Scarefest - General Discussion

General discussion regarding the UK's No.1 Theme Park. Talk about anything and everything Alton Towers here.
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Randomizer462
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Hello,

Im deciding whether to do the mazes on Saturday, could anyone say whether the welcoming still contains a hooded section? And whether you’d recommend paying for the other mazes?

Thank you
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DeadJack5
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Randomizer462 wrote:Hello,

Im deciding whether to do the mazes on Saturday, could anyone say whether the welcoming still contains a hooded section? And whether you’d recommend paying for the other mazes?

Thank you

Hooded Section:
Spoiler
This year there is no hooded section
I would definitely recommend the 3 maze ticket combo. Mine Tours and Sub Species are both great mazes and Project 42 can be great imo
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Can I add to that as well, if you are doing mazes be sure to book them soon as they WILL sell out in advance, with Saturday (at the time of posting this) only having 3 timeslots left, with the combo. However, if they do sell out before you get round to buying them be sure to get to the resort early and purchase 'one-shots' for each of the mazes which is slightly more than the combo ticket. 
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Doublethink
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We had a brilliant run through House of Monsters but from what I'm hearing a few others haven't had as many actors/ as enthusiastic as we had.

We ended up in the same group as Jack Slikstone so wonder if they were putting on a bit more effort for him- it was quite entertaining to see the actors picking him out and calling him up on being a Thorpe fanboy (not the greatest Silkstone fan myself)
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Justin
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I do think they tend to ramp it up for some. I certainly know they did on The Welcoming when I was wearing my TTSP jacket as a couple of the actors singled me out and took the mick. 

"The geeks return" and "Times of the Towers" were just a few of the things said by one! :lol
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I had at least 2 actors single me out in The Welcoming for wearing glasses haha :lol
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nicky.borrill
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Doublethink wrote:We had a brilliant run through House of Monsters but from what I'm hearing a few others haven't had as many actors/ as enthusiastic as we had.

We ended up in the same group as Jack Slikstone so wonder if they were putting on a bit more effort for him- it was quite entertaining to see the actors picking him out and calling him up on being a Thorpe fanboy (not the greatest Silkstone fan myself)
Jack’s a nice lad and his videos are great. They’re well polished and his enthusiasm really shines through. Not set on some of his mates, but to be fair, we all have them in our circles, don’t we?  :lol
Went through a maze at Burton Screamfest with him this year. 
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Doublethink
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Oh I agree he is a lovley guy just not a huge fan of the artificial hype in his videos. He was brilliant fun when I met him :)

Prefer Lord Sanbrook for his fun but professional attitude and more critical/independent opinions.
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Stan.H wrote:I had at least 2 actors single me out in The Welcoming for wearing glasses haha :lol
That happened to me too! Then I turned the corner to find an actor with braces and ear piercings... 
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As posted on TowersTimes Facebook and Twitter, additional characters made an appearance in Mutiny Bay and on Towers Street this morning, with the addition of Altonville Mine Tours guides and a country guitarist.

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I love that the Resort have put on some additional entertainments for today. With the park expected to be exceptionally busy it is things like this which will make all the difference to people's day. Hopefully it'll show those who allocate the budgets that it's worth giving the Entertainments Team the money to do this kindd of thing more often, and eventually even the return of some family shows outside of CBeebies Land.
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Is the staggered openings of the rides still in effect during scarefest this week?
In the beginning the Universe was created.
This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move
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Bexa wrote:Is the staggered openings of the rides still in effect during scarefest this week?
No, however, Duel, Runaway Mine Train and Congo River Rapids open at 11am - but the rest of the attractions should open at 10am (subject to weather conditions etc). 
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Looks like over the last few nights that they have been closing Thirteen for night time riding 
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Ladyofthelake
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ROYJESS wrote:Looks like over the last few nights that they have been closing Thirteen for night time riding 
I suspect the closure of Th13teen during the last couple of evenings has had more to do with the low temperatures than anything else. From what I recall, I believe if the temperature drops below 4 or 5C then it can't operate.
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Dan
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Overall I am very impressed with Scarefest this year.

Both Sub Species and Altonville Mine Tours are, on the whole, stronger than they were last year. I particularly like the change to the ending of Mine Tours, which makes it much more disorientating than in previous years. I was also very impressed with The Welcoming, which has built on the groundwork laid last year to provide a much better experience, with the removal of the hooded section a welcome change, as the maze now flows far better.

