MattyMoo Posted February 7, 2019 Report Share Posted February 7, 2019 12 minutes ago, JoshC. said: Also no 10-4 days planned! Yet ? 2542464 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marhelorpe Posted February 7, 2019 Report Share Posted February 7, 2019 8 hours ago, JoshC. said: Two day tickets were rarely advertised, you always had to hunt round for them (even on Chessington and Legoland's sites, it's not exactly easy to find them!). So I assume this is something they've slowly worked towards - "oh look, we are barely selling 2 day tickets, why bother offering them at all. Especially when the APs are so cheap" I don't think removing the option is the best way to go. I don't know what the prices were for Thorpe - presumably the £40 number you say is when booked in advance, choosing the specific days, etc etc? Maybe the better way to go would have been to just increase the price to make the season pass a more lucrative deal than making it the only deal? Even if they were not the most popular ticket option for guests, removing them entirely is not a solution, it only creates a new problem. Yep, that £40 quote was the average child/adult price for a 2-day ticket last year I remember. For Thorpe, I can kinda let them off this given I presume the majority of their guests only visit for 1 day anyway. But Alton Towers though? Really? That'a a 2-day park minimum for families. There should in my view still be an option for a 2-day park ticket as some people simply do not want to be tied to an annual pass, they just want a single weekend together at a park for the year, that's it. This to me seems like an easy way for Merlin to push people into buying their season pass instead to gain more money, nothing more but that. Ringo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ringo Posted February 7, 2019 Report Share Posted February 7, 2019 10 minutes ago, Marhelorpe said: This to me seems like an easy way for Merlin to push people into buying their season pass instead to gain more money, nothing more but that. Exactly why they’ve done it, some get drawn in by the tag “pay for a day come back all year” they think it’s a great offer, which it is if you are going to hammer it. Plus Varney gets to boast about how many new sales they’ve made and then spout the on average our pass holders spend XXX in our world. Marhelorpe 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted February 7, 2019 Report Share Posted February 7, 2019 2 hours ago, JoshC. said: hmmm, interesting Two day tickets were rarely advertised, you always had to hunt round for them (even on Chessington and Legoland's sites, it's not exactly easy to find them!). So I assume this is something they've slowly worked towards - "oh look, we are barely selling 2 day tickets, why bother offering them at all. Especially when the APs are so cheap" I don't think removing the option is the best way to go. I don't know what the prices were for Thorpe - presumably the £40 number you say is when booked in advance, choosing the specific days, etc etc? Maybe the better way to go would have been to just increase the price to make the season pass a more lucrative deal than making it the only deal? I'm not sure if they were available to purchase online, but I remember "bounce backs" being heavily advertised at Thorpe back in 2008-11ish; it might have been as you were exiting the park rather than on the way in though. Same with the "Towers 2 ticket" (think it was called that), I think they may have even offered the choice between returning the next day or any day for the remainder of the season at a higher price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBoyJD10 Posted February 7, 2019 Report Share Posted February 7, 2019 Shame there is no 10pm closes in summer. Better than towers still! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted February 7, 2019 Report Share Posted February 7, 2019 1 hour ago, Coaster said: I'm not sure if they were available to purchase online, but I remember "bounce backs" being heavily advertised at Thorpe back in 2008-11ish; it might have been as you were exiting the park rather than on the way in though. Same with the "Towers 2 ticket" (think it was called that), I think they may have even offered the choice between returning the next day or any day for the remainder of the season at a higher price. The idea of the BounceBacks was that when you were on park, if you enjoyed the park, you could get a ticket to come back for a significantly reduced rate. At it's heights, prices were £1 to return the day after, £6-8 to return on a non-FN date and £15 to return on a FN date. I believe you could pick it up from a Fastrack place. Coaster 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt A Posted February 14, 2019 Report Share Posted February 14, 2019 Thorpe don't appear to be too impressed with plans to build a retirement home near the site: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-47236355 "Merlin Entertainment said the development of 79 apartments could impact future investment at the attraction because residents might object to noise coming from the rides and visitors." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted February 14, 2019 Report Share Posted February 14, 2019 This is the proposed location of thew retirement home: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Cemex+House,+Coldharbour+Ln,+Egham+TW20+8TD/@51.4083884,-0.5216377,534m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x48767721c5ad4327:0x761f1c38214c6e0a!8m2!3d51.4096667!4d-0.5208182 It's very close to a major back of house service road used by the park, as well as the island behind Stealth/Swarm which will probably have a new coaster put on it the next 20 years (hopefully..) It has been discussed since last summer, and is clearly a bad idea given it's proximity to the park and it's service roads. I wouldn't be keen to live there; why would people needing a retirement home want to? Quotes from Thorpe's representative taken from their letter of objection letter to the council... Quote We also note that Merlin met the applicant in the initial stages of the application and has been seeking a further meeting to discuss the issues raised in this letter. While Merlin very rarely comments on applications and always seeks to take a positive and direct approach to engagement with local landowners/developers to overcome potential issues, their concerns about the significance of these proposals for Thorpe Park’s future mean it must protect its position. Quote It is therefore concluded that the proposals do not comply with national policy or guidance, nor are they considered to align with RBC’s emerging Local Plan. The evidence submitted in support of the application appears insufficient and ultimately down-plays the significance of the noise impacts and associated effects. We therefore consider that the applications should be rejected as a departure from planning policy. It further mentions that the noise assessment carried out by those planning the retirement home (which says the noise levels would be fine) were carried out improperly, and probably understate the amount of standard noise. That could cause major issues if the development went ahead. 2542464 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobF Posted February 14, 2019 Report Share Posted February 14, 2019 Thorpe need more space in years to come, buy the land instead..... perfect hotel site ? 2542464 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt 236 Posted February 14, 2019 Report Share Posted February 14, 2019 **WORLDS FIRST RETIREMENT HOME DEDICATED TO THEME PARKS AND SCREAMING** Seems an odd first for Merlin if you ask me. Residential developments don’t go well near them parks though, especially in the U.K. Matt A 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reece_Crockford Posted February 17, 2019 Report Share Posted February 17, 2019 Living Nightmare is on the Thorpe Park app. Advertising it to open at 3PM. Could this be an all year round atracion this year or not? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Project LC Posted February 17, 2019 Report Share Posted February 17, 2019 I really hope not. How many times can the park make the same mistake. Regardless of what guest feedback says people do not want a park that is just full of scare attractions and mazes all year round. They don't have a clue what the guests want because they dont know what guests they want. Pick a target market and commit to it. Either go down the family route and resort to the basics or stick with millennials and change everything to do with the parks tone. Get people in who understand the millennial demographic and give them free reign. The more I analyse the park the clearer it becomes that the last few years they have been going with millennials from the view point of a 45+ year old. It is with no surprise that it hasnt worked. Ringo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted February 17, 2019 Report Share Posted February 17, 2019 I believe it just hasn't been updated properly / is serving as a placeholder. After all, if the maze opens at 3pm and the park closes between 5-6pm, that's only a couple of hours of operation. Seems pretty pointless, surely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Project LC Posted February 17, 2019 Report Share Posted February 17, 2019 While pointless it really would not surprise me at this point. Since DBGT the park finds new and creative ways of finding more and more stupid things to do. It will be interesting to watch the 2019 season play out with the new director. However with the lack of planning permission for 2020 and no development for 2019 my outlook for the next few years is bleak. The Eurozone and the UK economy is not looking good and a fair amount of Merlin's money comes from it. You then have Legoland in New York that is constantly being hit with lawsuits and looks set to be over budget and delayed. Not to mention brand new theme parks never tend to do very well at first. Merlin's 2019 annual report in a couple of weeks will make for a very interesting read. Ringo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted February 18, 2019 Report Share Posted February 18, 2019 19 minutes ago, Ivsetti said: It seems like nothing major will be happening for 2019. Who knows for 2020? The Swarm's planning permission was released 4/02/11 (or exactly 2 weeks and 8 years from today). This will imply Project 2020 potentially wasn't a roller coaster OR the ride's construction has been scrapped for now (maybe in favour of replacing Loggers?). A major 2020 project would require planning permission asap. Ghost Train had it's planning application put in in October 2014 for example. More importantly, since there's no current valid MTDP, the park would have to submit a full application, which is a slightly longer process. I would already see it as very unlikely that a major investment is coming in 2020, and as time goes on, that likelihood only decreases. A medium-sized investment (say a new flat ride) would probably have to go in late summer / early autumn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
