Coaster

Fastrack queue for Blair Witch is overflowing, we have been speaking to some people who are in it and they are disgusted. The main queue I full and overflowing back to the hotdog hut and we haven't moved at all (yet at least five Fastrack groups have gone through). Very poor show.

Yeah I noticed that the Fright Nights clothing was only in female sizes as well, don't understand why they don't have both.

My posts or My Bloody Valentine?If it was aimed at my post, I don't see what is stupid about stating that Fastrack will have a huge impact on the main queue, it's just a fact.

No, but it just adds insult to injury, without it people wouldn't have been waiting 3 hours for BWP!Just came out of MBV, absolutely awful, not one actor wearing a gas mask (what is the point of MBV without Harry Warden?) and light coming in through holes in the containers (yet some areas were just pitch black - pointless!)

Just in case anyone was wondering, Saw Alive reopened after about 15 minutes. Batching does seem very good in mazes today, I think the lack of Fastrack is helping.

And that is a big issue, I would expect big queues on busy days but a good park should not buckle as soon as it gets busy. From what I've heard, it sounds like Fastrack overselling was one of the biggest issues yesterday.Saw Alive has just been evacuated, we are at the front of the queue. A medic has just entered the maze.

It's gutting to hear how bad it was yesterday for people, visiting a theme park is supposed to be 'fun', something I think Thorpe forget at times. So far today I haven't had any major issues, apart from the aforementioned upselling of Fastrack on Cabin (and being told to "hurry up" by an actor in CITW despite the fact that he had stopped us and was talking to us).

I am in the queue for Cabin in the Woods and it hasn't even opened yet, and two staff members were walking through the queue asking if anyone wanted to buy Fastrack. I think it's disgusting that they are actually taking advantage of the maze being closed by walking through the queueline trying to sell Fastrack, I will be complaining about this later.

I'm on park, no complaints so far, lets hope it stays that way.

Agreed with that, it is not good enough for the maze to be half-done when it is open to the paying public, it is just a farce.As for the operations yesterday, I am dreading visiting today but unfortunately it is already arranged. It's no wonder Thorpe are struggling with gate figures when that is what happens when they get busy.

I still think it is a bit odd that they had so many rides closed across the Merlin parks at the start of the year, and have been having so many issues since then (I would say a lot more than usual, and that's hard). Also staggered openings have reared their ugly head at Thorpe, and I remember at Alton they were trying to open certain areas/rides at 11/12 in the first few weeks of the season. I'm no expert by any means, but it seems like the maintenance budget has been cut. That is only a guess at one of many potential causes, but I definitely think that something happened at the start of the season with Merlin which is causing things to be so bad this year. With The Big Top, I can forgive the preview night but it is now open to the paying public and should be finished!

I could be wrong (really hope I am!), but Thorpe haven't managed to solve these problems in years, let alone weeks.

Think of all those people making the effort to visit, only to be rewarded with that complete and utter farce. Merlin are in a trialling time at the moment, they need to be offering good customer service to restore faith in the parks, this is not going to get people back! I mean lets face it, nowhere else is quite that shocking. I had a similar (but not as bad) experience last year, they just never learn - I've heard that the Fastrack allocation is 80% today on the mazes!

What is going on today?! Colossus, The Swarm, X, Depth Charge, Slammer, Storm Surge & Slammer are all currently closed, on top of the pre-warned I'm a Celebrity, Samurai, Vortex and, since 5, Loggers Leap, Rumba Rapids and Rocky Express. Surely it must be a powercut? To have 13 rides down on the opening night of Fright Nights is just absurd, on top of the various maze shutdowns I keep hearing about!

My guess is either reduced capacity, ridiculous Fastrack overselling or both. Or it could just be a fault with the queue board, but I doubt it seeing as it was showing 90 minutes earlier on.

I've just seen this picture on the "visitor posts" section of Thorpe's Facebook page. That's the Fastrack queue. Absoloutely shocking, will they ever learn? Then they had the nerve to reply with this: So a complete disregard for those who have made the effort to visit the park, probably paid in the realm of £30-£50 for a day ticket who are stuck in the standard queue, which knowing Thorpe is probably not moving due to the ridiculous batching of Fastrack! EDIT: Just seen this: Two hours for Blair Witch?!

I'm a Celebrity is also unavailable, as are Loggers, Rumba and Rocky Express after 5pm - meaning that today, the last five hours of the event sees 8 rides/attractions closed.

Just watched last week's episode of Doctor Who - lots of close up eye imagery (something I have also noticed in the other episodes), as well as talk of something controlling your brain. Probably overthinking things, but it did remind me of the WC16 marketing.

What was so good/bad about it?

Has anyone done one of the £20 behind the scenes tours, and would you recommend it? Do you get told anything about how the mazes work or is it just a walk through with the lights on?

I much prefer foliage looking controlled rather than overgrown (which I think looks messy), all down to opinion though! What Steeplechase clearly needs is a fountain!

Maybe it has improved today, yesterday it really was awful.

Nice recreation, can I ask which set the diagonal catwalks are from? The area around Steeplechase does have trees though, but not loads.

So if the queue times website is correct, Colossus and The Swarm are both currently closed along with Tidal Wave, Vortex, Samurai, Rumba Rapids, Rocky Express and Loggers Leap. Two major coasters down on opening night isn't great...

Well that's something then, I'm prepared to give the maze another chance either this Sunday or next Sunday, hopefully it delievers! It is a bit concerning that they cut it so fine with regards to the maze being ready though, I'm sure in the past they have been completely built well before the event starts? (Correct me if I'm wrong though!)