Thorpe Park Trip Reports

[MattyMoo]

Went to Thorpe today on a non-Fright Night - park was pretty empty! We were greeted with a 20 min queue at admissions which was a tad annoying, wish they'd have more staff on the ticket desks to deal with guests - the sooner you're in the park, the sooner you can spend your moolah! That aside, had a thoroughly good day in the park!Ride count:Stealth 4 (inc. 1 at the front)Rapids 2Loggers 2Rush 1Detonator 1Nemesis Inferno 1SAW The Ride 1SAW Alive 1Flying Fish 1Depth Charge 1CCR 1We couldn't deal with Colossus as we were shattered! Longest queue we witnessed was 35 mins for SAW and Nemesis. Stealth maxed at 15 mins, SAW Alive at 20, Colossus at 30. Everything else was near enough walk on all day... Rapids got busier after lunch as expected! We headed straight to Stealth in the morning and queued for 5 mins - everyone was over on SAW Island Have to say that Stealth in the front seat is still so so good!!Highlight of my day was on Stealth - music stops and we get "Attention in the Stealth queue line, Stealth has had to cease operation due to essential cleaning". Spew we thought? Alas no - someone had peed themselves!! The same ride op who announced earlier, then announces "Attention in the Stealth queue line, as you are aware Stealth has ceased operation due to essential cleaning... and can I take this opportunity to remind you that there are toilets throughout the park for you to use" The queue line applauded and laughed, epic!!SAW Alive was good, I was at the back and had a couple of strange noises made in my ears which made me jump! Seems to have improved since my first visit in March - one of the rooms in particular was so so smoky! (the room with the man who raps the chains on the floor!)So yes, all in all - a very pleasant day! Gorgeous weather too!!

[thorpeparkjack]

Inferno and Colossus on one train?

[MattyMoo]

Inferno & Colossus on one train as far as I saw. Stealth started on one in the morning, then changed to two late morning.

[thorpeparkjack]

Disgraceful, but glad you had a good day.

[MattyMoo]

Indeed, lol. I was impressed at reliability today, I was worried that my beloved Stealth would misbehave!You don't realise just how much of an area Octopus Garden took up. Going to be a bit awkward with crowds when the FN's kick in though, what with the narrow access to X and that Herras fencing.

[Paul123]

Thorpe Park Sunday 10th OctoberI havent been to Fright Nights for 2 years, I boycotted the event last year because of the silly ban on season passes to the event, however it looks like that backfired on Merlin for them to relax the ban this year and allow the use of passes with a small fee of £5 which is reasonable, so I decided to visit again this year. Thought it was going to be a nightmare day though as there was long queues for tickets, and I queued 30 mins to get my ticket which I booked on the internet, lots of people were quietly moaning in the queue, so yeah it was'nt a good start. However thankfully the day turned out really well in the end and I finally enjoyed a good day out at Thorpe for once, the final ride count ended like thisStealth - 7Nemesis Inferno - OnceX No Way Out - TwiceRush - TwiceColossus - TwiceFlying Fish - TwiceSaw - OnceQuantum - OnceAll Mazes and Saw Alive - Once eachSo Not a bad ride/maze count overall I thought, I left at 7.30PM.What is up with Colossus, OMG It is FLYING, and it seems a lot smoother too, It definatly did not go that fast into the inlines in previous years, I dunno what they have done to it, but I absolutly loved it. Saw is still good as ever, but the Blades are not swinging at the start, its also got a tad rougher too but thankfully still not too unbearable, still a very good ride overall. X had the lights on today and I thought that made the ride BETTER, It was really unique riding it at the front seeing the track in front of you riding backwards,It made it kinda cool in a way, Stealth is still awesome as usual, the staff were excellent today keeping queues very reasonable, and no brakedowns to speak off(none I personally witnessed anyway).So It was soon 4PM, and it was onto the mazes, It didnt get off to a good start though as when queueing for the Curse, they annouced it was going to open at 5PM due to a technical problem(OMG its only a maze, how can it suffer from a technical problem, I really did find it highly amusing) so I quickly dashed to Se7en instead.Se7en - Clearly the most popular maze still, and it shows, I really enjoyed this maze again, some of the scare tactics were excellent and everything just seemed to work so well, The 3 fake doors scene still somehow works every single time with everyone trying them, and the actors laughing at you when you cant seem to find your way out, eventually they pointed the way out to us, but it was highly amusing, the end scene was slighty disapointing as they didnt lock us in for a while before letting us out, I thought this added to the drama last time I did it, but they just went along banging on the bars and we just went round the side and exited,Still very goodThe Curse - A good maze, I think its done really well, I was at the back of my group, and one actor followed me for a good while touching me on the back constantly, I think its good they do this once in a while, It just adds to the overall experience,good fun.Hellgate - Still the weakest maze out of all of them, but slighty better from how I remember it, lots of actors this time around(Last time I did it, I swear they were all on a tea break), no real action in the last scene, but not badThe Asylum - Still very good as usual,the way it seems to go on forever is brilliant, and lots of scare tactics galore from the actors, one actor kept pestering the girl behind me in my group really freaking her out, I thought it was hilarious, Chainsaw guy is back again, giving everyone a good scare at the end running out the exit, good times.Saw Alive - I really want to like this attraction, but I do think it could still be better, I wonder if Thorpe will improve it in any way next year, I dont think its a terrible maze though, and most people actually seem to enjoy it,I finally got the full effect in the Carousel trap room where it stopped and you got blasts of air pumped at you, it freaked out a few people in my groupDead End Terror Zone - errrrrrrrrr, what were Thorpe thinking, It really was'nt great was it, I thought it was a bit poor TBH,I just came out thinking "is that it" and then having a laugh at the end because it took you about 30 seconds to walkthrough,The smoke was not thick enough to create a good atmosphere which meant you could immediatly see the actor when you turned a corner etc, absolutly EVERYONE I witnessed coming out of it didnt look too thrilled about the whole experience either. I appreciate that Thorpe made the effort to create something new but it really could have been better. My Solution for next time, create it along the new path at the back of Colossus leading upto Saw Alive, this is quite a long windy path, and with the right lighting effects,themeing and good thick smoke effects, it would work really well along here I think.Other Comments - I cant believe Thorpe never bothered to theme any of the park, I was disapointed by this(there was only very minor themeing here and there) I also couldnt believe that none of the music/sound effects/announcements were changed on the rides either this time around to fit the theme like in previous years,again disapointing. The New taking of photos of your group before you entered the mazes I thought was stupid, with only one person given the ticket and that means you would have to remember to ask the person you want the ticket if you did want your photo, but its easily forgettable when you get out the maze,really they should give out a ticket to everyone in the group.Overall it was a great day, The Staff were bang on form on every ride, really keeping queues down to a minimum, I didnt queue up long for anything(Longest queue of the day was Saw 35 mins) I did all the mazes in just 1hr 30 mins, and I really liked Saw in the dark, its quite cool ROLL ON NEXT YEAR FOR MORE I SAY

