JoshC. Posted January 7, 2015 Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 Well I can't comment on Phantastialand as I haven't been there, but considering how busy Thorpe gets in the summer it could be open a lot later (and I don't mean Summer Nights). BPB is in a different situation to theme parks like Thorpe Park and Phantasialand. It ust doesn't make sense to compare a tourist attraction of BPB's popularity and nature to opening times to theme parks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted January 7, 2015 Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 Yes but as we keep saying, it has been proven time and time, year after year that the majority of people don't stick around after 6. There is no incentive to stay in the park. When it's open until 7pm people seem to stay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted January 7, 2015 Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 When it's open until 7pm people seem to stay. I bet the queue times dropped dramatically as well.. I don't think it is proven. Also what stops them changing that attitude. People will stay if there is a reason to and now Thorpe is at a point where there is a reason. Another coaster and there will definitely be a need to stay open late. Another roller coaster will do diddly squat. The behaviour of Thorpe's guests would have to change dramatically before this occurs. This can only be done with an incentive such as a night-time show or a live performance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted January 7, 2015 Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 Or a park that's enjoyable enough to be worth staying in when busy. People probably get fed up of it being so busy and then leave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted January 7, 2015 Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 Or a park that's enjoyable enough to be worth staying in when busy. People probably get fed up of it being so busy and then leave. Ah a problem that Blackpool never has. Dan9, JoshC. and EC! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted January 7, 2015 Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 Or a park that's enjoyable enough to be worth staying in when busy. People probably get fed up of it being so busy and then leave. That discounts BPB then... EDIT - DAMMIT MARK! JoshC. and Dan9 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted January 7, 2015 Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 Ah a problem that Blackpool never has. I've never had an issue with it being busy there - the queues still move and the atmosphere is good, unlike Thorpe who tend to like running coasters on one train regardless of how busy the park is nowadays. I think the fact that people stay there until the park closes proves this point. BPB isn't perfect, far from it but I find it much easier to enjoy a busy day there than Thorpe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted January 7, 2015 Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 Again, please don't delete me Marc. Benin, EC!, Matt 236 and 3 others 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted January 7, 2015 Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 I don't think it is proven. Also what stops them changing that attitude. People will stay if there is a reason to and now Thorpe is at a point where there is a reason. Another coaster and there will definitely be a need to stay open late. I think you're underestimating how big a task "changing that attitude" is! Goes back to what I said earlier, people view theme parks as a 'day out', and that day out will normally finish no later than 6-7pm. Enormous task trying to change that attitude for most people during the summer time! When it's open until 7pm people seem to stay. Again, this goes back to what I said earlier - for many people, a 'day out' will probably finish around 6-7pm. You do notice the park get less busier for the last hour, that;s for sure! Beyond 7pm, far less people will stay at a theme park. The busiest Summer Nights last season saw around 1600 people from what I heard, and I expect that if the park had just been open until 10pm, only about 3000-4000 would have stayed anyway. Fright Nights remains popular because of the additional attractions, that fit the time of year, and there's traditionally less things going on in October evenings than there are in July/August evenings. Even then, many people do leave FN at around 9pm. It would be interesting to see the park try extended hours with evening performances / shows, but would they be an incentive enough for more people than not to stay on? I'm not so sure Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted January 7, 2015 Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 Again, this goes back to what I said earlier - for many people, a 'day out' will probably finish around 6-7pm. You do notice the park get less busier for the last hour, that;s for sure! Beyond 7pm, far less people will stay at a theme park. The busiest Summer Nights last season saw around 1600 people from what I heard, and I expect that if the park had just been open until 10pm, only about 3000-4000 would have stayed anyway. Yes but it could be argued that they only get less busy because it's the final hour. People often leave parks early to avoid traffic etc, so if they were open later then the same would apply (hence why some people leave at 9pm on Fright Nights). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 I'm surprised the council even allow any pre 18.00hrs closing, surly the last thing the locals want is the park traffic tipping out into rush hour? I understand the later closings have been tried and not worked out but I still think it is doable, especially with the right offering. Back in the 90's they used to make it work (well, Chessington did, I don't recall if Thorpe did too) by selling a discounted late ticket from about 16.00hrs until the 21.00hrs close. Some of they day people cleared off but they were replaced by the evening only guests, with the amount of hotel rooms between the three local-ish parks I can imagine that option being taken up by quite a few. And the opportunity for getting more money out of people must be tempting selling an evening meal to guests as well as a lunch would be rake it in. The other thing is how quite the park often is for the first hour, if the total hours can't change I'd much rather see a later opening and later closing than we ave now. holtjammy16 and Project LC 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pognoi Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 Isn't one of merlins schemes free meals for under 12's (with an adult paying guardian) after 3PM? Still I don't get what all the fuss is kicking up about, if you're so desperate for past 6/7pm closure go on a summer nights evening, and buy a ticket. It's what, a fiver more? For 3 hours of rides? For 2- minute queues on most of the rides? I think that's a bargain considering (at least I personally and from many people I know here) we have annual passes and after a first 3-4 visits virtually enter for free Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 Because people want later openings to be the norm, not the exception... Even then, the majority of major parks in Europe close at 7-8 in summer, so is there a real demand for it? State side and Spain are different kettles of fish in this regard though... Hence their constant 10-12-1 closing times... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 I'm surprised the council even allow any pre 18.00hrs closing, surly the last thing the locals want is the park traffic tipping out into rush hour? In recent years, I don't think there's ever really been complaints from locals about the traffic spilling into rush hour for 5pm closes. The only real concerns locals had was about MoS and people leaving then late at night, but I think the immediate locals (ie - those who live in Penton Park just opposite) have not been bothered by that. It would be interesting to see what the council would ask Thorpe to do if it were a real problem though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 Still I don't get what all the fuss is kicking up about, if you're so desperate for past 6/7pm closure go on a summer nights evening, and buy a ticket. It's what, a fiver more? There's not really a fuss kicking up and I'm desperate for nothing. I just think it would be generally better for the parks and for guests. It's not anything radical either, I'm old enough to have had these things before they have been taken away. I live a couple of hours from the park in good traffic, I've known a lot of my friends to say things like 'I'm not going all that way for a few hours', the longer the day the greater the customer reach I'm sure. Add to that that both legs of the journey are in rush hour on what is known to be the worst road in Europe and I can assure you it really does put people off. It's easy to forget when you live close to the park and have an AP that a trip to Thorpe for most is an annual treat at best, what's wrong with wanting people to be able to get the most out of that visit with a decent amount of time to get everything done at a nice relaxed pace on a moderately busy day? holtjammy16, TPJames and paige 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPJames Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 I completely agree with Pluk here. An enthusiast who lives close to the park and visits frequently has a completely different perspective to one of the general public, as I have already stated in different topics. Still I don't get what all the fuss is kicking up about, if you're so desperate for past 6/7pm closure go on a summer nights evening, and buy a ticket. It's what, a fiver more? For 3 hours of rides? For 2- minute queues on most of the rides? I think that's a bargain considering (at least I personally and from many people I know here) we have annual passes and after a first 3-4 visits virtually enter for free Looking from a member of the GP's perspective, it is £15 to stay the rest of the night. I am sure that if it was included, with added free entertainment(nothing major just to entice guests in), the guests would stay the full evening. It would be a much more valuable offer for guests and I think the guests would be much more likely to stay the whole evening. Even if thorpe brought in an evening ticket for £15, but guests had the option to stay the full day, I think it would be a much better way to run the park than having it a separate event altogether. Maybe my perspective is wrong, however I think it's fundamental to look through a member of the GP's point of view when discussing this as everyone(including me) has been going from their own opinion which is to be honest quite biased compared to what the general public would like. An enthusiast visits much more frequently, plans their day and knows what they want to do. A member of the general public doesn't get these benefits and I think a few extra hours, especially in the summer are needed to satisfy guests. Project LC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt 236 Posted January 11, 2015 Report Share Posted January 11, 2015 Once again I can say, I don't really fault the park's current open hours 10-5 off peak weekdays, 10-6 weekends & peak week, 10-7 Summer and 10-10 FN. If I'm a little pedantic, 10-8 closings in summer and 10-7 closing in school holidays would be better, but apart from they're good for the park's position now which bar the seaside parks I still believe has the best opening hours in the uk. Sadly we won't see the likes of long opening hours in the uk (Like Disney or anywhere) such as 10-9 closings on average weekends and 11/12 on peak days (not to mention