I also had some impressive run throughs of Project 42. Going into Scarefest, I wasn't sure if it would feel a little empty due to Terror of the Towers no longer being present, but if anything this years feels like, in terms of the strength of the mazes, the most complete year in recent memory.

I can't say that the removal of the scare zones detracted from the event really, but it was good to see the Freak Show actors still present, albeit in a roaming role rather than being stuck in one area. I also liked the projections on the front of the Towers, a nice but simple touch.

I am back at Scarefest for the last two days of the event later this week, so I am looking forward to seeing if the maze quality will be the same as they were over ScareMazing weekend.
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We went yesterday, in a relatively large group and on the whole, had a good day up until about 6pm.

Did the mazes in the day to avoid the queues which worked perfectly.

Project 42 was terrible. Bumped into about 6 actors the whole time we were in there. Felt exactly like I was walking through an abandoned ride with some disgruntled staff members. Just a bit meh to be honest.

Altonville was the best maze by far, even if we did go the wrong way and end up going through a behind the scenes curtain the find an actor having a drink from his flask.  Haven't done this one before but it topped the Sanctuary

Sub Species had a great build up, group members being dragged through the doors etc, however ultimately once inside there were no actors at all.  Won't spoil the ending, but the guy at the end was also the least enthusiastic person I've ever seen..
The lack of scare zones like the carnival and roaming actors though was a bit of a let down. Felt more like AT in the dark rather than Halloween if I'm honest

Ride times were pretty good throughout the day, didn't queue for more than an hour on any of the main rides, but didn't manage to get Smiler done, or WickerMan in the dark.
I'm convinced that the ride times are manipulated to control crowds in the park and get people out before they and queue up at 20:55 for a final ride though.

Got in the queue for Wicker Man at 60 minutes at 6pm, ride broke down 20 minutes into it and we were still at the cattle pen inside the corner which. That's well over an hour's queue to go.

We ditched that and went to The Smiler, 80 minutes queue, ride broke down and Wicker Man said 60 minutes. Headed back to Wicker Man at 7pm meaning we could ride it and get back to the smiler before park shut.  2 hrs 30 minutes later, were stood at the station gates and the ride breaks down with no idea of when it'll be back up.

By the time we actually got back to the car it was 10pm so a waste of 4 hours. Get that rides break down, but an better estimate of queue times would  have stopped us from wasting so much time.  On a positive note, we did also notice the reverse which further proves that the ride times are a load of rubbish.  A few examples of our queues throughout the day

13 queue changed to 65 minute as we walked up to the queue - we were on in 20 minutes

Ritas queue said 60 minutes - we were on in 30 minutes

Nemesis said 45 minutes - we were on in 15 minutes

Air said 41 minutes - we were on in 15 minutes

Oblivion said 5 minutes - we were on in 30 minutes

Hex said 0 minutes - we walked out after 20 minutes
As others have mentioned, operations need to seriously up their game.  At about 8pm we counted there was 1 train going around the wickerman every 3 minutes, for about 20 - 30 minutes and LOADS of empty single seats.  Noticed the same single seats on The Smiler, and also on Nemesis, however queues for the latter are quick so it doesn't really have much impact.

Food wise, next time i'll bring a packed lunch. Several of our group had food from various places and it was vile, standards have definitely dropped since the last time I was there.  Cold rubbery burgers for £10 is not good

All in all, we had a pretty good day minus those few issues and it wasn't really too busy for the 31st during half term.
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Scarefest 2018 Review

Despite the sadness of the Halloween period (and almost Theme Park season) coming to a close, it doesn’t dampen this year’s Scarefest! Over the course of the event (and having Towers as my home park) I have managed 5 visits to Scarefest - as in my eyes it is definitely one of the times of year that really can’t be missed, especially at Alton Towers. I was going to do a brief review, however I do have a lot to say about this years Scarefest and this post WILL CONTAIN spoilers.

Arguably one of Scarefest’s main attractions are of course the infamous award-winning mazes, so where better to start my review?!

House of Monsters - 7.5/10

Again improving once again from previous years, House of Monsters seems to get better and better each year and with this maze you really do get your bang for your buck! This 40-minute experience is pretty similar to previous years with the addition of a new scene as well as improved lighting, theming and scares across the maze. Although the new scene was quite immature I can see why the attraction is vastly popular with families and those with braver children (also big kids of course!), the maze blends the structure of a maze and tones it down with the addition of storytelling throwing in some pretty good jump scares and humour (for both adults and children). This year I had 2 run-throughs of this attraction and thoroughly enjoyed it each time, and as I said earlier it is really good value (especially compared to the mazes), I really hope this attraction makes yet another welcome return next year as it is really good for pretty much anyone! 

