Mitchada04

Yesterday we decided to take an important English man to a place of Lego. Mr Lego William Shakespeare. I'll hand him over to you for this report

Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind. And this hand is suspicious, but I'm not guilty.

Welcome to the very merry land of Lego. Let's not read that rubbish book though, lets read a few of my plays.

This life, which had been the tomb of his virtue and of his honour, is but a walking shadow.

Certainly a big walking shadow!

Look mum it's Darth Vader!

O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo? He's right next to you! It's like they've never seen the play.

OMG it's a train! Like a real train!

Though shall not ask.

Or pass.

My hair's bad in this one

How'd I get up here?

I'm full of words. You don't want to eat me.

If food be the food of food, eat on!

Oh hi there

I'm safe here... right? Don't want me dying for a second time!

His colour choice is amazing.

Do you think he's seen me? Hope not

RUN! (Look at that blur... so much speed!)

They'll never find me here.

Or here.

Definitely won't expect me here!

I settled in to my hotel room and got it ready for my new girl.

The course of true love never did run smooth. Especially not in Legoland.
Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow.

Yesterday we decided to take an important English man to a place of Lego. Mr Lego William Shakespeare. I'll hand him over to you for this report

Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind. And this hand is suspicious, but I'm not guilty.

Welcome to the very merry land of Lego. Let's not read that rubbish book though, lets read a few of my plays.

This life, which had been the tomb of his virtue and of his honour, is but a walking shadow.

Certainly a big walking shadow!

Look mum it's Darth Vader!

O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo? He's right next to you! It's like they've never seen the play.

OMG it's a train! Like a real train!

Though shall not ask.

Or pass.

My hair's bad in this one

How'd I get up here?

I'm full of words. You don't want to eat me.

If food be the food of food, eat on!

Oh hi there

I'm safe here... right? Don't want me dying for a second time!

His colour choice is amazing.

Do you think he's seen me? Hope not

RUN! (Look at that blur... so much speed!)

They'll never find me here.

Or here.

Definitely won't expect me here!

I settled in to my hotel room and got it ready for my new girl.

The course of true love never did run smooth. Especially not in Legoland.
Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow.

Yesterday we decided to take an important English man to a place of Lego. Mr Lego William Shakespeare. I'll hand him over to you for this report

Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind. And this hand is suspicious, but I'm not guilty.

Welcome to the very merry land of Lego. Let's not read that rubbish book though, lets read a few of my plays.

This life, which had been the tomb of his virtue and of his honour, is but a walking shadow.

Certainly a big walking shadow!

Look mum it's Darth Vader!

O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo? He's right next to you! It's like they've never seen the play.

OMG it's a train! Like a real train!

Though shall not ask.

Or pass.

My hair's bad in this one

How'd I get up here?

I'm full of words. You don't want to eat me.

If food be the food of food, eat on!

Oh hi there

I'm safe here... right? Don't want me dying for a second time!

His colour choice is amazing.

Do you think he's seen me? Hope not

RUN! (Look at that blur... so much speed!)

They'll never find me here.

Or here.

Definitely won't expect me here!

I settled in to my hotel room and got it ready for my new girl.

The course of true love never did run smooth. Especially not in Legoland.
Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow.

At the end of June I spent a week in Salou. This of course meant that some trips to PortAventura would be happening! As well as a trip to Barcelona and the somewhat little known park of Tibidabo.
First off, Salou is a lively large town situated right on the coast of the Costa Dorada, we stayed in a hotel in Salou and couldn’t fault anything about the place. Right in the centre & 5-10 mins walk to the beach. Loved it. One thing I particularly enjoyed about the stay was on the evening of the 23rd of June, the longest day of the year celebrations took place, aka Summer Solstice aka St. John’s Eve… and a bank holiday follows the day after. Fireworks are on sale at pop up shop shipping containers in the street and they’re going off until the early hours… Fabulous atmosphere all evening!
PortAventura
We did 2 days at PortAventura, using the Plana bus (every 10 mins from Salou, €2 pp), cheap & very efficient taking you straight to PortAventura in around 10-15 minutes. A land train also operates but takes around 20-30 minutes.
The entrance area of the park is fantastic and you immediately have a view of the fountains in the lake with Baco rushing round and Shambhala & Hurakan Condor in the distance. Seeing as the park has staggered ride openings we opted to start at the back of the park at Dragon Khan. Khan opens at 10:00 with the park along with the rapids, Tutuki Splash, Furius Baco, and select other smaller attractions. If this was a UK park it wouldn’t be an acceptable way of operating. But when you consider that the park is open until 8PM, 9PM, 11PM, midnight or 2AM - 4AM, you still have ample time to get everything done more than once without express. I’ll probably mention this again later on…
Mediterrania is the area you first enter. This pic was taken from the opposite side on the bridge between Mediterrania and Far West. You enter not far from where Baco's train is in this pic. One of my favourite things was how picturesque PA is.

Queue jumping was something that we encountered at various times in our visit. The spanish seem to not care at all if someone jumps over the fence or in front of them. Anyway, except for that, I really liked the general atmosphere around the park, lots of foliage, lakes, extremely well kept garden areas and all queues are at least partially covered from sunlight. The (many) small & large shows dotted around the park also provide nice breaks from the rides for a few minutes here and there.
One of the smaller shows...

I would recommend purchasing express if you want to get *loads* done as a group. Naturally, most people head to Baco first and it had already racked up 1hr of queue when we passed it. Got to Khan and waited 2 trains and were on. Hurrah!
Dragon Khan
It's 148ft tall, yet with Shambhala overhead it really doesn't feel that way from the ground.

Dragon Khan was operating 2 trains for the entirety of the 2 days we spent at the park. The area that the ride shares with Shambhala is impressive, I’m not usually one to care much for theming but it’s all done to a high standard, the large ‘Shambhala’ area entrance signs and singular theme items as you enter the area are nice.
Khan starts off with the classic B&M pre-lift turn, followed by what seems to be a gentle climb to the top due to Shambhala’s domineering steepness from above. Once at the top of the lift, I found the first half of the ride to be taken at quite some speed even early in the morning at 10:30AM, the zero-G being the highlight of this half for me. The second half was ‘good’ but not amazing, I have read on other forums that the ride has new computer settings this year, and the MCBR now trims EVERY TRAIN to this pace, all day, every day:

(Not my video)
I very much enjoyed Dragon Khan, it isn’t anything which is personally going to go in a top 10, but it was a solid ride. It is quite a ‘generic’ / ‘american’ style layout (+1 loop), I suppose you could say. But the reason things become generic, popular, and cloned a lot is because they are good, no? Colossus still remains my favourite multi-looper, but that’s because I have much love for it’s inlines and non-stop paced ride given.
Shambhala opens at 11:00, as does the flume. All other rides (Stampida, Hurakan Condor, El Diablo, Tomahawk, etc) open at 12:00. Templo del Fuego opens at 13:00. Again, this didn’t really bother us, if you plan and make sure you hit up attractions just as they open, you should have a good amount of rides done by mid afternoon. By the time you’ve done the rides open from 10, the 11 ones are open, then the 12… and it goes on. From a logistical side I can understand why they do this.
*Hearts in eyes Emoji*

Next was a wander round 1/2 the park, taking in the early atmosphere through Mexico & Far West and up to the rapids for a ride, followed by the Flume. We took the first couple of hours easy knowing that queues would die down once everything opens at 12. (we queued 40mins for the rapids), refreshing and got quite wet, surprisingly as some people were coming off quite dry! We took a look in some shops, and for some reason the park has an obsession for selling Betty Boop merch? Lol.
The Silver River Flume at PA is built to have fantastic interaction with El Diablo, much waving occurs between boats and El Diablo. A very fun flume overall of nice length and a quickly moving queue thanks to the turntable station.
Spinning flat ride thing called Serpiente Emplumada. Like Drayton Manor Sombrero's across between a Polyp...

El Diablo, aka Tren de la Mina. It’s Lifthills and coathanger turns. It’s still an enjoyable ride and I prefer the Arrow Dynamics mine trains to the powered Mack ones. The queue on 3 trains moves fast once the express queue dies down. It’s interaction with the flume was a highlight, we had the back row and the drop out of the station provides a wonderful surprise pop of airtime, though when the pre-lift of a ride is one of the best bits it says a lot about the remainder of the layout!! Between lift 1, lift 2, and lift 3 the ride just does a lot of meandering around, until after lift 3 where you get the ‘big swooping drop’ and final dive through the smashed hut over the queue. Cool, but the many other Arrow 3-lift mine trains dotted around the world look to be better.
Not bad but a bit odd!

