Short hours and closed rides; add this to being in the middle of nowhere, expensive resort hotels, cr*p food; just not worth the time and expense of the 800 mile round trip. At least when Pleasure Beach shuts at 5pm you've got the piers, bars and restaurants. As long as the punters keep turning up they're not going to change
All parks do this unfortunately, I’ve no interest in pubs so BPB closing at 5pm means I’ll go straight home. Same as after Towers. I don’t think taking an hour off the hours on a quiet weekday will ruin anyone’s day.
Fair enough if you're traveling to the parks but we have to stay in hotels and entertain ourselves in the evenings. Had some great nights at Splash Landings but the last time we stayed it was twice the price and a shadow of its former self. We used to travel south a few times a year but now its a solitary trip to Blackpool and a couple of weeks in Florida. Next year Europe.
@@yourexperienceguideyou say that like people have time and money just to go around Europe and spend on parks. Unfortunately not every 1 as the opportunity to go around theme parks year round due to working or limited funds. In general I think theme parks are over priced especially BPB in the day paying 50 pound entrance fee unless book in advance but Tbf Id only go back for icon infusion and Valhalla. The big 1 don't interest me it's only good for the apparent drop even that I think is weak and don't interest me.
@@JohnHipkin-yr6wr Steve commented saying “next year Europe”, which is why the next reply was saying about the good parks in Europe. Well aware of the costs, everything is expensive and takes a lot of financial sacrifices to do.
It's a beautiful place, and a great park to be at - but as others have said, it's in the middle of nowhere. Nowt wrong with that, in some ways it's a plus, but if you are going, you want to be sure you're getting the best out of it. I can't drive, so If I wanted to go, it would cost nearly £500 for a one night stay and 2 days park tickets, including train travel from the North East and taxi transport from either Derby or Stoke. It's inaccessible via public transport generally. (No, the inflexible bus service doesn't count) If I'm going to that level of expense, I don't want them to shut at 4pm out of nowhere due to "reasons". It's a lack of staff that is the problem. You'd never have this issue at say, Europa Park.
I get what your saying with the hour cuts around scarefest. My issue is I booked a hotel stay to visit for some of these nights where the hours have been cut, I booked those nights because like you said, it'll likely be super quiet. I just can't help but feel I've spent money think I was getting one thing, lots of night rides and now I'll probably get few if any!
So its a double edge sword for me because I feel like the park should be open longer. But the issue is something which has plagued AT post lockdown which is ride reliability. The big issue is that the park is seeming to just do quick fixes and not actually thinking about how to improve this across the park and as such you then have massive rides that are going down (rides which people travel the country to ride) and then the worst thing is there aren't other things to suck up the crowds. Its a genuine shame as I had hoped to go to AT in September for the first time (partly because I would like to think that the crowds will be less - for reference I will be going either on a Friday or Monday) but I am hanging fire on whether to book or not and instead book at another attraction that will be more reliable (e.g. The York Dungeon). Bianca says she is doing a lot but honestly we are seeing nothing aside from the glossy changes and new things. This is alright but it does not address the issue that is at hand.
One of the issues is a lot of the attractions are nearing the end of their lifespan, and Towers should be ruthless by ripping them out to replace with modern tech.
Wrong! Booked this in February BECAUSE of the 9pm close (as advertised then), staying on site as its a 500 mile drive. Merlin's new terms and conditions have given them an open door to screw over their customers as they feel fit. Another annual pass expiring at the end of the year and not up for renewal.
All parks have been doing this for a lot of years. Imagine my shock turning up in Madrid to find Parque Warner had changed their opening hours in 2012, and were now closed on the day I was going. Got a refund and free ticket tbf.
I was there on Monday and did every major ride several times and was back in the car by mid afternoon. The real issue is Wicker Man, Hex and Skyride all closed, the Dungeon binned, and nothing new for 2024 (and, no, Nemesis is NOT new). I do hope the Towers aren’t getting Blackpool-itis.
