Attraction Source Forum

I disagree.

There will be less people entitled to ERT due to online bookings no longer receiving it, so as long as ERT guests are managed correctly at the turnstiles there won’t be an issue.

Come 10am there’ll be CBeebies Land, X-Sector, Mutiny Bay and Towers Street open, which will be more than enough space to handle the guest numbers, if similar to previous years.

I suppose that's true. We'd all be gathered outside FV in protest after an initial ride on Wicker Man anyway

I’m officially done. This is beyond a joke. If I hadn’t booked already, I wouldn’t be bothering this year. RIP Alton Towers. 

Think there may be a meeting at management to discuss backtracking tomorrow judging by the absolloute hellstorm going down on Facebook! :0

Unfortunately I can only get out to one Merlin park every year, (because they’re expensive and I’m only 15), if it wasn’t for Wickerman I would choose to go to Thorpe Park instead with 10pm openings throughout the summer.

Whilst I was expecting some small staggered openings, I didn't think it would be anything like on this scale. I thought we'd get FV and CBeebies Land on ERT, then X-Sector, Katanga Canyon, Mutiny Bay, Gloomy Wood, and Wicker Man at 10, followed by DF, Hex and CCL at 11. I'm not sure if it is a decision from Towers themselves, or something higher up in Merlin is influencing it, but I do get the impression there is something more behind this as they ust have known the backlash it would receive. Surely all that's going to happen is that queues will be pushed to the rides with the limited opening hours as people rush to squeeze them in.

What is positive is that Wicker Man is on ERT which does give us our strongest hint yet that it will open with the park on the 17th March, however I do worry that if it has teething problems that will leave only Spinball Whizzer for adults during ERT.

Whilst many people are angry at today's news (and understandably so), I'm just feeling a kind of sadness that it has come to this at Towers. It's sad to see a park which does still have so much potential forced to cut back in so many areas. I also strongly suspect there are a number of staff at the Resort who are equally as passionate about Towers as we are who are just as frustrated at what they are having to implement knowing how it will be viewed by enthusiasts and the public alike. All we can hope is that Wicker Man will see a significant uplift in attendance at the park so that it leaves Merlin with no choice but to reverse some of these staggered openings.

OhShambhala wrote:Think there may be a meeting at management to discuss backtracking tomorrow judging by the absolloute hellstorm going down on Facebook! :0

I've openly voice my dismay both on Alton Towers and Merlin Facebook pages.  I personally don't think Merlin has enough feedback regarding this 

I really hope a meeting is held about the issue tomorrow. There’s been around 380 Facebook complaints from what I’ve seen... Seems a lot of people are annoyed, I don’t blame them. I just hope a reversal happens. We would be saved! (Mostly)

Dan wrote:I disagree.

There will be less people entitled to ERT due to online bookings no longer receiving it, so as long as ERT guests are managed correctly at the turnstiles there won’t be an issue.

A point well made and not considered by myself

Joel Allen wrote:I really hope a meeting is held about the issue tomorrow. There’s been around 380 Facebook complaints from what I’ve seen... Seems a lot of people are annoyed, I don’t blame them. I just hope a reversal happens. We would be saved! (Mostly)

I expect there will be some kind of briefing, but I wouldn't hold your breath for any reversals.

Looks like a lot of social media users have been directly tweeting Nick Varney himself, rather than the AT/Merlin pages, as that's where they feel a difference will be made. It seems people are currently feeling more like financial statistics, rather than welcomed guests. Perhaps I'm sensationalising the situation but there's definitely a very low morale among guests and, no doubt, staff. Let's all stay strong, people! 

While the cutbacks of the previous two seasons were by no means well received, they certainly seem to have provoked a much wider outcry this time (which is undoubtedly justified). Hopefully, that will result in at least some backtrack of what has been announced, but I'm not getting my hopes up given that it wouldn't make sense to make such drastic changes and subject themselves to the disastrous PR if they weren't completely 'necessary'. I think they might have just gotten away with it had Forbidden Valley opened at 10am though.

I was optimistic that with this being the year of Wicker Man we would see at least some steps in the right direction, however we've instead been landed with what is the most brutal set of cuts yet (especially if you take into consideration the closures that have carried over from previous seasons). They wouldn't have gone down well in 2016, but they'd probably have been easier to accept than they are now, in the third season post-June 2015.

We've still got the actual opening times to come, but I can't say I'm hopeful of them providing any consolation.

It really is such a shame to see the anticipation for Wicker Man replaced by the outrage at these cuts (as captured by the response to the Resort's social media posts this afternoon), and with it the Resort perhaps waving good-bye to their best chance of recovery for the next four years. Indeed, if it does seriously taint the launch of Wicker Man, I dread to think what we'll be discussing this time next year...

Heading into 2018, just cruising waiting for the season to start then they drop this bombshell.

