October 26, 201212 yr comment_143191 Ugh, I was really hoping this maze wouldn't ever sell out. It's only going to encourage Merlin, especially when you consider, I don't think AT's mazes have EVER sold out...
October 27, 201212 yr comment_143221 Thorpe's operations are just so poor... I mean like, Passing had a 45 minute queue when I went last week Friday... How does that happen for a timed slot system?
October 27, 201212 yr comment_143232 There are a certain amount of tickets sold for each 15 minute slot and as the vast majority of people do not turn up at the allocated time slots it does mean that later in the evening the queue can become very lengthy. As it is, the throughput for the maze is fairly low and it must be reiterated that it not a fastrack ticket it is only the time slot you enter the queue. This does not guarantee you immediate access to the attraction and there may be additional waiting times at peak hours.
October 27, 201212 yr comment_143250 Went yesterday (friday 26th) and had an amazing time. We went on all the mazes except the passing which we paid for a month ago because at 8 (our time slot) there was an hour que, we had to leave at 8:45. Other than that I was very impressed, the theming around the park lacked but from 5pm-9pm the atmosphere was amazing . Mainly around Ayslum, all the roaming actors were scaring people that were running from the chainsaw in Asylum, the que were in hysterics everytime! The maze itself was jam packed with actors, they had so much energy aswell, one woman wouldn't stop running back to our group for the whole maze, maybe sprinting would be a better word; I was at the back and jumped everytime. I was disappointed with Experiment 10 because it didn't live up to all the hype I heard about last year. Saw Alive was average, nothing special or extra it felt. Now The Curse... I've heard a lot of negative reviews about this, my expectations were pretty low. I was blown away! I led the maze and there were actors round every corner, I liked that some actors didn't just run at you, but just sat there at the end of a corridor looking at you, this creeped me out because I had to slowly walk towards them! The strobe scene was effective because it was short and messed up my vision, I was then caught off guard by the classic running actor. The maze seemed to last a long time and being in there you wouldn't think your in a tent. The woman dangling from the ceiling terrified me and in the end I was pushed into her because I hesitated . So yeah, definitely returning next tear when I can drive, worth the 60 pounds I paid (inc fasttracks), being there from 10am-9pm was good value. Ride Count: Stealth front row x2, x:/ No Way Out x2, Detonator x2, The Slammer, Saw: The Ride, The Swarm, Nemesis Inferno, Flying Fish, Rush, Saw Alive, Experiment 10, The Curse, and Asylum.
October 27, 201212 yr comment_143253 Ok well I went today, all I can say is busy! One thing I will say is... SOLD OUT? Hmmmm I dont think so my friend, who didn't pre book but had a tescos clubcard voucher went in fine, they didn't seem to care as the people next to us were buying normal up front gate tickets. Didn't get there till 2:00pm we only wanted to go for a short time and it was freezing so we left at like 6pm But still got to do Asylum and The Passing plus a few Flats. The Passing Right So I heard mixed opinions on this so I went in with an open mind, Personally Id say the most unique Fright Night maze there but it has potential to be better. Right So I had a 3-3:15pm booking, got there at 5 to 3 and walked straight into the queue. Now when you get inside the first section is done fantastically, The actor did a great job shouting at the other twerps in our group when the giggled and told them to turn around and face the wall "you've already had enough punishment don’t make me treat you like a kid..." Etc. Then the photo opportunity which slightly ruined this moment she made but still It didn't annoy me that much. The next part of the corridor looked cheap and tacky with vinyl morgue scenes and blood, the actor here didn't do much apart from putting on the bags over our head. The bags have speakers in them so every now and then you get whispers such as "rot in hell" etc., You're then told to move into the next room where you have the video of children. Then suddenly pictures of burning people, brutally murdered bodies and other disturbing images flash up. Then the screen above turns on and watch people bury you into the ground. Suddenly I noticed an actor dressed like death standing in front of 2 tunnels 1 white, 1 black. As I was at the back originally, I got split up from my friend who went in the black tunnel and I went in white which annoyed me as I never saw her again in the whole attraction, I kept shouting her name to see where she was. I hated the tunnels, I bashed my head, and it felt pointless and really uncomfortable. Also the bag it really does restrict you're vision as mine kept moving around so the mesh part wasn't near my eyes putting me in complete darkness, which was horrible. I grabbed the person in front of ME’s leg just to see where I was going. After the tunnels we go round the old Hell Gate layout but in reverse, the prison scene was really good again I got picked on. Someone tried to drag me into their cell and screamed, "rot in hell" in my ear. There was also some statue like figure that was really good, didn't notice it until after it appeared right in my face, actors really seemed to come from nowhere? Anyway we headed on in old style conga line until we got to the faux ending. You're handed a certificate of Death and then told to stand randomly in a corridor, now I knew about the fact there’s a fake ending but this could have been executed better, we stood in this corridor for a while, until another door opened which took us to another white room. Here we stood here for about 2 mins then the lights went of and the UV writing appeared, suddenly a door opened and we then went through a curtain maze which really disorientated me but only got