March 18, 20187 yr comment_256676 6 hours ago, StevenVig said: Lets have a press event for the launch of our new ride, where the media can't publish anything to do with the ride. Yes, that works. Well given that the ride didn't open when it was meant to, guests are pretty annoyed that some people who do videos on YouTube got to go on it. Just to kinda stem the flow of anger and annoyance because it ended up closed for safety reasons when normal people were allowed to visit. But maybe I'm just considerate.
March 18, 20187 yr comment_256685 Tbh, people staying at the hotels, should have been granted access on friday night, knowing that the threat to operations over the weekend from the weather.
March 18, 20187 yr comment_256686 10 minutes ago, RobF said: Tbh, people staying at the hotels, should have been granted access on friday night, knowing that the threat to operations over the weekend from the weather. The public wouldn’t want to ride it, they’d be too overwhelmed with the Youtube mega stars and Towers would have had to get bodyguards in
March 18, 20187 yr comment_256687 10 minutes ago, Ringo said: The public wouldn’t want to ride it, they’d be too overwhelmed with the Youtube mega stars and Towers would have had to get bodyguards in Haha, nobody’s then haha
March 18, 20187 yr comment_256689 Towers have just posted this regarding Wicker Man for Monday. So basically it’s either cost cutting or they want to have increased queues in order to sell more Fastrack. Quote Unfortunately, it’s unlikely that Wicker Man will be open tomorrow but we’ll keep you updated on when you’ll be able to experience our new thrill ride. https://www.facebook.com/pg/altontowersresort
March 18, 20187 yr comment_256691 11 minutes ago, Ringo said: So basically it’s either cost cutting or they want to have increased queues in order to sell more Fastrack. What? A multimillion pound investment and you think they would keep it closed for the sake of a couple of fastrack sales. Either wickerman has developed a fault which would be expected as it is brand new or it just can't operate in the temperatures forecast.
March 18, 20187 yr comment_256692 The irony that a coaster using fire is closed due to snow. Honestly though, there are certain weather conditions which make it unsafe for certain rides to operate in and with recent track history the park will need and want to follow that. One should note it is not just Merlin parks that close attractions due to weather. When I was at PA last year, Shambhala and other attractions had ceased operation due to high wind.
March 18, 20187 yr comment_256693 Of course they can’t control the weather but it’s curious why they now say the ride opens the 24th March but may open for periods of time during the week. If the ride is ok to open subject to weather then why not have it open the whole day, why does it now need to wait until the 24th before full service. Unless of course they see from the comments that it’s annoying customers and perform a U Turn on that.
March 18, 20187 yr comment_256695 11 hours ago, Benin said: Well given that the ride didn't open when it was meant to, guests are pretty annoyed that some people who do videos on YouTube got to go on it. Just to kinda stem the flow of anger and annoyance because it ended up closed for safety reasons when normal people were allowed to visit. But maybe I'm just considerate. I mean the park don't really care if a fanboy (not guest) is crying over seeing the pre-show online, prematurely. You could argue that if one is that opposed to spoilers, they shouldn't be watching any video that relates to said ride in the first place. But maybe I'm just logical?
March 18, 20187 yr comment_256697 Wasn't even referring to people moaning over spoilers, just the general situation of having the media day plastered everywhere on a day where the ride is closed... Would've thought delaying posts would help alleviate some problems...
March 19, 20187 yr comment_256701 Think it would come down more to the GP being upset/annoyed at said "Youtuber" than the park itself. I'd hope most would understand there's nothing the park can do if it's deemed to be too cold to operate their coasters and see it as that "Youtuber" showing off and being selfish. It would make more sense from the creators point of view to delay their video till when the rest of the unwashed masses can experience it, but I suppose that's up to them as individuals.
March 19, 20187 yr comment_256716 The park probably want to 'officially' open Wicker Man on Saturday because they want a bit of an opening ceremony, and want there to be some energy around the park - rather than a dull day in March mid-week with less than 2000 on park. I rode Wicker Man on Friday. It is excellent.
March 19, 20187 yr comment_256720 To not open it during the week just seems to be a way to annoy all those who visit as the ride would be closed for literally no reason other than to create hype at the weekend. It would provide a good oportunity for the staff to practice running the ride with the GP, rather than the media, so on saturday the ride can run efficiently. If the cold and snow was the reason it is closed I wouldnt have an issue with it but the park saying it wont open until saturday is making me doubt the weather is the reason its closed on thursday and friday.
