Shameful for a UK based enthusiast, I know, but my last visit to Alton Towers was early 2008. I had four new creds to get and most of my opinions on the other rides were well out of date.
This might not be the most exotic report but here we go anyway.
I dragged my non-enthusiast brother with me on this trip. We arrived late evening on Monday 4th June and checked into Splash Landings hotel. The entrance and bar area were crowded with families with screaming children. Ugh. Not the greatest first impression but the room was fine and we weren’t planning on spending much time in the hotel anyway.
DAY 1 - TUESDAY 5TH JUNE
Got the monorail to the park entrance for early entry for hotel guests at 9:30am. My first impressions of the park were how lovely it looks. I had forgotten just how big it was and the extent of all the gardens and greenery. Headed straight for Wicker Man, expecting big queues later on, but unfortunately it was down.
Oblivion was put on for the early ride time instead, so headed for that. I don’t know if it was because it was first thing in the morning, but I found heading towards the drop quite nerve-wracking. Strange considering I rode Sheikra recently and was fine on that. Anyway, it was quite good. More dive coasters need to go into a hole.
Then headed to Wicker Man again, which was now open. Queued for about about 30 minutes for it to break down again and the queue was emptied. They gave us a fast track to come back later.
Headed to the Smiler, the first new cred for me. The indoor part of the queue had an annoying strobe light. First impression getting into the cars was that the seats were uncomfortable and too upright. The ride was not a rough as I expected but not exactly smooth. It made me really dizzy though. One ride was enough and I had no desire to ride it again.
After that, went back to Wicker Man which was still down, so took the sky ride to Forbidden Valley. Walking through Forbidden Valley I was completely surprised to see that Ripsaw had gone. When did that go? Must have completely missed that news.
Headed for Galactica, which had an 11am opening but by now it was about 11:20am and a 30 minute queue had built. Didn’t want to do VR so headed for the Air version. I actually really enjoyed it. The only other flyer I have ridden is Manta but to be honest I think I preferred this as I think it has nicer surroundings and I enjoyed the less intense layout. There were problems with the VR/no VR queues though. They really need to let you decide at the start of the queue, rather than a few meters before the station. Guests were getting confused and heading down the VR queue even though they did not want to do VR.
After that, tried Nemesis, which had a 10 minute queue and was running on one train. This was my favourite coaster here 10 years ago but I couldn’t really remember it too well. It is still very good and it looked really fresh after the winter paint job. Rode the back row and it was pretty intense. I love the foot choppers on the outer seats. As good as this ride is, unfortunately it makes me a bit dizzy. Not as much as the Smiler but enough to make it hard to re-ride several times in a row.
Then headed to the Haunted House. I can’t remember if that is the actual name for the ride but that is what I am going to call it. The ride goes way too fast for the interactive shooting element. I think it would work better as a non-shooting ride. It is surprisingly long though. Unfortunately it didn’t seem very popular as it had hardly anyone on it for the entire trip.
Then headed towards the Runaway Mine Train. Only had to wait for one train before getting on. Not much to say really. A tad uncomfortable?
Did the Congo River Rapids next. A decent length but not much wet action. I am not one who likes to get soaked on water rides but a few splashes would be nice. Also, how long have the waterfalls towards the end of the ride been out of action?
Attempted Wicker Man one more time after missing it twice in the morning. If I remember right it only had 20 minute queue so didn’t bother using the fast track. Finally managed to get on it this time. I mentioned this in the Wicker Man topic, but first of all the preshow was not as good as it is hyped up to be. I didn’t know what to expect as I hadn’t seen any videos but there really was not much to it and the projection looked awful. I thought the room looked good though. The ride itself was much better than I expected. I must admit I was one of those who always thought it looked really poor during construction and I even thought the same as I was queuing, but it really surprised me. It feels faster than it looks off-ride and is generally really fun and exhilarating without being too intense. Easily the best ride of the trip.
It was time to get the kiddie cred out of the way, Octonauts. It was weird how the Cbeebies area was sectioned off from the rest of the park. It was also kind of embarrassing to be forced through the one entrance where there stands a staff member who I am sure was silently judging us for being two adults walking into a kiddie area. Got straight on and then got straight out of there.
After that, went on Spinball Whizzer, which had no queue whatsoever. I remembered enjoying this 10 years ago but this time I found it to be to jerky and uncomfortable.
Headed towards the towers and passed by Hex, which I had almost forgotten about but decided to give it a go. The preshows are good and build up the atmosphere well. I love how this ride starts off in the actual towers and has that authentic castle smell. The ride itself was reasonably good but I think could have done with some more variation and more special effects. It also made me quite dizzy which was becoming quite a common theme for this trip. The exit path tries to force you to appreciate the towers, but nobody does. I was wondering whether this ride is more popular on busier days, as there was hardly anyone on it?
Rode Thirteen next, another new cred for me and only a 5 minute queue. I actually quite enjoyed it. Is there a trim on the first drop though? It starts off feeling like it is going to be a decent drop and then that feeling fizzles out very quickly. The part through the woods was pretty good but not long enough. The “fake” drop inside the building took me by surprise but kind of takes away the surprise of the real drop. Overall a decent family coaster.