They are, rightly, taking an absolute battering on social media. One thing I've learnt from years of retail management is that you can't take the mick out of your paying customers and expect to get away with it. If they don't back track to some degree, I think it'll almost certainly either impact on gate figures or on hotel bookings. Because, to be frank, what incentive is there to pay more to stay at AT than you would at a local B&B if you can't take advantage of the woodland walk and hit Forbidden Valley nice and early? 

I think they've completely misjudged this decision, and at a time when Blackpool are about to open a world class rollercoaster and more of the GP are becoming wise to how reasonably priced it can be to reach other, better European parks.

NemeJaney wrote:I suppose that's true. We'd all be gathered outside FV in protest after an initial ride on Wicker Man anyway

Once you've walked all the way over there because the Sky Ride isn't open yet...  :lol

I think it's important to remember here that after the media bettering over the last 2 years, it's battered the Towers. They absolutely have to make these sorts of decisions, rightly or wrongly as without them there wouldn't be a Towers to enjoy / bash. I do think that this is possibly a bit too far and does nothing to stop the rot.. I mean, where does it stop? I expect that guest trends will have been analysed to sort the times - look on queue-times.com on any random day and you'll see that Nemesis had a 5 - 10 min queue, Galactica only longer because of VR.. So of course, it makes sense on paper to stagger this opening as FV's popularity is lower while the newer headline rides are the opposite side of the park. It's also the first time that we see the newest ride on ERT...
I don't think we will see the opening times change, but what I do think we will see is an announcement that this only applies to off-peak days and not their peak days: summer, Scarefest, Half Terms, Fireworks etc.
As much as it pains me, I think I support the decision in principle.. The Towers need to save themselves in tough times. But as a fan boy it's upsetting to see that they have to take this much of a drastic measure to secure their future, when if the media weren't such sensationalist scaremongers putting the fear into potential guests, this may not have been needed..

*OVER DRAMATIC CRYBABY POST ALERT*
I read this forum a lot but must confess to being a lurker rather than a contributor. I don't really have much insight into the park so I prefer to read, and nerd out on the stuff you all post. However the new ERT restrictions and ride times has irked me so much I had to register so I could vent my spleen! I've probably visited AT around 80 times over the last 15 years including a glorious 3 years of Annual Passes and camping at the Star round the corner around the time Th13teen went in. I genuinely love going to AT and like just about everyone I've watched the build up to Wickerman with growing excitement and a resolve to get 2 annual passes for this year (one for the other half).

The new ERT restrictions are not great. The ride times are actually shocking. It's pathetic but I'm actually slightly in mourning this morning (pun definitely intended) after seeing the news last night. Coming on top of the fact that there really aren't enough rides there anyway and the fact the business seems to think it's special for actually bothering to maintain it's rides in the off season (TLC) it really feels like the last straw. I'm so angry I've cancelled my plans to visit AT this season (and Thorpe Park) and am now planning to go to Blackpool to ride the Mack Mega going in there and probably going to get a cheap flight to Salou for PortAventura.

I've tweeted, fb posted and fb messaged AT about this but I doubt it will do much good. I guess time will only tell how much if any damage this will do the park but they've lost the business of this family who repeat visit and I'm tipping plenty more people will feel like us.

*OVER DRAMATIC CRYBABY POST ENDS*

I thought Alton Towers was supposed to be their flagship park? I'm sorry but after this news I think Thorpe Park is now taking it's place, at least it's open longer.

As someone who has to travel between countries to get to the Towers and would stay in the resort for the ERT, whats the point now? The day is so much shorter for someone who can't come back easily, I've 2 days minimum but most of the park is closed until 11. Even if the ERT selection wasn't good in the past you could wait around at Nemesis or Oblivion for opening and get a few rides in before queues formed. The fact ERT is half an hour now and most of the park is closed makes it pointless really except if you want to queue for Wicker Man a bit early.

Has anyone thought about this being an early April Fools joke?

I really, really don't see them going through with this decision.. as people have already stated, they are getting slaughtered with all the feedback from that news.. even to the point now where people have started #SaveAltonTowers :lol

I don't think we'll have anything to worry about as the GP will get done what needs to be done!

Anywho.. happy we got a hint for Wicker Man's opening date :lol

This just proves that Merlin are hell-bent on running Alton Towers Resort into the ground.  They claim they've had unfair press coverage but then go and pull tricks like this staggered opening out of the hat.  They're seriously reducing what is already a limited ride offer (compared to other parks).  Lets leave Disney out of the argument as they have a unique market position.  Would you see the likes of Europa Park pull stunts like this?  No way.  

If you have not already visited Europa park, then I urge you to do so.  It's the best park in Europe IMO, the rides run like clockwork and the theming is amazing.  It will open your eyes to how short-changed we are at ALL the Merlin parks in the UK.  

At one point, Merlin Entertainments used to have a tag-line along the lines of "We're second only to Disney" - I can hear Mickey Mouse laughing right now!  

Alton Towers have today confirmed to me on twitter that the new season passes will not be valid for Early Ride Time despite the opposite being stated when the passes first went on sale.