HermanTheGerman

See, in some respects I like the new map, but it is just so cluttered and un-navigateable, something which the old map did so well. On the FB crop, it looked so neat and tidy, now its a little bit of an explosion of everything. But hey, at least Scorpion looks like El Diablo.

I think one coaster, four flats, and two water rides constitutes as major...

Yet it's still got less shut than Thorpe...

The new marketing team are just so beyond good. Its no wonder the park did as well as it did in 2014.

Thats rediculous. I was planning on going then!

FYI, they were testing Tomb for 1/2 an hour half way through the day. Obviously it was unsuccessful, so I would assume its a bit of a bigger issue than anticipated. Scorpion however, they were advertising as shut at the entrance.

I was there until the bitter end, and neither opened.

For what it is, the event looks rather nice. But I struggle to justify spending £12.50 for seven rides. It's nowhere near enough to fill a day, which makes me wonder why they even bothered. The public seem to have had the same thoughts though, with the event being dead in comparison to the other two parks.

Reviews haven't been at all bad either. With the only real issue being Bubbleworks' closure. And extending by an hour and a half?! They don't do that in the main season! Well done to them!

Well, the option of buying fastrack has now been removed from the website too. Perhaps they've realised the error of their ways?

I'm fairly sure it will have something to do with the resort side of things though. Perhaps the dome?

With sharks and sleeping implied, I'm praying its not hotel related...

Well, doesn't that say a lot about Merlin's investments.

The thing is though, you could ignore Time Voyagers. Storm Surge on the other hand is a monstrosity right in the centre of the park, hidden by nothing.

Based on closed season photos showing no improvements.

I'd be fine with no addition if I knew it was being spent elsewhere. Sadly, I don't think thats gonna happen.

See, in some instances, it doesn't really matter if a ride has been painted or not. For example, Vampire spends most of its time in the woods, with only a few sections close enough to the ground to be seen in detail. This is where the colouring of the track is not an issue. But for something like Colossus where there is a plaza and queue coming very close to the ride, its condition becomes extremely noticeable. If you spoke to a random guest about the condition of Vampire's track, I doubt they would notice, but with Colossus, it comes so close that its kinda hard not to notice.

See, I have to disagree. They come across as being extremely dedicated to solving the issues of the Charterhouse/DIC era. The Market Square overhaul has improved the area no end. It looks more classy and inviting than the original ever did. Other than maybe parts of the flooring, none of it was required. Merlin went out of their way to improve the park for virtually no return. They've given Transylvania, Pirates' Cove and Mexicana nice repaints and refurbishments, which as you said was one of their "issues". All of this wasn't cheap, and it doesn't equate to higher attendance. In fact, they only areas that acctually look rundown are Forbidden Kingdom and Mystic East. Both of which we know are 'on the list'. It obviously takes a while to change a park, you can't do it all in one season. But what they did for 2014, set out the foundations for what looks set to be a rapidly changing and improving park. They will be looking at tackling FK and ME in the future, but its important not to do it all at once, otherwise you end up with a park like Legoland, with nowhere to go.

If that is it then that's beyond poor. Surely they could do Teacups, X, Detonator, and Inferno as well? Even that wouldn't justify the £12.50 or £5 for AP holders.

Last year's line up was actually just Tomb, Jungle Bouncers, Jumbos and Hocus Pocus Hall. None of the others were open as Bubbleworks had suffered fire damage, and Market Square was being refurbished, making it impractical to open Seastorm and the Carousel.

Scorpion is themed on an abandoned mining town. One which has become inhabited by a mass of metal scorpions. Also, the inside section of the queue is the mine. [/offtopic]

One of my pet peeves on forums is people getting angry because I don't share the same opinion, so I am sorry that it feels like I have gone and done just that. JoshC, please don't take it the wrong way. I just wanted to prove a point about investment, and kinda got a little carried away with my love for Scorpion in the process. Apologies.

"Boringly themed powered coaster", please don't say that. What are our expectations for theming these days? Scorpion Express definitely has one of the most radical and bizarre themes seen in the UK for a long time. Not to mention how detailed it is. The flame tower also makes it interesting for those watching too, making it even less "boring". Also, around £8million without the hotel. Same cost as Zufari.

2014 saw the biggest investment into Chessington on record. Thought you might like to know that.

To be honest, I doubt Chessington do work on a cycle, their investments are very random and spazmatic. Since Merlin they've had: 2008 Small 2009 Small 2010 Medium 2011 Small 2012 Small 2013 Major 2014 Major 2015 Medium There is no real system for Chessington it would seem, I could be wrong though. Don't take this all as a lack of investment at Chessington, infact, its quite the opposite. They look to be getting the most out of any Merlin park over the next few years, its just being invested in infrastructure and long term solutions. Wait, Merlin investing in infrastructure?! I have no doubts that they will be developing the park whilst doing this, but I'd assume it all to come from re-themes and replacements rather than actual additions, again, this is mostly guessing, but look at how busy the place gets in the summer. People queue for toilets!