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Pete_A

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Everything posted by Pete_A

  1. I really don't get the "big reveal" that Merlin do. They start building a ride and hide what it is for xx number of months in a season. Why? What does it achieve apart from a sense of mystery? Jeez, just say whats going to be built and save all the time, effort AND MONEY into promoting something which only a few thousand coaster / park enthusiasts are interested in anyway. Really makes me chuckle. Construction starts... launch the product and say what its going to be. Build the excitement in the park.... Get people talking about it when they see the reveal boards. Even have a little stand explaining whats coming. Guests can then build there own excitement and with the power of word of mouth marketing, do there job for them. "Wow, were getting a Derren Brown designed ride for next year.", "Urg I hate Derren Brown, but I bet it will be great", "I saw his stage show last year, this will be brill.". Get people talking about it themselves. But no... just these tedious campaigns.... Yawn....
  2. Curse of the Dark Castle at Busch Gardens Williamsburg is still great. I also really enjoy Maus as Chocolat and Hollywood Tower of Terror.
  3. Some interesting conversations in here. For me, although I adore coasters, I also love everything else about theme parks, including dark rides. So when I was wandering around Thorpe Park on Sunday during the 2 hours of torrential rain, getting thoroughly soaked, the parks lack of certain attractions became very apparent. Not just the lack of dark rides, but lack of shows (other than the 4D) and lack of covered queuelines. Oh how I would have welcomed the addition of a couple of dark rides / experiences to keep me dry. This is Thorpes problem for me. Being a "thrill" park full of coasters and flats is all well and good, but there has to be supporting attractions. Unless the coasters are all World class, which hardly ever happens at a park, you find yourself riding them, just for the sake of riding them (well I do anyway). TP is the only major park in the UK that doesn't have a non coaster dark ride. Look at the continent and some of the major players ie Efteling, Phantasialand, Europa and they have the coasters, BUT have the supporting dark rides. TP is also one of the only major parks that I can think of, that doesn't have a dedicated kids area. (That's another topic for another day) When dark rides are done well, they can add so much to a park. They don't even have to be "thrilling" dark rides. Maus au Chocolat for example at Phantasialand, is a wonderful ride; a ride type I would love to see in the UK. Then you have the thrilling dark rides like Dark Castle at Busch Gardens which is wonderful. When done well, they take you into a world which no coaster can. The narrative, the attention to detail, all do something that a non-enclosed coaster cannot. This is why I am excited at seeing what Thorpe are installing for 2016. I also hope that this is just the start for future dark ride experiences at the resort as in my mind, they need at least a couple more dark rides. Not on the same scale as this, just build a warehouse and fill it with a family friendly indoor boat ride.
  4. Here is my combined coaster top 10. 1. El Toro - Six Flags Great Adventure - Unbelievable ride which is going to take something special to beat it. 2. Skyrush - Hersheypark - Incredible moments of airtime. 3. Batman The Ride - Various parks - I love the first gen B&M inverters. Strong G's and when running backwards are even better. 4. Expedition GeForce - Holiday Park - Almost a perfect coaster. Great airtime and speed, just lacks a little in the middle section. 5. Mr Freeze Reverse Blast - Six Flags Over Texas - Fantastic backwards launched shuttle coaster. 6. Oziris - Parc Asterix - In my opinion, one of the best new B&M rides out there. Almost a return to form for me. The theming also plays a big part. 7. Colossos - Heide Park - Was my favourite woodie until El Toro blew it out of the water. 8. Tonnerre de Zeus - Parc Asterix - Great CCI coaster which goes on and on and on 9. Troy - Toverland - Fast, smooth and out of control. Great ride. 10. Timber Terror - Silverwood - Great out and back woodie My woodie top 10 1. El Toro - Six Flags Great Adventure 2. Colossos - Heide Park 3. Tonnerre de Zeus - Parc Asterix 4. Troy - Toverland 5. Timber Terrror - Silverwood 6. Boardwalk Bullet - Kemah Boardwalk 7. Tremors - Silverwood 8. Boulder Dash - Lake Compounce 9. Roar - Six Flags Discovery Kingdom (defunct) 10. Hercules - Dorney Park (defunct) Steelie top 10 1. Skyrush - Hersheypark 2. Batman the ride - Various 3. Expedition GeForce - Holiday Park 4. Mr Freeze Reverse Blast - Six Flags Over Texas 5. Oziris - Parc Asterix 6. Van Helsings Factory - Movie Park 7. Nemesis - Alton Towers 8. Aftershock - Silverwood 9. Griffon - Busch Gardens Williamsburg 10. Storm Runner - Hersheypark
  5. As much as I love whats happened to Dreamland and as much as I cant wait for the Scenic to re-open, I do think that that some people may eventually ride it and think what the fuss was about. Its a great ride for historical purposes, but its not going to get in anyones top 10. Not even top 20. My feeling is a lot of people will go to ride it and be disappointed. Its a snapshot on history and that's how it should be viewed.
