JoshC. Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 From what I gather, the annual Scarefest hearse has appeared on Towers Street once again (earlier than normal too I think?), so it seems appropriate to start up a thread. And to start things off, there's been some reductions to the opening hours, with the first Mon-Fri of the event being cut for 10-9 to 10-7 (linky - http://www.altontowers.com/useful-info/opening-times/#tab-themepark-oct). A bit of a shame, especially as it won't even be dark by then, but I guess it could be a lot worse. Many on other forums are kicking up a fuss about it, so it will be interesting to see if we see another infamous Towers Reversal there... As for what attractions we'll see, there's been no confirmation on the AT website, but I've read somewhere (can't remember where exactly though), that Sanctuary is returning, and there was also a strong indication of Zombies returning too. Carnival has had 3 seasons, and based on Boiler House and Field of 1000 Screams, it's time might be up. But with rumours of budget cuts to the event, we may not see it go after all. Only time well tell... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 Oh, the park's not opening till late during the empty part of that season... #shocked Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 I actually am #shocked. I've been going to the event off peak for many years and it's not happened to me before. Pissed off doesn't quite cover it... I'm going on day one of Scarefest this year, my plans are made (as they have to be for a trek to Towers from where I am) and too advanced to be undone. For me this is a huge issue and will greatly affect my trip, one that I would not have planned if I had known about this. I go to Scarefest primarily for the dark aspect, it will barely be dusky at 19.00.Many people plan these trips long in advance and Alton know it. It is totally unacceptable to keep messing around with times like this, it's a con. I do not give a crap about the budgets and whys for how this comes about, that is not my problem it is theirs. If they really don't know what the hell they are doing from one day to the next they need to advertise worst case times and make things better if they can, not the other way around.If it stays like this it is a simple choice for me; it'll be the last scarefest I go to. I need to plan in advance and if I can't trust the park to make those plans then I won't. People don't just brush off things like this, they don't return if they think they're getting a raw deal. I feel like I've said it a thousand times but these short term short sighted money saving things they come up with will be sooo expensive to them in the future. It is like they are trying to destroy themselves. (What I posted on TS) Ricky 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricky Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 I'd be a little floofed off as well, I don't really get a chance to go Towers that much so it's nice to have a long day there maybe even two long days! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 Oh, the park's not opening till late during the empty part of that season... #shocked First you were fine (on Towers Street) with the only major ride on ERT being Nemesis (when this time last year we also had Rita and Oblivion) and now you are fine with them yet again reducing the opening hours for its premier yearly event. How far will Towers go before you actually find it a problem that they are taking away and giving nothing back. If it was Thorpe you would be right on their case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 Oblivion is off ERT due to Smiler, hence pretty understandable... Rita if off ERT due to being an Intamin, so again, understandable... If you notice however, I do agree that they should try and get Air on ERT as well, but it might not be possible for the engineers to end up doing that many rides in the morning as they're all in one area for them... Logistically, it might just be too much for them, but since they are looking into it, then fine... Considering on a whole that we've had plentiful amounts of hours cut back over the last year, I cannot say it's surprising that this would happen over one of the quietest periods of the season (evidenced when I visited over uni times)... Did I say anything about agreeing with the idea? No, I just said I wasn't surprised that this has happened within a season of low hours in the first place... Thorpe already did this once before didn't they? Cutting Fright Night hours during the off-peak time of the Halloween season (or just not having them at all mid-week, I forget which), indeed, look at their website, and low and behold, the only days prior to October Half Term that are late hours are Friday, Saturday and Sunday... So they're basically doing the same as Towers bar closing 2 hours earlier for most of the week then 2 hours later on a Friday... You can check for yourself Mark, which I'm surprised you haven't... If we're having rage at Towers for this, then why is Thorpe not getting so? http://www.thorpepark.com/plan-your-visit/opening-times.aspx So, Thorpe are doing it, and am I on their case about it? I don't recall raging against Thorpe for that decision (although it is difficult to distinguish sometimes between the many times I am raging at Thorpe, though it has somewhat calmed recently)... