Matt 236

DIC I get the impression salted the park's once great atmosphere and setting. Unfortunately, Merlin seems to have continued this downward spiral through neglect, improper care and refurbishments, crippled throughputs, removal and neglect of theming, poor fastrack distribution and overbearing brand images. I regretibly missed the golden age of the park (not visiting until 2006), but have still noticed the park going downhill and mostly getting worse rather than better. There may have been some positive stuff like Wild Asia and Market Square, but the negatives outweigh I'm afraid.

Removing Kanonen won't be a big loss really, considering it feels very redundant with Helix swooshing around the other side of the park. Despite packing a good punch despite it's tiny footprint, it was certainly the weakest coaster there and I'm sure would do wonders for a smaller park. Absolutely loving the sound of this new themed area, and it's great to see the park incorporate more immersive areas and experiences. Always thought the Balder section of the park felt a bit dry in atmosphere.

If Thorpe should do anything for 2017, it should be a large park TLC scheme, and bring the park back upto scratch whilst continuing to advertise Derren Brown's Ghost Train. Much of the park including Colossus, Old Town, Rumba and even Inferno (in a way) are all in states that aren't really acceptable for a park of this prominence. knowing trends though, they'll probably slap bang a low capacity attraction with an IP and only TLC things to a very basic level.

X in 2013 was actually surprisingly good. Now I think for some reason, that momentum feels less. Whether that be the change in music, lower volumes or the mandatory two person rule, which has crippled throughput. Compared to Vogel Rock and Eurosat, this ride is sadly inferior, although better than Night Hawk.

The size of the fine does not surprise me at all. Hopefully with this out of the way we can move on from this terrible accident and ensure this never happens again. Had ad this been any other UK park that had received such a fine, bankruptcy round be happened surely.

Yes, I a,ways thought Merlin didn't invest much in new rides when they built The Smiler, Derren Brown and Atlantis. kanonen on the other hand isn't a big loss for the park and would probably benefit a smaller park like Oakwood or something.

Great, here comes Galactica 2. Cant say I'm a massive fan of this, but hopefully Sea World can do wonders and it won't cripple the throughout. Fingers crossed a non VR option will still be available.

Inverts VS Dive coasters in Europe Dive Coasters: Oblivion Krake Oblivion The Black Hole Baron 1898 The one opening at Liseberg Inverts: Nemesis Katun Batman La Fuga Nemesis Inferno Black Mamba Monster Oziris So there are seven inverts verses four (soon to be five) dive machines. Could be a lot worse in all honesty. On the positive this ride does something different to the other coasters, considering Balder is wood, Lisebergbanen is Helixes and Helix has everything except a vertical drop.

I'm really liking the look of the new afterburner. If the styling of Mechanica and Aerospin is anything to go, it will be excellently themed for a flat. not sure about the dive coaster as that ride type feels a little overdone lately with things like Baron and Valravan, but could still be something special. I'm guessing this is going on the newly purchased land beside the Fairy Tale ride?

Edited for accuracy. Thats Merlin's Chessington for you I'm afraid. If it ain't Africa, Animals or hotels, they don't want to know about it.

Fingers crossed this place can be saved/brought up. I know it probably isn't the best park out there, but it would be a massive shame to lose yet another park like we lost American Adventure, Camelot and Loudoun Castle. not to mention they have a Sweet Factory ride similar to the Bubbleworks and a half decent ghost train too.

Me and Terror Tomb are coming to this meet. I will be doing face it alone too. Tomb is still deciding.

Well, it was good whilst it lasted but Samurai has died again. (source Theme Park Guide) Glad to see it keep up it's tradition as a statue for Fright Nights.

Still better than Rumba though in their current states though. The Rapids at parks like Phantasialand, Efteling and Europathough are vastly superior and better kept too.

Rumba really needs a massive overhaul and refurbishment as the ride has been very rundown and neglected for the last five years (if not longer). The Rapids aren't a patch on Vikings and Congo in their current state, let alone Fjord, Pirana and River Quest. A modest refurbishment in an off year would be ten times better than a shoehorned low capacity walk through.