I think when universal comes who i reckon will have late closing times like they do in the other parks, merlin if they want the custom may have to think about their open and closing times, but also i read today universal studios uk will be open all yeat round which may be another thing that merlin will have to think about, But on the other side of it i think merlin needs different events and not keep doing octoberfest and mardi grass and try something else because for us we are getting bored of it people who dont go as often who dont have merlin passes probably wont be bothered about it, but ive heard people saying the same that its getting boring now, take a lead out of disneys book try different foods every month in the parks so people arent moaning about the food being crap abd get rid of the burger kings and kfc pizza pasta places make their own restaurants that go with the rides who will have foods for each ride i know they have that in the rollercoaster restaurant but its only so big and sometimes you cant get a reservation
Personally speaking I’ve got absolutely no interest in Oktoberfest at Towers, or any of the other stuff they put at the bottom of Towers Street. I’d be happier seeing the whole budget go on Scarefest
@@yourexperienceguide The main benefit of Oktoberfest is that it means they at least do 5pm closes through September, a huge benefit for people like me who aim to go through mid September in the week!
At the end of the day people pay for their tickets. This should not compromise on ride time. If the theme parks want our business they should be selling themselves. Encouraging people to stay, spend and most importantly return! The seasons are short enough as it is, weather permit and then there is always down time when rides malfunction.
Those weekdays in early October are usually very quiet, and I think they’ve gambled on adding more Scarefest dates to get more people booking, but it’s not worked out as planned. Just a guess
Yet another reason to love Efteling. What are their opening hours at this time of year? 10am - 10pm. That is how you act as a premium European theme park. The sort of ride maintenance issues and short opening hours we see in the UK just isn’t going to cut it in comparison to the world’s best I’m afraid.
@@yourexperienceguide I get that, my point is that parks should at least think about the customer experience. I always enjoy being in parks where you can tell that is the case (whatever ride offering they have)
@@ScottDaly-y1uThat’s why I don’t like Efteling, ride offering is naff. Coasters are mid and the dark rides are dull. Anyway, Towers. If it was up to me I’d replace most of the current coasters but that’s for another day.
Not happy as it’s a 4 hr journey for us…I booed scarefest n it was a 9pm finish when I booked…we always have to stay as we don’t drive so all in all it costs round about £400-£500 a visit. It’s disgraceful that the only evening we will get they are reducing it by an hr…what are we supposed to do after 8pm ?? There is nothing to do in the hotels…
Towers could say what would you do after 9pm? They’ll have made the decision based off of the forecasted gate figures, if people aren’t booking for that day they’ve seen no reason to keep it at 9pm. I see it from both sides. Saturdays should be 10pm.
I don’t think any UK park would ever copy Europa, as parks are still relatively quiet compared to historic numbers, they won’t pay for staff / resources etc to stay longer. Also another thing to consider, if the parks close consistently at 5 or 6, they know they can drive guests to the hotels or other attractions to keep making the money and is likely more guaranteed.
Also scarefest, I’d be much happier taking a day off work mid week to do scare fest until 8pm especially if it’s quieter and can also get night rides too
Everytime I've been to Europa Park they have extended the opening hours. Everytime I've been to Europa Park its been a great experience. Last few visits to Towers have been a let down
I think it's all to do with saving money. By cutting the opening hours they save on staff costs and electricity. Weather wise, it's been a rubbish summer and the schools are now starting back (here in Scotland anyway) so why stay open late mid-week. There should still be a MINIMUM closing time at Alton Towers because of the terrible location of the park so people can make an informed choice if it's worth making the journey. I like your 'face furniture' by the way, they suit you. It Gives your eyes a rest from the contact lenses. 👍👀
It’s all about demand, if people aren’t booking then they’ll look at where they can save money. Believe it or not I never wear contacts, I just don’t like wearing specs all the time.
@@yourexperienceguide I see what you mean about the demand thing. If the parks aren't busy then it makes more sense. I've got to wear contacts on the coasters or everything is just a blur and I don't enjoy it otherwise. I don't want my glasses to fly off mid ride.
@@Fanriffic2020 Understood about glasses 👓 Mine are mostly for long distance stuff, but just got two near pairs so easing them in before wearing for any long drives
@@yourexperienceguide Excellent stuff. I made the jump to varifocals and wish I did it years ago, but the lenses are very expensive. You can't skimp on your eye health. 👁
I just wish they opened later. I'd Run Scarefest 12-9 each day instead to hopefully give staff more time to do stuff and it would get us some later and darker night rides. Particularly towards the beginning of october.