March 20, 20187 yr comment_256731 Short interview with Bradley Wynne about Wicker Man: http://www.attractionsmanagement.com/detail.cfm?pagetype=detail&subject=news&codeID=336828 Nothing particularly new it interesting, but it does confirm that Holovis were involved with the pre show. In other news, it looks highly likely the ride will (soft) open today..
March 20, 20187 yr comment_256733 From photos it looks as if the queue wait time board is still missing from the sign, unbelievable scenes. CORRECTION: There is one - it just looks like wood, clever times! ALSO: .•:*¨¨*:•.IT'S.•:*¨¨*:•.OPEN.•:*¨¨*:•.NOW.•:*¨¨*:•.LADS.•:*¨¨*:•.
March 24, 20187 yr comment_256817 Sounds a nightmare today, E-stops every few trains and the queue-line has just been evacuated.
March 25, 20187 yr comment_256824 Yesterday showed two things that are now pretty obvious. 1. Wooden coasters can drive demand. Yesterday was probably the busiest day on park since before the Smiler crash. 2. This open rides late thing/have limited capacity should never be the case at the weekend. All having Nemesis, Galatica, Rita and Thirteen closed until 11 did was put Towers at risk because with Wicker Man having reliability issues and Smiler/Oblivion open late was causing nothing to do for the first hour. It then forced Towers to add an extra hour on till 6pm anyway negating the initial first hour of limited offering.
March 25, 20187 yr comment_256826 It looks like people are arriving at the entrance as normal and the later opening times are causing big crowds to form. On the other hand, it's great to see Wicker Man drawing the big crowds back though. It's really what Alton Towers needs to recover. They just need to keep advertising the ride along with safety. Hopefully the inevitable teething problems are fixed quickly as they arise and guests are well compensated for the downtime.
March 25, 20187 yr comment_256839 It would seem wickerman has had a pretty poor first weekend with the trains struggling to park. This has resulted in trains being sent with rows unavailable and very slow dispatches. Reports on social media saying people having waited 4 hours just to be evacuated. Not helped by the fact that multiple other coasters at Alton have experienced downtime today. On a more positive note atleast it's better than Saws opening.
March 25, 20187 yr comment_256845 I take back everything negative I said about Wicker Man - it's AMAZING. The coaster is so much fun, the theme is fantastic and the views from the queueline are just stunning. Alton really have nailed it with this one. Operations were absoloutely horriffic though - both on WM and across the park, only managed 7 rides all day.
March 25, 20187 yr comment_256846 3 minutes ago, Coaster said: I take back everything negative I said about Wicker Man - it's AMAZING. The coaster is so much fun, the theme is fantastic and the views from the queueline are just stunning. Alton really have nailed it with this one. Operations were absoloutely horriffic though - both on WM and across the park, only managed 7 rides all day. Wickerman makes sense because of the parking issues, and I guess the other rides would be a little slower than usual because of new staff. Nice to hear that you like the ride. Do you feel it is genuinely good or could the new ride hype be influencing your opinion slightly?
March 25, 20187 yr comment_256847 I have to say this looks WAY better than what I gave it credit for. Okay its probably not even close to Icon, but it looks like a cool small GCI with a few pops of air with some nice special effects. I have to say I was expecting it to crawl through its layout though it seems a lot more fast paced and intense than I expected. Can't wait to go and give it a ride- lets just hope I don't burn from frustration in the queue-line rather than the fire in the ride itself.
March 25, 20187 yr comment_256854 2 hours ago, Project LC said: Wickerman makes sense because of the parking issues, and I guess the other rides would be a little slower than usual because of new staff. Nice to hear that you like the ride. Do you feel it is genuinely good or could the new ride hype be influencing your opinion slightly? Nemesis on one train, Smiler's dispatches were terrible, multiple breakdowns across the park, the staggered opening times cause havoc (sending everyone to the new coaster which is down until 12 is NOT a good idea!), removal of single rider queues makes it impossible to get on everything, Skyride down all day with no sign of movement and guest experience has well and truly gone out of the window. Only got on 7 rides today. I don't think it's a case of new ride hype as I went on Wicker Man expecting a fun ride, but it surpassed my expectations in every way. It really has surprised me, a quality wooden coaster with an excellent theme.
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