Tried Rita next which also had a 5 minute queue. I remembered really liking this last time but this time I found it a little rough and kind of uninteresting compared to everything else at the park.
After that, it was almost 4pm which was park closing time. The 4pm closure was super annoying as it was the sunniest part of the day and there were still plenty of people on park. Headed to Wicker Man which had a 45 minutes queue so we used our fast track. It was still really good. By the time we got off it was 3:57pm so we just had time to run around and queue up again. Got the back seat this time which ended up being my favourite part of the train.
That evening, we went to the Roller Coaster Restaurant. It was fun but overpriced, as expected. The starter I had was miserable. The main course was fine but no better than your average fast food restaurant. Overall I think I preferred the one at Europa Park.
That evening I had a look around the Alton Towers Hotel. It had a much more relaxed atmosphere than Splash Landings and generally seemed much more pleasant. I was very disappointed though to see that an ugly Cbeebies hotel has been plonked in the back garden. I have memories of walking around that garden as a kid so it was a bit of disappointment to see it gone.
DAY 2 - WEDNESDAY 6TH JUNE
To be honest I can’t remember everything we did the second day so I’ll just mention a few things.
We went to early opening again and Wicker Man was open this time. It doesn’t run quite as well first thing in the morning but it was still rather good. Got a couple of rides in.
Nemesis was down at the start of the day but when it eventually opened it was on two trains and had no queue all day. Did a couple of front row rides which really improves the view although it didn’t feel as thrilling to me.
Did Galactica again but never bothered with the VR. To be honest, having done a few VR rides, I really don’t find it that interesting and I find the technology overhyped.
Rode the Haunted House again without shooting and it improved it a bit as you actually get to appreciate the scenes.
At some point we rode Battle Galleons. I can’t remember if this was here 10 years ago but there were only two other people on it which made it really dull. There were targets which didn’t seem to do anything when you hit them. As we were getting off the ride, the guy operating asked us to soak his friends who were coming round in one of the boats using the cannons at the side, so that made it a bit more fun.
We did the Sea Life. I always find these aquarium type things really boring and this was no different.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
I forgot just how beautiful of a park Alton Towers is. After having a thoroughly enjoyable two days with beautiful weather, I began to think the park was perhaps a bit under-appreciated by most UK enthusiasts who visit regularly. The rides have good themes and are very memorable.
Coasters ranked from favourite to least:
Thanks for reading.
This might not be the most exotic report but here we go anyway.
I dragged my non-enthusiast brother with me on this trip. We arrived late evening on Monday 4th June and checked into Splash Landings hotel. The entrance and bar area were crowded with families with screaming children. Ugh. Not the greatest first impression but the room was fine and we weren’t planning on spending much time in the hotel anyway.
DAY 1 - TUESDAY 5TH JUNE
Got the monorail to the park entrance for early entry for hotel guests at 9:30am. My first impressions of the park were how lovely it looks. I had forgotten just how big it was and the extent of all the gardens and greenery. Headed straight for Wicker Man, expecting big queues later on, but unfortunately it was down.
Oblivion was put on for the early ride time instead, so headed for that. I don’t know if it was because it was first thing in the morning, but I found heading towards the drop quite nerve-wracking. Strange considering I rode Sheikra recently and was fine on that. Anyway, it was quite good. More dive coasters need to go into a hole.
Then headed to Wicker Man again, which was now open. Queued for about about 30 minutes for it to break down again and the queue was emptied. They gave us a fast track to come back later.
Headed to the Smiler, the first new cred for me. The indoor part of the queue had an annoying strobe light. First impression getting into the cars was that the seats were uncomfortable and too upright. The ride was not a rough as I expected but not exactly smooth. It made me really dizzy though. One ride was enough and I had no desire to ride it again.
After that, went back to Wicker Man which was still down, so took the sky ride to Forbidden Valley. Walking through Forbidden Valley I was completely surprised to see that Ripsaw had gone. When did that go? Must have completely missed that news.
Headed for Galactica, which had an 11am opening but by now it was about 11:20am and a 30 minute queue had built. Didn’t want to do VR so headed for the Air version. I actually really enjoyed it. The only other flyer I have ridden is Manta but to be honest I think I preferred this as I think it has nicer surroundings and I enjoyed the less intense layout. There were problems with the VR/no VR queues though. They really need to let you decide at the start of the queue, rather than a few meters before the station. Guests were getting confused and heading down the VR queue even though they did not want to do VR.
After that, tried Nemesis, which had a 10 minute queue and was running on one train. This was my favourite coaster here 10 years ago but I couldn’t really remember it too well. It is still very good and it looked really fresh after the winter paint job. Rode the back row and it was pretty intense. I love the foot choppers on the outer seats. As good as this ride is, unfortunately it makes me a bit dizzy. Not as much as the Smiler but enough to make it hard to re-ride several times in a row.