I agree that the 8pm close isn't too much of an issue, but what's not good is committing to a 9pm close and allowing people to book accommodation, transport etc and then change the opening hours. I get that they are offering people to change their dates, but of people have booked accommodation already, they may not be able to get a refund. It just leaves a sour taste in everyone's mouth. Let's also not forget that with these shorter hours in the summer, they are still getting regular queues of an hour plus for the big rides - that's not quiet in my eyes. Yet, somewhere like Paultons can operate, admittedly with much shorter hours, but also with an average queue time of just 7 mins per ride. The 4pm closes was supposed to be temporary due to the Smiler incident. Yet, they've decided to keep it for nearly 10 years now, so it's not looking good
They should have more hours open, the UK have some of the worst opening hours in Europe, if not the world. Also, they need to be competitive with other theme parks, open now or eventually Universal Studios
the difference is Europa Park etc are proud of their park, operations are world class and food is good. I dont feel this at Towers, they act like a company that could care less whether you are there or not
Problem is, I don’t go during October for scarefest. I avoid it all. I don’t care about scare zones and all that crap. I want night rides. And cutting hours means less night rides. Alton towers has dull rides, and darkness makes them a bit more interesting, but cutting the hours to a 8pm close means less darkness. And that means I probably won’t go this year.
Wrong decision people have already booked based on a 9pm close, it’s my first time going to scare fest and was looking forward to going on the rides in the dark, now at a 8pm close it won’t be as dark.
I’ve been at Paultons Park, and there was some accident outside the park making a lot of traffic. The park kept open later so people didn’t make the traffic worse
Operating costs have rocketed, this is across all areas of the leisure industry in this country. you are getting less but paying more. chester zoo is having a similar situation at the moment in terms of numbers.
Thing is, we’re getting more. 24 days of Scarefest, more than 2023. Weekends are still 10am-9pm. Weekdays 10am-8pm or 10am-9pm. Last year most of the October off peak weekdays were 4pm or 5pm closes without Scarefest on at all
Pleasure beach staggered openings and short hours is a disgrace if its lack of staff I can let it go but to my knowledge it's just simple cost cutting people paying more for far less this season worrying signs
Yes definitely, I'm sure they've got it in the small print to allow this, but I've specifically booked certain dates in September due to longer opening times, so I would be annoyed if they shortened these days.
Because of The Working Time Regulations 1998 it would likely cause problems if parks regularly push back closing times and expect all staff to be on board. You can’t be forced to work more than 48 hours a week unless you’ve opted out of that rule.
@@yourexperienceguide They did! I worked a summer at BPB in the noughties and we were all expected to stay late if they extended park hours. Many of us were worked five or six 10 to 12 hour shifts a week. It was hard work.
Regarding scarefest I’ll be honest - attic ( not accessible ) minetours ( not accessible ) and burial grounds ( last year wasn’t accessible ) very much doubt it’s accessible this year :( even panic the live ride experience was accessible 😂
Scott I think yourself with the powers that be( lol), contact BPB and have them talked to about the Big one breaking down everyday, halfway to almost the top. As a ride I loved so much, it has given me so much vertigo since I was part of a hellish unforseen evac last summer. It's taking away my good memories of riding it. Amanda needs to re-think, is it worth changing to a more modern built Big one 🫣....Agree completely with you as regards to the scare-mazes also👍🏻
Should be open until 10pm at Halloween why not just open later if it's to do with staffing so much better abroad uk themeparks are so far behind our European parks
So are they, then, going to drop the price to reflect the cut in hours? It is bad enough that Alton Towers is at the back of beyond, difficult to get there unless you have a vehicle. Been there the once, never again. If travelling fair grounds can operate till late, what is the problem with these parks? If the youth offenders prison is still up and running people might like to visit that, nearby
@@yourexperienceguide no a absolutely not they are already very expensive. Tbf it sounds like you on defending Alton towers customer should always come 1st end off
@@yourexperienceguide maybe so but customer perspective should probably come 1st and world wide known theme park acting as they are with the hours is surprising how they are not loosing so much custom. I'm not so bothered in week days because I work but certainly on a Friday to Sunday hours should never be compromised but the world we live in now nothing surprises me about anything cost of living cost of entertainment etc.
Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. This does not benefit the customer in anyway at all and starts a slippery slope to 8pm being the norm for ScareFest in future years.
