Flipper

Based on this philosophy I would be more expectant to see Samurai gone, and a SAW retheme (assuming say a 10 year IP, so 2019 it's done etc.) and then a brand new identity with a potential roller coaster in Canada Creek / Old Town - suggestive solely on the basis I would expect SAW (as a coaster) to still be running at 10 years old...

Knowing you're not thick, I believe you're meaning 'reach' capacity and not exceed. Legal stuff, and all that.

They don't have the reliability and quality to be a wise investment. If BPB deemed Bling was not worth keeping, I doubt Thorpe would buy one if I'm honest. They also make me want to vom.

Gonna be interesting to find out why the mag brakes failed... lets hope its something very very isolated

Firstly, didn't come across that way, whatsoever. Secondly, staffing-staffing-staffing. And training. I've not visited Dreamland but a fair few people I know whom have would stand up and disagree with your statement that they staff and open all of their rides. I'm not denying Paulton's gives an excelling experience, because they do; and (sorry Paultons) they do operate rotational ride operation where it is required. Blackpool; they're just a bit of a joke reaaaaaaally. Rides often run on reduced capacity or lower staffing just because they can; I.e. Steeplechase. Rides will often close - again, kids rides outside of Nickelodeon, ala Convoy Ride; because they can't afford to staff them. Rides operate on shared operation such as the ones under Avalanche; and some rides open for a minuscule amount of the day - Grand National, thats what 11am, 12-noon opening depending on what mood they're in? You're trying to make a point that is just coming across as biased; that every other park is better than Thorpe when all parks have their pros and cons. I'm in no way a die-hard Thorpe lover; nor am I a die-hard Blackpool hater; but please don't come up in here making claims like you are, when actually, you're quite blinkered in your views. Next time you go to Blackpool take a look at what times rides open, if they open, what they're staffed like etc. and then come back and tell me that they're operating so amazingly better than Thorpe. Thank you.

Knightmare has started arriving at Southport; you know, after it's holiday in Blackpool and being photos lying in the road after a drunk night out And best get your Dragons fix regardless as they're supposedly on the chopping block soon for yet more Harry Potter wanderlust! Umgardium-dontgivesafecksa!

LK seems to have a good advice. We went early May this year and we had the shorter opening hours. Valravn peaked around 30m and Maverick was hitting 45m+ but makes more sense to go a few weeks later when theres a longer opening day. Hotel Breakers is amazing if you're looking to stay on-site. Offers 1hr ERT for Hotel guests daily on Force, Gatekeeper, Maverick and Valravn. Hooray for six runs on Maverick without getting off, cos, Maverick is bae. No re-rides on Force now though; all off, all round.

Announced in the Disney Expo tonight, Hotel New York is to become a Marvel hotel for 2018. I would link, but, cba. Google it.

Be interesting to see what this is all about and how people rate it. I recall I did Scream... once... and there was only two (or maybe three) of us went through and it was actually really good, and intense. Caught me by surprise. Regret not having gone through it more if I'm honest.

Or people just miss the Flume already. Albeit it fell pretty run down, but, ducks. And bathtubs. And mm, cosy! This doesn't get me excited, nope, no *ahem* wood from me.

OR, it could be a f'ing bridge that looks pretty; because they wanted to use a pretty image of a road to show the road forward into 2020, oooooooooh. Spoiler alert: they'll say some stuff. They'll big up some stuff. The next three years will bring nothing. 2020 might if we're lucky, but, I doubt it.