btcc1721 Posted February 18, 2019 Report Share Posted February 18, 2019 On 2/17/2019 at 6:00 PM, Reece_Crockford said: Living Nightmare is on the Thorpe Park app. Advertising it to open at 3PM. Could this be an all year round atracion this year or not? It opens 3pm normally on Fright Nights. I imagine this is just a mistake on opening dates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted February 18, 2019 Report Share Posted February 18, 2019 In something potentially directly related to 2019... Interestingly the same logo as this gaming thing: https://www.hypdgaming.com Coincidence (Thorpe using a random image of the word hyped)? Or some sort of sponsorship / partnership? Years ago (2004/2005 I think) Thorpe has PS2 Weekenders over summer where you could compete in random games and competitions. Could they do something like that again? Maybe have "A year of competition" or "A year of games and fun?" At this stage, feels like anything is possible... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyMoo Posted February 18, 2019 Report Share Posted February 18, 2019 That's a massive tie in if true, HYPD have an incredible 3000 subscribers on YouTube ? Actually to be fair they have a decentish amount of "likes" on Facebook and Twitch but yeah.... meh. Love all the people thinking it's going to be a Hyper coaster announcement, wouldn't put it past Merlin doing that on purpose after recent tormenting of the enthusiast "community" ? Unlike Paulton's who sound like they are getting a Mack after hinting it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Project LC Posted February 18, 2019 Report Share Posted February 18, 2019 Thorpe have tweeted a picture saying hypd. Currently the only information is a faded 2. The comments are rather optimistic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPC Posted February 18, 2019 Report Share Posted February 18, 2019 HYPD is a fortnite reference... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt A Posted February 18, 2019 Report Share Posted February 18, 2019 Hyper Coaster confirmed 2542464 and JoshC. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyMoo Posted February 18, 2019 Report Share Posted February 18, 2019 Good detective work @EpicSmatty Can't say this has got my "HYPD". Matt A 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
profburp Posted February 18, 2019 Report Share Posted February 18, 2019 1 hour ago, MattyMoo said: Good detective work @EpicSmatty Can't say this has got my "HYPD". I agree with you there! I am very concerned at the direction TP is heading. it is worrying that they think this sort of thing will appeal to people, to pay to come to a theme park, something which they could do from their own home and probably better! Merlin seem to gradually be abandoning TP. It is their 40th birthday let's see some more on that! Get some nostalgia going, bring back some of that....the rangers rumoured would have been a great addition for example, not some game tournaments! New for 2019....a gaming tournament. Don't get me wrong I am sure there are some people who would love that and would find it fun, but I sadly doubt it's going to pull the crowds in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt A Posted February 18, 2019 Report Share Posted February 18, 2019 So this actually isn't the first time HYPD have been at Thorpe, they did a live-stream during Fright Nights last year: Oddly their Facebook page has far more followers than their other social channels, ~80,000 compared to ~3,000 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
profburp Posted February 18, 2019 Report Share Posted February 18, 2019 1 hour ago, Ivsetti said: I think it's clear signs of appealing to the new interests of younger visitors by setting up a gaming competition. As I said, I don't feel 2019 will be a major year as leadership changes. I don't mind what their events are for this 1 year as long as long-term the park gets themselves to where they need to be. However basic things like park cleanliness and look, ride availability and other basic necessities for a nationally recognised theme park must improve starting this season. So far it seems they are working hard on that (many areas of the park washed and repainted). It will appeal to people (and I feel also the demographic of the "nation's thrill-capital"), but I'm hoping the park realise the limited audience this will appeal to. Also, Fortnite is set on an Island so it kind of makes sense why they might have chosen this. Also, HYPD is definitely not a ride or anything like that BUT until we actually see the event (who knows, it might actually be good) I'd refrain from speculating how rubbish and out of tune and so forth this event could be. You are right, nobody should judge until they've actually seen what comes out of it, so I take back some of my comments and will await what comes along. But from now hearing that it has received some potential bad responses already is a little worrying. Also with regards to the comment that it appeals to younger visitors, the costumed characters they are talking about in the Ents advert, is this likely to be something to do with fortnite too, rather than the rangers as previously speculated and people hoped for? I don't know enough about it, but is it a possibility? Maybe a meet and greet etc? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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