The Welcoming: Be Chosen - 5/10 [daytime] 7.5/10 [night-time] 6.5 {overall}

Changing ever so slightly from last year The Welcoming has returned for it’s second season to celebrate the opening of the new wooden coaster, Wicker Man. The maze and the ride itself compliment each other really well and I do think it was a good move on Towers’ behalf. This year however I do feel this is the weakest maze out of them all, as out of my 3 run-throughs (1 daytime, 2 night-time) the maze is lacking scares and a general story line. The actors in this maze I must say do try their best and work the maze well, and this year the acting level in this maze especially has risen a lot as well as the removal of the hooded section (woooooo!). In terms of things that could be done to this maze to improve it (if it was to return) is to add an actual storyline to it, and add more of a finale scene. I do like that they have added the extra fire at the end, as well as the slightly different route but there is nothing at the end that gets visitors running out and ultimately leaves the attraction quite forgettable. As mentioned before by me and others, this maze would work so much better as a free-flow scare zone (much like Zombies! Scare Zone or Scary Tales). My final grudge with the maze is the £8 up-charge (excl. MAP discount) as although the maze has been changed to the 12+ restriction (with the rather brilliantly cheap edit to the announcement) I feel it should be £5 much like House of Monsters, or there should be an option with the £20 combo to ‘add-on’ The Welcoming for a few quid extra, or otherwise the cost to do all the mazes really does stack up. Overall this maze is quite a solid attraction (especially once it’s dark) and works as a great ‘starter’ maze and with a few alterations to the story and general layout and a few more scares this maze could really be quite good! And despite my fairly low rating for it, by no means do I think it’s bad (cough! Vulcan Peak cough!) but seeing what else Towers can pull off, this does just come across meh - but there is arguably some of the best scare-maze theming in this maze!

Altonville Mine Tours: The Legend of the Skin Snatchers - 8/10

“Welcome to the Altonville Mine Toursssss!” Once again returning for this years event, the highly themed maze Altonville Mine Tours is back! As I have said before, I really do love this maze as it is almost a complete package, as you are immersed into the attraction right from when you get your ticket scanned, through the queue-line and the maze itself - including the headlamps, mining lights and smell pods. I really appreciate the theming and smells within the maze and it is always healthily nourished with smoke, haze and the appropriate lighting. Over the course of the Scarefest I have done this maze 4 times and each time I have had different experiences and opinions on the maze. On the whole, this maze is still very strong and seems to still be popular too. The majority of the time I have had good scares and actor interactions as well as a good amount of actors, however on some occasions there have been hardly any actors which does come as a disappointment. I have heard from other people mixed things about this maze as well, with the main point being the lack of actors, however, I don’t relate to that as much - but with 1 run-through lacking actors I can see why people weren’t giving AMT much praise. One of the things about this maze I love is the mixture of humour and horror as it really does work, and I also really like the storyline of the maze and the amount of effort that has gone into it. The actors in this maze too are a credit to themselves and the attraction because they do make it great. I can’t see this maze returning next year, but by no means do I not like it, nor think it’s the weakest maze. I do really like this maze but if it were to return I’d love a more ‘proper’ finale (maybe a small extension after the Shop and Shotgun scene), other than that I don’t have anything against the maze and do really enjoy it, especially if you get a more ‘intense’ walkthrough.