Yes I Do

Safe to say watching that was rather disturbing, especially hearing the bang when you know the crash occurred. This accident could have been avoided if the right methods were implemented.

25 minutes for me if the traffic is good. If it's not so good, maybe 45.

Visited Phantasialand last weekend with a couple of other TPM members and was very impressed by the place. Taron is an absolutely amazing coaster and a firm favourite, but not a Helix beater. Chiapas was fab, River Quest was mad, Maus Au Chocolate, Winjas and Colorado were also good and Mamba was better than expected. Nighthawk was long and dull, Hollywood looks like it's seen better days and Wakobato was just awful. My full trip report can be seen Here Next big thing at the park should definitely be another modern dark ride considering 2/3 of the existing ones are on the chopping block and 1/2 others have been removed in the last couple of years.

I'm just awaiting the day the Merlin effect happens, Loggers is abruptly announced as permantly closed through a dribblly FAQ post followed by outrage from most. I really want to see Loggers return, but am doubtful seeing how Merlin work. The only thing that would make this closure acceptable would be if a woodie and/or a modern flume like Chiapas were the replacement

Very saddened to hear this as I've heard they've been struggling for years. was only talking about trying to visit here at somepoint the other day, but that's probably not happening now. Another UK park fatality. Sad times.

I'm sure it will still be acceptable, as after all much of what Europa do is beyond or highly acceptable. The problem is, everyone is seeing it as being a Europa version of Soarin, but it could be standalone in its own right.