  6. If anyone thinks that Merlin will stick to only 1000 of these passes then they might need to think again. They will sell as many as people want. Last year only 850 (estimated) bought the pass out of a 1000 allocation, but I know for a fact that these vip pass were available to buy as late as May this year. I love the new terms and conditions which clearly state that they can change the price whenever they want. My guess is, that if they don't sell well when they go on sale to everyone, then that price will come down to a level where they do sell and they will keep on selling until the no-one else wants one. Anyhoo, my pass has expired now and I am not renewing. I haven't downgraded to a standard or premium either. May pop to Scarefest or Fright Nights, but apart from that will be taking a break from Merlin. As for the Dungeons etc, I only ever used my pass once outside of a Theme Park and that was at the Weymouth tower thing and didn't get anything special. But yeah, it happens. People who seem to wear the lanyard get extra special treatment. I never wore the damm lanyard, I hate the things. Even my work one stays in my pocket !!! Thanks for the screenshots Paul, interesting about Fright Night and Scarefest Mazes though. I know they said that last year, but allowed us one entry into each maze at Alton and fastrack at Thorpe, but as they have said it again, maybe its not going to include those. Good job I didn't renew then !!
  7. Just for info, the Scenic Railway restoration / rebuild will cost at least £2.64million There will be a modern "Twist" as well as Flamingolands old Wave Swinger. The astroglide they have is reportedly from Paultons Park.
  8. The Wild Mouse has been scrapped and will only be used in the upcycling project. Blackpools Whip is being considered for Phase 2.
  9. I spotted it advertised outside the fastrack kiosk next to Interno's shop. Didn't take a picture of it, but £50 unlimited coasters.
  10. You can now buy a £50 unlimited wristband at Thorpe JUST for the coasters !!! A LOT of people were buying this!
  11. As you know I have a vip pass, but at £600 I have no intention of renewing. Sebastian, a lot of vip pass holders in the past (and some still now) have taken the P*ss and it has caused a lot of animosity towards vip pass holders in general. I am one of those which adhere to all the rules, don't take the mickey and even don't impact on throughputs by offering to fill empty seats !!! So its not jealousy. Just like in all walks of life some people spoil it for everyone and users get tarnished with the same brush. At the end of the day its a product that Merlin are offering and I think that for the new pass price of £699, then they will struggle to sell. However, the inherent problem is that Merlin do not manage fastrack well, in that they oversell it. So even vip pass holders are going to find in the future that the product they have purchased is being devalued by Merlins overselling. See my photo on the previous page from Thorpe on Saturday for proof. This is one of the main points for me not renewing. When a park is selling a £50 per day unlimited coaster fastrack, then these queues are going to get bigger and bigger and bigger. I enjoyed this year as a vip pass holder, but at the end of the day, it is Merlin parks that its for.
  12. Well maybe the £50 unlimited fastrack for just the coasters is a tad popular. I saw a LOT of people with that yesterday. That coupled with staff outside the entrances with a sign around their neck saying "buy fastrack from me", saw big problems yesterday. On Saw, the fastrack queue was out of the entrance.
  13. ^ I would be more concerned about Merlins overselling of fastrack rather than a handul of vip pass holders on site each day. This was the inferno fastrack / disabled line yesterday. Not all of those were vip holders... And yes, the line went all the back to the photo booth !!. But for any vip holder who is thinking of renewing, take this picture into account. It will only get worse.
  14. I wont be renewing mine. The renewal price is a bit of a kick in the teeth, considering all the problems with the pass last year and the inconsistencies that still occur. I have used this pass 14 times since I purchased it and that's included 2 days at Gardaland and 2 at Heide Park, so I have hardly "hammered" it. I will just go back to using Tesco vouchers to have two days at Thorpe and two at Alton. Not bothered about Legoland or Chessington or any of the midway attractions. Its been nice having it as I have had the knowledge that I can go whenever I want and not worry about the queues, but I will just go on off peak days next year when the need for fastrack is low.
