Glitch

I love this part of the year looking at post with people guessing on forum with a big grin on my face as I know what lies ahead and before anyone ask I'm not allowed to say or hint about anything sorry

From what I've heard, that is the plan.

I can see FN slowly developing into our own HHN.

Well Fright Nights 2013 was a big success (in my opinion) and a huge improvement on 2012. We saw two new mazes, a new scare zone and the return of their best maze (imo) which had improved greatly on previous years.
For next year I would like to see them work on consistency - for example at times MBV was brilliant, whereas at other times it was poor.
Overall a great year for Fright Nights, but in my opinion the best year of Fright Nights was 2011.
Went to Fright Nights 5 times this year!

Air isn't all that. Really unimpressed. Felt like one of the poorer settings of Samurai.

You've answered your own question there. To make sure people travel a mile each time, without abusing the SINGLE RIDER queue.
Least they actually let you use SRQ at that time, I know that they generally close it when there's no queue to prevent this occuring.
Ultimately, SRQ is to fill up empty seats on busy days, it's not there to become a substitute for the main queue which would occur if they allowed everyone on via it. It becomes completely unmanageable, and hence why they usually close it or make people ride alone so prevent them using it.

rip fright nights 2013
And is anyone planning on doing a brave it alone review now that it's over.

I won't be, unless the park specifically say on here people are allowed (which I doubt).
From what staff told me, they were really keen on having the experience return next year, and I expect there'll be similar tactics used each year, so it's best to not have it spoilt.

rip fright nights 2013
And is anyone planning on doing a brave it alone review now that it's over.

Not a positive report here I went tonight and the queues were 90 mins plus, the selling of fast track was ridiculous as in they were no where to be seen we only did aslym cabin and bloody valentine and that took 4 hours.
No actors in any queue lines or out in the park. Was mental busy and we got fed up and went home!!
Defo going on preview night only or the first weekend next year.
What a load of tosh.

Why? Fright Nights is fantastic this year.

I am horrified to see you don't have a fireworks topic for Alton Towers. Consider that rectified.
Anyway I was on park today and when not observing a certain new ride shed components, I took some more fireworks construction pics.

As you enter the park you see the following across the lake.

Notice not only the low lights but also the 3 towers. A zoom shot through the fog at one of the towers.

Scooting round the back here's one of the towers

and another

Zoomie Zoomie

Some lighting

The third tower

Some boxes

lights that don't want to become parents

the lights at the front, must be new as they still have the cellophane on them

And you would think that that was it, but no there is much more to go in.

And a total nerd shot of the gennies

I will leave you with a shot from the cable car (So excuse the washed colours, the plastic is poor to photograph through.

