MarkC Posted March 31, 2014 Report Share Posted March 31, 2014 Check out @BNEERECTIONSERVICES on instagram for construction pics:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted March 31, 2014 Report Share Posted March 31, 2014 Nice find http://instagram.com/bneerectionservices Looks much the same as the crah pad - hope they've fixed them bathroom doors! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted March 31, 2014 Report Share Posted March 31, 2014 Well, I'm sure the Merlin hotel vinyl theming will make it look less cluttered... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flipper Posted March 31, 2014 Report Share Posted March 31, 2014 I might be digging up old news, as I haven't really paid much interest in the Shark Hotel; but what I didn't realise was the Shark is *apparently* being made either out of, or to look like, old park memorabilia. It isn't shown in the concept art; but I've seen a different piece which I can't seem to stumble across at the moment, which shows the shark being made out of items such as the old Fungle Safari height board, and Colossus promo images and such like. I'm pretty sure it's genuine; and I really hope it goes ahead, because it'll be an amazing little treasure piece of history! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobD Posted April 1, 2014 Report Share Posted April 1, 2014 I still cannot get over how much of a dire excuse for a hotel this is. It's abysmal that a theme park which tries again and again to pitch itself as a world class attraction offers it's guests the same accommodation as an asylum seeker attempting cross channel travel. Does the park add to the authenticity of the exeprience by having night time 'thrill patrol' raids on rooms or something? Remember your visa's folks... But seriously, I mean, just look at the entrance, cheap fencing and a concrete path. It's just horrific. The rooms emulate that no personal space feeling you've had all day in queues and basically have the same facilities as a caravan, and are STILL ludicrously overpriced. I have never stayed, but the point I'm getting at here is I never would; the accommodation does not sell itself to me at all, in all honesty I'd rather take my own tent and stay in a campsite, and as so many people have pointed out, with many other hotels locally, why on earth would anyone pay a premium to stay in a hotel which doesn't even have internal corridors? I just think it all reeks of cheap tackiness, no matter how they try and disguise it you're still staying in accommodation that isn't fit for purpose; the concept of this type if hotel is for pop up events where it really is basic. Yes it might be nice for a shipping container but it's still just that. And just for the 'Let's defend everything TP does' crowd (how you can is beyond me), just take a moment to compare this offering with that of other world class players; PortAventura, Alton Towers, Universal, Disney, even Six Flags, and come back to me on this one. Mer and Sidders 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted April 1, 2014 Report Share Posted April 1, 2014 I still cannot get over how much of a dire excuse for a hotel this is. It's abysmal that a theme park which tries again and again to pitch itself as a world class attraction offers it's guests the same accommodation as an asylum seeker attempting cross channel travel. Does the park add to the authenticity of the exeprience by having night time 'thrill patrol' raids on rooms or something? Remember your visa's folks... But seriously, I mean, just look at the entrance, cheap fencing and a concrete path. It's just horrific. The rooms emulate that no personal space feeling you've had all day in queues and basically have the same facilities as a caravan, and are STILL ludicrously overpriced. I have never stayed, but the point I'm getting at here is I never would; the accommodation does not sell itself to me at all, in all honesty I'd rather take my own tent and stay in a campsite, and as so many people have pointed out, with many other hotels locally, why on earth would anyone pay a premium to stay in a hotel which doesn't even have internal corridors? I just think it all reeks of cheap tackiness, no matter how they try and disguise it you're still staying in accommodation that isn't fit for purpose; the concept of this type if hotel is for pop up events where it really is basic. Yes it might be nice for a shipping container but it's still just that. And just for the 'Let's defend everything TP does' crowd (how you can is beyond me), just take a moment to compare this offering with that of other world class players; PortAventura, Alton Towers, Universal, Disney, even Six Flags, and come back to me on this one. Just because it dont appeal to you doesn't mean it doesn't appeal to anyone else, the Crash pad version 1 was clearly a success for the park hence they are expanding it and taking it further, so people are clearly happy with the offering? I stayed there a couple of times last year, with prices at around £29 per person on the day I thought it was good