Customer is getting a better deal in 2024. 24 days of Scarefest, more than 2023. Weekends are still 10am-9pm. Weekdays 10am-8pm or 10am-9pm. Last year most of the October off peak weekdays were 4pm or 5pm closes without Scarefest on at all.
@@yourexperienceguide There might be just 3 more days this year than in 2023 (there were 21 in 2023 and the extra 3 this year are for November, so October is like-for-like compared to 2023 number-wise), but the point I'm making is we should not be normalising a reduction in opening hours like this. Normalising and letting them off the hook for something like this is the reason 4pm closures are now the normal at Alton Towers, or 5pm closures during August summer holidays as we've now seen this month. Who's to say 8pm won't be the normal for ScareFest in 2025 and the park are doing this to test the waters? I wouldn't be so fussed about this if the park had everything open from 10am with no staggered openings, no rides SBNO for months on end, no poor operations and no reduced capacity on rides constantly, but they've been this way all season so far and customers deserve better if they are now getting one less hour per day than before for the same ticket price (just my opinion).
Cutting hours will lead to thier downfall. I haven't bothered with Alton towers at all this year. Do what you will say you will do, and stay open, or people will stay away.
Takes two hours to get there, then half hour to queue to park ( not free ) then queue for monorail or walk... another hdlf hour .bag search..get in...about eleven or gone.. then walk to rides..queue again ..at best get say 5 rides in a day then shut early ? Get stuffed
I went last year on a Saturday each ride was around 3 hours fast pass was the same time I’d never go in a weekend again so I’m gonna pick the quiet times to go plus my mrs is pregnant so she is moody she can’t do wicker man at night
Short hours and closed rides; add this to being in the middle of nowhere, expensive resort hotels, cr*p food; just not worth the time and expense of the 800 mile round trip. At least when Pleasure Beach shuts at 5pm you've got the piers, bars and restaurants. As long as the punters keep turning up they're not going to change
All parks do this unfortunately, I’ve no interest in pubs so BPB closing at 5pm means I’ll go straight home. Same as after Towers.
I don’t think taking an hour off the hours on a quiet weekday will ruin anyone’s day.
Fair enough if you're traveling to the parks but we have to stay in hotels and entertain ourselves in the evenings. Had some great nights at Splash Landings but the last time we stayed it was twice the price and a shadow of its former self. We used to travel south a few times a year but now its a solitary trip to Blackpool and a couple of weeks in Florida. Next year Europe.
@@SteveSmith-ln4sw Lots of good parks to do in Europe 😊
@@yourexperienceguideyou say that like people have time and money just to go around Europe and spend on parks. Unfortunately not every 1 as the opportunity to go around theme parks year round due to working or limited funds. In general I think theme parks are over priced especially BPB in the day paying 50 pound entrance fee unless book in advance but Tbf Id only go back for icon infusion and Valhalla. The big 1 don't interest me it's only good for the apparent drop even that I think is weak and don't interest me.
@@JohnHipkin-yr6wr Steve commented saying “next year Europe”, which is why the next reply was saying about the good parks in Europe.
Well aware of the costs, everything is expensive and takes a lot of financial sacrifices to do.
Universal Going to shake up the UK theme park industry, no way that place is closing any earlier then 8, even in the winter
It's a beautiful place, and a great park to be at - but as others have said, it's in the middle of nowhere. Nowt wrong with that, in some ways it's a plus, but if you are going, you want to be sure you're getting the best out of it.
I can't drive, so If I wanted to go, it would cost nearly £500 for a one night stay and 2 days park tickets, including train travel from the North East and taxi transport from either Derby or Stoke. It's inaccessible via public transport generally. (No, the inflexible bus service doesn't count) If I'm going to that level of expense, I don't want them to shut at 4pm out of nowhere due to "reasons". It's a lack of staff that is the problem. You'd never have this issue at say, Europa Park.
Public transport to Towers is rubbish, and not defending their 4pm closing times.
I genuinely think the UK theme park industry is just completely knackered at this point. Bring on Universal UK to shake it up
I get what your saying with the hour cuts around scarefest. My issue is I booked a hotel stay to visit for some of these nights where the hours have been cut, I booked those nights because like you said, it'll likely be super quiet. I just can't help but feel I've spent money think I was getting one thing, lots of night rides and now I'll probably get few if any!