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 Oblivion is off ERT due to Smiler, hence pretty understandable... Rita if off ERT due to being an Intamin, so again, understandable... I dont see why either of them are an excuse tbh Thorpe already did this once before didn't they? Cutting Fright Night hours during the off-peak time of the Halloween season (or just not having them at all mid-week, I forget which), indeed, look at their website, and low and behold, the only days prior to October Half Term that are late hours are Friday, Saturday and Sunday... So they're basically doing the same as Towers bar closing 2 hours earlier for most of the week then 2 hours later on a Friday... At-least thorpe did that before the season started and didn't change the opening times half way though the season when people had planned things around the times. I know they can do this and its all in the T&C's but its poor, no wonder Thorpe is getting better guest satisfaction scores this year than towers. pluk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 (Pic ATG facebook) And I've just noticed the 18th (the day I'm going) is now a 10.00-17.00 so I guess not part of scarefest at all. It certainly was when I planned it. Just gets better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 Long Post Incoming! I dont see why either of them are an excuse tbh Oblivion is a more valid one than Rita, mainly because the park know that everyone will be trying to get on Smiler (regardless if it's open or closed), and not having any rides open in X-Sector prevents (in theory) people travelling backwards and forwards in and out the area and causing havoc with the Smiler queue... It's bad enough during the day trying to get into that area... What with the Woodland Walk actually opening for hotel guests now, it makes sense to keep everything on that side of the park... If Air was down on the list to open, no-one would actually be complaining, since Oblivion wasn't ever down for ERT this year and Rita was replaced early on in the season by Thirteen because of being a burden... So Nemesis has been pretty much the only thrill ride open for it this year, why are people only realising this now? So Thorpe cutting their hours is ok because they did it out of season? I do like specifics when it comes to OUTRAGE at things... Let's be honest, no-one around any forum has been particularly happy about any park hours being cut (yada yada European parks open late yada) but unless some massive changes in culture occur, it's still going to be quite rare that our parks open late beyond Halloween events... It's clear that Towers is struggling this year (due to Smiler, literally, that's it, so it's no surprise that any park would be doing better in the guest satisfaction scores, it's not particularly unlikely) and as we saw with the other parks before, things will get cut (remember when Blows It Up happened?)... Considering how empty Towers was at the start of the year (because everyone was waiting for Smiler for 2/3 months) it was pretty obvious that eventually, stuff would get cut out of the picture for one thing or another, in this case it's the easiest thing to alter from the park's view, and that's opening hours during the off-peak season... Like when Chessie used to be shut for practically every weekday in September... Towers are constantly shooting themselves in the foot this year like Thorpe used to do with an unreliable new ride being shut half the time and not a great batch of contact to guests throughout as to what's actually happening (lack of ANYTHING stating that Smiler is down is pretty shocking), but it's clearly something the Merlin parks have realised that out of season Scarefest just isn't viable enough to keep going on till late if you have an exceptionally poor start to the year... Walk on rides everywhere are good for enthusiasts of course, but does it always make financial sense? Not to the big-wigs these days, due to the exceptional focus on instant returns... And there in lies the issue across ALL the parks atm, it's the ownership and the complete change in focus towards financial targets across the board from everyone... One of the reasons why Thorpe are changing their target market because they're not doing that well on a financial sense, the reason why Towers started flogging Smiler Fastrack within a week, the reason we get all these budget cuts is literally down to there being a huge focus on the financial returns of the parks... And it's clear that it's at a detriment to the guest experience... Look at what's happening at Busch Gardens Williamsburg and SeaWorld(s) atm, looks familiar doesn't it? Well look who own them, Blackstone, and guess who they have a stake in as well? Merlin... You can damn well be sure that the additions next year, like all recent Merlin additions will be done at the 'bare minimum' of effort... That level of just being average with the overall experience with such investment levels is stupid... All you have to do is look at what parks like Plopsaland are doing with their new areas/rides to see a massive difference in park expectations to what the guests want... Compared to the concrete jungle of Smiler or the random selection of vehicles on Swarm or the wooden fence land of Zufari, it's universes apart between the scale and the way in which the parks operate... That recent article from Roland Mack regarding how Europa treats it's guests (of COURSE they were gonna get mentioned) and how the experiences at that park differ to ours just shows that something is going seriously wrong... The thing is, these decisions are logical from a business perspective, which I why I can see why they do it... But considering the reputation of the parks this year is taking hit after hit after hit, it's not the right way in order to try and bring people back in... Next year's attendance figures are going to be interesting, as none of our parks so far have actually hit a consistent level of busyness... Tangent aside, could be worse, could be Chessie... Least the other two are open till dark at SOME points during their respective events... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted August 1, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 http://www.altontowers.com/events/halloween-scarefest/ Right you are pluk.. :/ I was sat on the fence on this, as whilst it's not great that they've done this, especially half way through the season, it's not overly damaging on quiet days. However, to cut two days from the event - quite slyly too - does take the biscuit a little bit too much... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 So Thorpe cutting their hours is ok because they did it out of season? I do like specifics when it comes to OUTRAGE at things... Let's be honest, no-one around any forum has been particularly happy about any park hours being cut (yada yada European parks open late yada) but unless some massive changes in culture occur, it's still going to be quite rare that our parks open late beyond Halloween events... I'm not saying its a good thing, the point I was trying to make was at least thorpe's hours were cut when the park was closed so people wont have arranged things, in towers case people will have booked hotes / time off work for dates of an event which are now not happening on them dates / reduced hours which I think is a bigger part of the problem here really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricky Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 Agreed with Marc, if my memory serves me correctly TP released their opening times reduced rather than altering them, funly enough most of the 10:00 - 21:00 days actually had opening times extended. I'm sure if this year goes well we may even see some of the peak days back to 10:00 - 22:00. Styles 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 So, Thorpe are doing it, and am I on their case about it? I don't recall raging against Thorpe for that decision (although it is difficult to distinguish sometimes between the many times I am raging at Thorpe, though it has somewhat calmed recently)... I don't know, it was a year ago that Thorpes fright night hours became 10-9. My point really was that you've become somewhat excusing of Towers for their recent decision making, especially when it comes to the perks that are gradually being decreased month by month. As Thorpes hours grow and grow, Alton's are getting worse. It's worrying when the Uk's premier theme park can't open more then one thrill rollercoaster to its ERT line up or keep hours longer when its just opened a brand new, super duper rollercoaster and Thorpe seem to add and add to their offering... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricky Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 *especially when TP hasn't **actually** added anything new* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cernuschi Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 Merlin should take note from Europa Park for opening times (and everything else), open until at least a certain time (7:30 at Europa) and then announce an actual closing time on the day depending on how busy the park is. - Well in the summer anyway but surely it could be implemented for Halloween? It really does work wonderfully. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 I don't know, it was a year ago that Thorpes fright night hours became 10-9. My point really was that you've become somewhat excusing of Towers for their recent decision making, especially when it comes to the perks that are gradually being decreased month by month. As Thorpes hours grow and grow, Alton's are getting worse. It's worrying when the Uk's premier theme park can't open more then one thrill rollercoaster to its ERT line up or keep hours longer when its just opened a brand new, super duper rollercoaster and Thorpe seem to add and add to their offering... Aside from the ERT line up change (which I have given reasons for the logic behind it, which makes some sense to me) and Scarefest hours being reduced on the off-peak days (though I didn't realise they had dropped a complete day out of it, which is decidely random), what other perks have people lost this month? If they can get Air open, I'm sure they will, but it is a relatively big ask of one technician team to open that many rides for 9am including now Duel (which I think takes the longest to check, sure someone will confirm that) and Air which is always such a semblance of reliability... It's clear that these 'cuts' (the only thing actually being cut is the Scarefest hours, re-arranging ERT isn't god-awful considering as already said, Nemesis was the only thrill coaster previously available anyway, unless Thirteen counts?) are a result of the poor start to the season the park has had... Good for Thorpe for improving itself, I give credit where credit is due (although their Summer Nights needs work to become better rather than just, ok, and the 9pm close to be really good needs coasters open), but at the same time, rather than just joining in the OUTRAGE, a sense of perspective towards decisions needs to be looked at as well... I'm sure people would be having OUTRAGE at these decisions regardless of which park it was happening at, it just so happens that people are extremely disheartened by Towers and Chessie this year, and since Thorpe seems to have remedied a lot of it's issues this year and improved on events and what-not (not that any of the events appeal to me, but there you go)... Perhaps this is what we see as a result of the one big theme park pot of money system Merlin have put in place recently? Thorpe were at the bottom end of the scale last year, perhaps the added investment and actual focus on late events (ironically, the one park not named a resort is probably the most resorty of them all) have worked well to their advantage... Add in that they have had no major breakdowns or ride issues so far this year (Slammer aside, but does that REALLY count?), and it's clear why Thorpe is being a right old success... Whether or not these late 'openings' are successful to non-Crash Pad people will be interesting, as