grabbed by my legs so I didn't get scared much in this bit, then you're out of the attraction. I had to wait a while until I was reunited with my friend which I found out got stuck in the black tunnel because she was on her own and had no idea where to go and ended up joining the group behind us. Anyway I give the maze a 7.5 because I felt it used many different elements audio, visual effectively however it lacked a storyline which I noticed was very apparent in American Haunts (went to Howl O Scream Busch Gardens Williamsburg last Halloween.) I also would have improved the fake ending just 1 room not this wait outside here then go in to another fake room, also had an actor come into the room when all the lights went out. Would have made it a lot more interesting and scary. Also extend the length of the actual maze no crawling more walk-through, I found the tunnels rather pointless. Worth £3 yes, the now £4 yes as it was no queue, but if I had to queue over 20mins then no, not at all. (7.5/10)
October 28, 201212 yr comment_143260 I hear that most rides opened early and stayed open till 10, nice one thorpe
October 28, 201212 yr comment_143271 Ok well I went today, all I can say is busy! One thing I will say is... SOLD OUT? Hmmmm I dont think so my friend, who didn't pre book but had a tescos clubcard voucher went in fine, they didn't seem to care as the people next to us were buying normal up front gate tickets. I should imagine they put these messages out to strongly discourage people turning up as they know from pre-sales they are damn close to capacity. But a lot of people will not get this message and after a long journey it would really piss them off to be turned away. I guess it is quite a sensible approach to stop capacity being reached and actually turning people away.
October 28, 201212 yr comment_143292 What is the capacity of Thorpe BTW and do they overfill it? When I worked in a nightclub years ago, we had a capacity but the manager always let more people in on the busier nights to avoid some customers getting disappointed. Also if they have more attractions open (mazes) can they let more people in?
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143295 More than that, as I'm sure it gets more people than Chessie (which is around 15k)...
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143298 The park's legal capacity is around 22,000 but it has never reached that. Normally the park closes the gates and puts out the capacity sign on the main road if the gate figure hits 17,001 to avoid risking exceeding capacity.
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143299 If they are giving themselves a 4,999 person margin of error on their gate figure to avoid breaching the legal capacity they must have a lot of people jumping over the fence each day! Or the girl on the gate with the clicker is very poor at counting. That they do limit around this number instead of the 'real' capacity actually shows they do want to try and keep the park at a manageable level, which can only be to stop people having a crap day. They could keep taking the money instead, good on them.
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143304 Doesn't it stem from a few years back, when they lost two of the roller coasters on one night, leaving only Nemesis Inferno as the only real thrill rollercoaster open and all the flat rides and mazes with hours of queueing fun.
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143320 Or the girl on the gate with the clicker is very poor at counting. It's all done electronically. Theres a reason why tickets and AP's are scanned, more than just to check validity
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143322 Just a quick thought, are there not any actors on the Swarm island this Fright Nights?
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143323 Who went on the EX 10 tour and remembers the capacity that the tour guide said? I thought it was around 14,000
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143325 Just a quick thought, are there not any actors on the Swarm island this Fright Nights? Unfortunately not, I imagine there never will be again. Who went on the EX 10 tour and remembers the capacity that the tour guide said? I thought it was around 14,000 Your thinking of the gate figure for that day, the capacity the park can hold is somewhere up to 24,000 I believe
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143328 It's all done electronically. Theres a reason why tickets and AP's are scanned, more than just to check validity This was a joke referencing the park giving themselves a 4,999 person margin of error. Not to worry, thanks anyway.
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143336 This was a joke referencing the park giving themselves a 4,999 person margin of error. Not to worry, thanks anyway. I dont think its a margin of error as such, it covers them for if a main coaster was to go down or somthing I guess anyway?
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143360 I'm trying to avoid spoilers in case someone hasn't tagged them so I'm sorry in advance if this has been asked: is the Advanced Ticket Collection the only place to pick up The Passing tickets as the email claims?
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143361 I'm trying to avoid spoilers in case someone hasn't tagged them so I'm sorry in advance if this has been asked: is the Advanced Ticket Collection the only place to pick up The Passing tickets as the email claims? When I went to collect my £5 ticket from Annual Passes, I was given mine there (as I had the same order number for the actual tickets and The Passing ones). I guess you could pick them up from Fastrack kiosks as well, or from ATC.
October 29, 201212 yr comment_143363 Anyone have any idea where I can pick up tickets I won in a competition? It was all over the phone so I don't have an email or anything but they said to collect them from "reception". Any help would be appreciated
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