I'm on the side of BaronC, they're second in attendance to Disney. You're comparing the twelve (?) gated attractions Disney own, against the hundred and odd Merlin now have. Thorpe doesn't even scratch the surface of the attendance figures achieved by a single Universal park, or PortAventura etc. so to make a big thing out of Merlin being second so Thorpe should be flawless is BS. Thorpe is not only a long way down in attendance of any theme park in the world, or even Europe, its probably a long way down against other Merlin sites around the world; and remember; each site has its own budgets and management who make the majority of the decisions. Whilst I fully agree the attractions should be open, I also sway to agree it makes sod all difference closing them during the off-peak if they're being ridden by a few hundred people a day tops. It's a waste on resource, everything from having the staff to open them, to the engineers to safety check them. I think some people on here think that rides just magically open every day sometimes... think about it. Saving those two staff members is the difference between a solo (poor) platform operation on Samurai and a decent one (two). It could bring the third body required to run two trains on Inferno, there's lots of positions which could easily be considered a priority position. And with it coming to end of terms, people are graduating, taking exams etc. I wouldn't be surprised if this decision is solely based on staff availability and they're taking the hit for one week. And to whoever posted a while ago about 'how hard can it be to operate a frog hopper' - jog on. As an ex ride-operator every ride is different; none of them are overly complex they just naturally have different things to look out for. But having worked at a few places, including Paultons; I guarantee you now working children's rides can be and often is 10x more challenging than operating a coaster or thrill ride at Thorpe. An adult screams they want Rush to stop? Nah, it keeps going you're an adult. A child screams for a frog hopper to stop? You better stop it ASAP otherwise you're gonna have a parent giving you the odds, a complaint filed against you, and your job on the line. You've got to be so much more on the ball with your operation, your visual checks, your customer service the lot; just because you're working around children and (worse) their parents and guardians.

Opens in May; but operations and weather are very scatty. We went this May just gone; and found a lot of ride breakdowns and closures and many with higher capacity on 50% (I.e. Power Towers, Gemini, Magnum XL often running two trains etc. we also got caught in weather extremes from extreme heat which brings an unholy amount of lake flies, and thunderstorms which stops everything - and many things for a good hour beyond the storm as they take ride trains off etc. We also spent five days overall there and Top Thrill Dragster opened for one; so if that's a selling point to going, good luck. Oh, you'll also have a 90s pop song stuck in your head for the rest of your life if you ride it as it's the rides only real bit of 'brand' or 'theming'.

Oblivion will always be a hit-and-miss; it's similar to the days of AIR. A operation of one station-two trains can save money and bring in a throughput a smidgen under a two station three train operation if you've got a good team. Same for Oblivion, except they seem to enjoy giving it more cars than it needs one one station creating continuous backlogs. Inferno again, a good ride team can have the train loaded and sent without the trains stopping. But a good chunk of time is wasted by the bag cupboard. You've got lots of little things to consider too; such as two trains cannot transit in the station at the same time, unlike Nemesis which scarily is around a five second delay per ride. You're actual overall load and go time on Inferno is slightly less if you were to compare a full circuit stop-to-stop on both. But mainly recently it has been down to a half-arsed ride team.

Okay, here we go. Drayton Manor invested on the rebound of Thomas Land, with a second and a third investment into Thomas Land. Considering where the park was prior to Thomas, and where it stood when it launched Thomas; it's a no-brainer to bring more Thomas to the people. The area was (I believe) the smallest offering in comparison to Nickelodeon Land and Peppa Pig World in terms of attraction numbers; and unlike the latter two, it didn't have the backing rides within the main park to support the small Thomas area. The fact they've gone on with two expansions and groundwork for further expansion in the view of business is a strong move; as that is really bringing the people in for Drayton at the moment. You're also forgetting that Ben 10 came about along with a complete overhaul of the Haunting within this time. I'm sure something will come for the main park when it's the right time; but with everything else going on lately, the park seems happy to just 'tick over'. And lets face it they like to pull out interesting attractions (I.e. Shockwave, Stormforce 10, Maelstrom and Apocalypse in their own right, Ben 10 etc.) so I think to say they're not investing is BS. Just because they're not adding something that specifically appeals to you, does not mean they're not investing. Paultons is heavily on the rise. And again, much like DMP a lot is thanks to Peppa putting them on the map and bringing people in. Even now with Lost Kingdom (clap clap clap for Paultons) you can go on any given day and find a damn sight more people interested in Peppa Pig and only Peppa Pig over any other area. Thats just the way it is; and frankly I'm surprised they haven't done a DMP and expanded that out. But kudos to the park for their investment into other areas, including trying to bring in themes, two new fecking Vekoma's and a new entrance! Blackpool. MEH. Maybe I'm biased having been born in Blackpool and growing up with the Pleasure Beach, and working on it three separate seasons etc. and now I just have no love for the place; whatsoever. I'm really glad to see the last couple of years how they've tried to improve, with repainting rides; and tidying the place up. Taking some chances with rides like Sky Force and so on; but I just don't feel hyped for Icon. It's a 40mph launch coaster. Yeah it's got loops and multiple launches; but; I can't help feel they should have looked for something even more out there - something more like Maverick (even if not made by Intamin) and not another launch coaster - especially one that's going to be the slowest in the UK. People slag off Rita for its speed. This is going to have as much momentum as a fart (Sorry Blackpool. Glad you're getting a new coaster after twelve years, if Infusion counts, but still; I don't think you got this one quite right).