if more 'normal' guests stay perhaps they will push late summer openings forward? Although I do seem to remember lots of people on here having OUTRAGE over Thorpe losing the Loggers tunnel this year, as well as a fair few moaning about the cancellation of the Fireworks last year... All apples and oranges really... Flavour of the month and all that... If Towers ended up putting on a decent event (yeah, I know, the likelihood of that after the last two years is low) then people would be happy (unless there are floodlights again, the dreaded villain)... Thing is atm, every year we are going through the same arguements actually... It's quite funny how a few months after the initial optimistic start of the year the same problems arise and people begin to moan about how the Air tunnel isn't painted or Colossus is rusty... What is more worrying to me is that these cutback issues are spreading across the Blackstone group seen at Busch and SeaWorld... There's a bigger picture to all this, but with the monopoly Merlin have over the UK market, unless a family park or two really step up to the plate (which, based on this year, is unlikely) we are going to continue this rut of theme parkery... Tl;dr, Too much overall OUTRAGE over ERT is a bit ott really when Nemesis was the only thrill coaster anyway, these cutbacks are pretty constant, maybe if public pressure really pushes the park to change back like last year, maybe then we'll see... The only way people will REALLY make a difference is to vote with their feet and not go, or making valid comments at Guest Services... Although I'd say last years attempted cutbacks were a lot worse decision wise than the two lost perks here... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricky Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 If they can get Air open, I'm sure they will, but it is a relatively big ask of one technician team to open that many rides for 9am including now Duel (which I think takes the longest to check, sure someone will confirm that) and Air which is always such a semblance of reliability... This shouldn't be a problem as the tech teams should be onsite in the early hows preparing the day ahead anyway. I'm sure they could easily 'train' a few new maintenance staff that aren't trained on the ride to be a bit more consistent as it is. Or maybe, just maybe do what Thorpe do on busier days, and check a train over the night before so the ride already has a green-carded train for the morning... there for engineering only need to do the normal checks and be safe with a single train as opposed to no trains. Good for Thorpe for improving itself, I give credit where credit is due (although their Summer Nights needs work to become better rather than just, ok, and the 9pm close to be really good needs coasters open), but at the same time, rather than just joining in the OUTRAGE, a sense of perspective towards decisions needs to be looked at as well... I'm sure people would be having OUTRAGE at these decisions regardless of which park it was happening at, it just so happens that people are extremely disheartened by Towers and Chessie this year, and since Thorpe seems to have remedied a lot of it's issues this year and improved on events and what-not (not that any of the events appeal to me, but there you go)... I can honestly say I don't think I've ever seen you give credit to Thorpe in the entirety of my time on this forum. Have you been to Summer Nights? From what I've heard they are actually very good with a lot of people wanting to return tomorrow and Saturday. The only reason, my friend, they are keeping the park open to guests until 9pm is because both ends of Chertsey Lane & Staines Road are receiving major road works. They don't HAVE to open at all to 9pm but the fact that guests have been given the chance to stay back a couple hours to keep clear of the impending traffic is bloody nice of them. If I had the choice of sit in blistering heat for hours on end getting to your destination or have a couple of beverages and an extra couple of rides on Detonator & Vortex, I know which one I would choose. It is clearly stated these late openings are for guests to 'avoid traffic conditions' and are not just because they can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted August 1, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 The only reason, my friend, they are keeping the park open to guests until 9pm is because both ends of Chertsey Lane & Staines Road are receiving major road works. They don't HAVE to open at all to 9pm but the fact that guests have been given the chance to stay back a couple hours to keep clear of the impending traffic is bloody nice of them. If I had the choice of sit in blistering heat for hours on end getting to your destination or have a couple of beverages and an extra couple of rides on Detonator & Vortex, I know which one I would choose. Is that really the actual reason? I mean, I know they say that's the reason, but is that the only reason? I don't like being unnecessarily pessimistic, but I can't see a company like Merlin (can't think of a way to say this - but basically one which is very profit-conscious shall we say) just going to say 'let's keep a couple of rides to try and make sure their traffic journey is horrendous? Maybe I'm being too pessimistic, but I can't see that be the only reason. Haven't they been keeping Bar 360 (and presumably the Dome too) open till like 11pm for everyone? Maybe they're just responding to customer feedback - something Thorpe have done very well this season - and adding a couple of rides to this, as it's summer, to try and get guests to stay and have more fun? It certainly seems like the park are testing the water with late night attractions too, so maybe this too is part of that test? I don't doubt that the horrendous traffic situations