Thorpe Park - Fright Nights

Thu Oct 16, 2014 9:55 pm

There's a photo of some of the roaming actors in SouthParks latest news article here

Sun Oct 19, 2014 3:00 pm

Did anyone else do the extra cut thingy on the Friday night ? :-k

Tue Oct 21, 2014 5:21 pm

Many say that this year Saw Alive is the weakest maze, but it had a full referb for this Fright Nights so I wouldn't expect it to be going anywhere anytime soon. Maybe where most on here visited early in to FN the characters hadn't been fully developed yet. But last year Saw was one of the liveliest and scariest for me. I'm sure providing people repot their feedback it will be resolved for the big Halloween weekend

Tue Oct 21, 2014 7:53 pm

I should be visiting this Friday. My half-term holiday has started by that day, so Im hoping it wont be as busy as the Saturdays or Sundays. We should be getting there as soon as the park opens so im not too concerned about getting on all the rides, but I just hope I will be able to get on all the mazes!!

Tue Oct 21, 2014 10:22 pm

DannyG wrote:Many say that this year Saw Alive is the weakest maze, but it had a full referb for this Fright Nights so I wouldn't expect it to be going anywhere anytime soon. Maybe where most on here visited early in to FN the characters hadn't been fully developed yet. But last year Saw was one of the liveliest and scariest for me. I'm sure providing people repot their feedback it will be resolved for the big Halloween weekend

In my opinion, Saw Alive was the scariest (I went this Sunday just gone). I think it was joint best overall with the Blair Witch Project. Studio 13 was very good and by far the best themed and the most immersive but the finale could have been a lot better and there weren't many scares. My Bloody Valentine was a complete let down for me and Cabin in the Woods was good but I think I caught it on a bad run as it was fairly short!

Wed Oct 22, 2014 11:21 am

For me, personally, i felt that Cabin in the Woods was the best maze. The fact that you can choose your way and the fact that the main character changes, i think it makes it an interesting maze and different every time you go in. I know this weekend the maze will be taken over by either Redneck Zombies or Kiko. But i also love that there is also Fornicus and the Sugar Plum Fairy. It was definitely the better maze in my opinion. Studio 13 was hit and miss for me. The first run through was not very good, but the second run through was well improved on the first. To be honest i think it is a maze that needed time to find its feet. MBV was the one that made me jump the most. Saw had been improved this year, compared to other times i have done it, but because i have done it a few times. Blair Witch just seemed a bit meh. Some parts were good. but overall it wasn't that good. It provides suspension and thats it.

Wed Oct 22, 2014 6:51 pm

With the Saw license having just been renewed and the Lionsgate/Thorpe love affair going from strength to strength, I sincerely doubt they'll remove Saw: Alive. It was much better this year than last year, but I still feel like you're disjointed from the action and watching it as if it's a film.

It's still all about Cabin In The Woods for me. However I do wonder if it's going to get a little stale very quickly.

Fri Oct 24, 2014 10:57 am

What are the actors like in Saw this year? (As in the ride)

Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:29 am

Hey guys sorry I havent been on in a while, just havent had the chance. Could somebody nice run me down the list of scare mazes again, ik that you have probably done it to death, but im going tomorrow. Also, do they have additional charges?

Sat Oct 25, 2014 11:55 am

There is no additional charge for the mazes, but the queues can become very long.
This years mazes and scare zone are the following:-

Studio 13 - Maze
My Bloody Valentine - Maze
Cabin in the Woods - Maze
Saw Alive - Maze
The Blair Witch Project - Scare Zone

Sat Oct 25, 2014 1:49 pm

Few questions here:
1) What are the actors like in Saw: The Ride?
2) Is there an Alton-type photopass? And how much do they cost?
3) What will queues be like on 30th Oct.?

Sat Oct 25, 2014 2:16 pm

TTheory wrote:Few questions here:
1) What are the actors like in Saw: The Ride?
2) Is there an Alton-type photopass? And how much do they cost?
3) What will queues be like on 30th Oct.?

Saw:The Ride, doesn't have any actors. Saw Alive, the maze does.
They do and i think, but not 100%, its about £25 and its for four or 5 photos. Again can't remember the exact amount.
Probably very busy

Sat Oct 25, 2014 2:33 pm

Cheers, my friend wants to drag me on Saw, so knowing there are no actors...