[MattyMoo]

Just to let you know, all effects on SAW were working yesterday, with the exception of the timer at the start of the lift hill.

[thorpeparkjack]

Went to that park yesterday from about 3 until close. Had a really really good time. The park was moderately busy, but enough so that you would appreciate the attractions, not enough to piss you off. Got on all 5 mazes which were fun as they always are. Dead end had improved since last visit as did Hellgate. Really impressed with the park, although still a lack of theming. Great atmosphere and overall a great night. RC:Hellgate x 2 (much improved on last thursday, best maze of the night)Asylum x 2 (pretty dismal actually, but mainly due to slow groups infront)Se7en x 1Curse x 1Alive x 1Dead End x 1Quantum x 2Zodiac x 1Samurai x 1Loggers x 1Rush x 1Will defo be heading back at least one more time for half term.

[Lewis.]

I had a great day today at Thorpe (2nd November) The park wasn't busy at all, but there was still a fair few people around.Samurai was on a very short cycle, and there wasn't even a Queue when we rode.Slammer was being weird, it rose a little at the beginning then literally dropped back down, leaving the whole gondola shaking. The ride OP apologised and we were off again.Rush was on one swing.Colossus was on one train with a 60 minute queue And later in the day they added a second train which they just kept sending round empty For some reason people have to take their bags on X:/ No Way Out now?We were evacuated from the dome at 5, and we had to sit in the cold for ages... no idea what it was all about.^Despite all this we really did have a great day

[thorpeparkjack]

Colossus was on one train with a 60 minute queue

Jesus I thought park operations were improving after a good show at Fright Nights...Glad you had a good day anyway.

[Jord]

For some reason people have to take their bags on X:/ No Way Out now?

Last time I went we had this, I think they're just getting lazy at taking the bags into the bagging area. The woman was really stuck up when we went to give her our bags and told us to just keep them.

[thorpeparkjack]

Gotta be the easiest job in the world, 'bagage collection with no bags to collect'

[Lewis.]

Surely they can't be that lazy, X was dead quiet when we were there

[NathP]

I was at Thorpe yesterday too (2nd November)The park was actually more busy then it was when I last visited on the first night of fright nights which was unusual especially for a weekday in November.The thing that kinda ruined my day was the one train operation all day NI and Stealth. Colossus was also on one train for most of the day. There were 30-60 minute queues for most of the day on the major coasters, for one train operation this is unacceptable! I left by 3pm because I refused to wait in those lines if its one train :(Only good thing was that Stealth was open all day with no breakdowns which is a rare sight these days

[thorpeparkjack]

Samurai last ride of the season, just speechless. The best ride I have ever had on it, crazy setting for a good 6/7 minutes. Brilliant end to a brilliant season.

[JoshC.]