  15. ^ Its the petrol station opposite the garden centre just up from the Premier Inn, not the M25 !! I also spend money in Staines / Chertsey / Weybridge when visiting Thorpe. On the other side of the coin when I go to Alton, I spend zero in the village itself.
  16. On my day / overnight visits to Chessington I have bought diesel from the Petrol Station going to the M25, used the M&S as well. Got Pizza from Pizza Hut, used the Tesco Express and off licence from further down the road. Gone to a few pubs in the area. So looking at it, I contribute a lot to the local area, which if Chessington wasn't there, I wouldn't.
  17. X and Rush now appear to be open according to Queue times.
  18. There has been a couple of posts here that I would like to address, but for some reason I cant quote the actual post... Good old internet explorer !!! James commented: The way they are treated to normal guests is infuriating. The staff treat guests like they are celebirites; they get escorted in first with their own meeting point, unlimited fastrack on rides, choosing where they sit from the line exit and unlimited re-rides To address these point, this doesn't happen to me (apart from one visit where I have been asked what row I want to sit on and that was Thorpe Park on Sunday). Fastrack on rides which don't have fastrack. Yes its there, there is no denying that fact. Have I personally ever used it? No. To be perfectly honest, I have never set foot inside CBeebies land let alone go on any rides. Doesn't interest me whatsoever, but yes there is no denying that the option is there if I wanted too. Treating guests like celebrities I have never been treated like a celebrity. I have had a few questions from staff asking how I am finding it, but I have had no special treatment whatsoever. Escorted into their own meeting point At Alton I have been met at the gate once and that was to pick my pass up as I didn't have a ticket to get into the park then. The other visits I made my way to guest services to pick up my wristband. At Chessington, you are supposed to go to the hotel and wait for someone to walk from the entrance or guest services to meet you, put your wristband on and then take you into the park, which to me is a complete waste of time. I did this once and now just scan my ticket and go to guest services. At Thorpe, you are normally made to wait in reception for someone to give you your wristband. It has only been at the annual pass weekend where there was any meet and greet outside the park and finally at Legoland, I just walked up scanned my ticket and ticket even bother getting a wristband as the park was dead. Choosing where to sit. As mentioned, this has only happened to me at Thorpe Park on Sunday. The rest of the time, when the fastrack queue is open you filter in, so for example on Rita, you enter the fastrack queue and then wait 10 mins to get to the platform where they don't know I have a vip pass. Same on Nemesis, Nemesis Inferno, Colossus, Air. You name it, the merge points are nearly always before the station, so unless people are demanding a certain row, then it doesn't happen. Maybe it doesn't happen to me as I don't wear a lanyard. Unlimited re-rides. I have never been given the option to have a re-ride because I am a vip pass holder other than the ert we had on Swarm, which was after the park closed. The times I have had re-rides is not because I have a vip pass, but because Thorpe Park was dead and they let all riders either stay on or use a short cut. Obviously Alton have the weird policy of not allowing re-rides at all so it doesn't happen there, but I have had it at Chessington as well on Vampire and Dragons Fury. not because I have vip, but because the park was dead. I will tell you now, I wish I had this pass which non-pass holders think I have, because in reality, its not like that at all. Maybe its because I use the pass how its intended and don't ask for things. For me, this pass is just like the Premium but with express parking at Alton and Legoland and fastrack. That's it. Anything above that offered by the parks like the ert on Swarm at pass holder day is a bonus. On a final note, to address Paul when he said "But youre right, for CBeebies fastrack shouldn't be an option as it then impacts the kids 'mummy why are they going before us' 'they have more money' ". If I had a kid and was in that position, I would say "because they have chosen to spend their money differently to us". I am not rich. I work extremely hard, don't have kids and I choose to spend my money in different ways. Doesn't mean to say I am richer than anyone as I am not by any stretch of the imagination
  19. Re the above two posts. This is what gives vip holders a bad. Can I just ask, did the pass holders get to stay on the ride for a second ride? If so, that is completely unacceptable and the staff should be trained to say no and the passholder should be reported to the vip team. You see, this kind of thing annoys me. This pass should never have been named vip as it gives a general message that people are vips. We are not, we are just pass holders who have purchased fastrack. End of story. Why some people try it on is beyond me, but again maybe its those three little letters.