I'd still take SAW over Colossus any day. I find I feel the jolt on the outside seat on the left of the car across to the right-middle; but not on the far right (operator side when loading). But I find it gets more tolerable moving across - probably because the jolt is on the left of the track as you drop. Eurofighter's in general seem to be rough; and get worse with age. I recall years ago finding Rage at Adventure Island quite acceptable; and then last year just finding it completely unreadable. I also think the same nowadays of Smiler; the vibrations of it take a lot of enjoyment out of the ride; and I find myself gritting my teeth through the second half (especially the Cobra and inlines). Weird though how the inside of SAW is glass smooth; as I always think surely the weather aspect can't be making THAT much of an effect on the ride experience re roughness. I'd dare to also say that perhaps the final and built layout was never the most ideal. Throwing my mind back, the original layout plan was a cross shape outside; and not what we have now, which appeared to have had more room to perform the manoeuvres and not have such tight inversions (such as the first one outside, I mean, that whip from the loop is fun, but it is a *bit* brutal on a rough day).

With the speculation of a Universal tie-in for Fright Nights; the knowledge of Lionsgate being over; and thus all but SAW and as far as anyone is aware, Big Top being gone from the line-up; the speculation really is set. To clutch at straws to back up this desire of a Universal Fright Nights; the writing "27? 0?" on the Blair Witch shed becomes interesting; with 2017 being the 27th year of Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios; suggesting that is what the '27' stands for; but the '0' meaning being unknown and unspeculated (unless you consider the '0' to refer to '0' previous years of Universal Halloween Horror Nights at Thorpe, on the premise that this indeed is the future for Fright Nights). What I find intriguing is the question marks. Perhaps it's clutching at straws again, but it's traditional for a question mark to be used in American Horror Story before the season theme is announced. HOWEVER, it's usually written ?6 for example (therefore I would expect '?27 ?0' and not '0? 27?' for the writing to make that a clear reference). The idea has been suggested a lot to Thorpe in the last few years on their Facebook around Fright Nights; and the American Horror Story maze has been a massive success for Universal, and as a big fan of the show myself there is a part of me that really does hope and pray that this could become true at Thorpe; albeit as a maze, while I have full credit that Thorpe's team will give it their all and try and make the best out of it as they always do with mixed reviews and success; I reserve the thought it could be a bit too visual like SAW: Alive. And again, it is a large proportion of clutching at straws, speculation, and wishful thinking.

I agree with Benin it was never exactly incredible, especially when you look at the station. I can appreciate that there seems to be a set design element to the Junior Boomerangs but look at what Paulton's (for budgets) and Phantasia (for capability) to theme them in, and you can really see how awfully done Ben 10 was. The upgrade doesn't phase me. Accelerator? Doesn't really accelerate does it. The only thing that truly bugs me is the fact they went and painted pillars, roller doors, new logo etc... but they couldn't scrape off some mould above the entrance. Kudos Drayton. I imagine the interior to be very similar to G-Force now. Anything that doesn't have to be removed won't have been; and it'll be predominantly untouched, just like the Tesla Coils and old projection screens from Capital or whatever in G-Force.

