Information on the new "Waterfront Hotel" has been released. http://www.thorpepark.com/waterfront-hotel/

NEW Waterfront Hotel – launches April 2014.
Cast away after an exhilarating day at THORPE PARK with our stunning waterfront Resort hotel. Nestled in the heart of the Park, the hotel promises simple but stylish accommodation complete with luxurious touches.
Set in the shadows of the rides, the waterfront provides the perfect haven for families and friends to thrill, chill and laugh together. Stroll the boardwalks and watch the magnificent sunset over one of the World's most thrilling theme parks before settling into an evening in the chill zone with entertainment and a well-deserved nightcap against a backdrop of stars and rollercoasters.

This is definitely pushing the family market much more it would seem. Also, loving the use of the wingrider at Heide Park for the canvas in the room, new ride for 2014 sorted.

QUAD ROOMS

All rooms sleep up to 4 people and consist of a double bed and two single beds in a bunk bed arrangement.

I thought from the plans submitted that many of the rooms were smaller 2 person varieties? Smaller, less expensive rooms is what I was hoping for to make this in any way attractive to me.

Family 2 day packages start from £XXp/p. Book now using our booking form above or call 0871 360 2629

Many mentions of 'family' throughout, so it seems that is the way they are still heading. No price in the main text but searching for a random mid-week 2 day 1 night stay for 2 people comes in at £179. I think that is a little cheaper than similar searches last year, but too much for me for 2 people. Their own search comparison gives a £111 option 19 miles from the park and Premier Inn can do the same night for £29.

Sounds better than the death camp we see today!

Its amazing what a difference you can make by changing the name of something. The Waterfront Hotel sounds so classy....

Sounds classy, but it's still the shipping containers right?

I can see the OUTRAGE on Facebook now as posh families from the wilds of Crawley imagine a wonderous hotel filled with magic and fairies and end up sleeping on top of each other in a shipping container whilst the local Staines Massif throw things at wildlife...

It's a Merlin thing isn't it? Bare minimum? The Hotel doesn't work with our new target market? Change the name and do nothing else...

Then again, Dockyard Hotel doesn't have the same amount of gravitas to it does it?

lolz fffsss waterfront hotel, it's waterfront snoozebox but without the brand behind it, still as cheap and tacky....

lolz fffsss waterfront hotel, it's waterfront snoozebox but without the brand behind it, still as cheap and tacky....

We can't make judgements yet, but if that does turn out to be the case (which is 99% likely to happen) then that is very poor - "Crash Pad" immediately tells you that it is not a classy type of accommodation, whereas "waterfront hotel" makes you think of a posh hotel on the edge of a lake.

New for 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2016 The crash pad with a new name every year. And no other new attractions.

So, some good news about all this...

Thorpe are changing the colours of the Waterfront Hotel to fit in with the idea that it's on the water front: http://planning.runnymede.gov.uk/Northgate/PlanningExplorer/Generic/StdDetails.aspx?PT=Planning%20Applications%20On-Line&TYPE=PL/PlanningPK.xml&PARAM0=186334&XSLT=/Northgate/PlanningExplorer/SiteFiles/Skins/Runnymede_AA/xslt/PL/PLDetails.xslt&FT=Planning%20Application%20Details&PUBLIC=Y&XMLSIDE=/Northgate/PlanningExplorer/SiteFiles/Skins/Runnymede_AA/Menus/PL.xml&DAURI=PLANNING

Whilst it will be made exactly the same (ie shipping container esque), it won't be painted grey, but instead we have:

'Wedgewood blue' containers,

with

'Saphire blue' doors

and a wavy canopy on the top painted

in a nice 'Cornflower'.

So, the colours are a lot brighter and will hopefully look more inviting. Also, as the park are planning these top canopies instead of 'steel solar sheets', it reduces the maximum height of the containers by almost a meter (max height 6.1m instead of 7m).

Not exactly anything which will shake the earth, but nice to see better colours which reflect the overall idea are hopefully going to be used!

From the point of view of someone who wants a proper hotel this is just turd polishing though. If they'd got to work on the full hotel when the original plans were first approved I imagine we'd be looking at the first phase opening with the start of next season?

What concerns me about this change is the investment it has now required. When they were leasing (or whatever the arrangement was) from snoozebox I imagine the actual outlay from Thorpe was very minimal, now they are doing it themselves it will surely take significant investment. That'll be money that is not being spent on developing the proper hotel and has to be recouped over a number of years before we can move on to bricks. They've shown they could walk away from snoozebox at any time, they can't walk away from they return they now need. The real hotel looks further away than ever.

I think (read - hope) that one of the reasons for the shipping container hotel, if you will, is that there are troubles with the building of the actual hotel. The fact that it's been in their long term plan for so long, and they've gotten planning approval for a hotel twice (I think?) says to me that there must be something big up behind the scenes that we don't know about, and it's not just the cost (even if it is a contributing factor).

I'm pretty sure the Snoozeboxes wouldn't have been cheap to hire from the company (I think it was Sidders who found out they cost Silverstone £15million a couple of years ago or something?). Whilst it's risky for the park to take it into their own hands, hopefully the full control they can have will work in their favour.

