Why should they have designated areas outside??!Obviously in stations and queue lines I agree are no nos but is there really a point of having smoking areas?They are outside so who gives a flying fish!

As long as they as you said not smoking in queue lines or near food I couldent care less!

I personally would have a major problem with Alton towers the the designated smoking areas. Thorpes rules are no where in the queue lines etc and not near any buildings. I can do that and Chessie is pretty much the same other than Land of the Dragons and another area thats slipped my mind. They work for me, it's nice to be able to walk round the park and just light up instead of saying you need a cigarette, finding a place add all that up with a large group of you and it's gets pretty ridiculous.

The thing that irritated me most at Thorpe was the poor service and attitude of the food vendors. Inefficient and inept. They were so slow and disinterested.And along with Alton Towers- go disney on fast passes no more greedy, cynical money making. Go to attraction, take a ticket with a time, go back at that time...simples. EEE

Actually, I would prefer to be able to smoke wherever I wanted. Surely throwing a few of those ash tray bins (Do they actually have a name) would be much easier and cheaper?

So you are in favour for another fire at Thorpe Park are you, do you not remember the fire 10 years ago that destroyed Wicked Witches Haunt and part of Mr Rabbit's Tropical Travels??

Sorry, had no idea where to put this, but its a suggestion! So unless my eyes have missed it:Is there a general discussion in the thorpe section of the website? If not, I think that would be a good idea

Surely adding ash bins/trays/whatever to the park would make a fire LESS likely? Seeing as right now there is nowhere to dispose of fag ends.

So you are in favour for another fire at Thorpe Park are you, do you not remember the fire 10 years ago that destroyed Wicked Witches Haunt and part of Mr Rabbit's Tropical Travels??

That was in a queue line. And with a lot of greenery and flammable theming.And look where we are now...No smoking in queue lines and no theming!

Yes it was in a queue line and what Lewish said was to "allow smoking wherever I wanted". I interpreted this as including queue lines. There are bins everywhere, does everyone use them, definately not. so would this make people use ash bins???

Yes it was in a queue line and what Lewish said was to "allow smoking wherever I wanted". I interpreted this as including queue lines. There are bins everywhere, does everyone use them, definately not.

Ah, apologises. ;)To be honest, I'm fine with the way it works now. Any ways of changing it would be a waste of time and money..

I didn't mean in queues (I don't have to Q anyway so it doesn't bother me) I meant I'd hate to have to walk all the way to a smoking area, I'd rather just spark up anywhere not including queues Ash bins FTW

I didn't mean in queues (I don't have to Q anyway so it doesn't bother me) I meant I'd hate to have to walk all the way to a smoking area, I'd rather just spark up anywhere not including queues Ash bins FTW

Fair play. I thought you probably meant that, but I did see Matt's point. :DAs said, I think everything is fine how it is regarding the ciggies. My suggestion: More queue line shading. Pleases everyone and has chance for extra theming.

Smoking areas is nicer for non-smokers. Majority of people tend to stick by them, makes walking around the park nicer.Plus it makes smoking in queuelines easier - Yeah you cant smoke anywhere but designated areas.. Easy!

I disagree, both sets of staff are great, ive had thorpe staff talking to me, asking how my day has been just as much, if not more than at Alton Towers I agree with u thorpe hae wicked staff the person I remember being one of the best was a guy named rachel? he was working on stealth and explained to us how the ride worked and wat happened if theres a rollback it put my mind at rest so much once I knew how it worked and that (it was my first ever ride ) then he was on x no way out later that day and actually remembered me and my mates and we had a laugh n stuff . its not just once the staff have been friendly its every time I visit I dont know if its just people on here get the grumpy c***s but I always find them to be well mannered and nice people

My thing with smoking is that if one person smokes, there is then a huge number of people who are forced to breathe it in, even in paths and walkways where often they are very cramped and congested. I don't have a huge problem with it, even if other people's smoke can often give me a headache.

I usually go and sit somewhere away from people if I can when I'm smoking, like a grassy area or an empty spot on the paths. I don't like smoking in crowded areas.

^ If only everyone did

This seems like a good topic to bring up from the dead as so many of you have issues with the park

This seems like a good topic to bring up from the dead as so many of you have issues with the park

Blow it up and start again?

Ill get my shovel to start infilling! We could be there a fair while And we'd lose Stealth and Slammer

Out of interest here (Serious question to the haters) :rolleyes:What is so bad about Thorpe Park? Each year the park does better and better, busier and busier, whilst popularity is not always a measure of quality, enthusiasts have been slagging it off for years, and each year the park does that little bit better surely if it was THAT bad this wouldnt be the case?

Marc, this year Thorpe have not done better imo . Next year they will but I don't think a plonked down waterslide is tbh (maybe if the rumoured X:/WTF redecoration is of a high quality). Thorpe isn't bad , it's the chavs people they attract and the annoying 2010 branding of the park.