Shambhala. There is absolutely nothing I can criticise about this ride in B&M terms, it’s an all round crowd pleaser. My first B&M hyper coaster, it domineers over the entire park with a drop of 256ft. The ride ran 2 trains for the entire day on my first day of visiting, and had a queue of approximately 40 mins - 1hr 20 mins all day. On my second day of visiting it ran 2 trains from 11:00 til 12:00 when the 3rd train was added due to Furius Baco breaking down and Shambhala gaining a 2 hour queue. When running three trains, the single rider queue is nearly always empty. They manage it THAT well that when batching, not one seat goes unfilled. I even got a front row ride from the single rider queue one time!! In the station they have an LED screen which counts down how long they have to dispatch the train. On 3 trains they have 60 seconds from air gates opening to when it needs to be dispatched to prevent stacking. The screen then shows (what must be) the capacity number as a figure like 16:24 (was certainly not the time..!) for 1624PPH, very funky / nerdy & not bad considering it can get 1680PPH! They were running it very well on 3 trains.

Onto the ride itself, when leaving the station, if you’re on a happy train you may get some cheering and drumming of the restraints! ha ha. The lift is speedy and if Khan is also climbing it’s lift some waving / interaction below will certainly occur! At the top of the lift the train sends you down the first drop so gracefully, put your hands up and just float down… it’s amazing! In the back seat you get the best airtime over all of the hills, anticipate the hills and you’ll get the best floaty feeling. The ampersand turnaround is a unique touch and looks cool from a distance, below is the view of the park from my hotel!

Floaty drop airtime for everyone!!

The mini ‘speed hill’ after the ampersand provides some slightly stronger airtime but it’s still not gonna leave you with feeling *omg ejected*. My preference is very strong thigh-pressure ejector airtime, but the B&M style is still an enjoyable feeling. If you’re in an outside seat, reach out to your side and get a refreshing spray through the splashdown, then get prepared for more airtime! The ride just does not let up and has 'floatiness' by the bucketload even in the final hills before the MCBR. (MCBR only has 1 hill after it).
Overall, 9/10, most certainly a top 10 ride, it isn’t ‘OMG wow intense’ like I usually like, but it’s very fun and the most re-rideable coaster I have ever ridden. The train design is brilliant. Top ride!
Hurakan Condor

This was my 3rd Intamin drop tower. Apocalypse floorless was my favourite drop ever, until I rode Hurakan Condor! I rode it only 2 times due to lack of express pass and even a long single rider queue. Got standup both times (cue “yaaaass”). The height alone is quite terrifying (not too much off 300ft?) so when you get tilted forwards at around 20-30ft from the top, your heart rate races and you might just swear once or twice. Take advantage of the amazing view then put your hands out and prepare to drop… The falling feeling is fantastic and beats Apocalypse. My favourite flat ride on the park. 10/10.
Stampida. One ride. Blue side. 4 trains running, 2 each side. A CCI wooden coaster which has been rehabilitated / improved by KumbaK with 'new' trains. Take the word ‘improved’ lightly here. The trains look like park benches and they also feel like them. The lap bar is hydraulic and will tighten as you go round the circuit with every jolt that you go over, I couldn’t brace myself against it because you have to take your bag on the ride with you and I didn’t want that to go flying so had to hold onto the bag… The ride could be good… But it’s flawed with track which feels like it’s washboarding so incredibly badly and trains & layout which prevent airtime because the lap bar isn’t moulded in the best of ways. Nonetheless, fun interaction times can be had when the trains separate and duel, the same with Tomahawk which shares the Stampida structure. I need to ride it again really to get a more clarified opinion.
Tomahawk. Pretty much a kiddie wooden coaster with dinky trains. It seats one adult per row or one adult and a child. Runs 2 (old) trains and has new in 2007 KumbaK control and braking systems just like Stampida. I should imagine this is an incredibly thrilling attraction for kids as it’s actually quite violent around some corners! It’s also smoother than Stampida and has interaction with Stampida. Alright..!
Furius Baco.
Before reading this review, bear in mind that my favourite rides are Saw: The Ride, Speed (Oakwood), Mondial Capriolo, KMG Tango, Colossus, Slammer, Stealth and Rita. They are all rides which I enjoy because they are somewhat on the extreme end of the scale… In one aspect or another.
First of all, check that speed... I'd love to know just how fast it actually goes thru that inline..!
>>>>>>> https://vine.co/v/MtZq1MwKOj5 <<<<<<<
From every aspect offride, Baco looks to be an relentless, furious (ha ha ha) ride which throws the riders around it’s speedy course like it can’t get back to the brake run quick enough. And that’s exactly what it does. And I love it.

I had 4 rides in total on it, 3 on outside seats and 1 inside seat. The pre-show is weird. The theme is weird. Once at the pre-show, you do some shuffling back and forth as the catch car prepares to engage whilst the naughty monkey comes along and causes havoc. The launch feels INCREDIBLE, especially in the front row. Going at such a speed and having so much of yourself out in the open really enhances the feeling of acceleration. The launch ends with a hill down into the first pit which can deliver some intense airtime. Dropping down into the first pit, slammed around a corner at 80+mph before switching direction briefly and then switching direction again, you take a leap over the launch and a left turn to approach the inline twist. The feeling of speed is again, greater enhanced as you head for the inline twist. This is SO CLOSE to the ground you feel you could almost touch it, the feeling of speed is astounding and the way you don’t go through it as a heartline creates a rather cool twisty feeling...
Final turn out of the inline and over the lake, with the final bump onto the brake run and I was totally wowed. Incredible ride. Baco gives you the wow factor in a way that most crazy Intamin creations do… I’m told that Mack mega coasters also have fantastic inline twists so can’t wait to try one out! Back to Baco - Now, there’s no other way of putting it, the ride is ROUGH. But if you can cope with intensity on the scale of Saw, Rita, to some extent Stealth, then you may enjoy Baco.
The head banging could be reduced if they didn't have these 'elephant ear' type things on top of the restraints. Though I believe they are there after the incident with a restraint last year... Reminds me of Vekoma SLC restraints. Shame as Intamin's modern bars like on Baco are otherwise very good imo because you are pinned at the thighs.

Overall, Baco is a ride which isn’t shy of pushing the limit and provides an intense experience which doesn’t ‘play it safe’ in the comfort department in order to limit intensity. I feel like the ride could probably make it round the circuit with a launch of around ~60mph seeing as it keeps so much speed for the entire circuit, but I’m glad Intamin pushed the boundaries when they built Baco! 9/10.
One final thing. I can't not give this a mention. A bird opposite Tomahawk (yes the kiddie coaster) which sings Sex Bomb & an array of ~4-5 other songs all day long. (Not my video)

So that’s it for PortAventura… Fantastic park which has a special collection of rides all in areas which have a great feeling of character. It was my first international park and I look forward to visiting the likes of Europa Park, Liseberg and all the other amazing locations on offer to us in Europe over the coming years… Can’t wait to return to PA in the future though! I had an amazing time!
One final, signature PA pic!

Trip report coming up from Tibidabo, Barcelona soon..!

Yesterday we decided to take an important English man to a place of Lego. Mr Lego William Shakespeare. I'll hand him over to you for this report

Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind. And this hand is suspicious, but I'm not guilty.

Welcome to the very merry land of Lego. Let's not read that rubbish book though, lets read a few of my plays.

This life, which had been the tomb of his virtue and of his honour, is but a walking shadow.

Certainly a big walking shadow!

Look mum it's Darth Vader!

O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo? He's right next to you! It's like they've never seen the play.

OMG it's a train! Like a real train!

Though shall not ask.

Or pass.

My hair's bad in this one

How'd I get up here?

I'm full of words. You don't want to eat me.

If food be the food of food, eat on!

Oh hi there

I'm safe here... right? Don't want me dying for a second time!

His colour choice is amazing.

Do you think he's seen me? Hope not

RUN! (Look at that blur... so much speed!)

They'll never find me here.

Or here.

Definitely won't expect me here!

I settled in to my hotel room and got it ready for my new girl.

The course of true love never did run smooth. Especially not in Legoland.
Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow.

Yesterday we decided to take an important English man to a place of Lego. Mr Lego William Shakespeare. I'll hand him over to you for this report

Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind. And this hand is suspicious, but I'm not guilty.

Welcome to the very merry land of Lego. Let's not read that rubbish book though, lets read a few of my plays.

This life, which had been the tomb of his virtue and of his honour, is but a walking shadow.

Certainly a big walking shadow!

Look mum it's Darth Vader!

O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo? He's right next to you! It's like they've never seen the play.

OMG it's a train! Like a real train!

Though shall not ask.

Or pass.

My hair's bad in this one

How'd I get up here?

I'm full of words. You don't want to eat me.

If food be the food of food, eat on!

Oh hi there

I'm safe here... right? Don't want me dying for a second time!

His colour choice is amazing.

Do you think he's seen me? Hope not

RUN! (Look at that blur... so much speed!)

They'll never find me here.

Or here.

Definitely won't expect me here!

I settled in to my hotel room and got it ready for my new girl.

The course of true love never did run smooth. Especially not in Legoland.
Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow.

After my weekend at Towers I thought I'd explain why Nemesis is my favourite.

Even before this point you can hear it roaring around its twisted layout which can be quite intimidating. It is the roar of a monster! An untamed alien that wants to escape!