Jesus...in the UK we have the worsed opening hours in the world regarding Theme Parks...Now they'll make them even worse...utter madness.
10am to 8pm on off peak midweek days in October is considerably better than the 10am to 4pm alternative in 2023.
Early closing is ridiculous. Obviously they don't listen to the public. They should be open until 10pm end of story. May aswell not open. Lol.
Fair grounds can do it, so why not these parks?
Good job you don't own a business you stick to working a mc donalds lad
@@DanielWoolley keyboard warrior cheers.. Mines a large bigmac meal our kid. Lol.
I think they’re listening to customers mate. Those weekdays in October are usually very quiet.
So its a double edge sword for me because I feel like the park should be open longer. But the issue is something which has plagued AT post lockdown which is ride reliability. The big issue is that the park is seeming to just do quick fixes and not actually thinking about how to improve this across the park and as such you then have massive rides that are going down (rides which people travel the country to ride) and then the worst thing is there aren't other things to suck up the crowds.
Its a genuine shame as I had hoped to go to AT in September for the first time (partly because I would like to think that the crowds will be less - for reference I will be going either on a Friday or Monday) but I am hanging fire on whether to book or not and instead book at another attraction that will be more reliable (e.g. The York Dungeon).
Bianca says she is doing a lot but honestly we are seeing nothing aside from the glossy changes and new things. This is alright but it does not address the issue that is at hand.
One of the issues is a lot of the attractions are nearing the end of their lifespan, and Towers should be ruthless by ripping them out to replace with modern tech.
Wrong! Booked this in February BECAUSE of the 9pm close (as advertised then), staying on site as its a 500 mile drive. Merlin's new terms and conditions have given them an open door to screw over their customers as they feel fit. Another annual pass expiring at the end of the year and not up for renewal.
All parks have been doing this for a lot of years.
Imagine my shock turning up in Madrid to find Parque Warner had changed their opening hours in 2012, and were now closed on the day I was going. Got a refund and free ticket tbf.
Definitely think they should be more flexible with the summer holiday closing times . Also scarefest agree it's not the end of the day is it
I was there on Monday and did every major ride several times and was back in the car by mid afternoon.
The real issue is Wicker Man, Hex and Skyride all closed, the Dungeon binned, and nothing new for 2024 (and, no, Nemesis is NOT new). I do hope the Towers aren’t getting Blackpool-itis.
Ride closures are a problem that’s for sure
I think when universal comes who i reckon will have late closing times like they do in the other parks, merlin if they want the custom may have to think about their open and closing times, but also i read today universal studios uk will be open all yeat round which may be another thing that merlin will have to think about,
But on the other side of it i think merlin needs different events and not keep doing octoberfest and mardi grass and try something else because for us we are getting bored of it people who dont go as often who dont have merlin passes probably wont be bothered about it, but ive heard people saying the same that its getting boring now, take a lead out of disneys book try different foods every month in the parks so people arent moaning about the food being crap abd get rid of the burger kings and kfc pizza pasta places make their own restaurants that go with the rides who will have foods for each ride i know they have that in the rollercoaster restaurant but its only so big and sometimes you cant get a reservation
Personally speaking I’ve got absolutely no interest in Oktoberfest at Towers, or any of the other stuff they put at the bottom of Towers Street.
I’d be happier seeing the whole budget go on Scarefest
@yourexperienceguide same mostly because we prefer halloween to Christmas it's our favourite time of the year
@@yourexperienceguide The main benefit of Oktoberfest is that it means they at least do 5pm closes through September, a huge benefit for people like me who aim to go through mid September in the week!
At the end of the day people pay for their tickets. This should not compromise on ride time. If the theme parks want our business they should be selling themselves. Encouraging people to stay, spend and most importantly return! The seasons are short enough as it is, weather permit and then there is always down time when rides malfunction.
Those weekdays in early October are usually very quiet, and I think they’ve gambled on adding more Scarefest dates to get more people booking, but it’s not worked out as planned.
Just a guess
100%
Yet another reason to love Efteling. What are their opening hours at this time of year? 10am - 10pm. That is how you act as a premium European theme park. The sort of ride maintenance issues and short opening hours we see in the UK just isn’t going to cut it in comparison to the world’s best I’m afraid.
Efteling is somewhere that just doesn’t do it for me sorry.
