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Alton Towers Dungeon

Peet

Giga Poster
I think this merits its own topic now rather than a page or two in the WFT Merlin thread. These posters have appeared around the park:
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(Credit TTSP)

I think we can safely say this will be in the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory building and utilise the boat ride. Whether they will also use the Great Glass Elevators and/or the drop from NST remain to be seen.

It's also not yet certain if this will be an upcharge attraction or included in the standard entry ticket.

This seems to me like a poor choice of investment since Nemesis Sub Terra was such a flop (attendance down 9.4% in 2012, ref TEA) and this is very much along similar lines. But who knows - maybe they will surprise us!
 

Matt N

CF Legend
@Peet, I think it will be an upcharge, since the wording in 2 for 1 deals for next year being given out at the park seem to imply that this will require a separate ticket.

I personally think it could be a nice attraction if Merlin's 2018 investments are anything to go by! They definitely know how to do good theming, so I'm optimistic!
 

NeoXIII

Best Newcomer 2016
I've never done Dungeons, are they usually with actors? In that case we can all assume this will stand up for 3 years tops until it'll get switch over to seasonal opening and then for Halloween, maybe.
Thank you but no thank you.
On the other hand, it might be a good incentive for people enjoying Dungeons to check this one out?
 

Crazycoaster

Giga Poster
They are completely actor led, Merlin’s main experience when it comes to attractions stems from the dungeons actor led stuff, hence why everything they’ve made in their parks have made that same mistake, because they understand their midways, but don’t understand their theme parks.
 

Ethan

Strata Poster
God, they are actually doing this. I honestly think I could make smarter decisions myself. I really don't see people handing over even more money to do an attraction that they could do anywhere else, in a place that they've come to to ride rides.

It's as if they actually want to become a meme.
 

gavin

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Social Media Team
Pretty much every park-based, actor-led horror attraction that I can think of is an upcharge, so it's definitely industry standard, but it will definitely lead to social media OUTRAGE since it's what Brits do best these days.
 

Peet

Giga Poster
Prices are now released for the dungeon; it's £7.50 on the day or £5 if booked in advance. Free for annual pass holders with certain restrictions.
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Not sure how this will work in the long run as I can't see many people paying for it once it's a few years old.
 

JoshC.

Strata Poster
In theory, I have nothing against this. A mini Dungeons experience with stories twisted around the history of the Towers and surrounding area would be great, and a good fun thing to do in the evening after park close / half way through your second day if you're doing multiple days. A bit like how the mini golf thing works.

The trouble is, the execution seems to be all wrong. From the location at the end of the park furthest away from the entrances. From not offering it out of hours as a result. From the seemingly copy and paste formula of all other Dungeons. It just doesn't make sense.

I'd quite like it to work and see it develop and be a long term thing. But in its current set up, it almost seems doomed to fail.
 

NeoXIII

Best Newcomer 2016
Just for comparison sake, does anyone know if SeaLife used to be an upcharge when it first opened at Alton Towers?
 

JoshC.

Strata Poster
Just for comparison sake, does anyone know if SeaLife used to be an upcharge when it first opened at Alton Towers?

Sea Life was never upcharge (same for the one at Chessington). They've always been treated like a zoo walkthrough thing, with a small standby queue if necessary in case it gets too crowded.
 

Lofty

CF Legend
In theory, I have nothing against this. A mini Dungeons experience with stories twisted around the history of the Towers...

...The trouble is, the execution seems to be all wrong. From the location at the end of the park furthest away from the entrances. From not offering it out of hours as a result. From the seemingly copy and paste formula of all other Dungeons. It just doesn't make sense.
That's the thing, I can absolutely guarantee this has the cookie cutter scenes in it: Plague, Torture, Court, Jack The Ripper/Smuggler's Cave and Warwick's Witch/The Ten Bells, just with slightly different aesthetics.

I do love the Dungeons as an overall experience - but I feel this would work so well if it was actually based in the Towers themselves. Warwick Castle Dungeons works so well because of its setting within the castle itself, it's so atmospheric. This is in a tin shed.
 

SilverArrow

Certified Ride Geek
Is it confirmed as in the Charlie building? Assume they're using the ride system if so?

Wait until the add an extra charge to other rides after paying £30 to get in (or £60 if you are silly).
 

Peet

Giga Poster
^ Yeah the London dungeon has a boat ride so I'm pretty certain they'll be using it, but only as a relatively short part of the overall experience.
 
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