Ride Closures/Removals in 2016

Mon Mar 28, 2016 2:14 am

To me this all seems too much. Dark Forest all the eateries shut? They always seemed busy to us. Now if this is early season, pray it gets better in later season, as surely their foot outlets that they have currently got open can not sustain the summer crowds

Mon Mar 28, 2016 9:23 am

UltimateDingbat wrote:To me this all seems too much. Dark Forest all the eateries shut? They always seemed busy to us. Now if this is early season, pray it gets better in later season, as surely their foot outlets that they have currently got open can not sustain the summer crowds

The food outlets are down for improvement. Whilst I agree that the remaining outlets are a bit strained on peak days right now, I'm sure the Rollercoaster Restaurant will take plenty of traffic when it opens, what with it being next to a new attraction and being marketed as a "UK first".

Wed Mar 30, 2016 12:57 pm

To be honest, I'm quite happy about the removal of ripsaw and the flume. I never particularly liked either ride and it provides an excellent area for new, more exciting attractions. As far as flat rides go, I find ripsaw-like rides pretty horrible. We can sit here and cry over the loss of the park oldest ride, but we also need to look to the future.

Thu Mar 31, 2016 9:11 pm

what's happening with Hex then?

is it closed due to staff shortage, or is it receiving some much needed TLC?

Thu Mar 31, 2016 10:59 pm

I think all we know for certain is that they're claiming Hex is down for TLC. Whilst I'm sure this is true, there could be other reasons behind it as well.

Sat Apr 02, 2016 11:45 am

Whilst it all seems too much, now is the time to do it. Merlin knew they would still be feeling the effects of the Smiler incident this year so this year would have probably been some sort of write off as well. This meant that they could close half the rides and food outlets for a refurb. IMO i'd rather have all these closures for one season and a full park up and running the season after than have rolling closures and have a ride or two missing from the ride line up for a couple of seasons. Plus I personally can see them reopening at least one ride for the summer season. Look at the Blade, that was reported closed and removed from park maps but then reopened. They could quite easily do that with one of these closed rides - hopefully Hex.

Sat Apr 02, 2016 1:30 pm

I still can't believe that the park is very quiet this year. I thought that the guess numbers would have picked up.

I'm on the understanding that Hex has already have some work done to it, new floor, new projector and the mechanical curtain at the top of the stairs being repaired. I'm also on the understanding that they are waiting for a new large gear ring (or what ever you call it) to be replaced. I'm also on the understanding that there is a possibility of seeing the return of Hex sometime this summer. But then again, my informants could be wrong!

Sat Apr 02, 2016 3:07 pm

I hope so, I was on park yesterday and it was strange not being able to go on Hex. It was nicely busy too, big enough crowds that everywhere had a nice atmosphere but not overwhelming.

Sat Apr 09, 2016 11:43 am

Is hex closing for good? I was on the AltonTowers face book page and found this:

Sombody asks: "Has hx closed for good?x"
AT responds: " Hi Leanne, We currently do not have a reopening date for Hex."

I seriously hope this doesn't mean the end!

Sat Apr 09, 2016 12:08 pm

No, it has been closed as part of the Towers Loving Care scheme and will receive a number of refurbishments prior to its eventual reopening, although it's not yet clear when this will be.

zakwoolley1 · Sat Apr 09, 2016 6:36 pm

Me and my mates went on a bit of a wonder today and we found submission.

This got me thinking about Ripsaw. Apparently, people saw it being drove away from the resort but surely if it was going to just be removed they would leave it to rot with submission. After all it's cheaper than moving it away from the resort and you know how much Merlin loves cutting costs where ever they can.
So maybe the roumers that ripsaw has just go for repairs and will return the the resort in the future are true?

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Sat Apr 09, 2016 6:40 pm

It's possible, but if it is being refurbished it could also end up in a different park besides Alton.

Interesting pictures though, Submission was removed before my first trip to the park but I noticed it was still in the videos playing in Splash Landings even last year.

Sat Apr 09, 2016 7:55 pm

zakwoolley1 wrote:Me and my mates went on a bit of a wonder today and we found submission.

This got me thinking about Ripsaw. Apparently, people saw it being drove away from the resort but surely if it was going to just be removed they would leave it to rot with submission. After all it's cheaper than moving it away from the resort and you know how much Merlin loves cutting costs where ever they can.
So maybe the roumers that ripsaw has just go for repairs and will return the the resort in the future are true?

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Where about in the park did you find this? Im trying to think of where it is but I cant tell.

zakwoolley1 · Sat Apr 09, 2016 7:57 pm

Well we found a path on the dark forrest side of the valley that lead behind th13teen. If you keep following it you should see some funny rocks, th13teen's ride area and then a bank with out any trees on. If you go up that you'll find submission.

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Sat Apr 09, 2016 8:44 pm

Interesting it is still in the park. The ride itself wasn't that old. I just can't really see it being added back to the park, there are so many better flats that they could add to the park. A small flying carpet like Quantum would be a better choice to fill its spot in X Sector as it will allow younger guests to go on it.

Sun Apr 10, 2016 3:43 am

I think this is the area where Boneshaker was stored before it was removed from the park by the Mondial company.

Thu Apr 21, 2016 9:51 am

Park is still in major need of a good flat ride! Especially with the removal of Ripsaw

Thu Apr 21, 2016 9:13 pm

Sawboss wrote:It's possible, but if it is being refurbished it could also end up in a different park besides Alton.

Interesting pictures though, Submission was removed before my first trip to the park but I noticed it was still in the videos playing in Splash Landings even last year.

Ahhhh, the famous Splash Landings reel which now features more closed attractions than those open!

Thu Apr 21, 2016 9:19 pm

...not to mention that Ripsaw still has a page on the Hotel TV's :P

Thu Apr 21, 2016 10:12 pm

zakwoolley1 wrote:Well we found a path on the dark forrest side of the valley that lead behind th13teen. If you keep following it you should see some funny rocks, th13teen's ride area and then a bank with out any trees on. If you go up that you'll find submission.

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I'll try and look for it next tine I visit. I think the area submission used up could easily be filled with something, perhaps a heavily themed Top Scan, it would fit in nice with The Smiler too if they themed it like that. Might also make up for the lack of flat rides they have, too.