Project 42 [New for 2018!] - 8.5/10

New for 2018 - ‘replacing’ Terror of the Towers, the entertainments team didn’t really say much and gave very little away about Project 42, and I’m glad they didn’t! Going into this maze pretty blind I was pleasantly surprised every single time (out of the 5 times). The entertainments team have done such a fantastic job on hiding the fact that this is in basically what once was Nemesis: Sub-Terra (hopefully returning at some point), I did have a rough idea where in the building we were in the maze, but that is only because I rode Sub-Terra quite a few times and as an enthusiast elements such as the lifts are quite obvious, but other than that it is all quite hidden (maybe minus the massive egg, but it does contribute to the attraction in my opinion). This maze like AMT does feature quite a few special effects which I love, including making use of the old Sub-Terra ‘bang!’ sounds (I believe they are at least). The air cannons in the maze as well do provide some good little jumps too. The pre-show is nice as well, but, it is harder for groups at the back to see, especially if you’re short and have tall people blocking your view. Like in the other mazes the smell pods are very apparent throughout the maze and add to the sense that the virus has escaped. The costumes and make-up for this maze is also some of the best I have seen, especially the contacts that some of the actors wear as it is really unnerving to see. Over Scarefest the actors have gotten better and better too, especially providing scares for those at the back end of the group. Also I really love that they have added a Big Squeeze into this maze, as it is an element Towers haven’t yet used in any of their mazes. Like The Welcoming and Altonville Mine Tours this maze has a very abrupt ending and ‘finale’ but the strobe section does in a way pay off for that, but it would be nice to see something getting you running out, however, going through with mates they do come out the mazes quite shook and laughing; which is always a good sign! In terms of storyline I’d like to see it developed a bit, but not much, if it were to return either in Nemesis: Sub-Terra or elsewhere in the park next spooky season. Overall this is my second favourite maze at Scarefest this year and I really do enjoy it, even though it is quite short but it does pack a punch, that much so, I paid for a one-shot to do it one extra time!

Sub Species: The End Games - 9/10

Easily becoming the most iconic and staple maze for Scarefest award-winning Sub Species: The End Games is back again and in very good condition! Nether-the-less this maze NEVER fails to scare the living hell out of me and genuinely terrifies me. The acting quality is back up to what it once was during it’s first season although the intensity level is toned down a bit, and by “a bit” I really mean that. The theming in places for this maze is literally just black walls, but, other areas are really well themed - especially the brilliantly created soundtrack. There isn’t much at all to fault about the maze as it is really good and a very original theme, although originally I was quite on the fence about the exterior graffiti, after the Scarefest Q+A at Scaremazing I can see why they did it, and it makes sense. The chainsaw finale is ever brilliant, from both a participant or spectators perspective and it does get running out the maze and laughing too! My only complaint really about the maze this year is that the right hand side of the bridge has seemed to be shut so I never got the alien nest route, and only the tunnels. Fingers crossed we see Sub Species 2.0 next season or just some general enhancements to the maze, but overall my favourite maze at Scarefest this year and is class as always (much better to last year).

Scare Maze Feedback

Although I have individually given my thoughts on each of the mazes I have some general feedback that could be said about all of the mazes, as well as my ranking for them! 
Group Sizes: On the whole group sizes haven’t been too much of an issue this year, however there have been periods where groups are being batched wayyyy above the ‘recommended’ batch size, to a point where you do loose scares in mazes especially in Project 42 and The Welcoming. Combo Tickets: Just annoying really, don’t understand how the combo offer ‘sells out’ for time slots despite being able to purchased one-shots for the exact same time slot?? Does seem quite greedy if I’m being honest, even if to do them all separately isn’t much more it does just come across greedy and money hungry. So I guess either pre-book to guarantee the offer or Towers are more lenient with it next year. Actors: Again, not much of an issue I’ve had this season, but I have heard lots about all of the mazes not having substantial amounts of actors within them, not sure where the fault is at? Might just be a genuine lack of actors in the area, or, if it is cost saving I’d like this removed as the mazes are paid for. 2018 Ranking: 1.) Sub Species: The End Games 2.) Project 42 3.) Altonville Mine Tours: The Legend of the Skin Snatchers 4.) The Welcoming: Be Chosen

Wicker Man in the Dark

Wicker Man in the dark is that good I felt it deserved it’s own section. Oh my god! What a ride it is in the night, Towers have really gone all out for this ride in the dark, easily making it one of the best night rides potentially in the UK, if not Europe (maybe excluding Taron over at Phantasialand). The ride feels like a totally different coaster in the night and feels so bloody quick, its insane! It is worth every minute of the wait, and seems to be very very popular with the public, with the ride often closing on 2 hour + queue times; I must say the staff are a credit too staying up so late! This ride really is the complete package and deserves all the praise and queues it has been receiving!

General Park Feedback

Wow! Towers have done a really really good job this year of adding a sinister vibe and themed lighting all across the park instead of just generator floodlights. I really love the little touches such as the new stage and the screen in the Towers window with ghosts on, as it really give the park almost a Disney type of feel. Although the scare zones aren’t featured on this years line up; the Freak Show roamers are great as always and the other roaming groups are cool - but I never saw the Pirates on any of my visits. As mentioned in the Scaremazing Q+A the scare zones will hopefully make a return next year as the park did feel as if they were missing. The Alton Ancestors are also brilliant no matter which area of the park you catch them, their refreshed routine is also always worth a watch - even though some of it is pretty cringeworthy, its still great for all ages. Towers Street is decked out for the occasion as per usual, but it is a shame there isn’t much other theming apparent in the rest of the park, even if it were just a few more smoke machines, cobwebs, more themed lighting and little touches are scattered across areas in the park. Overall Scarefest this year is much better than it has been for the past few years, and the magic and atmosphere of the park is beginning to come back again, and so are the crowds! See you in 2019 Scarefest!
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Might as well give my review of Scarefest, I managed to visit 3 times during Scarefest, and enjoyed each visit. This will contain spoilers.