Sat Oct 25, 2014 2:40 pm

Saw the ride, as in the coaster, is great. There are no actors what so ever. There will be loud noises, but no actors

Sat Oct 25, 2014 5:35 pm

This is just a general question, hopefully someone might be able to answer.

I always go to Alton Towers for scarefest, but this year me and my friends are going to Fright Nights.

I just wanted to know how busy thorpe park gets for these days.
Every time I've been to thorpe park, I've been extremely lucky in that I've always ended up going when all the rides are less than 5 minute waits.

Having never experience a busy day at thorpe park, what is a worst case scenario for queues on rides and mazes?

Sat Oct 25, 2014 6:18 pm

Worst case scenario for queues on mazes can be 2 hours +. But normally when the mazes open, the ride queues die down a bit, so worst case scenario is an hour for the rides. But these can fluctuate depending on a variety of things. Normally Fright Nights are TP's busiest days.

Sat Oct 25, 2014 6:59 pm

Thanks!

I'm going for two days so I'm not too concerned with long wait times.

I'm getting really excited now, only 4 days until i go.

Sat Oct 25, 2014 7:04 pm

Yesterday (Friday 24th) I went to Thorpe Park for my first ever halloween event, and I absolutely loved it! I wont go into to much detail because I know that won't be interesting but I also know that many people will be visiting during half term so I should say a bit about my experiences.
Note that IT WILL be busy. You should expect queues of up to 2 hours for the rides during the day and even 2.5 hours for the mazes in the evening.
Tips for rides:
-Get to Thorpe Park as soon as it opens! So that straight away at 10am you can get on 2/3 of the main rides with a minimal wait.
-Consider fast tracks. Fast tracks will not be 100% necessary to do everything but you may wish to get them (But note you are more likely to want to get fastracks for the mazes!)
-Stay right until 10pm and ride some of the main rides late in the evening. Rides become less busy later on and also you can ride them in the dark!

The mazes are pretty excellent. Personally, I think Cabin in the Woods and My Bloody Valentine are definitely the best mazes, so try and make sure you get on these. Also note that Studio 13 is not as good as some of the others, and is quite underwhelming, so don't queue excessively long for it! However Saw:Alive is the weakest in my opinion and is not very scary at all. (I didnt get to try Blair Witch but I've heard its pretty much just a walk in the woods)
Tips for mazes:
-Start queuing for a maze by 2:30 or earlier. Studio 13 had a long queue by 2:15 and it doesn't open til 3pm! So make sure you are one of the first.
-Consider fast tracks. Mazes get very long queues and it would be wise to buy fast tracks for them. However you will still have to wait (due to bad management and large number of fast track sales).

I managed to get on all of the main coasters twice and most other rides, and all 4 scare mazes (including Cabin in the Woods a second time). I very much doubt you could have done this with just normal queuing, but I managed to do this because I went with a friend who has Type 1 diabetes, and we were eligible for a 'Easy Access' pass, which pretty much meant we didn't have to queue for anything! So my top tip based on my experiences is that if you or any of your companions has a disability of any sort (even a minor one) to check with Thorpe Park to see if they are eligible for a disabled pass. If they are, most of the time its a simple task of getting a note from their doctor and going to guest services (underneath the dome), where you can retrieve a disabled pass.

I hope you guys have fun!!!

Mon Oct 27, 2014 7:06 pm

I've been told Thorpe Park hit full capacity today and we're forced to turn away customers. If your planning on visiting this week please ensure you pre book your tickets to guarantee yourself entry.

The park was also rammed during my visit on Saturday 25th October with all overflow car parks being filled!
I think this could be Thorpe Parks biggest "Fright Nights" event yet!

Mon Oct 27, 2014 7:23 pm

Yeah thorpe were replying to people guessing on the exact figure earlier. Somebody guessed 15000 and thorpe replied it wasn't that amount so people were suspecting 20-25000 with 2 hour queues for rides and mazes.

Can anyone share any tips for eating, I know the rides and mazes will be busy on Wednesday as they have been today, I aint too fussed with price just don't fancy carrying a bag around all day long. What time to the food outlets shut during fright nights?