@@yourexperienceguide I get that, my point is that parks should at least think about the customer experience. I always enjoy being in parks where you can tell that is the case (whatever ride offering they have)
@@yourexperienceguide shit ride offering and shit opening hours just don’t do it for me sorry.
@@ScottDaly-y1uThat’s why I don’t like Efteling, ride offering is naff. Coasters are mid and the dark rides are dull.
Anyway, Towers. If it was up to me I’d replace most of the current coasters but that’s for another day.
@@yourexperienceguide first time I heard anyone say Symbolica was dull
Not happy as it’s a 4 hr journey for us…I booed scarefest n it was a 9pm finish when I booked…we always have to stay as we don’t drive so all in all it costs round about £400-£500 a visit.
It’s disgraceful that the only evening we will get they are reducing it by an hr…what are we supposed to do after 8pm ?? There is nothing to do in the hotels…
Local youth offenders prison, close by, if it is still going
Towers could say what would you do after 9pm?
They’ll have made the decision based off of the forecasted gate figures, if people aren’t booking for that day they’ve seen no reason to keep it at 9pm.
I see it from both sides. Saturdays should be 10pm.
I don’t think any UK park would ever copy Europa, as parks are still relatively quiet compared to historic numbers, they won’t pay for staff / resources etc to stay longer. Also another thing to consider, if the parks close consistently at 5 or 6, they know they can drive guests to the hotels or other attractions to keep making the money and is likely more guaranteed.
Also scarefest, I’d be much happier taking a day off work mid week to do scare fest until 8pm especially if it’s quieter and can also get night rides too
They will need to sort out the opening and closing times if Universal arrives in GB.
They wont play around 😅
they shorten hours ie: reducing the value of the proposition: yet the price remains the same......and they wonder why people dont go.
Everytime I've been to Europa Park they have extended the opening hours. Everytime I've been to Europa Park its been a great experience. Last few visits to Towers have been a let down
I think it's all to do with saving money. By cutting the opening hours they save on staff costs and electricity. Weather wise, it's been a rubbish summer and the schools are now starting back (here in Scotland anyway) so why stay open late mid-week. There should still be a MINIMUM closing time at Alton Towers because of the terrible location of the park so people can make an informed choice if it's worth making the journey.
I like your 'face furniture' by the way, they suit you. It Gives your eyes a rest from the contact lenses. 👍👀
It’s all about demand, if people aren’t booking then they’ll look at where they can save money.
Believe it or not I never wear contacts, I just don’t like wearing specs all the time.
@@yourexperienceguide I see what you mean about the demand thing. If the parks aren't busy then it makes more sense. I've got to wear contacts on the coasters or everything is just a blur and I don't enjoy it otherwise. I don't want my glasses to fly off mid ride.
@@Fanriffic2020 Understood about glasses 👓
Mine are mostly for long distance stuff, but just got two near pairs so easing them in before wearing for any long drives
@@yourexperienceguide Excellent stuff. I made the jump to varifocals and wish I did it years ago, but the lenses are very expensive. You can't skimp on your eye health. 👁
@@Fanriffic2020 It’s expensive but important to stay on top of mate
I just wish they opened later. I'd Run Scarefest 12-9 each day instead to hopefully give staff more time to do stuff and it would get us some later and darker night rides. Particularly towards the beginning of october.
I agree that the 8pm close isn't too much of an issue, but what's not good is committing to a 9pm close and allowing people to book accommodation, transport etc and then change the opening hours. I get that they are offering people to change their dates, but of people have booked accommodation already, they may not be able to get a refund. It just leaves a sour taste in everyone's mouth. Let's also not forget that with these shorter hours in the summer, they are still getting regular queues of an hour plus for the big rides - that's not quiet in my eyes. Yet, somewhere like Paultons can operate, admittedly with much shorter hours, but also with an average queue time of just 7 mins per ride. The 4pm closes was supposed to be temporary due to the Smiler incident. Yet, they've decided to keep it for nearly 10 years now, so it's not looking good
Strongly agree need a minimum eta closing time say 5pm i dont think towers is the same as it was in the 80s and 90s
They should have more hours open, the UK have some of the worst opening hours in Europe, if not the world. Also, they need to be competitive with other theme parks, open now or eventually Universal Studios
Uk is the worst place In Europe
@@bowjana8128exactly. They have some world-class coasters, they should have higher opening times to attract more people to travel longer for it
We don’t have great opening times, but sadly when parks put later closes in place people still leave at 5 or stop spending after 5.