Spoiler filled review of my visit to Fright Night today :
Queues not really too bad on the whole, especially for rides. We managed to get on Saw, Vortex, Quantum and X before lunch, and then Nemesis Inferno, Stealth, Swarm, Rumba Rapids, Detonator, and, of course, the tea cups (which by the way seemed to be blaring really out of place Heavy Metal music but it just made the ride funnier in my opinion) also managing to fit in re-rides. This was all well and good, but the actual Fright Nights bit was slightly underwhelming in places.
Firstly: YOU'RE NEXT were nowhere to be seen all day! Clearly they were avoiding us xD in seriousness though, in future, Thorpe should really attempt to either get more roaming actors of confine them to a specific area of the park so people stand a chance of seeing them. So, onto the mazes:
*spoilers*
The Asylum: not gonna lie, I had big expectations for this one and was a bit let down. It was our first maze and the tension was hugh but it was only 'okay'. This is the first and only time I've been in it, so maybe I had a bit if a bad run, but I felt like there weren't nearly enough actors and that it was too disorientating to really be scary at all. I was leading and the strobes did little more than cause me to crash into a few walls and people and eventually it seemed like the floor and walls were moving which distracted me from what was going on xD the sirens were way too quiet and it seemed that it was timed pretty badly since we managed to bump into the group in front halfway through the maze resulting ina queue in which no actors attempted to scare us at all. This also destroyed the chainsaw ending. That said, there were a few actors that really stood out and I feel it would have been so much better had the group in front not shown up. The one good effect that the strobes creates was the actors gradually getting closer, but this isn't the type of thing that really scares me. This maze was also lacking in smoke rather a lot, you could see so much and it was a but bright in honesty. After this negative review people are probably going to disagree, but this was one run through and if id had a chance I would have done it again in the hopes of experiencing what everyone else has in there xD
Unfortunately though: 5/10
My Bloody Valentine: not gonna lie: I loved this one. Yes, it was a bit short and yes it needed a better ending but I found it to be rather good on the whole and it genuinely frightened me. I liked how the actor at the beginning stopped to explain a bit of the story, and then we were chased out by Harry Warden. The whole thing was excellently themed with plenty of actors throughout. The corridors were very narrow and since I'm claustrophobic this made me quite panicked. Our group was split down the middle and I didn't get to go down the tunnel but instead had to crouch down and push through some very squishy material, near which an actor was conveniently hiding. The little garden bit at the end was also very well themed, but needed a better ending in all honesty. Harry Warden just stood there banging his axe against the ground and I just casually strolled out. If this were longer and had an ending to send everyone running for the exit it would have easily been my favourite, however it didn't quite make it.
7/10
Cabin in the Woods: quite simply the best one! We did this twice so I'll split this review in two, but my only real complaints about this maze are that you are ushered through the doors rather than truly getting to chose and some of the staff running the maze towards the end of the night were SO rude. I get that they were probably stressed but they didn't have to act like they were so irritated with us for doing nothing wrong. I felt like we were a but if an inconvenience to them, though none of the actors ever broke character so props to them for that
1st time: this was around 7pm so it was quite busy, yet we somehow didn't manage to meet another group until the final corridor. We first went into the room themed as a forest and it was truly a brilliant room, though the scariest one for me was the one with All the white masks on the walls. We went through a rotating tunnel with a load of actors at the end and one of my friends got separated and chased off by about 3 actors. Didn't find the control room either time but I'm pretty sure I figured out where it was, the door was very locked xD this time round was pretty short, but still very good nevertheless. The themeing was amazing, the actors were really lively and top notch, I especially loved the clowns
2nd time: started this one in a pretty bad mood due to the rude attendants but soon got over it. This time round was much much scarier with more actors and we took a longer route, going first into the door in the far right. We found the basement which was creepy despite there being no actors and yet still ended up back at the rotating tunnel: is this always the way out?? There didn't seem to be any alternative. Again, the clowns were amazing this time around and the bedroom really stood out for me, with three actors all coming at us at once! Again: I feel like it needs an ending although thus time one of the actors followed us out into the exit corridor for one final scare.
Basically, a really, really good maze 9/10
Saw Alive: liked this one way more than last year I actually rate it pretty high, which is especially odd since last year I wasn't a fan despite being at the back. The one thing that has always impressed me about SAW is the theming: it is literally beautiful... In a very disturbing way. I like the beginning bathroom scene and the freezer was creepy too, though the hilight had to be a girl following me for two entire rooms stroking my hair xD she just would not leave me alone the pig men were far more effective than last year, waiting in the middle of the flaps between the rooms so you knew you had to walk right up to them. Again, an actor joined our line and followed us out which I thought was effective. The military officer at the beginning was also really good: this maze surprised me with its greatness!
Overall I'll give it 8/10 - second favourite!
*spoilers*
we didn't bother with Blair witch as we decided to do cabin again instead xD overall, despite a few blips, it was a really good night and a fun event

I really do think the fastrack system does need to be changed now as batching groups of 8 fastracks to 2 main queue does not work. As well as BWP queue line needing to be sorted as once the front gate opens people will start moving barriers to get closer to the front of the queue.