This topic is hysterical. All else aside, if I'd paid anything to go into a park; I wouldn't be happy queuing (or should I say being advised to queue, just because I wouldn't) 2+ hours for a roller coaster that, actually, could be running two trains. If it's not ready to run two, then perhaps they're not as prepared for the opening as they thought. And yes, the same goes for Thorpe, etc. if we're going to drag it into it. Just because you have a season pass or whatever, and you can visit again; doesn't make it justifiable. If you queued 2hrs for PMBO, and then an hour for Avalanche, an hour for Infusion, and thirty minutes for Grand National; all on one train, thats already 4.5 hours of your day spent queuing when the park is open 10am till 5pm, oh but then you have to allow for the later opening rides etc. which isn't advertised before you enter (sometimes Nash is open at 10, or 11, or 12... depends on the mood really). I wonder how those people felt queuing for 2+ hours in the cold in Blackpool, especially if you went up to them and went "Oh, it would be running another train, but, it's not ready yet". Moving on. Yawn. Sorry but people slag off rides like Rita for being 'slow' etc. The only Mack Launch that gets a consistent positive review is Blue Fire. This is not much like Blue Fire. I've seen people running through that Water Fountain outside Trauma Towers quicker than this thing is going to launch, which makes me wonder, what is the true point of it? Congratulations Blackpool, you're installing the UK's slowest launched roller coaster. Oh but its okay, because it has a loop, yeah?

Regardless of it is an IP or not; there's an entire creative design team that take the IP and turn it into what is presented. The Gruffalo is a story, that though thought and planning vs existing facility vs budget created what they did. Same with things like SAW. Just because it's an IP, it doesn't mean it's a cop-out or should be seen as a problem. It's a great way to promote. I work for a coffee chain; we give coffee to the homeless, we give out free drinks to people; and we actively partake in community projects just to get our brand out on the streets and in people's minds. Look at other examples; Halloween at Universal - American Horror Story did them incredibly well. And then don't even get me started on Harry Potter... but you never see people ripping Universal for that? To a child / adult / the general public, it's much more enticing to go and ride 'The Gruffalo ride' than to ride 'The soap factory tour ride'.

Towers seem very good at dropping rides at the moment... Sub Terra is following Loggers: 'under Towers Loving Care' but, actually, doing nothing. CATCF just subtly goes - although I'd love to know why as it was popular for families, so I wonder what happened there. And then theres Ice Age... because why not invest into a 4D cinema, and then just close it when the IP expires.

Seems really great to see the park investing in tidying up on some of the family attractions that perhaps fell to disrepair under the 'thrill' market idea. And they've done well with Weymouth ditching their rides. Any updates on the Frog Hopper? Having visited on opening day, it was pretty abysmal. There's large sections of the park that are looking dirty, that I'm hoping they're working to clean up - finding a 2016 entry ticket in the Inferno station queue line was impressive for example. The other thing that makes me squirm a little, is the security check. Yes, I understand and respect fully the reasons behind it; but it was painfully slow on opening day. I think this is something that perhaps needs looking into and improving as it's not a great start today to be queuing for a substantial time to enter, especially when you look at parks who've had it for years (Disney, Six Flags etc.) maybe they need to take some ideas to improve the initial experience.

Costa has now been rolled across Thorpe, Towers and Lego... for now. I wonder how long it will take for them to lose that agreement *cough* Starbucks is gone *cough cough*

I suppose if you twist it round at least Thorpe have got a majority open and are advertising openly what is closed. Unlike Smiler which was delayed, and delayed, and barely opened causing thousands of compensation tickets and a Watchdog investigation... I mean, why even work on rides? Thorpe, if Rumba isn't ready, just SBNO it and then U-Turn the decision when the maintenance is done

The actors will be the existing Entertainments department, whom currently run Shark entertainment in the evening, Live music etc. and are employed for Fright Nights and offered work back each year, so no, they won't be rides hosts running the attraction, at least to begin with.