The British weather was brilliant to help set the scene! But you can stand directly under element of Nemesis with no netting ruining your photos.

Unlike Smiler

Without the netting these photos would have been half decent!


Nemesis is full of force! It's relentless!

This is one drop. All be it forceful but not anything significant. The only bonus about Oblivion is the long ride time you get due to the stacking.

Nemesis may be a mix of a few colours but it looks good for the ride theme.

Due to height, the black sections on this look stupid.

Nemesis has never been rethemed.

This has (although I do really like Duel).

Some say it's rough, no just intense.

This was rough.

It has a cooler station.
This makes you look at blue lit concrete.

It's not trimmed.

Th13teen is.

It's never caught on fire.

The Skyride has.

It's fun all the time!

The Flume isn't.

And it's 100% photogenic!
Okay so maybe I've been a bit harsh on the other rides, but for me Nemesis is best! Some of you probably think I'm a sheep and just follow the herd of people who love it. No. My first experience of Nemesis was when I'd just hit 1.4. Never been to Alton Towers before hand and we went on the Monorail to the entrance. With our AP we went to Forbidden Valley for ERT and I heard the roar! No idea what it was until I saw it. And there it was, Nemesis! I remember my first ride and after many years it's still never disappointed! Sure it's not the fastest, or the biggest, but for me it holds a special place in my heart and has never let me down. I appreciate everyone is entitled to their opinion, but that is mine

After my weekend at Towers I thought I'd explain why Nemesis is my favourite.

Even before this point you can hear it roaring around its twisted layout which can be quite intimidating. It is the roar of a monster! An untamed alien that wants to escape!

The British weather was brilliant to help set the scene! But you can stand directly under element of Nemesis with no netting ruining your photos.

Unlike Smiler

Without the netting these photos would have been half decent!


Nemesis is full of force! It's relentless!

This is one drop. All be it forceful but not anything significant. The only bonus about Oblivion is the long ride time you get due to the stacking.

Nemesis may be a mix of a few colours but it looks good for the ride theme.

Due to height, the black sections on this look stupid.

Nemesis has never been rethemed.

This has (although I do really like Duel).

Some say it's rough, no just intense.

This was rough.

It has a cooler station.
This makes you look at blue lit concrete.

It's not trimmed.

Th13teen is.

It's never caught on fire.

The Skyride has.

It's fun all the time!

The Flume isn't.

And it's 100% photogenic!
Okay so maybe I've been a bit harsh on the other rides, but for me Nemesis is best! Some of you probably think I'm a sheep and just follow the herd of people who love it. No. My first experience of Nemesis was when I'd just hit 1.4. Never been to Alton Towers before hand and we went on the Monorail to the entrance. With our AP we went to Forbidden Valley for ERT and I heard the roar! No idea what it was until I saw it. And there it was, Nemesis! I remember my first ride and after many years it's still never disappointed! Sure it's not the fastest, or the biggest, but for me it holds a special place in my heart and has never let me down. I appreciate everyone is entitled to their opinion, but that is mine

After my weekend at Towers I thought I'd explain why Nemesis is my favourite.

Even before this point you can hear it roaring around its twisted layout which can be quite intimidating. It is the roar of a monster! An untamed alien that wants to escape!

The British weather was brilliant to help set the scene! But you can stand directly under element of Nemesis with no netting ruining your photos.

Unlike Smiler

Without the netting these photos would have been half decent!


Nemesis is full of force! It's relentless!

This is one drop. All be it forceful but not anything significant. The only bonus about Oblivion is the long ride time you get due to the stacking.

Nemesis may be a mix of a few colours but it looks good for the ride theme.

Due to height, the black sections on this look stupid.

Nemesis has never been rethemed.

This has (although I do really like Duel).

Some say it's rough, no just intense.

This was rough.

It has a cooler station.
This makes you look at blue lit concrete.

It's not trimmed.

Th13teen is.

It's never caught on fire.

The Skyride has.

It's fun all the time!

The Flume isn't.

And it's 100% photogenic!
Okay so maybe I've been a bit harsh on the other rides, but for me Nemesis is best! Some of you probably think I'm a sheep and just follow the herd of people who love it. No. My first experience of Nemesis was when I'd just hit 1.4. Never been to Alton Towers before hand and we went on the Monorail to the entrance. With our AP we went to Forbidden Valley for ERT and I heard the roar! No idea what it was until I saw it. And there it was, Nemesis! I remember my first ride and after many years it's still never disappointed! Sure it's not the fastest, or the biggest, but for me it holds a special place in my heart and has never let me down. I appreciate everyone is entitled to their opinion, but that is mine

After my weekend at Towers I thought I'd explain why Nemesis is my favourite.

Even before this point you can hear it roaring around its twisted layout which can be quite intimidating. It is the roar of a monster! An untamed alien that wants to escape!

The British weather was brilliant to help set the scene! But you can stand directly under element of Nemesis with no netting ruining your photos.

Unlike Smiler

Without the netting these photos would have been half decent!


Nemesis is full of force! It's relentless!

This is one drop. All be it forceful but not anything significant. The only bonus about Oblivion is the long ride time you get due to the stacking.

Nemesis may be a mix of a few colours but it looks good for the ride theme.

Due to height, the black sections on this look stupid.

Nemesis has never been rethemed.

This has (although I do really like Duel).

Some say it's rough, no just intense.

This was rough.

It has a cooler station.
This makes you look at blue lit concrete.

It's not trimmed.

Th13teen is.

It's never caught on fire.

The Skyride has.

It's fun all the time!

The Flume isn't.

And it's 100% photogenic!
Okay so maybe I've been a bit harsh on the other rides, but for me Nemesis is best! Some of you probably think I'm a sheep and just follow the herd of people who love it. No. My first experience of Nemesis was when I'd just hit 1.4. Never been to Alton Towers before hand and we went on the Monorail to the entrance. With our AP we went to Forbidden Valley for ERT and I heard the roar! No idea what it was until I saw it. And there it was, Nemesis! I remember my first ride and after many years it's still never disappointed! Sure it's not the fastest, or the biggest, but for me it holds a special place in my heart and has never let me down. I appreciate everyone is entitled to their opinion, but that is mine

After my weekend at Towers I thought I'd explain why Nemesis is my favourite.

Even before this point you can hear it roaring around its twisted layout which can be quite intimidating. It is the roar of a monster! An untamed alien that wants to escape!

The British weather was brilliant to help set the scene! But you can stand directly under element of Nemesis with no netting ruining your photos.

Unlike Smiler

Without the netting these photos would have been half decent!


Nemesis is full of force! It's relentless!

This is one drop. All be it forceful but not anything significant. The only bonus about Oblivion is the long ride time you get due to the stacking.

Nemesis may be a mix of a few colours but it looks good for the ride theme.

Due to height, the black sections on this look stupid.

Nemesis has never been rethemed.

This has (although I do really like Duel).

Some say it's rough, no just intense.

This was rough.

It has a cooler station.
This makes you look at blue lit concrete.

It's not trimmed.

Th13teen is.

It's never caught on fire.

The Skyride has.

It's fun all the time!

The Flume isn't.

And it's 100% photogenic!
Okay so maybe I've been a bit harsh on the other rides, but for me Nemesis is best! Some of you probably think I'm a sheep and just follow the herd of people who love it. No. My first experience of Nemesis was when I'd just hit 1.4. Never been to Alton Towers before hand and we went on the Monorail to the entrance. With our AP we went to Forbidden Valley for ERT and I heard the roar! No idea what it was until I saw it. And there it was, Nemesis! I remember my first ride and after many years it's still never disappointed! Sure it's not the fastest, or the biggest, but for me it holds a special place in my heart and has never let me down. I appreciate everyone is entitled to their opinion, but that is mine

After my weekend at Towers I thought I'd explain why Nemesis is my favourite.

Even before this point you can hear it roaring around its twisted layout which can be quite intimidating. It is the roar of a monster! An untamed alien that wants to escape!

The British weather was brilliant to help set the scene! But you can stand directly under element of Nemesis with no netting ruining your photos.

Unlike Smiler

Without the netting these photos would have been half decent!


Nemesis is full of force! It's relentless!

This is one drop. All be it forceful but not anything significant. The only bonus about Oblivion is the long ride time you get due to the stacking.

Nemesis may be a mix of a few colours but it looks good for the ride theme.

Due to height, the black sections on this look stupid.

Nemesis has never been rethemed.

This has (although I do really like Duel).

Some say it's rough, no just intense.

This was rough.

It has a cooler station.
This makes you look at blue lit concrete.

It's not trimmed.

Th13teen is.

It's never caught on fire.

The Skyride has.

It's fun all the time!

The Flume isn't.

