Fastrack 2013
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sw7nutter
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This year I felt they sold far too many fastracks. From the same place in the smiler queue line, one at 5pm and one at 9pm, the one where fastracks were available took 3 times as long. That implies that 2/3 of people getting on the train were either fast tracking or disabled.
Last edited by sw7nutter on Mon Nov 04, 2013 5:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.
In just 1 day I managed: 75 rides on stealth, 8 swarms, the dodgems and a tea cups. February half term was good.
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Dom
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- Location: Salisbury, Wiltshire
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Fast track should be a premium product with premium benefits. As a user of platinum fast track, I personally think that at the moment for what you get it isn't worth as much as it is. Yes skipping the queues is great, but most of the time you don't skip the whole queue, which can be annoying when you have spent £90 on it. I feel that if you are getting the platinum fast track that you should be able to skip the queue entirely, and get to choose where you sit on the train/ride. I also feel that you should get a reduced price in food and drink. This is just my personal opinion on it.
Last edited by Dom on Thu Nov 07, 2013 4:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Jonathan914
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- Location: Matlock
Sorry this is my first post but the fast track system really annoys me. To my mind it creates a two tier system of enjoyment, everyone who has paid for admission should be equal as far as I'm concerned. What about the bus loads of children from schools etc who have to queue longer so that wealthy people can jump the queue? I thought AT had a strict policy on queue jumping yet they actively promote it as long as you pay to do it.
Sorry to be negative and naive maybe but just my old fashioned opinion
Sorry to be negative and naive maybe but just my old fashioned opinion
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James
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Fastrack isn't quite queue jumping though is it. You have these tier systems in all walks of life now. Take air travel for example, priority seating, fast check-in, luxury service... Tier systems have existed since the dawn of time, society in Britain has always been like this. It's not really a new revelation, especially in the leisure industry!
Fastrack is a strange one. In terms of actual Fastrack tickets Alton Towers has a quota per ride/attraction, and said quotas have been lowered in 2013 so there are no cases of too many being sold. Although with rides like The Smiler for example, the amount of Fastrackers being let through is highly dependent on the ride host in the station building. They have to ideally let an even amount of guests through in each queue (single rider/Fastrack/normal queue) - but often they may not do this so you're left with more Fastrackers being let through than normal riders and single riders.
It's a strange system. Fastrack queues should really bypass the whole thing. Having merge points causes a lot of mess when it's busy, The Smiler shows just how messy it can get.
Fastrack is a strange one. In terms of actual Fastrack tickets Alton Towers has a quota per ride/attraction, and said quotas have been lowered in 2013 so there are no cases of too many being sold. Although with rides like The Smiler for example, the amount of Fastrackers being let through is highly dependent on the ride host in the station building. They have to ideally let an even amount of guests through in each queue (single rider/Fastrack/normal queue) - but often they may not do this so you're left with more Fastrackers being let through than normal riders and single riders.
It's a strange system. Fastrack queues should really bypass the whole thing. Having merge points causes a lot of mess when it's busy, The Smiler shows just how messy it can get.
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bensaund
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- Location: Berkshire
Fast Track does create a first and second class system. The haves and have nots (in money)
I agree everyone should get equal queuing time, why should somebody who has paid more jump the queue. As for priority boarding on an aircraft, this isn't quite the same as you still arrive at the destination at the same time, you just get to sit down quicker.
The big massive problem with Fast Track is not the system, if run correctly and it was set at a very very high price to make it a premium product with limited sales, it could work. BUT the parks make way too much money from it, regardless of quotas and excuses, everyone sees way too many people going through the Fast Track system and the park makes way too much money from it, so they are never going to remove it.
Twice this year I brought Fast Track and got it refunded due to it being slower than the normal queue. If I am going to pay a premium price for a Fast Track, then I want the ride to be up and running, not to break down and have to wait 20 mins to be told the queue is being evacuated and I can have a priority pass (but have lost my Fast Track which I paid money for) making me out of pocket and wasting my time.
Or to get to an attraction and to see there is no queue at all and I have just paid money to skip a non existent queue.
The only time for me Fast Track worked was jumping a 120 min queue on The Smiler, because after queuing 2.5 hours, 2 hours, 2 hours and 90 mins earlier in the year, I was not going to queue again. It is amazing how just as the park closes and the Fast Track queue closes, suddenly the Smiler queue moves at twice the speed......
I agree everyone should get equal queuing time, why should somebody who has paid more jump the queue. As for priority boarding on an aircraft, this isn't quite the same as you still arrive at the destination at the same time, you just get to sit down quicker.
The big massive problem with Fast Track is not the system, if run correctly and it was set at a very very high price to make it a premium product with limited sales, it could work. BUT the parks make way too much money from it, regardless of quotas and excuses, everyone sees way too many people going through the Fast Track system and the park makes way too much money from it, so they are never going to remove it.
Twice this year I brought Fast Track and got it refunded due to it being slower than the normal queue. If I am going to pay a premium price for a Fast Track, then I want the ride to be up and running, not to break down and have to wait 20 mins to be told the queue is being evacuated and I can have a priority pass (but have lost my Fast Track which I paid money for) making me out of pocket and wasting my time.
Or to get to an attraction and to see there is no queue at all and I have just paid money to skip a non existent queue.
The only time for me Fast Track worked was jumping a 120 min queue on The Smiler, because after queuing 2.5 hours, 2 hours, 2 hours and 90 mins earlier in the year, I was not going to queue again. It is amazing how just as the park closes and the Fast Track queue closes, suddenly the Smiler queue moves at twice the speed......
If you go down to the woods today