2016 has certainly been one of my best years for visiting new amazing parks, being lucky enough to visit Europa Park, Liseberg, Paultons Park and Drayton Manor (I suppose). This September though, things would become even more fantastic as I was to experience my first time. The first time I would be visiting Phantasialand. This is a park I've been wanting to visit now for a longtime, hearing how flawless the theming and attention to detail was here and the quality of the rides; at least most of them anyway. Berlin street is certainly a magical entrance into the park (at least once you escape the main road directly outside). Especially once you walk past the grand carousel and intricate street with themed food outlets whilst listening to upbeat dramatic orchestral music. It's almost like being in Disney. 2016 brings to the park a major new investment, Klugheim. A brand new themed area featuring two new roller coasters and two new food outlets. The headliner attraction of the new area is Taron. A multilaunch coaster from Intamin. Taron is certainly an amazing looking attraction and rides as good as she looks. From the momentum of the first launch to the twists and turns amongst moments of ejector airtime through the articulated rock work straight into that second launch. Taron may not quite be a Helix beater, but she is definitely a worthwhile addition to the park amongst it's tangled track, superb soundtrack right down to the brand new restraints which are significantly better to the Rita/Stealth ones. My only major criticism of the ride probably has to be the massive cattlepen, which resides at the back of the area and remains remarkably hidden. Raik is also a great junior boomerang and probably my favourite so far, putting Veloceraptor into a close second. The main eatery Rutmoore's Tavern is a great place to go for lunch too and serves some decent hearty meals. I had a pork knuckle meal served with salad and potatoes which was of very good quality. Certainly of the best park eateries I've visited and maybe only second to Polle's and Food Loop. Klugheim aside, there are plenty of other top quality attractions at Phantasialand. Including Chiapas, an amazing modern log flume with a steep drop, dark ride sections and superb theming. Nailed it! An amazing floor less topspin known as Talocan, which is almost like watching a show off-ride. Black Mamba, a superbly themed B&M invert which beats Inferno but Nemesis (on layout st least). Can't believe I didn't take any (poor) pictures of it. Colorado Adventure, a Vekoma mine train that features three lifts that never get boring. The forces from that twists and turns especially entering those tunnels is exhilarating to say the least. Safe to say my photography is not always acceptable. Winjas was a surprisingly good duel Maurer spinning coaster which features two tracks called Force and Fear. Fear was the favourite due to feeling longer as a whole. Maus Au Chocolate, an interactive dark ride where you shoot guns throughout different scenes trying to stop mice from infesting a chocolate factory. The smells were nice too and guns far better than those blocky things on Tomb Blaster. And no trip to Phantasialand would be complete without a ride on the classic River Quest. Honestly, these Rapids are crazy in the best way possible and make Rumba Rapids look like a slow carousel in comparison. Mystery Castle has to be one of the most mysterious rides in the park. This castle structure hides a number of massive drop towers which shoot up and down completely enclosed in the tower. David and I got the longer cycle (we believe) whilst Lou watched as she doesn't like drop towers. Better than Chessington. One of the park's older rides is Geister Riksha, a Chinese themed ghost train attraction. It is pretty dated in parts, but definitely upheld much charm throughout the ride. Amongst the great theming and rides alongside it, the park's shows should not be ignored. We decided to watch the Ice Show which featured a college style theme. The costumes and mixture of music made for a great watch. Especially when one of the dancers seems to resemble TPM's very own Liam-T. Whilst this place has so many good rides, it does have quite a share of not so good rides however, like this (supposed) splash battle, Wakobato. This ride is so close to houses, you may as well be in their back garden. Honestly, what's the point in this ride? You don't get wet, there's no scoring system, the theming is repetive. There is literally no point in this ride existing. The Hollywood tour certainly hasn't aged well as is very dated in places. The Wizard of OZ and Kong sections really look worn and creepy in some ways too. Feng Ju Palace (theming aside) may be the worst madhouse I've been on so far. What's the point of that pre-show? It was honestly just like watching a boring stretched out version of Street Fighter. And Nighthawk, was just strange in one of the dullest ways possible. Three lift hills going around in complete darkness. Only real positives were the station looked nice and the lift hill lights were acceptable. Final Thoughts Phantasialand is a truly magical and immersive park, adding plenty of intricate between the different areas, whether that be the African or Mystery areas. Klugheim is well and truly an amazing area and certainly one of the best themed areas in Europa (let alone 2016). Taron is an amazing attraction and certainly the new signature ride the park deserves. Of course like every park, there are down sides. For example some of the park's older rides are looking particularly worn and dated compared to it's recent stuff. Take Hollywood and Nighthawk for example, it almost feels a different park when you compare them to something like Chiapas or Maus Au Chocolate. However I've heard they are on the chopping block anyway. A nice modern dark ride or two and a modern dark ride coaster would fit this park perfectly. The final question-does it beat Europa Park? Phantasialand really did blow me away and is one of the most parks I have ever visited. Unfortunately though, it doesn't quite beat Europa Park (though it is close). Europa for me is such a vast sized park that there's literally tonnes of things to do yet feels very relaxed regardless of busyness. The complimenting themed areas and its updates to rides new and old may also help it greatly here. Europa are also pretty relaxed when it comes to safety, to the degree they don't check every ride and allow filming (if equipment is secure). At Phantasia, they are very strict on this, to the level where even Go Pros are banned on all rides including the likes of Maus Au Chocolate. As a result I was told off on the Hollywood ride, let alone a coaster. Rant aside, it's a minor set back, but at the end of the day I go to parks to get immersed and enjoy rides. Not make POVS or YouTube hits (even if it seems like it). To wrap this up, Phantasialand is a park everyone needs to visit. It has some greats rides and theming and is pretty easy to get too as well from Cologne Bonn Airport. Two days should be enough for most, but it could be stretched to three quite easily. Favourite ride of the trip. Taron of course.

Going by Stealth at Thorpe, this ride will be able to run two trains at once. However unfortunately this ride isn't stealth and it isn't at Thorpe, and hearing about PA's operations of late is not a good thing. If Stealth's throughput is approximately 900-1000 PPH on two trains of 20 riders, then this will have considerably lower throughput. This may be in the region of 550-650 PPH on two trains, but could be even less, hearing how they like running things on just one train.

Think we have the 2016 winners of TPM's cutest couple right here.