And it's 100% photogenic!
Okay so maybe I've been a bit harsh on the other rides, but for me Nemesis is best! Some of you probably think I'm a sheep and just follow the herd of people who love it. No. My first experience of Nemesis was when I'd just hit 1.4. Never been to Alton Towers before hand and we went on the Monorail to the entrance. With our AP we went to Forbidden Valley for ERT and I heard the roar! No idea what it was until I saw it. And there it was, Nemesis! I remember my first ride and after many years it's still never disappointed! Sure it's not the fastest, or the biggest, but for me it holds a special place in my heart and has never let me down. I appreciate everyone is entitled to their opinion, but that is mine

After my weekend at Towers I thought I'd explain why Nemesis is my favourite.

Even before this point you can hear it roaring around its twisted layout which can be quite intimidating. It is the roar of a monster! An untamed alien that wants to escape!

The British weather was brilliant to help set the scene! But you can stand directly under element of Nemesis with no netting ruining your photos.

Unlike Smiler

Without the netting these photos would have been half decent!


Nemesis is full of force! It's relentless!

This is one drop. All be it forceful but not anything significant. The only bonus about Oblivion is the long ride time you get due to the stacking.

Nemesis may be a mix of a few colours but it looks good for the ride theme.

Due to height, the black sections on this look stupid.

Nemesis has never been rethemed.

This has (although I do really like Duel).

Some say it's rough, no just intense.

This was rough.

It has a cooler station.
This makes you look at blue lit concrete.

It's not trimmed.

Th13teen is.

It's never caught on fire.

The Skyride has.

It's fun all the time!

The Flume isn't.

And it's 100% photogenic!
Okay so maybe I've been a bit harsh on the other rides, but for me Nemesis is best! Some of you probably think I'm a sheep and just follow the herd of people who love it. No. My first experience of Nemesis was when I'd just hit 1.4. Never been to Alton Towers before hand and we went on the Monorail to the entrance. With our AP we went to Forbidden Valley for ERT and I heard the roar! No idea what it was until I saw it. And there it was, Nemesis! I remember my first ride and after many years it's still never disappointed! Sure it's not the fastest, or the biggest, but for me it holds a special place in my heart and has never let me down. I appreciate everyone is entitled to their opinion, but that is mine

After my weekend at Towers I thought I'd explain why Nemesis is my favourite.

Even before this point you can hear it roaring around its twisted layout which can be quite intimidating. It is the roar of a monster! An untamed alien that wants to escape!

The British weather was brilliant to help set the scene! But you can stand directly under element of Nemesis with no netting ruining your photos.

Unlike Smiler

Without the netting these photos would have been half decent!


Nemesis is full of force! It's relentless!

This is one drop. All be it forceful but not anything significant. The only bonus about Oblivion is the long ride time you get due to the stacking.

Nemesis may be a mix of a few colours but it looks good for the ride theme.

Due to height, the black sections on this look stupid.

Nemesis has never been rethemed.

This has (although I do really like Duel).

Some say it's rough, no just intense.

This was rough.

It has a cooler station.
This makes you look at blue lit concrete.

It's not trimmed.

Th13teen is.

It's never caught on fire.

The Skyride has.

It's fun all the time!

The Flume isn't.

And it's 100% photogenic!
Okay so maybe I've been a bit harsh on the other rides, but for me Nemesis is best! Some of you probably think I'm a sheep and just follow the herd of people who love it. No. My first experience of Nemesis was when I'd just hit 1.4. Never been to Alton Towers before hand and we went on the Monorail to the entrance. With our AP we went to Forbidden Valley for ERT and I heard the roar! No idea what it was until I saw it. And there it was, Nemesis! I remember my first ride and after many years it's still never disappointed! Sure it's not the fastest, or the biggest, but for me it holds a special place in my heart and has never let me down. I appreciate everyone is entitled to their opinion, but that is mine

As part of the 2-4-1 deal TPM was given for the new VIP experiences, a group of us went down to go behind the scenes and ascend 127 feet.
We began our day going into Stealth's bunker where the launch system sits. The size of it is ridiculous! There are a few photos of Inatamin accelerator hydraulic systems around the internet but they don't do it justice! It also makes the coolest noise ever when it launches unfortunately, no picture were allowed down here so here's one of everyone's favourite Stealth element.

I also really like this photo

Next we headed up to the console where we saw people press buttons and how the system registers where a train is at any one time. For anyone who loves codes, Code Bronze is where it doesn't launch (because the dog is out of the 3mm tolerance on the 3 tonne catch car), Code Silver is a rollback and Code Gold is a stall at the top of the ride.

We were however allowed out onto the platform thingy of the station to take pictures



Yes, we also got to wear fancy hi-vis jackets alongside our steel toe capped boats.

Still amazes me that this thing is 3 tonnes!
We then headed under the station to watch a launch and here the dog fall into the catchcar (that's what the lovely ping noise it makes while moving back and forth before launch is) and then down the metal path to the warehouse.






In the workshop we were lucky to see one of the trains that is operational this season (don't ask me why it was in there and not operational, surprisingly that wasn't a question that came to mind). In here we saw them drop the dog and realised how little actually touches the catchcar to launch it. There was also a cannibalised train which they rebuild over the season so over winter they only have to strip down one train as the other is done during the season. We were then meant to head to Saw but we overran at Stealth (2 hours we were there for ) so were given The Swarm's workshop before our lift hill walk.

Wee!

With 10 of us around this hatch taking pictures, people soon began to wave and shout at us

We waited around for it to close and then watched the magical transfer table move!

Although it may look slow, you have to remember it's carrying a ridiculously heavy train and it is moving as fast as possible as this was requested by the park and B&M set it to the fastest safest speed.
The track locks into place

We all ran away


And in it came!
Like other B&Ms, the wheel bogeys are left completely open making it easy to inspect and change without having to move the train (like you have to on those wretched Intamin rides) so the train runs on a set of wheel in the middle and two rails where a slot between the seat runs along.

And out we went

To the control booth

Sun setting

To ascend this!



Still going


Higher

And we made it

And what a view it is!






Quick panoramic of the park

And it was time to come down
Few things, the park went to B&M and asked how they'd go about making it backwards. They considered alternating rows, one whole train backwards and the other forwards and in the end when with what we have due to the queueing situation. B&M supplied four new chassis for it and they do still have the other four for when it went forwards so it may return but for now it will remain as it is as it's still proving popular. The engineers do try and keep the theming in working condition and even want to replace the sign as its peeling away but budgets say other things and it's not always possible for them to fix effects such as the water spray and fire as their job is to get the ride operational and often by the time they've done that it's open and they can't get to the effects. The gas tower was also mentioned and they are looking into bringing back the fire especially with ABL now open but again budget and time says otherwise.
Was a great day and the view from Swarm's lift is amazing!

Goodnight Swarm.

Next month, Universal Studios Florida introduce their 'Diagon Alley' expansion to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. It sees the headline attraction 'Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts', the Hogwarts Express, as well as numerous shops from the Harry Potter universe.
As to be expected, everyone is excited about the development. However, why should we be so excited? We've got a newly opened area which is much better than Diagon Alley ever could be - Angry Birds Land at Thorpe Park! Travelling all the way to America seems pointless when most of us on this forum can pop down to Thorpe in under a couple of hours to enjoy the delightful Angry Birds Land.
First of all, let's look at the rides and attractions in each area. Angry Birds Land has a 115ft drop tower, perfect for thrill seekers, some fun dodgems, which are perfect for everyone, and a 4D cinema experience, which again is perfect for everyone. So, here, we have a land which caters for all ages - we have a ride which is solely dedicated for a thrill audience.
As far as thrill rides go, Detonator: Bombs Away! is as thrilling as you can get; there's not many better drop towers around after all. Then there's a good set of dodgems. Okay, so dodgems aren't anything special, you can find them anywhere. But people like dodgems, and if people like something, you give it to them! Finally, the 4D experience is clearly something that's been designed for a younger audience, yet it works for everyone. What's most surprising about it is how immersive the attraction felt - it's a film about a set of cartoon birds, who don't speak, trying to get the precious eggs back from some bad pigs. Yet you feel a part of the film, you can create emotional bonds with the birds, and you feel like you're there with them. For a cartoon, that's pretty darn impressive.
Now, Diagon Alley. We have a headline attraction being ride about escaping from a bank. Escaping...from a bank. Just let that sink in for a moment. And this will have loads of goblins scattered about. Not gonna lie, those goblins looked pretty hideous in the films, I imagine they'll look even more hideous in real life. Not exactly a family-friendly thing to have is it? Especially considering this is already a ride about escaping from a bank that you've broken into (great moral values there!). Now, this ride is apparently some epic dark ride/coaster combo. These types of rides are always risks, since some people's expectations can really shape how they react to the ride. Expect a coaster, you may be left unthrilled. Expect a dark ride, you may be left unimmersed. It's a really, really big risk.
Then you've got a train ride linking two parks together. Now, it will of course be more like a 4D experience, and this all sounds well and good. But it's not going to be easy to create a 4D experience about a franchise which already has so much going for it; very difficult to create an emotional link to the story. I have so many concerns.
Then there's also theming. Okay, Angry Birds Land's theming isn't the greatest, and there's room for more. However, let's step back and look at what Diagon Alley's theming will entail. Firstly, there's a dragon that breaths fire. Fantastic. That's better than anything at Angry Birds Land. However, this dragon doesn't move, from the looks of it at least. Talk about unrealistic! What's the point in having a creature for theming if it doesn't move. You're meant to be in a world where a dragon has just escaped; it's not gonna stand still, lording it over everyone else puffing some fire occasionally. It's going to move.
Angry Birds Land's theming at least makes sense; you're in a snapshot of a game, where some birds have just been catapulted, others are about to be, and so forth. It makes perfect sense to the story. Diagon Alley's dragon does not. Then there's all the shop fronts. They're shop fronts from shops in a back alley in London. Where's the excitement in that? The transportation to a whole new world? You can't get that here. It's basically just like walking down a part of London with shops you've never seen before (which isn't exactly difficult). Poor theming really; it's taken realism a step too far.
There's other things as well. Harry Potter is an outdated IP. The last book was released 7 years ago. The last film 3 years ago. Even if it's still popular, and there's a spin off film series on the way, the main Harry Potter IP is outdated. It's got little more than nostalgia now. It's time to let go. Take away the nostalgia and all we have is a kid's story that finished many years ago, and whilst still memorable, should be left alone, instead of picked away until its dignity has gone away. Angry Birds is about to get its second wave of popularity. There's a major film to be released in 2016. Mobile gaming is still huge, and a new game could easily make it to the top in 24 hours. Now that's a popular and current IP for you.
I think that's all I need to get my point across. Harry Potter is an outdated IP, and Diagon Alley is shaping up to be an overhyped dark ride that teaches bad moral values and a 4D experience which could go really well or really badly. Perhaps not the best family area. Angry Birds, however, is a current, popular, IP, with Angry Birds Land having a quality 4D experience and rides for everyone, which everyone will enjoy. It also teaches good moral values (don't steal, fight for what you believe in, yadda yadda yadda). If that's not quality, I don't know what is.
So save your money. Avoid Diagon Alley. Save yourself the disappointment. Take a trip down to Thorpe Park and bask in the greatness that is Angry Birds Land, and smile to yourself that you're in a better place than some hocus pocus area set about robbing a bank. You deserve it.