Marc, this year Thorpe have not done better imo .

When I say better, I mean the parks general popularity and success, not mine or anyone's opinions like that

Thorpe isn't bad , it's the chavs people they attract.

I thought this would come up, ive personally had more problems with "chavs" at Alton Towers than I ever have Thorpe but maybe thats just me

Out of interest here (Serious question to the haters) :rolleyes:What is so bad about Thorpe Park? Each year the park does better and better, busier and busier, whilst popularity is not always a measure of quality, enthusiasts have been slagging it off for years, and each year the park does that little bit better surely if it was THAT bad this wouldnt be the case?

Right, let me make a constructive post that some may find interesting.I used to be an enthusiast and visit the park religiously every other week, until I sarted working within Merlin and I found myself slagging off the park too much like alot of the people do on here. It came to a point where I thought "If I'm slagging it off so much, why do I still go and why do I still give them my money"... So fairly simply, I stopped going. The place didn't interest me anymore for some reason and I started to do other things. Id been going to Thorpe 20 odd times a year since 2004 and it was brilliant, but as soon as it came to 2009 I just did not visit anymore. So, after two years of not going to the park I can now give my point of view from an outsider perspective (and unfortunately, this is all that the park care about as a good 99% of their audience are not enthusiasts) I visited the park last year with a group of friends for the first time in a year or more. We purchased fastrack tickets and planned our day as maybe I would of before being an enthusiast. I must say, I had a quality day at the park (even though I ended up staying in the bar from 3pm). You all seem to slag off the park way too much about very minor things of which are of no issue to the general public and these small things may be something you notice more as you visit alot more than the average visitor. Also, nothing is perfect and I reckon that alot of people actually look out for any issues that they can feedback on the forums for and in a way, thats what may bring people back week in / week out.Pretty bollocks post I know, but I just wanted to say that for th average visitor Thorpe Park is a fun place to visit with mates and you can have a good day. And I'm sure you'll find that the percentage of the general public who complain compared to the daily gate figure is normally a pretty low proportion.

Out of interest here (Serious question to the haters) :rolleyes:What is so bad about Thorpe Park? Each year the park does better and better, busier and busier, whilst popularity is not always a measure of quality, enthusiasts have been slagging it off for years, and each year the park does that little bit better surely if it was THAT bad this wouldnt be the case?

How long do you have?For me, a good park has the full lot of things I mark off, rides, theming, atmosphere, greenery, etc... Thorpe only really fulfills the rides part (and even then my ride counts in recent years have been extremely low because I just can't be arsed to queue 45-60 minutes for Vortex)... Plus the ride quality isn't as amazing as everyone says... The best coaster is Inferno... One of the least best B&M inverts in the world, Colossus and Saw are rough, and Stealth is just boring to me now... TTD it most certainly isn't... There is also not enough non-spinny rides... Sometimes I may just want to sit down on a ride and relax for a bit... There's not enough rides that let me do that at Thorpe... In my opinion there's about... 5 rides that would allow me to do that... Not good enough for a park that apparently has the best ride selection in the country...The theming is extremely sparse... When Saw opened everyone was going on about how amazing the indoor queue and ride section were... I was unimpressed to find a metal corridor and staircase... Colossus's theming looks dire now, Amity Cove hasn't been the same since they plonked Stealth in... Inferno's front end is good but the back is horrid...It's all jumbled about and the randomly changing level of theming is just, well pointless and makes the park look sporadic...Greenery... Thorpe is becoming a poor attempt at Cedar Point in more ways than one... The amount of greenery in the park is lowering yearly... And when you're stuck in a 45 minute Samurai queue which has NO shade (same for Saw, Det, Vortex) I would rather not queue than risk really ill before I get on the ride... And atmosphere... Where do I begin... This links in with the theming issue... There's minimal escapism in the park, not exactly helped by the clientele endured at every turn... As a friend described the look of the Saw queueline, "It's looking more and more like Guantanamo Bay every year"... Quite often I agree with it...And you're certainly right that busyness doesn't equal a good park to be at... That day of the meet was HORRIBLE... Thorpe crowded is never fun because of the small space it has... And there's nowhere really to get away from the crowds apart from maybe the 5 feet of pathway in Sunken Garden... You talk of popularity as if it's people being jealous of the park... It quite simply isn't the case... Enthusiasts don't enjoy it for their own reasons, but generally it is to do with the park being how it is... Why should I travel an hour to Thorpe when I have Chessie 45 minutes away by car? Or if by train, why should I pay 10 pounds return to go to Thorpe (and then endure the 950), when I could just use my Oyster to go Chessie?Enthusiasts have been slagging it off because it deserves it quite frankly... No park is EVER perfect... I can accept Chessie limitations but always think of ways to improve the park...Plus, I don't think a second hand Raft Ride can be considered an improvement...

Which goes back to Jacks post, why go then?