My last ride ended up being X:\ No Way Out... Now that truly is WTF...

[Mark9]

Last ride was front row on Nemesis Inferno.And then they asked us all if we wanted to go again and we were all very much obliged.So really a nice way to end the season, three front row rides on Nemesis Inferno, cause really if you want to end the season on a high, you always go B&M

[Whiteknuckle]

My last ride was on Inferno aswell.Had one of the best days I have ever had at Thorpe. The park was a bit busier than I thought it might be, but the longest queue I found was about an hour for Saw the second time we went on it.I heard someone say Whiteknuckle at some point, not sure who it was though, but guessed straight away it was someone on here.Count for the dayNemesis Inferno 3Saw 2Colossus 1Flying Fish 1X WTF 1Depth Charge 1Vortex 1Rush 1Samurai 1Stealth 2Roll on next season

[Ricky]

It's all well and good putting things fans want in but if it's not up to a decent standard then why should people not complain?I mean really, did anyone think when the zone got announced Thorpe would be using old stuff for Miss Hippo? I highly doubt it... If a park isn't gonna put a high amount of effort into something, should we go "oh well at least they tried...", or go "well actually it wasn't that good, here's a list of improvements they should do for next year in order to improve the zone and hence the total event..."No-one's exactly ripping the s*** out of the park are they?

Maybe nobody knows quite what the storyline is behind the terror zone? If they did I'm sure a slightly different approach would be why they chose the themeing that they did.Two girls fell in the lake and died, they go to purgatory and to go to heaven they have to pass through the ride graveyard of Thorpe Park, if they make it they go to Heaven however if they don't they are grounded to earth. Now this storyline only works with old theming and ride parts. Forgive me but I think thats a bloody well thought out storyline! All be it they need to go back to researching what a terror zone is but that really doesnt cut the chase that I had a fair few good times in there!

[StevenVig]

Maybe nobody knows quite what the storyline is behind the terror zone? If they did I'm sure a slightly different approach would be why they chose the themeing that they did.Two girls fell in the lake and died, they go to purgatory and to go to heaven they have to pass through the ride graveyard of Thorpe Park, if they make it they go to Heaven however if they don't they are grounded to earth. Now this storyline only works with old theming and ride parts. Forgive me but I think thats a bloody well thought out storyline! All be it they need to go back to researching what a terror zone is but that really doesnt cut the chase that I had a fair few good times in there!

But even I knew the storyline when going through, yet absolutely nothing, bar the old ride themeing obviously, depicted the storyline at all. At what point of the zone do you see any reference to said two girls? All you see, are actors growling with plastic masks, banging the fence, doing all this with a hell load of smoke and flashing LED Cans.Have you ever listened to other guests coming out of it? 99.99% of the time the same comment is heard, "Is that it!? That was Sh*t!"This zone was absolutely awful, embarrassing infact. If Thorpe are going to attempt a Terror Zone, they need to look at Halloween Horror Nights for example. Granted, they may not be as big and have the budget for something exactly like that, but they can certainly take inspiration from it.

[Marc]

Maybe they need to work on making the story more obvious to everyone.. I thought the terror zone was ok, had one go where there was so much smoke the actors were really effective and provided good scares. Its a new idea, the park has no idea how the GP would react to it so why would they spend a load of cash on it before they even know if the idea works.

[Mark9]

Wait a second.... It had a storyline?!As for it being embarrassing. Yeah maybe, but it will develop over time and get better as Thorpe get an idea on what to do with it... If it comes back that is.

[Rich]

IMO unless it seriously improves then I would honestly want the path back....! I just found it embarassing from "The Nations Thrill Capital" thrill?? What thrill! I found no-one who came out scared or praising it, everyone I saw who came out just slated it.But yeh bring back the path so the grass around it doesn't get damaged!!More grass for Thorpe Park!!!!

[Ricky]

But even I knew the storyline when going through, yet absolutely nothing, bar the old ride themeing obviously, depicted the storyline at all. At what point of the zone do you see any reference to said two girls? All you see, are actors growling with plastic masks, banging the fence, doing all this with a hell load of smoke and flashing LED Cans.Have you ever listened to other guests coming out of it? 99.99% of the time the same comment is heard, "Is that it!? That was Sh*t!"This zone was absolutely awful, embarrassing infact. If Thorpe are going to attempt a Terror Zone, they need to look at Halloween Horror Nights for example. Granted, they may not be as big and have the budget for something exactly like that, but they can certainly take inspiration from it.

Maybe you need to think that maybe YOU are meant to be the dead girls and these are lets say zombies to say the least which are obstacles in the graveyard you have to get past? Just a thought maybe.... Not everything is plain obvious!

[Marc]

Maybe you need to think that maybe YOU are meant to be the dead girls and these are lets say zombies to say the least which are obstacles in the graveyard you have to get past? Just a thought maybe.... Not everything is plain obvious!

True but you cant blame people for not understanding it when as you say, its not obvious..