restrictions) but there's now is quite good. I remember going a Tivoli in Spain which didn't close til 2am in the morning. However the park didn't open until 6 in the evening and has a low entrance fee and a separate wristband for rides where like Southend & Liseberg, people can drift in and out as they please. OldFarmerDean 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPJames Posted January 26, 2015 Report Share Posted January 26, 2015 I do agree that the above points I raised may have been slightly on the unrealistic side, thorpe park does have extremely good hours when compared to UK parks and summer nights is taken into account. Sure it would be nice for hours to be extended and to have summer nights included in a day ticket, but hey ho that's the way it goes. I think on the entertainment side thorpe are still slightly lacking though, especially if they want RNR to work. After visiting Portaventura in summer I found out what a theme park can really do to entertain you with shows etc. for a whole day. I know comparing a park in Spain to one in the UK is unrealistic, however a day at Portaventura from 10am-midnight/4am really isn't enough to experience absolutely everything on offer. It would be great if thorpe could learn from this and create shows and park entertainment like Portaventura does to keep day guests entertained when not on rides etc. Of course ABL 4D is only the building blocks to wide park entertainment, setting up a few more stages around the park and having regular entertainment would also be great, and as the years go by, if they could incorporate permanent shows like Portaventura it would be superb. I understand Portaventura has a much bigger budget to play with, however a little bit of effort on thorpe's part just to get the entertainment side up and running wouldn't be hard. As there is nothing major new for 2015, I hope thorpe can improve park entertainment as I would really enjoy a day more if there was entertainment and shows going on between rides. Portaventura has some really unique entertainment and it would be great if thorpe could incorporate this. If thorpe don't want to go all out on budgeting entertainment all year round, they could maybe just put it on special event such as summer nights and during holidays if possible. As I said, a great start to this would be adding more stages around the park and something I would really like to be incorpated is something they do at Portaventura, called a foam disco. I know it's a bit out of the blue, but a foam machine doesn't cost that much and it is absolutely insane fun at Portaventura and I can garuntee the guests would really enjoy it. It could even just take a place on a side stage like the one by tidal wave, as there is enough space for a DJ, a foam machine and people! Small details in theme parks really do add up, so I really hope thorpe can put on some more live music/ shows around the park especially on events like summer nights. If summer nights had live entertainment and music it would be absolutely insane! My post may be a bit strange, however I feel it's what thorpe need to make the park work especially with RNR into play. Cal and lewumbrajumbos 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Binki101 Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 At the risk of being battered here, I agree with TPJames, and would suggest that during summer nights, they could probably have a foam party or similar on Neptune's beach. I also think they should re-invent the rangers/park mascots as that alone would re-vitalize the in park entertainment just through having some fun interactive characters around. To be fair to thorpe a number of times throughout the last season they did extend opening times spontaneously and advertised it through social media on the day, I can only assume this was done as a response to on-park demand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldFarmerDean Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 I'm going this Sunday... Just wondering what time they have been letting in annual passholders over the easter weeks, as I'm sure they used to let general guests in earlier, like half 9? Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cal Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 I'm going this Sunday too Every weekend I went last year I was let in around half 9, so I assume it'll be the same (I haven't been this season yet) Only problem is I have to get my annual pass in the morning, but the annual pass building may not open till 10? Anyone know roughly what time it opens or the earliest someone's seen it open? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Project LC Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 The park still opens at half 9 the annual pass building opens at 10. If you are lucky they may open earlier, but it wont be anything before 9:30. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cal Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 That's annoying, hopefully it'll open at half 9. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Celia Mae Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 We went to Thorpe last Tuesday and passholders were let in a little earlier (about 9:25 ish) but it didn't seem very long before all the ticket holders were let in after us so maybe they just decided to open a little earlier for everyone as they were ready. OldFarmerDean 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitchada04 Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 The idea is still first to ride being 15 minutes before opening. This is for hotel guests abs usually extends to AP holders but this season it's been a bit slower. If the park closes at 6 or 7 it is a 9:30 opening. If it closes at 5 or is Fright Nights it's a 10 opening (main gate opening) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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