the difference is Europa Park etc are proud of their park, operations are world class and food is good. I dont feel this at Towers, they act like a company that could care less whether you are there or not
Problem is, I don’t go during October for scarefest. I avoid it all. I don’t care about scare zones and all that crap. I want night rides. And cutting hours means less night rides. Alton towers has dull rides, and darkness makes them a bit more interesting, but cutting the hours to a 8pm close means less darkness. And that means I probably won’t go this year.
Wrong decision people have already booked based on a 9pm close, it’s my first time going to scare fest and was looking forward to going on the rides in the dark, now at a 8pm close it won’t be as dark.
But not enough people have booked to justify the 9pm close.
I’d see the frustration *if* they did it on the day.
I’ve been at Paultons Park, and there was some accident outside the park making a lot of traffic. The park kept open later so people didn’t make the traffic worse
Can’t fault that
Operating costs have rocketed, this is across all areas of the leisure industry in this country. you are getting less but paying more. chester zoo is having a similar situation at the moment in terms of numbers.
Thing is, we’re getting more.
24 days of Scarefest, more than 2023.
Weekends are still 10am-9pm.
Weekdays 10am-8pm or 10am-9pm.
Last year most of the October off peak weekdays were 4pm or 5pm closes without Scarefest on at all
Pleasure beach staggered openings and short hours is a disgrace if its lack of staff I can let it go but to my knowledge it's just simple cost cutting people paying more for far less this season worrying signs
Valhalla opens at 1pm every day now
@@yourexperienceguide ridiculous even through summer??
@@thesaint5619Been the same for weeks
@@yourexperienceguide what's your thoughts on that then bro
I think if you check the calendar and book tickets in advance thinking it is a 6pm close and then they switch it to 5pm then I wouldn’t be happy
Yes definitely, I'm sure they've got it in the small print to allow this, but I've specifically booked certain dates in September due to longer opening times, so I would be annoyed if they shortened these days.
It’s frustrating but their T&Cs will cover this, sadly most parks do it.
I live by Disneyland and I can’t believe the hours of your uk theme parks.
They’ve been rubbish for years
They should have cut the week days to 8.30pm and pushed up the weekends to 10pm that would have made more sense
Or cut it to 11am-9pm
Because of The Working Time Regulations 1998 it would likely cause problems if parks regularly push back closing times and expect all staff to be on board. You can’t be forced to work more than 48 hours a week unless you’ve opted out of that rule.
Parks always used to do it, even in the early 2010s.
@@yourexperienceguide They did! I worked a summer at BPB in the noughties and we were all expected to stay late if they extended park hours. Many of us were worked five or six 10 to 12 hour shifts a week. It was hard work.
Frightnights upped their game when they started charging for mazes, way above AT now
Absolutely
are you gonna have a trip next year to liseberg and having an ERT?
We're still working on our event schedule for 2025
Regarding scarefest I’ll be honest - attic ( not accessible ) minetours ( not accessible ) and burial grounds ( last year wasn’t accessible ) very much doubt it’s accessible this year :( even panic the live ride experience was accessible 😂
It’s always going to be difficult making stuff in the Towers Ruins accessible unfortunately
@@yourexperienceguide so frustrating :( let’s hope the new ones are 🤷♀️
Could do with cutting queue times
Better throughputs are needed in every British park
Well said mate 👏
Thank you
Drayton use to do that I remember them changing the times on the day
They all do
@@yourexperienceguide i mean more for the extension
Scott I think yourself with the powers that be( lol), contact BPB and have them talked to about the Big one breaking down everyday, halfway to almost the top. As a ride I loved so much, it has given me so much vertigo since I was part of a hellish unforseen evac last summer. It's taking away my good memories of riding it. Amanda needs to re-think, is it worth changing to a more modern built Big one 🫣....Agree completely with you as regards to the scare-mazes also👍🏻
Have a watch of this; th-cam.com/video/x1h8zV_lh8w/w-d-xo.htmlsi=-hW1TI7aZSP6X7QW - there’s a reason why it stops
There’s no world where staff should turn up on the day and have to work 3 hours longer than they were expecting to without prior notice.