  20. The thing is Jamie, if there wasn't a vip pass, there would still be people buying platinum fastrack and using it to access the fastrack queue. Most major parks around the world, with a few exceptions (Europa, Efteling), offer some sort of paid queue jump system. So its not just Merlin and the vip. If anything Merlins fastrack system is better than say Pleasure Beachs speedy pass as at least there is some waiting rather than Pleasure Beach's walk straight on the ride and making people wait as you are sat in their seat. I have even seen problems with the free system at Disney parks. In California Adventure last year, the allocation for Cars went after 30 minutes, BUT people weren't sticking to their allocated times and just waited until darkness fell to experience Cars at night. This resulted in a huge fastrack queue and the normal queue not moving. Most parks are guilty of this, so its not just Merlin
  21. Without going into a Merlin rant, I do agree with you Dan. For me, Merlin parks were getting to the stage where the constant selling of fastrack was having a detrimental effect on my visits. My wife likes visiting parks, but not so much riding coasters, so I was VERY aware of going into a queue for 3 hours for the Smiler. How much fun would my wife be having, sat outside. None. This was one of the main reasons for me buying the pass. There is of course the debate, like you say, about if there should actually be a limitless annual fastrack pass. Unfortunately the Merlin parks are not run like Europa or some of the other European parks, so operations are good, but not fantastic. Even when they are good, for example the Stealth team on Sunday, the ride capacity and hourly throughput are not on the same scale as Europa. So long queues are almost inevitable on most Merlin owned attractions. There are the exceptions like the queue munching Oblivion and Duel, but on the whole, Merlin parks can only really be enjoyed on a ) very quiet days or b ) in the possession of fastrack. In an ideal World, there should be no fastrack in parks, as they do push a class divide, but organisations see the ££'s flash before their eyes and offer this experience as its easy money for them, with very little up front cost. With no fastrack, parks would be forced to install high capacity rides to limit queues and improve wait times. However, Merlin seem to be vip this, vip that etc etc. I mean look at the experiences that Alton are offering... For £180 per person you get this... Fastrack Platinum Front row riding on all coasters and someone walking you around the park. These will be wearing the same kind of bands that vip pass holders will, but they get a totally different level of service and these are the ones who sometimes will get confused as vip pass holders. So in reality, fastrack and vip experiences are here to stay at Merlin. Its quick and easy money for them and really the only way to experience a full day at the parks, is as you say Dan, to buy fastrack. There will also be some people who look at a vip pass as being better than others. Again I have witnessed this, but for down to earth people like me, I don't want to shove being a vip holder down anyones throat whilst at a park. I don't have my pass around my neck advertising the fact, its kept safely in my wallet. I also don't take the mickey when it comes to fastrack. For example I don't get off Nemesis and immediately wait by the exit to get back on. That's not right in my book. The only time I do that is by utilising the single rider queue when there is no one waiting !! So to conclude another long post from me, it is a shame that Merlin offered this pass but it has made my visits better, because I can ride what I want without worrying about my wife getting bored waiting for me. I know that as a single vip pass holder in our household that I wont be reducing the main queue all that much as I purposely fill up the empty seats. Indeed if places like Thorpe hadn't removed my beloved single rider line on Stealth, I may not have even purchased one !! Its an interesting debate though and although not nice to hear that vip holders are looked at in a certain way, I know that I can hold my head up high and say that at least I don't take the p**s Therefore if any of you see a lone guy in the fastrack queue with a vip band on, or in the main queueline as its tiny, please be nice, we aren't all bad.