value, although we dont know the on the day prices yet. As for comparing to the others, its all about demand, theres no point Thorpe Park building massive hotels just yet if they cant fill them, if people are happy paying less and staying in a room like the Crash Pad then I dont see the problem? Ryan and jon81uk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted April 1, 2014 Report Share Posted April 1, 2014 And just for the 'Let's defend everything TP does' crowd (how you can is beyond me), just take a moment to compare this offering with that of other world class players; PortAventura, Alton Towers, Universal, Disney, even Six Flags, and come back to me on this one. Luckily, no one on heres considers Thorpe a world class player. The thing is right, for the majority of people they go "I don't like the hotel" and move on their thoughts to things they do like. When it comes to the Crash Pad and the Thorpe Shark Hotel, People get deep feelings of hate over it, like it personally offends them. You've already said that there's loads of other places to stay near by so what is the point in getting so worked up over it. Of course, the only world class players I see you've listed is Disney and Universal. PortAventura runs their park dreadfully, Alton Towers needs serious work to get it to any good standard and Six Flags... well is Six Flags. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted April 1, 2014 Report Share Posted April 1, 2014 It serves a purpose, but I think it cheapens the park and now seems to be being seen by Thorpe as good enough for the longer term rather than a stop gap until they pull their fingers out and build the proper hotel, which is a great shame. It is now, of course THORPE PARK RESORT. This pile of metal counts as a resort? That's a lot different to how they pitched the crash pad. It's embarrassing really. It's not wrong to want so much better when they could do so much better. Coaster 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted April 1, 2014 Report Share Posted April 1, 2014 But from the aspect of actually staying there before, it really actually is quite good. Ok sure the rooms are tiny compared to a standard hotel room, but they are built and finished to a very high quality and offer a comfortable nights sleep (the beds are much better than the ones I stayed in at PA!) Time spent in the room is in my experience actually very little and aslong as the park offers things to do in the evening be it rides open or entertainment in the dome I expect people will be happy with there stay. You only have to read the reviews on TripAdvisor to see the vast majority do actually like it. I do hope they go ahead and build the full hotel sooner rather than later, but until then I think the Crash Pad served its purpose well and the Shark Hotel will most likely do so, and maybe even be a bit better too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted April 1, 2014 Report Share Posted April 1, 2014 My favorite bit is when someone takes a **** about three feet away from your head behind a thin opaque door. C'mon, that's poor. I agree it serves a purpose, as do tents and hostels, and as 'crash pad' it was pretty clear that is what you could have if you wanted it. But the only 'hotel' of a permanent theme park 'resort' shouldn't be aiming this low. Inferno and Sidders 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted April 1, 2014 Report Share Posted April 1, 2014 Agree with the bathroom door and that seems to be what most of the negative feedback was..- being their own units I suspect they have listened to guest feedback and have addressed this. It wouldn't surprise me if in years to come the hotel appears and this becomes a cheaper alternative, they can build the hotel based on the feedback from this to make sure what they produce suits the parks needs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon81uk Posted April 1, 2014 Report Share Posted April 1, 2014 Thorpe really isn't trying to be a world class park though, their tag line is "the nations thrill capital" and that's all they are trying for. In the same way that the Six Flags parks only sell themselves to Americans. The Crash Pad and similar sized rooms of the Shark Hotel, serve a purpose and others others who have stayed there they are fine and you are free to spend evenings in the dome so you don't have to be in the tiny room. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flipper Posted April 1, 2014 Report Share Posted April 1, 2014 Crash Pad last year was great. It's perfect for a night or two, in some quirky accommodation. The old Crash Pad beds were amongst the comfiest I've ever slept on and despite being small (something you adapt to very quickly) and being relatively basic; the Dome was available until the early hours, so there was an option to not stay in the room. I do feel this is a case of, don't knock it until you try it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted April 2, 2014 Report Share Posted April 2, 2014 I thought Merlin's end goal WAS to have world class theme parks/midways in it's portfolio? What with them constantly harping on about being number 2 and aiming for the Mouse since they took over in the first place... Six Flags is a great comparison to Thorpe, especially the sudden realisation that the teen market isn't lucrative or good for business... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flipper Posted April 2, 2014 Report Share Posted April 2, 2014 I thought Merlin's end goal WAS to have world class theme parks/midways in it's portfolio? What with them constantly harping on about being number 2 and aiming for the Mouse since they took over in the first place... Six Flags is a great comparison to Thorpe, especially the sudden realisation that the teen market isn't lucrative or good for business... You clearly misunderstand. They're not trying to obtain world class attractions; they're solely working to get the highest gate figures nationally. If you look at some of their reports to investors and such like, you'll find how they're trying to expand attractions into everywhere on the planet with a high interest in expanding LegoLand as a brand as it's easy money. I mean, based on what you've written alone shows that you don't have a clue. They want to beat Disney, by having world class attractions? No, that isn't a thing. It isn't even grammatically correct. They want to beat Disney on gate figures, and gate figures is what they care about because people means money. But do keep posting Benin, you're replies to things so far today have provided great entertainment. Cal and Altitude 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted April 2, 2014 Report Share Posted April 2, 2014 What's so confusing about trying to beat Disney via building world class attractions? I'd like to know how that doesn't make sense... Also, as the second word in my post stated, it was my 'thought' that Merlin's end goal was to be better than Disney by providing high-quality products that would directly compete with them... If their aim is to saturate the market with bland carbon copy Midway attractions, dead IPs and Legolands, in correlation with poorly run parks, then I'm clearly not cut out to be a sensible businessman... JoshC. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coaster_monkey Posted April 2, 2014 Report Share Posted April 2, 2014 I would expect more from a park that charges £40+ a ticket. Regardless of BOGOF and cheaper online tickets, which can give a great discount, if a park thinks it's worth £40 on the day then facilities should be of the highest spec. Merlin have cut corners in order for profit to roll into pockets and not investment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Posted April 2, 2014 Report Share Posted April 2, 2014 I would expect more from a park that charges £40+ a ticket. Regardless of BOGOF and cheaper online tickets, which can give a great discount, if a park thinks it's worth £40 on the day then facilities should be of the highest spec. Merlin have cut corners in order for profit to roll into pockets and not investment. That £40+ day ticket is the same price as a season pass mind. From what I've seen, people that have stayed in crashpad enjoy it and think it's very good (me included), those who haven't stayed think it's dreadful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted April 2, 2014 Report Share Posted April 2, 2014 I would expect more from a park that charges £40+ a ticket. Regardless of BOGOF and cheaper online tickets, which can give a great discount, if a park thinks it's worth £40 on the day then facilities should be of the highest spec. Merlin have cut corners in order for profit to roll into pockets and not investment. This £40 price line does seem to crop up quite often, when you say on the day entry to Thorpe Park is £48 that *does* sound like an awful lot, but when you compare it to say going to a premier league football game, it suddenly dont sound quite so bad. Along with that if who ever is planing their trip shops around its £25 a couple of days in advance which IMO offers pretty good value for money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted April 2, 2014 Report Share Posted April 2, 2014 I suggest those who wish to refer to the pricing scheme this year go look at Phantasialand's prices, where there are no such discounts via Online/BOGOF... Of course that said, it is very expensive, hence the huge push of BOGOFs by Merlin for that good old fashioned "Value For Money" look... This £40 price line does seem to crop up quite often, when you say on the day entry to Thorpe Park is £48 that *does* sound like an awful lot, but when you compare it to say going to a premier league football game, it suddenly dont sound quite so bad. Along with that if who ever is planing their trip shops around its £25 a couple of days in advance which IMO offers pretty good value for money. You need to stop channeling Varney... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coaster_monkey Posted April 2, 2014 Report Share Posted April 2, 2014 ...but I don't go to football matches? =P I'm not completely sold, what happens if a family take a spontaneous trip to Thorpe Park during the summer? Yes, culture today has changed a lot and people DO look around for the best deals and perhaps plans ahead, but there are a lot of families/couples/groups that don't - tourists are a good example also. I genuinely think that Merlin have invested into the three main parks purely for profit only. Sure, what good business doesn't? But I really get the feeling that no matter what - Merlin will ALWAYS go for the cheapest option, will not push the boat out and, quite frankly, do not care for the sense of adventure a theme park should give you. These containers are a great example of a park sticking two fingers up at the customer. I want to be wrong, I want to believe that Merlin are testing the waters, starting small and building up... but they aren't. It won't get better just more or less the same. I want Thorpe Park to become a theme park and not a 'day out'. So much more can be done. Yes, the feedback on this site many of you think tha last years Crash Pad was decent. But why are we settling for less? Sidders 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted April 2, 2014 Report Share Posted April 2, 2014 I've seen price of staying in the Shark Hotel knocked about a few times. So, I've done a little experiment. You're a family of 4 - 2 adults, 2 children (1 teen, 1 9 year old, say) and you want to go to Thorpe for the first time ever for a couple of days and stay at a hotel for the night. I choose a random date, so - arrive on Friday 30th May, leave the day after. Here's what the prices will look like: Shark Hotel Total cost: £273. Includes: Family room, park tickets for both days, breakfast, ERT in the morning; access to the Dome in the evening. Chertsey Travelodge Cost of hotel: £37 Cost of 2-day tickets (if booked online in advance): £30.99 for the adults - including the teen - and £28.99 for the 10 year old. So, cost of tickets in total, £121.96 Cost of travel: If you go by car, you're paying £5 each day for parking, plus petrol. If not, bus tickets from Chertsey strangely vary an awful lot. A return varies between £3 and £4.50 for an adult(?!) and about half price for anyone under 20. Again, as I say, this varies a lot. So, if you bus it, it *should* cost a minimum £18 in total for 2 days worth of returns. You could get a taxi for probably £5-6 each way. Or, you could walk about 30-40mins for free. Total cost: £168.96 Includes: Family room, park entry. Baring in mind that, if you stay at Travelodge, you need to get dinner and breakfast. Say you get both of these in Chertsey, it's not going to be the cheapest thing ever (I wouldn't be surprised if prices are hiked up in some nearby places when the hotel opens in a couple weeks too). I've no idea how much it would end up costing, but at a guesstimate, if you went to one of the many Indians in Chertsey, you'd be spending a good £30-£40 on the family, and going to the nearby Chertsey Cafe for breakfast would end up costing a good £15-£20. So, if you do the sums and are savvy, you can see that the Shark Hotel does end up a bit more expensive than staying at the nearest Travelodge. However, what you have to bare in mind is the things you're getting with the Shark Hotel that you're not getting with the Travelodge. The first thing which springs to my mind is ease. No faffing between going to the park and a nearby hotel, breakfast sorted, you know where to go for dinner, ERT in the morning, etc. Another thing is the location - I'm willing to bet my bottom dollar more people would love to wake up, look out their window, and either overlook a lake or a theme park, as opposed to a naff gym, a set of offices or an accountancy firm... Plus you get to walk through a Shark at Thorpe. In Chertsey, you'll get to walk through a cloud of smoke. Okay, so the Shark Hotel might be a bit small, and a bit more pricey, but from where I'm standing, if I lived far away and had a choice between Thorpe or Travelodge, then I'd be shark bait for Thorpe. OldFarmerDean 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted April 2, 2014 Report Share Posted April 2, 2014 My issue with this is that they call it a "hotel." I'm sorry, but it's not a hotel. If shipping containers count as a hotel, then so do holiday Apartments, B&B's and maybe even tents! Crash Pad sold it as it was, but the word hotel is very misleading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis. Posted April 3, 2014 Report Share Posted April 3, 2014 This "hotel" doesn't interest me in the slightest. I mean, shipping containers? Really? We use them to house the homeless people in Brighton! I'd much rather stay at a Travelodge or Premier Inn. The shark will be nice to look at though I guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted April 3, 2014 Report Share Posted April 3, 2014 Moved the Merlin v Disney stuff to the Merlin to the Merlin topic http://forum.maniahub.com/topic/7118-merlin-entertainments/page-10#entry179992 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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