August 15, 201411 yr comment_188760 Wasn't sure where to post this so I guessed here would be an OK place. I am visiting on Wednesday and I know it will be super busy but annual pass holders get in 15mins early. I am getting an annual pass and am going with two friends, one has a pass but the other doesn't. For the 'early entrance' can my friend get in early with us even though he doesn't have an annual pass? Would be nice if he could to get on a ride first as it will be super busy.
August 16, 201411 yr comment_188819 Wasn't sure where to post this so I guessed here would be an OK place. I am visiting on Wednesday and I know it will be super busy but annual pass holders get in 15mins early. I am getting an annual pass and am going with two friends, one has a pass but the other doesn't. For the 'early entrance' can my friend get in early with us even though he doesn't have an annual pass? Would be nice if he could to get on a ride first as it will be super busy. I don't know but I could only guess that if you buy a friends and family ticket for him he'd be aloud in with you (it's the same with Alton Towers) but if he buys an ordinary ticket online or at the gate, I doubt they will let you.
August 16, 201411 yr comment_188825 The thing is the last time I visited I didnt have an ap and just after 10am when we got there the lady called us through annual passes even though I didnt have one but my friend did. So I'm wondering if it applies to early access, worth a try though right?
August 16, 201411 yr comment_188827 I've found that, in my experience across the Merlin parks, some staff are okay with letting the odd one or two non-AP people through if they're in a group that's mainly AP holders. Some might be a little stricter, some might not be. As you say, no harm in asking!
August 17, 201411 yr comment_188918 I'll be there september 28th (Sunday) and the day after. Anyone have an idea what the queues will be like? Thanks!
August 17, 201411 yr comment_188924 I'm not an expert but my guess is most people will be holding out till fright nights. I would expect to be an average Sunday with queues for the coasters ranging up to around 60mins. The flat rides and water rides should not peak over 30/40mins. The Monday will then be quieter as it is a school day(I think) so I think queues will definately not reach over 60mins on the Monday but should range around 15-30mins for most of the day. Please don't rely on this and get advice from other people as I am probably wrong!
August 17, 201411 yr comment_188941 Be careful on weekdays, especially mondays and fridays. What is often the case is that because everything is running on a lower capacity the queues can end up bigger than what they sometimes are on a sunday. As for the end of september I'm hot sure how busy it will be. It should'nt be packed but it wont be quiet either. Expect 30-60 minute queues for the coasters and 10-40 for the flats. That could change a lot depending on weather and a few other factors like deals and fright nights.
August 18, 201411 yr comment_188943 It's the first couple weeks of school for a lot of people, so it shouldn't be busy in the weekdays like it is at the end of the school year. The best days to go during the week are Tuesdays and Thursdays. But for you, like LC said, they tend to run lower capacity on week days, and this can lead to longer queues. Sundays are varied, but again it's the early school term so you shouldn't see too many teens and school aged kids about. I'd say the longest queues won't be 60 minutes, probably a bit under, but still prepare for long queues by working your way through the park from right to left, starting on Colossus or saw and finishing at the swarm. This way you tend to dodge the queues as the crowds pan out.
August 18, 201411 yr comment_189040 Sundays in September always seem surprisingly busy from my experience.
August 19, 201411 yr comment_189140 Ok, thanks for the help, hopefully it's not too bad. Just have to wait and see
August 31, 201411 yr comment_190334 Any idea how busy it will be this week? Monday/Tuesday. Are schools going back this week?
August 31, 201411 yr comment_190336 A lot of schools are going back tomorrow however some schools are back later on in the week. The hours are till 6pm so don't expect it to be empty however not super packed. If it turns out to be much busier than expected the park may open for an extra half hour or so like they do sometimes. My guess is the Tuesday would be emptier than the Monday however not by much. Expect queues for the coasters to get over an hour and flat rides to be around 30mins. However, a lot of people may have the idea that it will be empty and will turn out busy. I think it is quite am unpredictable day to be honest however I would expect coaster around 60mins.' If you are planning on visiting get there at 9:15-9:30am as they have been opening early at 9:30(9:15 for AP holders) all of this summer.