Sorry this is soo late! Had exams and mocks recently so haven't really had the chance to. Please forgive me
Although I have a Merlin Pass, Alton Towers is a rare trip for me because I live 4 hours away from it, and I can’t drive yet The last time and the only time I have visited before was a weekend in 2012 at Scarefest.
At Scarefest it was obviously very busy, so it was nice to go to the park at a less busyier time. Early ride time was not available at Scarefest either so it was my first time using that.
ERT
Early ride time was different to what I expected, everyone is aloud in the park but then you need proof that you are aloud early ride time to get into certain areas of the park. On the first day me and my brother just walked into Cebeebies land without showing our annual passes and we didn’t get stopped? So anyone could of just walked in there. It was also quite annoying that you have to go a long way to get into X – Sector rather than just going through the normal entrance. On both days we got into the Smiler queue line at about 9:30, then when it opened we got pretty much straight on it.
Nemesis
Had a total of 12 rides on Nemesis over the weekend, and I can still say that Nemesis is my favourite coaster. Better than I remembered if I’m honest, the force on this ride is crazy. This is defiantly a ride that I prefer riding at the back Shame that the waterfalls aren’t red anymore though One thing I realised is that this ride never really seems to have a single rider queue, I think it’s because people don’t realise that there is a single rider queue. The single rider queue is at the station and not at the entrance of the main queue, I’m not complaining anyway I wouldn’t of known there was one if I hadn’t of asked a member of staff at the entrance.
The Smiler
Didn’t get to Alton last year so it was my first time riding the Smiler, and I love it The first time I rode it I literally had no clue where I was the whole time seeing as it is literally inversion after inversion! Love the theme music for the ride and the station but the baggage area wasn’t designed amazingly. Front row has got to be my favourite for this and managed to get it 3 out of the 5 times I rode it! I believe all of the effects were working and surprised I didn’t see it break down once! It’s got to be my second favourite ride on the park I was quite surprised how rough some parts of the ride are already though, especially towards the end of the ride, it’s only been operating a year! Glad I didn’t have to wait in the main queue at all, it must have been the biggest, and longest cattlemen I’ve ever seen!
Rita
I remembered this ride as ‘alright’ from last time, nothing special but I rode Rita in the rain, it’s got to have been the worst and most painful ride experience I can remember. I had to shut my eyes for most of it because the rain was hurting my eyes, and my head was just banging left to right the whole time. I didn’t remember it being this rough, and I’m not sure if it was because it was raining? On top of that operations on this were appalling all weekend and just couldn’t be bothered to queue for it again. The baggage is also a nightmare on this, so many people trying to get to the tiny baggage shelves at once didn’t work out very well.
Air
I remembered this ride as quite slow and boring, but I rode it in the rain and it just seemed a lot faster and forceful, I really enjoyed it! Second day however it wasn’t raining, and defiantly didn’t seem as fast, but it was still fast. They were only using 1 station when we were there and then it shut down for about 15 minutes, after that they were using both of them again.
Water rides
My first ride on Battle Galleons, and was a lot of fun. Got soaked, more wet than expected. Offride there was entertainers with 2 umbrellas each, one either side of you making a shield which was fun.
The queue for the flume was a nightmare. As this is quite an old log flume, to restart one of the lift hills you need to reset it from the top, so a staff needs to run all the way to the top to reset it. At one point all 3 of the lift hills stopped, resulting in 3 staff having to go off. Every time a lift hill stopped, they needed to spread out all of the boats again and because the station doesn’t space out the boats automatically, the ride host needs to literally drag the boats back and forward in the station. They then needed to run the boats empty for about 5 minutes. What was meant to be a 15 minute queue ended up being about 40 minutes. I’m not sure how often the lifts stop, but it happened very often while we were in the que which is annoying. The ride itself was very enjoyable though, makes me miss loggers tunnel even more Another annoying thing (not for us though) was that there are only 5 modified boats for people who aren’t as tall. There was an extended queing time for them boats of 35 minutes. There was no warning about this, they were just told this as they got the front. I mean come on, it’s a family attraction? At least make announcements in the queue letting people know in advance.
Was really impressed with Congo River rapids, so much more enjoyable than Rumba rapids. It’s not the fact that it’s more themed or there are more effects, it just does a lot more. We got stuck at the end of it which was quite fun, the lift hill was working, a boat just got stuck at the bottom. We were only stuck for about 15 minutes, but it was quite funny. There were so many boats.

There were boats behind us as well.
One thing I noticed about the water guns is that you actually get 10 shots, there’s not a timer like the ones at Thorpe. At Thorpe you can only end up getting about 2 boats for a quid because the timer runs out, which is really bad value!
Duel
Didn’t go on Duel last time because of time I guess, and we had no clue what it was. I was really impressed with Duel though, defiantly my favourite dark rides now. It makes Tomb blaster look terrible. I like it how you are in carts of 5, instead of Tomb blaster. Was really impressed with how well themed it was, and loved the indoor queen as well. My highest score was on my third time riding it, 42,100. What are everyone’s high scores?

Yep, my brother was great at duel
Cebeebies land
We only went on Go set go treetop adventure, to get an overview of the area. The whole area looks really nice and is well done. Can imagine it getting very busy over the summer. Me and my brother were going to go in Justin’s play house, but apparently you need someone over 18 to go in? So we gave that a miss. Don’t remember being asked if I’m 18 on the one in Chessington?
Other good points
- Queues weren’t as big as I expected
- Single rider ques are great, would love to see these at Thorpe
- Had more rides on The Smiler than I thought I would
- Some random guy gave me a gold fast track right at the time I was going on the Sunday, so I used it on the Smiler then gave it someone else. He got gold fast tracks for free from complaining, and I think they gave him an extra one by accident.
- 8 re rides on Nemesis, skipping the 20 minute queue. One time we went round we were on the same train. One of the rows were closed off for the exit queue but there was no one there, so they just sticked 4 single riders on, so me and my brother were together
- All coasters were running full capacity the whole time Although rita wasn't acting like it
Other negative points
- Staff seemed quite moody as a whole, a lot friendlier at Thorpe.
- They wouldn’t let us re ride on Oblivion; even though they were just letting empty seats go round? We had to walk all the way around.
- Even if there were queues for the rapids and the flume, they wouldn't fill up the boats which meant extended queuing times.
- Skyride down all morning on Sunday.
- Slowest operations on Rita
- Didn't see the park keepers :’(
RIDE COUNT:
Air x2
Battle Galleons x1
Charlie and the chocolate factory x1
Congo river rapids x2
Skyride x2
Duel x3
Go set go tree top adventure x1
Heave ho x1
Ice age 4D x1
Nemesis x12
Nemesis Sub Terra x2
Oblivion x6
Rita x1
Runaway mine train x1
Sonic spinball x1
The blade x2
The flume x1
The Smiler x5
Thirteen x3
TOTAL : 48
Thanks for reading

As part of the 2-4-1 deal TPM was given for the new VIP experiences, a group of us went down to go behind the scenes and ascend 127 feet.
We began our day going into Stealth's bunker where the launch system sits. The size of it is ridiculous! There are a few photos of Inatamin accelerator hydraulic systems around the internet but they don't do it justice! It also makes the coolest noise ever when it launches unfortunately, no picture were allowed down here so here's one of everyone's favourite Stealth element.

