Opening Times

[CharlieN]

Lol I just searched for "closed them parks" on Google maps and it took me straight to Thorpe Park. The worlds only 'permanently' closed theme park...

[Marc]

The park is set to open throughout September now (apart from Wednesday 28th for staff training) after previously being advertised as closed on these dates

[Mattgwise]

I actually prefer the park having some closed days as they can use those days to properly sort out any minor issues and actually clean properly.

[Mark9]

With how short the UK parks opening hours are, they could easily do this stuff after park close but they choose not to. 

[L7123456]

You have places like Adventure Island until 10pm in the summer, which is how it should be during the summer.

Then you have Thorpe Park closing at 6pm during the summer, with rare extended openings until 6-30...

This needs sorting out badly..

[Mark9]

This has been discussed a few times. The parks quieten down so drastically whenever they have attempted later closing that the first things cut the next season are the opening hours. I've always maintained that Thorpe in particular needs something to keep the guests attention for later hours. The rides themselves are not enough.

[LK_]

Adventure island at night is fab, the atmosphere is great, and it stays busy too, I feel AI just benefits more because its a seaside park and most people are always there for the entire day, the lights, entertainment, music, and the crowds at night are what drive me to stay at AI until their 10 - 10:30 closes, the times I've been to thorpe I've left at close and not really desiring more, but I normally go during april/may when the queues are short, so I can get everything done, I feel an 8pm close for thorpe would be nice in the summer, but obviously this wont happen  

[JoshC.]

7 hours ago, MilesK said:

You have places like Adventure Island until 10pm in the summer, which is how it should be during the summer.

Then you have Thorpe Park closing at 6pm during the summer, with rare extended openings until 6-30...

This needs sorting out badly..

 

As said above, AI benefits greatly from being a seaside park.

 

And if you exclude the seaside parks, Thorpe have the second-best summer opening hours in the UK (with the oh-so-popular Oakwood having the best...).  So in context of the UK, Thorpe's opening times are very decent, and aren't really the ones which need sorting out.

 

I honestly do think it's a cultural thing.  People in the UK like to start early so they can leave early it seems.  The parks are always so busy in the morning, with a huge rush of people coming in at the start of the day.  And between 5-6pm, Thorpe, for example, are quite quiet.  And I don't think it's a case of 'leaving early to beat the closing rush', as that doesn't happen with parks that have a 5pm close.  So it just seems like a larger majority of people naturally leave by 5pm-ish anyway.  And even with things to entice them to stay late (Summer Nights, concerts, fireworks, etc.), there doesn't seem to be that many people willing to stay late during summer.  

 

That's why late closes seem to work so much better in European parks in my opinion.  Different culture, with people more willing to stay later (and maybe even arrive later).  Obviously there might be other reasons and I might be completely off the mark, but it just seems like late openings at UK theme parks don't really work during the summer.

[Mattgwise]

Thorpe Park used to get busy in the late 90s on their midnight closes. They offered a discounted ticket after 4pm and this encouraged people to come. Summer nights wasn't popular as it was a separate ticket and only the big coasters were open rather than the whole park. Its purely how the park manage a later opening as to whether it would be popular or not.

[L7123456]

Summer fireworks could appeal to the public?

If not they could do some other free event to keep people on park til a later time of 8-9pm.

Keep the majority of rides open and do a cheaper entry fee if you arrive after 4, and voila, more people staying until later times.

[JoshC.]

Thorpe did do an afternoon-evening ticket thing last Summer Nights (or it might have been the 2014 one, can't remember), but it made next to no difference on the popularity.  They also tried summer fireworks in 2006, but cancelled them due to lack of demand.

 

I know I'm probably coming across as somewhat dismissive, but I honestly do think it's a case of there's not enough demand for late summer openings in the UK.  Halloween events work because of the ever growing scare market (which mostly only works on a large scale in October anyway).  I'd love to see it happen, but I can't see any way of it substantially happening in the UK. 

[JoshuaA]

I think a reason a late opening wouldn't work is due to the lack of live entertainment around the park.

For example you could spend 2/3 days at parks like PA or Europa as the shows break up time.

But a fireworks event like they do at PA would be nice in the summer, but I just don't seeing it happening..

[Coaster]

The park closes for the season on Wednesday 2nd November.  I could be wrong, but wasn't the weekend of 5th/6th November previously listed as the final two days?

[planenut]

1 hour ago, Coaster Jamie said:

The park closes for the season on Wednesday 2nd November.  I could be wrong, but wasn't the weekend of 5th/6th November previously listed as the final two days?

There is a private event I.e. Services Day on the 5th.

[JoshC.]

The season was always intended to finish on the 2nd.  That weekend might have been listed as open on the website (they occasionally include special / private events by accident), but it was never planned to be open to the public then.