August 31, 201411 yr Author comment_190337 Any idea how busy it will be this week? Monday/Tuesday. Are schools going back this week? I think it will be very busy. I'd go the week after to guarantee a quieter trip.
August 31, 201411 yr comment_190339 I'd expect most secondary schools start this Wednesday or Thursday and colleges to start between Thursday and Monday (especially in the local area). So next week will probably still be quite busy and there'll be a fair few people trying to get in that last quick visit before going back to school.
August 31, 201411 yr comment_190355 Monday and Tuesday will probably be the busiest days of September. Summer Holidays don't actually end till Wednesday down here in Surrey with most Runnymede schools also having Wednesday off. Local colleges don't start till the following Monday so this week will still be pretty busy (a few years ago they had to extend opening on the first Monday and Tuesday to 6 due to the number of schools still off and they've extended previously on 6 close as well to 6:30).
August 31, 201411 yr comment_190368 Thorpe was absoloutely packed today! The overflow car park was full!
September 4, 201411 yr comment_190912 How busy is it going to be Friday 5th September (Tomorrow)? As some schools are back in school now.
September 4, 201411 yr comment_190913 A large majority of schools are back now. In theory it shouldn't be that busy but you never know.
September 4, 201411 yr comment_190927 Okay I am hoping that I won't get queues above 30 mins for coasters ill be happy with 10-20 mins queue all day tomorrow though.
September 6, 201411 yr comment_191233 I know this question doesn't go here but I thought it would be even worse to create an entire thread for something so trivial:Thorpe has lots of games but does it, like Chessington, have prize every time games like the hook-a-duck? Thanks in advance.
September 7, 201411 yr comment_191238 Anyone know what midweeks in september are like? I'm trying to organise a trip for a weekday this week, I'm sure it wont be too busy but on the other hand I'm expecing a lot of the coasters to be running at a low capacity.
September 7, 201411 yr comment_191244 I know this question doesn't go here but I thought it would be even worse to create an entire thread for something so trivial: Thorpe has lots of games but does it, like Chessington, have prize every time games like the hook-a-duck? Thanks in advance. Indeed it does, opposite Mr Monkeys Banana ride. Sent from my iPhone 5S using Tapatalk
September 7, 201411 yr comment_191247 I'm visiting this wednesday... I'm expecting it to be quite busy do to free sun tickets, and people not back at uni yet.
September 7, 201411 yr comment_191269 Does anyone think the first sunday(11th October) or the second sunday(19th October) of fright nights will be busier? When I visited on the 2nd Sunday last year, it poured all day meaning rides were walk on all day and mazes reached a maximum of around 30mins(we waited 60 for asylum due to someone loosing their personal items). Does anyone have a rough idea of what it will be like this year, may even be visiting both weekends but would be appreciated if anyone knew which is likely to be emptier as I need to book my early bird AP ticket. Thanks to all
September 7, 201411 yr comment_191281 Does anyone think the first sunday(11th October) or the second sunday(19th October) of fright nights will be busier? When I visited on the 2nd Sunday last year, it poured all day meaning rides were walk on all day and mazes reached a maximum of around 30mins(we waited 60 for asylum due to someone loosing their personal items). Does anyone have a rough idea of what it will be like this year, may even be visiting both weekends but would be appreciated if anyone knew which is likely to be emptier as I need to book my early bird AP ticket. Thanks to all Was thinking the same as you, I visited the same day as you last year the 13th of October and it was great, pretty much walk on queues for the rides all day and no queue above 30 minutes for all the mazes. I'm not sure if this was purely because of the weather though? I'm thinking the first weekend might be a bit busier because it's the first weekend it's on so I might go on the 19th of October. I'm not expecting it to be like last year but I think it won't be as busy.
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