Europa Park’s model has been in place for a long time, and the staff are still extremely efficient.
BPB used to do it, Towers too.
Should be open until 10pm at Halloween why not just open later if it's to do with staffing so much better abroad uk themeparks are so far behind our European parks
10pm at the weekend, but I think 8pm is fine in the week
@yourexperienceguide spot on mate it's definitely not good enough 😕
US theme parks 10-10 at least in the summer. I find the UK hours so short, I don’t get it
UK park visitors stop spending after 3pm and start leaving from 5pm, that’s our issue
@@yourexperienceguide where as we pour in after work at 5PM. I pay $105 for season food pass. Get my dinner most nights at KI.
@@yourexperienceguide and we pour in after work around 5PM
I have the season food pass for $105 and get my dinner there most nights
So are they, then, going to drop the price to reflect the cut in hours? It is bad enough that Alton Towers is at the back of beyond, difficult to get there unless you have a vehicle. Been there the once, never again. If travelling fair grounds can operate till late, what is the problem with these parks? If the youth offenders prison is still up and running people might like to visit that, nearby
On a flip side should parks charge you extra if they extend on the day? 😅
@@yourexperienceguide no a absolutely not they are already very expensive. Tbf it sounds like you on defending Alton towers customer should always come 1st end off
@@user-sb5vc9nq1eNot defending, looking at it from both sides 👍
My track record of Alton Towers commentary is hardly a defensive one.
@@yourexperienceguide maybe so but customer perspective should probably come 1st and world wide known theme park acting as they are with the hours is surprising how they are not loosing so much custom. I'm not so bothered in week days because I work but certainly on a Friday to Sunday hours should never be compromised but the world we live in now nothing surprises me about anything cost of living cost of entertainment etc.
More mazes , more staff to be hired and scarefest is extended 🤷♀️
4 mazes isn’t enough IMO
@@yourexperienceguide 😂😂😂😂
@@EmilyDoesAccessAllAreas It’s not a joke 😬
Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. This does not benefit the customer in anyway at all and starts a slippery slope to 8pm being the norm for ScareFest in future years.
Customer is getting a better deal in 2024.
24 days of Scarefest, more than 2023.
Weekends are still 10am-9pm.
Weekdays 10am-8pm or 10am-9pm.
Last year most of the October off peak weekdays were 4pm or 5pm closes without Scarefest on at all.
@@yourexperienceguide There might be just 3 more days this year than in 2023 (there were 21 in 2023 and the extra 3 this year are for November, so October is like-for-like compared to 2023 number-wise), but the point I'm making is we should not be normalising a reduction in opening hours like this.
Normalising and letting them off the hook for something like this is the reason 4pm closures are now the normal at Alton Towers, or 5pm closures during August summer holidays as we've now seen this month. Who's to say 8pm won't be the normal for ScareFest in 2025 and the park are doing this to test the waters?
I wouldn't be so fussed about this if the park had everything open from 10am with no staggered openings, no rides SBNO for months on end, no poor operations and no reduced capacity on rides constantly, but they've been this way all season so far and customers deserve better if they are now getting one less hour per day than before for the same ticket price (just my opinion).
Cutting hours will lead to thier downfall.
I haven't bothered with Alton towers at all this year.
Do what you will say you will do, and stay open, or people will stay away.
I’ve enjoyed most of my visits this year but my last two weren’t great due to downtime
If Universal uk happens it’s going to make Merlin and other step up their game
Hopefully it’ll improve the whole UK industry
Takes two hours to get there, then half hour to queue to park ( not free ) then queue for monorail or walk... another hdlf hour .bag search..get in...about eleven or gone.. then walk to rides..queue again ..at best get say 5 rides in a day then shut early ?
Get stuffed
Park up by 9am, straight on Monorail, and be on your first ride for 10am. You can’t blame Towers for not arriving in good time.
Another stalefest on the way for towers
Hopefully the new attractions close down the Stalefest comments
Absolute wrong to cut the hours 🎉
I don’t mind them cutting an hour off, off peak days
I went last year on a Saturday each ride was around 3 hours fast pass was the same time I’d never go in a weekend again so I’m gonna pick the quiet times to go plus my mrs is pregnant so she is moody she can’t do wicker man at night