around the park currently have played a part in this idea, and they're certainly going to use that in their marketing. However, to say it's the only reason (as when you consider anyone travelling through Chertsey would have been affected by the roadworks anyways), I feel, is a bit ludicrous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 I can honestly say I don't think I've ever seen you give credit to Thorpe in the entirety of my time on this forum. Have you been to Summer Nights? From what I've heard they are actually very good with a lot of people wanting to return tomorrow and Saturday. The only reason, my friend, they are keeping the park open to guests until 9pm is because both ends of Chertsey Lane & Staines Road are receiving major road works. They don't HAVE to open at all to 9pm but the fact that guests have been given the chance to stay back a couple hours to keep clear of the impending traffic is bloody nice of them. If I had the choice of sit in blistering heat for hours on end getting to your destination or have a couple of beverages and an extra couple of rides on Detonator & Vortex, I know which one I would choose. It is clearly stated these late openings are for guests to 'avoid traffic conditions' and are not just because they can. Clearly don't actually read my posts then, since I did go to Summer Nights last week when it pissed down, and I gave Thorpe credit for that even if I found the overall event poorly planned (for reasons in my post, find it)... Would I go again? Yes, but I'm going to Towers this weekend with some non-enthusiasts, so I can't oh well... In similar fashion I have said that the option of late leaving is good, but it will be interesting to see how many actually take up on it... IF they had Glass House give out food as well, they could make a FORTUNE off it... I also give Thorpe credit for actually being ok with guest issues and giving away decent stuff (I.e. Not just Fastrack, Towers' preferred method) to encourage returns... But of course, I don't bleat on about it, as it should be the bare minimum any park does... On the same side, Thorpe's Fastrack is dire... There we go, negative Thorpe comment... Huzzah! As for Towers engineering, that's up to them really, but they now have to get a lot more rides open all of a sudden (as I think they have huge areas) all for 9, which is potentially why they didn't put Air down on it... Who knows, it might open at a point during ERT because they get it sorted... Without knowing what sort of tests Air needs (and I would assume a lot due to the nature of the trains) we cannot actually for definite say if it's viable to get it up for 9... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted August 2, 2013 Report Share Posted August 2, 2013 Aside from the ERT line up change (which I have given reasons for the logic behind it, which makes some sense to me) and Scarefest hours being reduced on the off-peak days (though I didn't realise they had dropped a complete day out of it, which is decidely random), what other perks have people lost this month? If they can get Air open, I'm sure they will, but it is a relatively big ask of one technician team to open that many rides for 9am including now Duel (which I think takes the longest to check, sure someone will confirm that) and Air which is always such a semblance of reliability... It's clear that these 'cuts' (the only thing actually being cut is the Scarefest hours, re-arranging ERT isn't god-awful considering as already said, Nemesis was the only thrill coaster previously available anyway, unless Thirteen counts?) are a result of the poor start to the season the park has had... Good for Thorpe for improving itself, I give credit where credit is due (although their Summer Nights needs work to become better rather than just, ok, and the 9pm close to be really good needs coasters open), but at the same time, rather than just joining in the OUTRAGE, a sense of perspective towards decisions needs to be looked at as well... I'm sure people would be having OUTRAGE at these decisions regardless of which park it was happening at, it just so happens that people are extremely disheartened by Towers and Chessie this year, and since Thorpe seems to have remedied a lot of it's issues this year and improved on events and what-not (not that any of the events appeal to me, but there you go)... Perhaps this is what we see as a result of the one big theme park pot of money system Merlin have put in place recently? Thorpe were at the bottom end of the scale last year, perhaps the added investment and actual focus on late events (ironically, the one park not named a resort is probably the most resorty of them all) have worked well to their advantage... Add in that they have had no major breakdowns or ride issues so far this year (Slammer aside, but does that REALLY count?), and it's clear why Thorpe is being a right old success... Whether or not these late 'openings' are successful to non-Crash Pad people will be interesting, as if more 'normal' guests stay perhaps they will push late summer openings forward? Although I do seem to remember lots of people on here having OUTRAGE over Thorpe losing the Loggers tunnel this year, as well as a fair few moaning about the cancellation of the Fireworks last year... All apples and oranges really... Flavour of the month and all that... If Towers ended up putting on a decent event (yeah, I know, the likelihood of that after the last two years is low) then people would be happy (unless there are floodlights again, the dreaded villain)... Thing is atm, every year we are going through the same arguements actually... It's quite funny how a few months after the initial optimistic start of the year the same problems arise and people begin to moan about how the Air tunnel isn't painted or Colossus is rusty... What is more