Crash Pad / Waterfront Hotel / whatever is, and hopefully always will be, a temporary - almost kneejerk - solution to the problems that the proper hotel has been plagued with. It's probably also a kneejerk to the bad year Thorpe had last year as well. The whole thing does really feel very sprung on and out of the blue, but I really do hope it turns out the be a short term thing.

You could view it as polishing a turd I guess, but it is at least making the best out of a bad situation.

After staying at the Crash Pad a few times last season - I'm not overly against this, the rooms were nice and comfortable.

As much as id love a full hotel, the problem is whilst they are filling 180 odd shipping container rooms, whats the point in them investing 10's of millions in a full hotel of a similar size any time soon, what with merlin going on the stock market I can only imagine it will be harder to get funding for the full thing.

As has been said, the fact they are investing in this (which won't be cheap) means the hotel is pretty unlikely any time soon , maybe after the next big coaster, if the numbers warrant it look into getting the full hotel built and from there maybe keep 50 odd rooms of these rooms as a more budget option.

Theres also a travelodge opening down the road in Chertsey next year, I can only imagine that come into the thoughts whilst planning this.

As in "Oh crap, the Travelodge will be better than CrashPad, better make it sound better than it actually is"?

To be fair, some (but by no means all) rooms probably do give you a nice view across the lake, and a little outsidey area looking onto will be nice. May as well give it a name which reflects those opportunities.

Then again, it will have NOTHING on the lovely views the Chertsey Travelodge will have overlooking an average gym and an accountancy firm...

As in "Oh crap, the Travelodge will be better than CrashPad, better make it sound better than it actually is"?

Out of interest did you ever stay?

Why would I when I live so close?

The point still stands, going against a Travelodge as the low budget thing won't work for Thorpe and it's new market, ergo the change in name and colour scheme of Crashpad... Changing the look of the hotel will make the steeper price compared to Travelodge look more worthwhile to potential guests (especially if they chuck in park ticket deals and stuff)...

Besides, the newer Travelodges are pretty fab, you stayed in one of them yet? I highly recommend it... Sure you don't get a great view, but then that's why you pay £40 a night...

Then again, having a tiny shipping container room never appealed to me in the first place...

I wouldn't stay in a Travelodge, been in quite a few and I have to say uncomfortable beds, dirty rooms and just not very nice. I would rather pay £10 extra and stay at the Premier Inn which is much better quality.

Stayed in the Premier in for Alton Towers last year (6 times) and didn't pay any more than £29 per room.

I want quality AND value for money.

Value is not spending the price of a Crash Pad or Alton Towers room when I can get the Premier in so cheap. At the end of the day I only want a good bed for the night and a nice breakfast.

Quality is not staying at the cheapest hotel, so Travel lodges and we stayed in a really bad 'Quality hotel' the name didn't reflect the hotel.

At the end of the day go with what you are happy with, if you are happy paying Crash pad prices or you only want to pay the minimum, do whatever you want. At the end of the day people vote with their feet, they will either keep booking rooms or stay elsewhere.

The way I look at it when I go to Alton Towers is I can stay at their hotel, or for the same price, stay at the Premier Inn, have an evening meal, breakfast and pay for the petrol costs all for the same price.

I also hd a further think, and I wonder that if Chessie's hotel can be full due to those using it to access London, could Thorpe not play more on it's location near Heathrow and the M3 to push bookings?

It could easily fill a full on hotel with more than just park guests... Hence why Towers went for the holiday camp idea earlier in the year...

There must be other reasons to building the hotel than being led on, merlin are extremely pro-hotels. They're the main things in the parks to actually make money, they're trying to add a 3rd option at towers, they're extending the chessie one, it's obvious they'll actually build a proper hotel of which they can charge good money for and make good returns from (they'll never be able to make great returns from waterfront hotel, but a temporary one is obviously better than nothing).

For merlin, who only seemingly like to spend money on building hotels to make RTP worthwhile on their portfolio, thorpe lacking a permenant one is somewhat interesting.

NEW?

What on earth?

How on earth can they claim this is some sort of 'new' development!? It's basically a replacement for what was there last season (which, by the way, I haven't stayed in nor do I ever plan to).

Why have Thorpe sort of 'forgotten' how to add rides on any years other than major coaster years?

Why have Thorpe sort of 'forgotten' how to add rides on any years other than major coaster years?

The park opens in 4 months and nothings been announced, that must mean we are getting nothing new..

Why have Thorpe sort of 'forgotten' how to add rides on any years other than major coaster years?

Never wise to jump to conclusions.

Are they getting something? All the "new" stuff could easily lead to the new hotel.

I'm always sceptical when it comes to thorpey. Until they massively change and prove it, always will be.

The park opens in 4 months and nothings been announced, that must mean we are getting nothing new..

I think Dan meant worthwhile investments during none coaster years... When was the last time Thorpe invested into anything worth the money that wasn't a coaster?

Merlin buying the park