

If I had a quid for every time Chessie had PLANNED to do something etc...

Linnanmaki's new Intamin continues to grow! #willbebetterthanTaron

Still better than the Capaldi/later Matt Smith episodes though....... The first few episodes are always dodgy under Who though, re-watching the whole lot recently reminded me of that (yes even Tennant's)...

A massive part of Taron is the landscaping anyway, it's like those Blue Fire clones placed in deserts with no theming whatsoever... Won't affect the quality of the ride, as it'll be a midcard coaster regardless of theme or location...

Presumably it's Half Term? So hell on Earth is a likely answer...

This winds me up moreso than anything, is it really so difficult for people to change the response template even just a little bit to at least show they're reading it? Trip Advisor responses are the worst offenders...

https://news.sky.com/story/premier-inn-unveils-no-frills-19-a-night-pod-style-rooms-11532575 Jesus they really went for the cheap option didn't they?

It won't help capacity though, because then people are spending 30-45minutes (at a guess) on ONE attraction (not including queue) in a park that thinks that staggered openings and a 4pm close is sensible... It's a stupid idea, made stupider by charging extra for it (as people will complain about the added costs again), and then will no doubt be mothballed come 2020 due to cuts...

Also in the news; water is wet and the Pope is.... CATHOLIC?!

So so bad...

This will never happen because then the parks won't invite people just in case they're mean honest... Like I doubt Bakken or Walygator would ever give me freebies...

Can someone summarise it so I don't have to give Merlin my details please? If they're struggling to staff parks maybe they should look at how they employ people and try and create a role which is seen as a long term one which can develop, rather than seasonal?

Quite sad to see the person involved in something creative responding to criticism in a very "YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND THE SUBTLETY OF MY DESIGN" approach... Like, I've no idea how it actually sounds, but most people aren't going to be sat around Amity Cove listening to the music in order to 'get' it... You might get lucky and hear another part of it as you pass through, but if you need extensive listening to understand it then you've already failed at the job at the creative aspect of passing on the story for guests... Consuming other media to get the full story only works for those who are dedicated, this goes for games, movies and anything else...

Will it be actually good though?

Until the parks aren't owned by Merlin then they will never look at doing things the way those on the continent do it... Especially when our smaller family run parks are basically surviving purely on the basis of an IP themed land... Plus the whole difference in markets... Look at how different the Nordic parks operate for example... Though Gruffalo can only be considered an improvement over Imperial Leather Bubbles mind...

Bob will reopen this year, to be closed next year for some new duelling cred(s)...

I don't like how the K3 stuff is just a re-purpose of the OVER-SIZED themeing... They could do a lot more... Like what's being done to the the Log Flume... Which I'm not a big fan of either, as it's going to clash RIDICULOUSLY with the castle and Heidi areas...

Flamingoland has a +1 carer maximum, Efteling it varies per ride (so Flying Dutchman is +2 carers, others +1, some +3, no disabled on Dreamcred), but it depends on the person in question... Sure some would need 2/3 carers to ensure safety throughout (plus I think the numbers is more to aid with evacuation procedures as well, as in some cases 1 would simply not be enough) though so it's hard to pin-point an exact number... Saying that, I always used to turn a blind eye to groups of 5/6, but at the same time the amount of people I had to explain how it worked to was ridiculous... Always a lack of communication on these matters...