worrying to me is that these cutback issues are spreading across the Blackstone group seen at Busch and SeaWorld... There's a bigger picture to all this, but with the monopoly Merlin have over the UK market, unless a family park or two really step up to the plate (which, based on this year, is unlikely) we are going to continue this rut of theme parkery... Tl;dr, Too much overall OUTRAGE over ERT is a bit ott really when Nemesis was the only thrill coaster anyway, these cutbacks are pretty constant, maybe if public pressure really pushes the park to change back like last year, maybe then we'll see... The only way people will REALLY make a difference is to vote with their feet and not go, or making valid comments at Guest Services... Although I'd say last years attempted cutbacks were a lot worse decision wise than the two lost perks here... You're right, I didn't moan when Oblivion left ERT (or when Rita was replaced by Thirteen) because with Smiler still in construction, there was obviously issues. That was one issue, I don't lose it with the one issue. It's when you couple it with other issues such as the poor reliability this year, the loss of hours, the replacement of attractions on ERT with less important (in the eyes of the park) rides. People voting with their feet doesn't work, we've seen that in 2012 when the park was doing ridiculous things like opening Air and Thirteen at 11am or planning on keeping Submission and Enterprise closed for an entire year. I don't really care what the issue is with getting Air open for 9am, the fact is it should be happening as standard. Maybe its to do with the lack of people using ERT to actual ride on the attractions, they would rather queue for Smiler. Air would help matters in getting people to buy into ERT, encouraging people to head over to Forbidden Valley and relieve Smiler for the morning rush. This is supposed to be the UK's premier theme park but they certainly don't act like they are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted August 2, 2013 Report Share Posted August 2, 2013 Thing is as well regarding ERT is that they're changing it back to holding non-benefitting guests down at the entry to Towers Street whilst also re-opening Woodland Walk... Both will benefit the overall ERT thing in that there won't be awkward queues at the entrances of rides for those who can use the ERT and the majority of ERT guests will now arrive in the Valley and more than likely go and do the rides there (and along the main pathway past Duel and Mine Train)... Of course, those who want to queue up for Smiler will do that anyway... But in theory, those changes will help reduce that queue on Smiler (until 10:05)... Air opening as standard is a question of logistics more than anything... Who knows, they might even open it in the middle of ERT and put it up as a bonus ride situation... But what I don't get is people complaining that Nemesis is now the only thrill coaster on ERT when it has been ALL YEAR, as if suddenly all the enthusiasts believe that Thirteen is actually a thrill ride now... Weird times indeed... The reliability thing is bad though, it seems like one of THOSE years that Thorpe had a while back, where ride after ride would just blow up for no reason... That's already been spoken about though, maybe another branch fell off the old oak tree? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted August 2, 2013 Report Share Posted August 2, 2013 Air opening as standard is a question of logistics more than anything... Who knows, they might even open it in the middle of ERT and put it up as a bonus ride situation... But what I don't get is people complaining that Nemesis is now the only thrill coaster on ERT when it has been ALL YEAR, as if suddenly all the enthusiasts believe that Thirteen is actually a thrill ride now... Weird times indeed... As an enthusiast thats an easy one. Before, you could tackle the second and third busiest rides in quick succession then a quick skyride over to Forbidden Valley to get a go on Nemmy and Air before facing the crowds at X Sector. Putting you in Forbidden Valley means you are at a slight disadvantage. Do you stay put and get Air out of the way or face the crowds at Rita or The Smiler. It's compounded by being in Forbidden Valley, walking all the way down to Katanga Canyon for Duel and Mine Train means you are in completely the wrong place for when the park does open and you need to get too the busier rides before the crowds too. In other words, not much point in doing ERT anymore. #firstworldproblems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted August 2, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 2, 2013 Back to the topic of Scarefest... http://www.altontowers.com/events/Halloween-Scarefest/#ThrillAttractions No new attractions by the looks of things (so hopefully we'll see some attention go into the park's overall appearance), but it seems Carnival could now be the free attraction, with TotT and Sanctuary the paid ones. The TotT description is contradictory at the moment, but it might just not have been fully updated yet. Not too sure what I think about it to be honest, though I guess with the close proximity of TotT and Sanctuary, it's sorta sensible to have them as the paid mazes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Posted August 2, 2013 Report Share Posted August 2, 2013 Brilliant. No changes, and a cut in the opening hours (not down to a forced budget cut btw). Irritating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam P Posted August 2, 2013 Report Share Posted August 2, 2013 Brilliant. No changes, and a cut in the opening hours (not down to a forced budget cut btw). Irritating. In addition swapping a great maze free, for a poor one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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