Once I've done the two trip reports and got the Crimbo meet properly up and running after I've recovered from my operation and caught up on my coursework, I will be concentrating on building up the activity in chat again. With planned chat times and also starting that weakest link for the closed season. If others want to organise chats in the meantime then by all means go ahead. Your idea James seems to be good perhaps name a time and discussion and I'm sure people will be following you in

Disgusting isn't it. And the thing is, it happens time and time again. Always exactly the same story whenever it gets busy, especially halloween half term.
I think Thorpe would simply argue that the Fastrack queue is "considerably shorter than the normal queue", which to be fair is true... Still terrible though!
The answer is to go to Fright Nights in early October when it's quiet, then do Scarefest later in the month when the parks are busier - because Alton seem to run the whole Fastrack thing better than Thorpe!
It's such a shame that Thorpe are still unable to handle a crowd

Secret source.

Whilst this may not be the exact layout/elements of Gringotts, it really makes you wonder what could be in store. It also answers the question of a recent article about where will roller coasters end up in the future. If Gringotts turns out to be anything like this then what an experience we have in store!

http://youtu.be/r56nK9PwtEo

15,243 people exactly
Queue times for the top five rides are as follows.
Stealth - Minumum queue time - 5 minutes. Maximum queue time = 83 minutes and 25 seconds
The Swarm - Minimum queue time - 5 minutes. Maximum queue time = 120 minutes and 41 seconds
Nemesis Inferno - Minimum queue time - 5 Minutes. Maximum queue time = 100 minutes and 29.4 seconds
Colossus - Minimum queue time - 5 minutes. Maximum queue time = 72 minutes and 57 seconds
Saw The Ride - Minimum queue time - 5 minutes. Maximum queue time = Infinity.
Exact enough for you?

I think that's the Saw boat.

Amazing.
Could this be a turning point in how parks view the fastrack 'service'? The feedback from summer must have been quite strong for them to miss out on all that revenue it would have generated over Halloween. When it returns, which inevitably will, we can only hope it is with a much more tightly managed system. Vastly reduced numbers, with allocated times, at a much higher price. That's what I'll be hoping for.

One thing really noticeable this year is the number of actors.
They have a lot more than in previous years, and the mazes are much better as a result of this
Well done Thorpe!

Sorry didn't see haha

thats weird the app said 8.

Hi Guys,
Got back from Chessington's Halloween Hocus Pocus yesterday and I have to say I am very very impressed! First of all I want to comment on the park. Usually Chessington is one of the best dressed in my opinion but apart from a huge amount pumpkins there wasn't much else. Although it was only open until 5 the lighting looked very impressive this year and look forward to seeing this!
The mazes, or Halloween attractions were impressive, here is my reviews;
The Mystery of Hocus Pocus Hall
This was probably the biggest surprise of the day. We queued for ages for this ride due to the very low through put. When you first enter the building you are greeted by one of the explorers helpers. She explained to us about how Sir Arthur used to collect rare items and his final item was the mystical gem. This gem transported him into another realm (as you do!). She then comes across the gem and some absolutely fantastic projections swirl around the room show you to a secret entrance. You then gain access to this portal where you come across Cleopatra, some strange man in the middle of the Jungle and finally a scurvy pirate. The mirror maze at the ending was great as you escape this other realm all though the ending was a bit anticlimactic.
All in all the theming and the acting was great and some seriously cool effects were used! Highly recommended.
The Haunting in the Hollows
This was probably the biggest surprise of the day! We got to the attraction just past the vampire at 3pm and there was absoutley no queue! This was a great surprise ;-) and we were then briefed before we made our way through the gates. You are first greeted by Van Helsing who tells you about the strange happenings. You then make your way through the town before you come across a hearse. A strange man starts shouting at you before you are ushered into a coffin shop where you are cornered by a vampire. Making your way our you enter the Tomb of Dracula where an awesome scene comes about featuring Dracula. There was a fantastic strobe finale and it was great fun.
All in all was very impressed by all the acting and the mazes themselves and the park just need to open a bit later to enjoy the fantastic lighting they have installed! Would recommend visiting Chessington this year for Halloween! For some more pictures check out my [url=http://www.flickr.com/themeparkmania[/url]Flickr




Thanks for reading ;-)