May 22, 201411 yr comment_183848 ^ So this isn't annual passholders? No, I didn't get it last year and it doesn't state it on there website.
May 29, 201411 yr comment_184300 Yo I rang Chessington and they said as an annual pass holder you ARE entitled to ERT up until Sunday because they're trialling it at the moment. They said they're going to trial it again at busy times. ERT is 9am-10:30am
May 29, 201411 yr comment_184307 Yo I rang Chessington and they said as an annual pass holder you ARE entitled to ERT up until Sunday because they're trialling it at the moment. They said they're going to trial it again at busy times. ERT is 9am-10:30am Sorry to challenge your information but how is it going to be 1 and a half hours long if the park opens at 10? If it is until 10:30 I can see lots of unhappy guests who have arrived for park opening and not being allowed in because of ERT!
May 29, 201411 yr comment_184309 The park will open for other guests at 10am as before, just ERT people will enter through the fastrack queue. A bit annoying, but hey, the lineup is brilliant!
May 29, 201411 yr comment_184310 Don't shoot the messenger, that's just what the woman said to me! Remember though, it is a trial so I guess they're discovering the pros and cons as they do it. They said I have to go to get an ERT wristband at the desk, so I don't think this is a widely known and therefore widely used perk (apart from by those who are in the hotel)
May 29, 201411 yr comment_184312 It's just illogical. Why can't it just be 9-10 and they hold non ERT guests at the gates to the theme park entrance parts and people who can get ERT just wonder around the park and go through the normal queue of the open rides? That's how Towers do it and have done for many many years. Getting a wristband will take forever when busy (it's a tiny desk near the otters with two staff on) and is just unnecessary! It also means Fastrack queues are in use from the word go! Got to Scorpion Express today just after 10 and the Fastrack queue was half full as well as disabled entrance meaning half the air gates were blocked off. Dread to think what Vampire was like.
May 29, 201411 yr comment_184313 Don't shoot the messenger, that's just what the woman said to me! Remember though, it is a trial so I guess they're discovering the pros and cons as they do it. They said I have to go to get an ERT wristband at the desk, so I don't think this is a widely known and therefore widely used perk (apart from by those who are in the hotel) I'm not shooting you down, I'm shooting chessington down. I'm sorry but this is absolutely ridiculous. I will definately not be visting the park if this system is in use. It may benefit pass holders, but everyone else is gonna be damn right annoyed. This is so awful, I can't actually believe this new system. It is fine to let pass holders have premiums before and after park times, but during the park times is gonna be insane. Just imagine, a thousand pass holders all turning up at 10am, running straight to vampire, entering through fastrack making the queue time immediately about 3 hours(normal guests included). I'm sorry this is just not going to work at all.
May 29, 201411 yr comment_184314 Why don't they just do 9am until 10am in the normal queue? Weird logic here.
May 29, 201411 yr comment_184318 It's because it's Chessington. They look at what works well (Towers' ERT system in this case)... then wonder how to make it completely impractical and awful (getting wristbands, USING THE FASTRACK ENTRANCE, CONTINUING BEYOND 10AM!). They're a bunch of baffoons there. Don't have a clue how operations work whatsoever.
May 30, 201411 yr comment_184413 They started including fastrack with early rider late last year. This is just the first time they've promoted it in this way. There were no complaints then, sometimes I feel as though people have some form of weird vendetta against the park when they try new things to improve the experience for their guests. They do not start selling fastrack until 11am so having hotel guests use that entrance until 10:30 should be fine. I do understand why allowing annual pass holders access to fastrack can have an adverse effect. Chessington have the highest amount of annual pass holders.
May 30, 201411 yr comment_184415 I used the system (sort of) yesterday when I went to the park. We were met in when we arrived 9:30, ish snd managed to get a ride on Fury & Kobra successfully whilst there were few queues. Vampire was 45 minutes by the time we got which was just after 9:45. I think as long as they let pass holders and guests in normal and permit them on rides, then I don't really have a problem with the system.
May 30, 201411 yr comment_184438 I have no problems with them running it as long as they've thought about it logically, which they have not. Do an ERT like towers, one hour for select rides (even if it's just trans) using the main queue. Then end it, boom no issues. They had issues, and loads of issues, when they used to do free fastrack for annual passes back in the old days. They'll have issues again, and more issues once the time has ended (because people are idiots, at least with the main queue using all they can do is join whatevers there)
June 2, 201411 yr comment_184580 Just wondering on friday I have the day off school and I'm off to chessington. How busy will it be do you think?
June 3, 201411 yr comment_184749 Despite the fact that they had a poor season, it seems the public didn't mind: http://riderater.co.uk/2014/chessington-records-15-visitor-rise-in-2013/
June 3, 201411 yr comment_184770 It just shows you that if you invest in your park, people will come.
June 13, 201411 yr comment_185267 Not sure what's going on at Chessie at the moment, but it seems both Fury and Vampire are down at the moment (according to the ride status page). http://www.chessington.com/plan/today-at-chessington.aspx?tabNum=2 Certainly not very good considering they're the parks most popular rides, wonder what's the issue with these two currently? Probably shows how badly the park needs a third major coaster, one that does well on throughput and reliability.
June 14, 201411 yr comment_185268 Just in time for TowersStreet to visit them... *chortle* They've needed a third major coaster for years mind... Like, if only to exist let alone for any actual reasoning...
June 14, 201411 yr comment_185274 Not sure what's going on at Chessie at the moment, but it seems both Fury and Vampire are down at the moment (according to the ride status page). http://www.chessington.com/plan/today-at-chessington.aspx?tabNum=2 Certainly not very good considering they're the parks most popular rides, wonder what's the issue with these two currently? Probably shows how badly the park needs a third major coaster, one that does well on throughput and reliability. Both of them are now back in operation. I agree about them needing a third major coaster, but where would they put it?
June 15, 201411 yr comment_185312 ^ They could put one behid Wild Asia, one next to Bucaneer and maybe fit one in the area that has Peeking Heights and Toadies.
June 18, 201411 yr comment_185492 Kobra was closed all day today...Not sure what was wrong!? General Park looked good, doing well, still Vampire really needs Queueline TLC. Music was good round the park. Some staff were lovely today, however there were certainly a few miserable ones today, and generally that's unusual for Chessington from my experiences. What is going on with Tomb Blaster, why does it operate so slowly at the moment, the Queue moves painfully slowly. Why does it wait so long? Is there a problem, missing a train or is this now the speed it goes at?
June 19, 201411 yr comment_185537 ^ I've been told that two (out of five) trains have been running this season. I agree its dire. Whilst it may seem that staff are faffing about with loading, if you wait on the off load platform, once everyone is off the train moves into loading within about five seconds. It isn't being 'held' there because staff are slow, it is just that there isn't any point in staff being quick as they'd have to wait for four minuets while the ride completes its course. It would seem that there is something wrong with Tomb Blaster, the effects seem a bit of a mix/match while half the targets work and only two trains are operating. Normally, when all the trains are running, its is the second highest capacity ride on park (below Falls), but this hasn't been the case in a while. I reckon its on the list for the refurb treatment over the next few years. (I hope anyway, as Forbidden Kingdom is starting to look rather poor!)
June 19, 201411 yr comment_185552 ^ I've been told that two (out of five) trains have been running this season.
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