I also really like this photo

Next we headed up to the console where we saw people press buttons and how the system registers where a train is at any one time. For anyone who loves codes, Code Bronze is where it doesn't launch (because the dog is out of the 3mm tolerance on the 3 tonne catch car), Code Silver is a rollback and Code Gold is a stall at the top of the ride.

We were however allowed out onto the platform thingy of the station to take pictures



Yes, we also got to wear fancy hi-vis jackets alongside our steel toe capped boats.

Still amazes me that this thing is 3 tonnes!
We then headed under the station to watch a launch and here the dog fall into the catchcar (that's what the lovely ping noise it makes while moving back and forth before launch is) and then down the metal path to the warehouse.






In the workshop we were lucky to see one of the trains that is operational this season (don't ask me why it was in there and not operational, surprisingly that wasn't a question that came to mind). In here we saw them drop the dog and realised how little actually touches the catchcar to launch it. There was also a cannibalised train which they rebuild over the season so over winter they only have to strip down one train as the other is done during the season. We were then meant to head to Saw but we overran at Stealth (2 hours we were there for ) so were given The Swarm's workshop before our lift hill walk.

Wee!

With 10 of us around this hatch taking pictures, people soon began to wave and shout at us

We waited around for it to close and then watched the magical transfer table move!

Although it may look slow, you have to remember it's carrying a ridiculously heavy train and it is moving as fast as possible as this was requested by the park and B&M set it to the fastest safest speed.
The track locks into place

We all ran away


And in it came!
Like other B&Ms, the wheel bogeys are left completely open making it easy to inspect and change without having to move the train (like you have to on those wretched Intamin rides) so the train runs on a set of wheel in the middle and two rails where a slot between the seat runs along.

And out we went

To the control booth

Sun setting

To ascend this!



Still going


Higher

And we made it

And what a view it is!






Quick panoramic of the park

And it was time to come down
Few things, the park went to B&M and asked how they'd go about making it backwards. They considered alternating rows, one whole train backwards and the other forwards and in the end when with what we have due to the queueing situation. B&M supplied four new chassis for it and they do still have the other four for when it went forwards so it may return but for now it will remain as it is as it's still proving popular. The engineers do try and keep the theming in working condition and even want to replace the sign as its peeling away but budgets say other things and it's not always possible for them to fix effects such as the water spray and fire as their job is to get the ride operational and often by the time they've done that it's open and they can't get to the effects. The gas tower was also mentioned and they are looking into bringing back the fire especially with ABL now open but again budget and time says otherwise.
Was a great day and the view from Swarm's lift is amazing!

Goodnight Swarm.

Our penultimate instalment takes us to what has become my favourite theme park...

Welcome to Universal Studios Florida!


What will this chapter of our adventure have in store I wonder?

The Cat in the Hat shall enlighten us!

Let's start back...

To the Future

Now home to Jebediah

Lard Lad

And Clumsy Wigum!

Watch out for Kang and Kudos though! They'll put you in a spin

And make you a bit Tipsy

Or Sirly.

DuffMan doesn't care though

As long as you buy Duff!

And then treat yourself to a Krusty Burger thanks too

Krusty himself!

Moving on we have

Men In Black!

Which really isn't a disaster (even though some peoples scores were!)

Something tells me the Amity retheme has gone a bit overboard...

Christmas Tree was Rocking out over the Christmas period!

Really it's a massive grey shed.

Hiding a red train.

Time for a musical interlude

Not enough?

Have some Blues Brothers as well!

Warning Civilians, your help is needed!

E7 Error!

E7!!

Optimus Prime needs your help (or just wants whatever he is pointing at, probably a dink)

We were called away from the music to try and stop a doll?

This I can understand, but really, a doll?!

Of course not, this was the Horror Makeup Show!

What's this?

Hop?

Ohhh, the film about a bunny!

Garfield didn't want candy so instead

This was actually due to Macy's parade. The All Star Parade didn't happen while we were there so every half hour one of the 4 floats/routines would come out and do a performance followed by a meet and greet. The 4 acts were Hop, Despicable Me, Dora, and SpongeBob! On our first day it was a huge surprise but a great one at that!

Shrek 4D

And to conclude let's talk about in my opinion an overly underrated ride (or highly criticised for flaws that have been resolved/improved)

Hollywood

Rip

Ride

Rockit!


This element is great, really pushes you out of your seat and a great high speed change in direction!
It's a fun ride which has massively improved since I rode it in 2009!
Opinions are free and everyone is entitled to their own but these are mine.

And this Twister of events brings us to the end.
A little write up on two things before I finish.
Transformers: Using the same technology as Spiderman this is a brilliant dark ride and is much more screen based than Spidey (that's why I prefer Spiderman over it) but it certainly feels much more involved at times with the riders being a key role to the story.
Despicable Me: The ride basis is exactly the same as Jimmy Neutron but just a much more complete experience with more pre shows and guest interaction. And MINIONS! Enough said.
So thanks again for reading and we hope to see you one more time!

This latest instalment even has adventure in the name, welcome to Islands of Adventure!
Let's take it one island at a time!

And let us start in the wacky world of Suess!

Which home to one fish, no two fish, are they red fish or blue fish though?

And an exceedingly unique carousel!
Moving on from Suess we enter the Lost Continent! Which now feels even more lost.




Sinbad, a decent show when you ignore the construction going on behind it.

Now time to enter the place many will be wanting to see...

The Wizardring World of Harry Potter!




This actually moves!

And the first challenge, Dragon Challenge!



Champions you are ready for battle good luck!


Hagrid's hut!

With a Hippogriff!

And the masterpiece of the whole area

Forbidden Journey!

Yes it is a massive shed behind but up front it is sure impressive!


Bye bye Hogsmeade

And hello Jurassic Park!

Home to

DINOSAURS

Of course


And this beautiful view!


Wonder what happens here?

This happens!

Moving on

Toon Lagoon!


Best water ride I have been on.


And last but not least, Marvel SuperHero Island!


And The Hulk!!!




A view from Port of Entry

And the car park concludes this chapter! Don't worry, more photos of Islands will be appearing in the night time photo edition! But until then, thanks for reading and join us again at Universal Studios!

Here it is, my blog on my trip to Florida! It will be split up into 5 entries, 1 on each of the parks: SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, LEGOLAND Florida, Islands of Adventure, Universal Studios.
Because it is always such a relaxed park and was the start and end to our holiday, first up is SeaWorld!

It's just a lovely place to walk into and as the holidays were approaching, everywhere was all Christmassy! What more could you want?
Of course, a B&M flyer with a water splash right in front of you as you turn the corner.

What's its name I hear you ask...

And up they go!
The ride is amazing, such force on the pretzel loop and a great flying experience with some decent interaction with the waterfall entrance feature. Definitely stands proud on SeaWorld's skyline! What also makes this ride great is that if you hate rides, there is a lovely aquarium next door which shares the tank you walk past in the ride queue and has some of its own species such as an octopus.


Moving on we find ourselves at yet more stingrays, so we must be at Stingray Lagoon!

This pool allows you to stroke (if that's what you'd call it) stingrays! They do like to splash around though which is always good fun!
On our way to Trek with some Turtles, these fellas swam by.

Blue Horizons (dolphin show) is a great mix of music, colour and dolphins.


Woah dude!

Look a turtle!

2 turtles!
Turtle Trek is a lovely new attraction. Whilst I wasn't a massive fan of having to queue to see the underwater viewing, 5 minutes isn't bad and the 3D 360 degree movie was a great story! And the music in that area is so calming and relaxing.
Time for some sunbathing.

Who doesn't love alligators?

Journey To Atlantis was next and I have to say, this is the ride that needs refurbing next! The dark ride bit is seriously outdated in its effects, makes little sense and is wasted potential. It just shows how old it is especially with the dark rides being made by Uni. Other than that, a good fun water ride with a coastery final drop.

The Kraken awaited us!

Fortunately it was wide awake so we didn't have to disturb it.

Poor Kraken never gets any sleep with these sea lions and gulls around!

Pirate Island! Clyde and Seamore save the day in what has to be my favourite show at SeaWorld. The humour is great and the audience interaction is amazing. A tip for everyone, get to this show 20 minutes early, it is so worth being there that early!

Next up we travelled to a different place entirely, Antarctica!

Where they also celebrate Christmas.