Then headed to the Haunted House. I can’t remember if that is the actual name for the ride but that is what I am going to call it. The ride goes way too fast for the interactive shooting element. I think it would work better as a non-shooting ride. It is surprisingly long though. Unfortunately it didn’t seem very popular as it had hardly anyone on it for the entire trip.
Then headed towards the Runaway Mine Train. Only had to wait for one train before getting on. Not much to say really. A tad uncomfortable?
Did the Congo River Rapids next. A decent length but not much wet action. I am not one who likes to get soaked on water rides but a few splashes would be nice. Also, how long have the waterfalls towards the end of the ride been out of action?
Attempted Wicker Man one more time after missing it twice in the morning. If I remember right it only had 20 minute queue so didn’t bother using the fast track. Finally managed to get on it this time. I mentioned this in the Wicker Man topic, but first of all the preshow was not as good as it is hyped up to be. I didn’t know what to expect as I hadn’t seen any videos but there really was not much to it and the projection looked awful. I thought the room looked good though. The ride itself was much better than I expected. I must admit I was one of those who always thought it looked really poor during construction and I even thought the same as I was queuing, but it really surprised me. It feels faster than it looks off-ride and is generally really fun and exhilarating without being too intense. Easily the best ride of the trip.
It was time to get the kiddie cred out of the way, Octonauts. It was weird how the Cbeebies area was sectioned off from the rest of the park. It was also kind of embarrassing to be forced through the one entrance where there stands a staff member who I am sure was silently judging us for being two adults walking into a kiddie area. Got straight on and then got straight out of there.
After that, went on Spinball Whizzer, which had no queue whatsoever. I remembered enjoying this 10 years ago but this time I found it to be to jerky and uncomfortable.
Headed towards the towers and passed by Hex, which I had almost forgotten about but decided to give it a go. The preshows are good and build up the atmosphere well. I love how this ride starts off in the actual towers and has that authentic castle smell. The ride itself was reasonably good but I think could have done with some more variation and more special effects. It also made me quite dizzy which was becoming quite a common theme for this trip. The exit path tries to force you to appreciate the towers, but nobody does. I was wondering whether this ride is more popular on busier days, as there was hardly anyone on it?
Rode Thirteen next, another new cred for me and only a 5 minute queue. I actually quite enjoyed it. Is there a trim on the first drop though? It starts off feeling like it is going to be a decent drop and then that feeling fizzles out very quickly. The part through the woods was pretty good but not long enough. The “fake” drop inside the building took me by surprise but kind of takes away the surprise of the real drop. Overall a decent family coaster.
Tried Rita next which also had a 5 minute queue. I remembered really liking this last time but this time I found it a little rough and kind of uninteresting compared to everything else at the park.
After that, it was almost 4pm which was park closing time. The 4pm closure was super annoying as it was the sunniest part of the day and there were still plenty of people on park. Headed to Wicker Man which had a 45 minutes queue so we used our fast track. It was still really good. By the time we got off it was 3:57pm so we just had time to run around and queue up again. Got the back seat this time which ended up being my favourite part of the train.
That evening, we went to the Roller Coaster Restaurant. It was fun but overpriced, as expected. The starter I had was miserable. The main course was fine but no better than your average fast food restaurant. Overall I think I preferred the one at Europa Park.
That evening I had a look around the Alton Towers Hotel. It had a much more relaxed atmosphere than Splash Landings and generally seemed much more pleasant. I was very disappointed though to see that an ugly Cbeebies hotel has been plonked in the back garden. I have memories of walking around that garden as a kid so it was a bit of disappointment to see it gone.
DAY 2 - WEDNESDAY 6TH JUNE
To be honest I can’t remember everything we did the second day so I’ll just mention a few things.
We went to early opening again and Wicker Man was open this time. It doesn’t run quite as well first thing in the morning but it was still rather good. Got a couple of rides in.
Nemesis was down at the start of the day but when it eventually opened it was on two trains and had no queue all day. Did a couple of front row rides which really improves the view although it didn’t feel as thrilling to me.
Did Galactica again but never bothered with the VR. To be honest, having done a few VR rides, I really don’t find it that interesting and I find the technology overhyped.
Rode the Haunted House again without shooting and it improved it a bit as you actually get to appreciate the scenes.
At some point we rode Battle Galleons. I can’t remember if this was here 10 years ago but there were only two other people on it which made it really dull. There were targets which didn’t seem to do anything when you hit them. As we were getting off the ride, the guy operating asked us to soak his friends who were coming round in one of the boats using the cannons at the side, so that made it a bit more fun.
We did the Sea Life. I always find these aquarium type things really boring and this was no different.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
I forgot just how beautiful of a park Alton Towers is. After having a thoroughly enjoyable two days with beautiful weather, I began to think the park was perhaps a bit under-appreciated by most UK enthusiasts who visit regularly. The rides have good themes and are very memorable.
Coasters ranked from favourite to least:
- Wicker Man
- Nemesis
- Air
- Oblivion
- Thirteen
- Rita
- Spinball
- Runaway Mine Train
- Smiler
- Octonauts
Thanks for reading.
