Coaster

Great, so they are going to ruin Fright Nights sundays...

Great to hear, let's hope they can keep it consistantly good.

I think Loggers needs some serious work done over this closed season, both to the ride system and surrounding area. The current state it's in is a disgrace.

Bubbleworks is really good now! It's not perfect, but it's the best it's been in years.

As long as they don't get rid of Stinger! That's my childhood coaster!

It was barely running any trains as a result of a breakdown earlier, so the queue built up really quickly (I was lucky enough to be in the area as soon as it reopened).

Having not visited Chessington since last year (which was a very poor visit), I wasn't sure what to expect but the park surprised me in almost every way! Appearance wise, the entire park looks fantastic. Loads of things have been painted, Vampire's track has been jet washed, buildings look really nice, Market Square is fab and the park audio is amazing! In this respect, I cannot praise Chessington enough. CLOSED: Rameses Revenge, Safari Skyway. BREAKDOWNS: Tomb Blaster, Dragon Falls. RIDECOUNT: Dragon's Fury x2 Zufari x2 Rattlesnake x2 Kobra x2 (Got to stay on as it was the last ride of the day and there were only two people in the queue!) Tomb Blaster x2 Vampire x1 Bubbleworks x1 Scorpion Express x1 Dragon Falls x1 Monkey Swinger x1 TOTAL: 15 Highlights: Appearance of the park is fantasic, they really have given it a facelift since last year! Top marks from me on this! Queues seemed to be moving faster than previous years. Fastrack queues weren't big though so I imagine this had some impact towards it (if only it could be like that all the time!) Bubbleworks is absoloutely fantastic now! I know it's nothing huge but it has had a lot of lighting changes, touch ups and is now a really great dark ride! It's not perfect by any means, and the fountain final needs mirrors back but it is a LOT better than it's been for years! Zufari is a brilliant attraction, now that the issues have been ironed out (I.e. no animals) and all the effects were working, it really is great fun! Also very bumpy - I actually got airtime! Also, it's great that you don't have to watch the preshow anymore, as it is now part of the queue. Vampire's operations weren't perfect, but they were a lot better than last year, and as a result the queue actually moved! Scorpion Express exceeded my expectations. Overall atmosphere on park was the best it has been in a long time! Got a ride on Tomb Blaster with no targets as they were broken, then due to this we were all told to stay on and had another go round! It's so much better without the targets. Pizza Buffet was much higher quality than the one at Towers, despite it being cheaper. Lowlights: 5pm close. The park was busy enough to warrant at least 5:30pm so this was just poor. Rameses Revenge closed all day. It had enough downtime last year, and it is so frustrating to see the best ride in the park (imo) closed yet again! It's just a simple fair ride, sort it out! Safari Skyway also closed all day. This is just poor. Breakdown on Dragon Falls, which then reopened with barely any boats on. Breakdown on Tomb Blaster, which then reopened with barely any trains on. Despite a few frustrations, overall I really enjoyed Chessington today and the whole park feels as if it has been given a breath of fresh air. It's a shame that it still has some reliability issues, but then again I can't think of any UK park that doesn't. Top marks from me. Thanks for reading.

Scorpion Express is actually better than I was expecting. Liked the soundtrack, and the water jets and fire were fab! Still preferred it as Runaway Mine Train though.

I was very impressed with Chessington today. They really have turned things around since last year, especially appearance of the park. However I was not happy that Rameses Revenge and Safari Skyway were closed all day, as well as numerous breakdowns.

Rameses Revenge was closed all day today. This is now unacceptable, it was closed every time I visited last year and it's very frustrating! It's a simple fair ride, it can't be that hard to keep working!

I was talking about My Bloody Valentine and Cabin in The Woods. I have never been split up in the conga mazes (if my memory serves me correctly).

Yep, I first went to Fright Nights when I was eleven and remember being distinctly unimpressed by The Curse and Hellgate They were both good mazes in their prime but I was expecting them to be... well... scary? Although I do wish they would bring Hellgate back, as that was fab when it was on form (which it wasn't on my first go). I guess I have always found non-actor based horror experiences (see Terror Castle at Fun City, Brean) scarier than horror mazes. I do enjoy horror mazes as they are great fun and get my adrenaline pumping, but Experiment 10 is the only one that ever genuinely scared me. I think that as long as people are forewarned, people of any age should be allowed to experience the Fright Night mazes, provided that they know what to expect.

It's part of the attraction, they tell you in the pre-brief speech and if you don't want to be split up then don't go in the attractions. My personal preference is to stay with my group as it is more fun, but I understand that it is supposed to scare people more if they are on their own, and if it works well then they should carry on doing it. If people are panicking then that shows that they have done their job properly!

I was separated in My Bloody Valentine and Cabin in the Woods last year. It is a bit annoying but I guess it's all part of the experience. I think it's a shame to be honest as mazes are supposed to be a shared experience with your group, in my opinion they are more boring if you are just on your own.

The corridor could have doors on either side of it, then the door at the end of the corridor opens and an actor comes out who then does a small talk. I'd like some creativity with this maze.

Strangely enough, last year in Cabin I could only vaguely hear it in a few sections, but I think they turned the audio in X down a bit. It was funny in the X queueline as you could hear people screaming from CITW!

Either a motel corridor or a studio corridor, with gruesome names on the doors in blood... The possibilities are endless!

Am I right in thinking that ERT is not available for Merlin pass holders?

Haha, I don't mean that it will be exactly the same maze, theme and everything, but I just think that a lot of props and walls will be reused (not the chain fencing though). Let's face it - beds, chairs, television sets, showers, sinks, windows etc will all fit into a Motel theme as well as the previous one, so I doubt it will all be completely new. I don't have a problem with this as long as it isn't instantly recognisable as it's previous incarnations. (I hope they keep the strobes and ending though!) I must say I am looking forward to Studio 13, I hope it delivers.

It seems that Tomb is back open, but then it also says that it has a 5 minute queue (it's 10pm) so I don't completely trust it

Don't they get over 500 on a quiet day anyway?

It's interesting that a lot of their promotional videos for Fright Nights show The Asylum - makes me wonder whether it will be similar this year? (Personally I don't think it will be that different).

So have I, but they are genuine copies of the music rather than just recording them next to a speaker in the queue

The music on those videos is good quality though.

They are fairly easy to find but at least they are easier for people to find now who are searching for the X sountracks, rather than having to trawl the internet to find them.