  22. Personally, I think the reason a lot of people dont post about being vip pass holders is because most arent coaster or theme park geeks. I have no idea how many vip pass holders were on park at Thorpe on Sunday, but by the end of the 30min ert on Swarm there were only about 4 of us left riding (I think). Its the first ers I have been on where there was hardly anyone riding by the end. Anyway, I am not ashamed to have one of these passes. It has made me enjoy Merlin parks more, but I am not a pass holder who is at a Merlin park every week, or indeed wants to be at a Merlin park every week. I am a theme park fan and try and visit all the major (and some minor) UK parks at least once a year, as well as getting to Europe as much as I can. Since I got my pass in late June I have been to Alton and Thorpe both 4 times, Chessington twice and Legoland once, so thats hardly using it to the extreme. Its like when I go to the USA or other parks that I know will be busy, I will use their version of fastrack. Is that wrong? Well no, not really, so why is it wrong to use a system in the UK parks. Have any of you guys ever bought an unlimited fastrack system at any non Merlin park? If so, how different is it to this pass that I have? When the pass was announced I actually sat down and worked out the cost of it to see if it would be beneficial to me. I wasnt like "ooh its a vip thing, I have to have it". That couldnt be further from the truth. I knew that I was going to be visiting Heide Park for two days in 2015, so that was my starting point. Then the celebration tickets to get my wife into a merlin park for two days was another reason. Then there was the "golden ticket" experiences, which were a grey area. So things added up and it was more economic for me to buy this pass than a premium. it wasnt a decision I made hastilly, I weighed up the pros against the price and decided to go for it. But as mentioned in my previous post, I have never abused the pass and never will. If there is no queue, I wont go in the fastrack queue or use the exit, I will use the main queue. I dont demand to be sat at a certain seat and I only use the exit when the fastrack queue is closed. As for re-rides, the only time this has happened is at Thorpe when the park was empty and there wasnt a queue for Stealth, so they were letting all people through the gate. Same on Inferno, no queue, so everyone was re-riding. I can understand some peoples frustration at vip holders, but please do not tarnish us all with the same brush. I have seen some truly horrid behaviour by some pass holders and felt sorry for the staff involved, because ultimately we who use it correctly are also deemed to be arrogant and ignorant a-holes when we are not. Believe me, there has been a lot of frustration in the eyes of vip holders. As Paul mentioned we were only told the procedure for each ride in early October, thats four months after the pass was released. Those issues could have been sorted from day 1, but alas they werent. At times, it has also seemed as though they have been making it up as they go along and indeed restrictions are being imposed on it for the waterpark usage at Alton (not that I have ever used it for that). At the end of the day I am a down to earth coaster and park enthusiast who wanted to treat myself to a pass which made my days enjoyable at Merlin parks. Is that so wrong? Peace !!
  23. Interesting topic. Here are my observations / comments. Before I start, I am a vip pass holder. Not that I think it should be called vip (I have commented to Merlin about this), as this does cause certain problems with people thinking they are better than others. As a pass holder, I have followed every rule which has been laid out by the parks / management. For example, at every park I go to, when I get my wristband, I ask the staff about the current fastrack procedures. What happens if the fastrack queue is closed? Where do I go? I personally have never demanded anything from staff, or indeed even today when staff on Stealth asked me what row I wanted to sit on, I just offered to fill any empty seats. I dont want front row, back row or 3rd row from the front. My pass doesnt get me that, its gets me fastrack. So I was very happy to do my bit today for throughputs and fill up spaces. If there is no main queue on a ride I want to go on, I will not use the exit or fastrack (whatever is applicable on that ride), I will use the main queue. Detonator today being an example. No queue, so I just entered the main line. When I went to Alton for Feb half term, I barely used fastrack at all. Twice on Nemesis (and again filling in rows), everything else was walk on apart from Spinball, which I used once and then as it was raining, I kept on walking round and using the single rider queue, which again didnt impact on anyone. Yes, some vip holders really do the experience to the letter. I saw some vip'ers using the exit on Rocky Express, when there was no queue (which I was in by the way). I have also witnessed some truly awful behaviour by pass holders in the past, but that is tarnishing us all as aholes. As mentioned, I have never asked for anything. So there you go, thats my thoughts.
  24. The thing is, I have just returned from a 3 day visit to Efteling which is a park, as you probably know, that is open 365 days a year. They have the same kind of winters as we do, but they still manage to open woodies and steel coasters when the weather plays. This weekend saw the water coaster open, as well as all other coasters. Efteling have a dedicated schedule they adhere too for ride maintenance, just like Disney do. They advertise a ride to be closed and it will be for its annual refurbishment. It then opens.... If Efteling can keep a park open with large coasters 365 days a year, then surely Merlin parks could do??? If you have a big enough maintenance team, then its easy. Of course it the weather makes it impossible to open then fair enough, but for efteling that's the exception rather than the normal. But... and this is a big but, I don't think the Merlin parks have any budget ANYWHERE near Efteling.... Such a shame.......
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