This icy world transports you to the freezing cold penguin environment.



The enclosure is superb! The ride good fun (mild is very mild wild is basically mild) but nonetheless a decent ride and a big improvement on the old penguin area.

Continuing on we ascended this 300ft SkyTower.

Previously you've had to pay for this but now it is free for everyone and offers some great views of the park and surrounding area. You can clearly see the Epcot ball, Tower of Terror, Space Mountain and Doctor Dooms Freefall.




Jaws I mean Shark Encounter followed and hopefully this will be the next enclosure to get a refurb once the Shamu one is complete.



We then had a go on the flamingo boats.

Saw some actual flamingos and went on the quest for Shamu!

As Shamu's area was being improved I hereby name this squirrel who was on the construction fence Shamu (We could have watched the show but always missed it and weren't overly fussed.

The Polar Express will help us move along swiftly...
To the end of our Sea World adventure, but don't fear, the adventure will continue at Busch Gardens very soon!

Alarm set for 4am. Check

Pin badges and Oswald hat ready. Check

Coffee. Check

It was time to take on the ultimate theme park challenge, 24 hours in two of the busiest theme parks in the world. Even on paper it doesn’t sound easy. Luckily there was things on our side. We knew Pirates of the Caribbean and ‘it’s a small world’ would have reopened so extra capacity at Disneyland. We knew kids wouldn't be able to take on this challenge and we knew many wouldn’t attempt such a feat so the first few hours were cruical. So with that in mind, we arrived via driving through the middle of Los Angeles at Disneyland at around 5:45. A giant Olaf snowman had been sculpted on the entrance way and to open the parks was none other then Josh Gadd, of Frozen fame. He spoke about living near Disney World (BOO!) and how he takes his kids to the Disney parks like a right of passage. With that the parks were opened.



Oh hey Olaf!


Fireworks get the parks opened! Here we go!


We had decided early on to get into California Adventure first and grab a Radiator Springs fastpass. Our thinking was to get the busiest rides out the way first so we could relax on the longer rides later in the day. We grabbed ourself an information leaflet for the day and bad news. Radiator Springs, Tower and California Screamin’ wouldn’t be opening till eight. That left us two hours to find something to do. We tried Toy Story Midway Mania but that wasn’t ready yet, so Little Mermaid was chosen. We then had a go on Soarin’ which opened at 6:30, and then onto Mickey’s Fun Wheel. Wow. This is a ferris wheel which offers stationary pods and ones that swing violently. We naturally chose swinging and what a ride. Seriously more intense then it looks and only the second ride I’ve done that offers sick bags in the pods. It was now around 7:30 and we decided to head towards Flo’s via Radiator Springs to see if fast pass was available. SUCCESS! It was. Whilst Chris went to get the coffees, I grabbed our fastpasses which was for 9:30am. We relaxed for a bit, after all, there was plenty of time left. 8 o clock was finally upon us and we went for a ride on the Tower (grabbing a fast pass too) which was as spell bounding as ever, a ride on Heimlichs chew chew train, Tower then took a gamble. We decided to queue for RC Racers, after all fast pass hadn’t started and this was the only reasonable time to try it. If you know the queueline, we were just under the bridge near the entrance. From there it took us exactly 18 minutes to get onto the ride. Faster then using fast pass the week before. So there you go people, the detrimental effects of any fast pass system right in front of your eyes. We decided therefore to do it again. And it took us 15 minutes this time. People have queued six hours for this thing and here we were essentially casually strolling on without a care in the world.

Astounded by this turn of luck, our fast pass turn was quickly upon us. And then it broke down. We had to wait an hour for it to come back to life, so I decided to have a lie down instead of getting depressed about things.





Finally free we descended on California Screamin’, grabbing a fast pass and queuing for Toy Story Mania. It took about 25 minutes to get on and we got exactly the same score somehow. With five minutes remaining till our fastpass, we rode King Tritons Carousel and then rode Screamin’, good as ever. It was now around 11:30 and basically time to jump ships and visit Disneyland. It only seemed natural that our first stop should be Pirates of the Caribbean but naturally we grabbed an Indianna Jones fast pass. Now Pirates. This is a classic ride and no mistake. It makes the Florida and Paris versions look like mere imitations in my opinion.This version evokes such an incredible atmosphere, there is just something about being transported away to that period of time, to not be able to see the roof of the shed sticking out in the pirate boat attack scene or for the journey to be more leisurely paced then its brothers. Captain Jack isn’t necessary but he doesn't detract from this enriching, engaging experience. It’s popularity here is incredible. Hundreds of people joining the queue every minute, each one eagerly anticipating Walt’s last ride he was involved in before he died. I loved it. It’s my favourite ride at Disneyland.


Alas, it was time to move on, we ended up in Fantasyworld for a little ride on its a small world. This one takes on the Paris look of having an outside loading area but unlike Paris, this one is a series of show rooms and not just one big warehouse. And here the props are far much larger and interesting then I’ve seen previously. My favourite hula girls also appeared here with speedy hips so that made me happy. Time for a ride on the other side of Matterhorn, the Tomorrowland side. Felt quite similar to the other one although Chris found this side rougher. We still had a while until Indianna Jones so we entered Tomorrowland and rode on Buzz Lightyear’s Spin thing. I officially hate all three versions of this ride so far. Dull, Dull, Dull. At least this one didn’t have fastpass. Before heading to Indianna we grabbed a fast pass for Star Tours, went and had some chicken on Main Street then rode Indianna Jones Temple where some more effects seemed to be working this time. That was good. With luck our Star Tours fast pass time was upon us but before we headed over that way we grabbed a Thunder Mountain night time ride fast pass and knowing the parade was on, waited near the Storybook Canal Boats. Somehow this had alluded us on our trips, it business and random closing times meaning we never got a look in. This time we somehow started the queue for it, meaning we’d be the first on when it reopened. Totally different world to Paris where there it’s walk on all the time. I like the cast members talking to us though, nice feature. Rode Star Tours then headed down to potentially queue for Splash. I wasn’t keen, 65 minutes for a ride that I don’t really like wasn’t worth it so we queued five minutes for Winnie the Pooh instead. By now it was around six o clock and to slow the pace down a bit we headed to Fantasyland to get rides on Pinocchio and Snow White. With twelve hours left of the day we still felt okay to carry on but it is hard going to keep the energy levels high.

Fastpass Top trumps. I think I win.

We decided not to bother with Space Mountain either and decided to get some snacks to give us an energy boost. It was soon time for Fantasmic and the fireworks. We didn’t move once Fantasmic ended, instead choosing to watch the fireworks from a distance. Works just as well. Our plan was to try and get on Pirates before the second Fantasmic started but unfortunately got caught in the one way system. So instead we had a go on Jungle Cruise which was walk on. The cast member this time was a bit of a mumbler so didn’t catch much of her jokes. We got off and Fantasmic was about to start. We darted into Pirates queue and luckily wouldn't be exciting as Fantasmic finishes (would be disaster). Pirates <3

After our ride we went and saw the Tiki room show which I am a big fan off. This was a chance to rest our feet, necessary after nearly 18 hours of Disney parks. After Tiki, it was Thunder Mountain time where the fast pass queue and stand by queue had become one big sprawl of people; it wasn’t pretty but we made it. And what a ride in the dark it is. So much fun especially as its barely lit up at all. Wonderful stuff. We had no more fast pass energy left and somehow we ended up in Tomorrowland. Space Mountain seemed to be dead so we decided to ride Autopia. I hate this ride too, it seems like such an unnecessary waste of space especially in a park as small and compact as this. Unfortunately we also had to sit in the car for ages as one had stopped somewhere around the circuit. BROKEN! We were evacuated from the ride and decided to call it a day at Disneyland. California Adventure was calling with a 3am showing of World of Colour. There’s nothing like standing in the cold at 3am in the morning and being sprayed with water for thirty minutes. With Screamin’ and Radiator Springs Racers closing at 4 we raced (pun not intended) over to get a go but both had closed already and with Tower the only major ride still running after 4 (but with a tasty 120 minute queue) we decided to call it a day. We’d made it to 22 hours and I especially knew I had driving to do in the morning.



TOWER! I love you but 120 minutes is just to long at 4 in the morning.

So what can I say about the day. It is a hard hard day of theme parking and takes the patience of a saint. It says something that the night-time shows finish and you still have essentially a day at Alton Towers left before the parks close. I whole-heartedly recommend it though as the parks have a special atmosphere like no other. Getting on Pirates was the icing on the cake.

And with that, thats the theme park side of the holiday done and dusted. Whilst I would love to have done some of the other parks in the area, that can be done another time around. For now though, we had done some of the most famous theme parks in America and I have to say I was so impressed with the rides on the west coast. The B&M's and Intamins in Florida are kind of hit and miss but over in California, each one was ridable and enjoyable. Special mention goes to the two floor less coasters of Medusa and Scream. They were great.
I'd like to thank anyone thats read all my trip reports. You guys rule

As part of the 2-4-1 deal TPM was given for the new VIP experiences, a group of us went down to go behind the scenes and ascend 127 feet.
We began our day going into Stealth's bunker where the launch system sits. The size of it is ridiculous! There are a few photos of Inatamin accelerator hydraulic systems around the internet but they don't do it justice! It also makes the coolest noise ever when it launches unfortunately, no picture were allowed down here so here's one of everyone's favourite Stealth element.