House Of Monsters:

I only got to do house of monsters once this year and I felt it was improved upon from last year, and it was overall a really fun attraction. I didn’t really like the new scene, but I get why families would. I hope this returns next year. 8/10

Altonville Mine Tours:

I’ve never been a big fan of this maze, and this year it was honestly terrible. There seemed to be very few actors and the ones there weren’t the best as compared to actors in the other mazes. The maze did feel longer this year than last year, even though I think it is exactly the same. I did have 1 good run through of this maze, but it still didn’t compare to the other mazes. I honestly can’t see any reason to want this to come back next year, 6/10

Project 42

Going into this maze I wasn’t sure what to expect, and it was, interesting... The pre show isn’t the best and the maze isn’t the longest, but it is really enjoyable. My favourite part was the squeeze, as it was my first time ever doing one in a maze. The end seemed too strobe reliant but the rest of the maze was good. The actors were ok in this maze, definitely better than the actors in Mine Tours but not as good as the actors in Sub Species. I hope this returns next year, 7.5/10

Sub Species: The End Games

I did this maze for the first time last year and it blew me away, and this year it was even better. The actors were insane and they did anything they could to separate you from other people. On my last run through one of the hosts came into the pre show and made the pre show feel even more intense than it already is, and i’d say it’s definitely the best pre show for any maze I’ve ever done. I still get really nervous in the trap corridor and the maze is still really intense. On my run through at SMN the labyrinth was full of fog, and that’s the only run i’ve ever had where that has happened. I got the alien nest for the first time this year, and it is definitely the better of the two endings. The chainsaw at the end has never been the best, but it was the best I’ve ever seen it this year. If I had one problem, on my final run through my group all stuck together and made it really hard to get scares, and it was too hard to separate, as everyone was going through the labyrinth like it was Project 42. The other run throughs were so good it made up for this. 9.5/10

The Welcoming: Be Chosen

Oh wow, this was so much better than it ever was last year. I’m happy the hooded section was removed and the new finale is really enjoyable and can be intense. Even though the maze has been a 12+ for part of Scarefest this year the actors have still been really good. Overall this maze is a lot better than it ever could have been last year, 8.5/10

Wicker Man in the dark:

Oh wow. This is unbelievable (when you aren’t in row 2 or 3). My final ride of the year was back row and it was incredible. There was airtime everywhere and it felt so much more intense than it is in the day, which has made Wicker Man my new number 1 in the UK. 10/10

I didn’t get to see any of the roaming actors this year, so I can’t give my opinion on them.

Overall, Scarefest has been really good this year and I can’t wait for Scarefest 2019. If I had to rank the mazes, this is my order:

1: Sub Species
2: The Welcoming
3: Project 42
4: Altonville Mine Tours
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DeadJack5 wrote:
Stan.H wrote:
Count-Vonduel wrote:Wait, they sell maze tickets in the smiler shop? Where else do they sell them?
I don't think nicky.borrill meant The Smiler shop, I think they meant the fastrack kiosk opposite the arcade and behind The Smiler toilets. I don't know for sure but they could potentially sell them at the Dark Forest kiosk as well, but as I said, I'm not 100% sure. 
They do sell fast tracks at the booth opposite the arcade by Smiler.

I haven't seen the fast track booth in Dark Forest open yet and I doubt it will since the screens inside have been taken away and still has the old map up (maybe wrong) from when I looked from recently. Same goes for the booth in Forbidden Valley which I haven't seen open yet.
Yes I did mean the smiler shop... They sell fast track and maze tickets in the actual smiler exit shop... been running there all season to avoid the queues in box office as nobody seems to know so there’s never a queue :) Sorry, I know it’s a bit late as I missed the reply. 
At least you know for next year :) Be careful though, they’re not that used to selling them, she nearly sold me some for the following day, I asked if there were any three maze packages left, she said yes, and got halfway through selling them before she realised the computer had automatically selected the next available ones, the following day  :lol
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