I also really like this photo

Next we headed up to the console where we saw people press buttons and how the system registers where a train is at any one time. For anyone who loves codes, Code Bronze is where it doesn't launch (because the dog is out of the 3mm tolerance on the 3 tonne catch car), Code Silver is a rollback and Code Gold is a stall at the top of the ride.

We were however allowed out onto the platform thingy of the station to take pictures



Yes, we also got to wear fancy hi-vis jackets alongside our steel toe capped boats.

Still amazes me that this thing is 3 tonnes!
We then headed under the station to watch a launch and here the dog fall into the catchcar (that's what the lovely ping noise it makes while moving back and forth before launch is) and then down the metal path to the warehouse.






In the workshop we were lucky to see one of the trains that is operational this season (don't ask me why it was in there and not operational, surprisingly that wasn't a question that came to mind). In here we saw them drop the dog and realised how little actually touches the catchcar to launch it. There was also a cannibalised train which they rebuild over the season so over winter they only have to strip down one train as the other is done during the season. We were then meant to head to Saw but we overran at Stealth (2 hours we were there for ) so were given The Swarm's workshop before our lift hill walk.

Wee!

With 10 of us around this hatch taking pictures, people soon began to wave and shout at us

We waited around for it to close and then watched the magical transfer table move!

Although it may look slow, you have to remember it's carrying a ridiculously heavy train and it is moving as fast as possible as this was requested by the park and B&M set it to the fastest safest speed.
The track locks into place

We all ran away


And in it came!
Like other B&Ms, the wheel bogeys are left completely open making it easy to inspect and change without having to move the train (like you have to on those wretched Intamin rides) so the train runs on a set of wheel in the middle and two rails where a slot between the seat runs along.

And out we went

To the control booth

Sun setting

To ascend this!



Still going


Higher

And we made it

And what a view it is!






Quick panoramic of the park

And it was time to come down
Few things, the park went to B&M and asked how they'd go about making it backwards. They considered alternating rows, one whole train backwards and the other forwards and in the end when with what we have due to the queueing situation. B&M supplied four new chassis for it and they do still have the other four for when it went forwards so it may return but for now it will remain as it is as it's still proving popular. The engineers do try and keep the theming in working condition and even want to replace the sign as its peeling away but budgets say other things and it's not always possible for them to fix effects such as the water spray and fire as their job is to get the ride operational and often by the time they've done that it's open and they can't get to the effects. The gas tower was also mentioned and they are looking into bringing back the fire especially with ABL now open but again budget and time says otherwise.
Was a great day and the view from Swarm's lift is amazing!

Goodnight Swarm.

As part of the 2-4-1 deal TPM was given for the new VIP experiences, a group of us went down to go behind the scenes and ascend 127 feet.
We began our day going into Stealth's bunker where the launch system sits. The size of it is ridiculous! There are a few photos of Inatamin accelerator hydraulic systems around the internet but they don't do it justice! It also makes the coolest noise ever when it launches unfortunately, no picture were allowed down here so here's one of everyone's favourite Stealth element.

I also really like this photo

Next we headed up to the console where we saw people press buttons and how the system registers where a train is at any one time. For anyone who loves codes, Code Bronze is where it doesn't launch (because the dog is out of the 3mm tolerance on the 3 tonne catch car), Code Silver is a rollback and Code Gold is a stall at the top of the ride.

We were however allowed out onto the platform thingy of the station to take pictures



Yes, we also got to wear fancy hi-vis jackets alongside our steel toe capped boats.

Still amazes me that this thing is 3 tonnes!
We then headed under the station to watch a launch and here the dog fall into the catchcar (that's what the lovely ping noise it makes while moving back and forth before launch is) and then down the metal path to the warehouse.






In the workshop we were lucky to see one of the trains that is operational this season (don't ask me why it was in there and not operational, surprisingly that wasn't a question that came to mind). In here we saw them drop the dog and realised how little actually touches the catchcar to launch it. There was also a cannibalised train which they rebuild over the season so over winter they only have to strip down one train as the other is done during the season. We were then meant to head to Saw but we overran at Stealth (2 hours we were there for ) so were given The Swarm's workshop before our lift hill walk.

Wee!

With 10 of us around this hatch taking pictures, people soon began to wave and shout at us

We waited around for it to close and then watched the magical transfer table move!

Although it may look slow, you have to remember it's carrying a ridiculously heavy train and it is moving as fast as possible as this was requested by the park and B&M set it to the fastest safest speed.
The track locks into place

We all ran away


And in it came!
Like other B&Ms, the wheel bogeys are left completely open making it easy to inspect and change without having to move the train (like you have to on those wretched Intamin rides) so the train runs on a set of wheel in the middle and two rails where a slot between the seat runs along.

And out we went

To the control booth

Sun setting

To ascend this!



Still going


Higher

And we made it

And what a view it is!






Quick panoramic of the park

And it was time to come down
Few things, the park went to B&M and asked how they'd go about making it backwards. They considered alternating rows, one whole train backwards and the other forwards and in the end when with what we have due to the queueing situation. B&M supplied four new chassis for it and they do still have the other four for when it went forwards so it may return but for now it will remain as it is as it's still proving popular. The engineers do try and keep the theming in working condition and even want to replace the sign as its peeling away but budgets say other things and it's not always possible for them to fix effects such as the water spray and fire as their job is to get the ride operational and often by the time they've done that it's open and they can't get to the effects. The gas tower was also mentioned and they are looking into bringing back the fire especially with ABL now open but again budget and time says otherwise.
Was a great day and the view from Swarm's lift is amazing!

Goodnight Swarm.

As part of the 2-4-1 deal TPM was given for the new VIP experiences, a group of us went down to go behind the scenes and ascend 127 feet.
We began our day going into Stealth's bunker where the launch system sits. The size of it is ridiculous! There are a few photos of Inatamin accelerator hydraulic systems around the internet but they don't do it justice! It also makes the coolest noise ever when it launches unfortunately, no picture were allowed down here so here's one of everyone's favourite Stealth element.

I also really like this photo

Next we headed up to the console where we saw people press buttons and how the system registers where a train is at any one time. For anyone who loves codes, Code Bronze is where it doesn't launch (because the dog is out of the 3mm tolerance on the 3 tonne catch car), Code Silver is a rollback and Code Gold is a stall at the top of the ride.

We were however allowed out onto the platform thingy of the station to take pictures



Yes, we also got to wear fancy hi-vis jackets alongside our steel toe capped boats.

Still amazes me that this thing is 3 tonnes!
We then headed under the station to watch a launch and here the dog fall into the catchcar (that's what the lovely ping noise it makes while moving back and forth before launch is) and then down the metal path to the warehouse.






In the workshop we were lucky to see one of the trains that is operational this season (don't ask me why it was in there and not operational, surprisingly that wasn't a question that came to mind). In here we saw them drop the dog and realised how little actually touches the catchcar to launch it. There was also a cannibalised train which they rebuild over the season so over winter they only have to strip down one train as the other is done during the season. We were then meant to head to Saw but we overran at Stealth (2 hours we were there for ) so were given The Swarm's workshop before our lift hill walk.

Wee!

With 10 of us around this hatch taking pictures, people soon began to wave and shout at us

We waited around for it to close and then watched the magical transfer table move!

Although it may look slow, you have to remember it's carrying a ridiculously heavy train and it is moving as fast as possible as this was requested by the park and B&M set it to the fastest safest speed.
The track locks into place

We all ran away


And in it came!
Like other B&Ms, the wheel bogeys are left completely open making it easy to inspect and change without having to move the train (like you have to on those wretched Intamin rides) so the train runs on a set of wheel in the middle and two rails where a slot between the seat runs along.

And out we went

To the control booth

Sun setting

To ascend this!



Still going


Higher

And we made it

And what a view it is!






Quick panoramic of the park

And it was time to come down
Few things, the park went to B&M and asked how they'd go about making it backwards. They considered alternating rows, one whole train backwards and the other forwards and in the end when with what we have due to the queueing situation. B&M supplied four new chassis for it and they do still have the other four for when it went forwards so it may return but for now it will remain as it is as it's still proving popular. The engineers do try and keep the theming in working condition and even want to replace the sign as its peeling away but budgets say other things and it's not always possible for them to fix effects such as the water spray and fire as their job is to get the ride operational and often by the time they've done that it's open and they can't get to the effects. The gas tower was also mentioned and they are looking into bringing back the fire especially with ABL now open but again budget and time says otherwise.
Was a great day and the view from Swarm's lift is amazing!

Goodnight Swarm.