Re: Scenic Railway in Margate news
In another topic
marc said:
They want to be careful though as the park closed down for a reason in the 1st place. Getting all the old rides back is ok for a year or two but what happens in year 5 or 6?
Really do want them to do well but I just fear there will not be enough to make people want to go back again and again.
Which is a really interesting point of discussion but not just relevant to the attraction that was being spoken about so I thought I would bring it here...
To be fair the park though the park didn't close down because of the old rides being there though. It closed down because the person running it wanted it to go down hill, removing attractions and offering less each year so people stopped going. It was the removal of rides that was the issue, not the lack of new ones. (At least initially)
The reason I think this will work is that it will be treated as heritage site rather than a traditional theme park. The way in which they will keep repeat trade is by having rolling exhibitions which change every few months. Just think of it like an open-air museum. I don't think they are particularly aiming for the thrill seeking, theme park going crowd. Everything about this project screams heritage site so it's not a far jump to believe this will marketed towards the people that like visiting Heritage Sites/Museums/National Trust Properties. I.e not necessarily the same crowd as every other theme park and therefore the business model has to be approached from a totally different angle. A normal theme park has to add new, inventive and current attractions to stay in 'fashion'. they have to be seen to be competitive in which technology they are using and making sure it is at the top of their game. Dreamland does not have this constraint because it is so steeped in the past.
Look at places like Longleat, sure they have expanded a little in the last few years but in general it hasn't changed that much and yet people still going and repeat business is good for them too. Stone Henge is another. I daresay nothing has changed about that place in god knows how many years. What can they change or add? Do they even need to? Nope. I can hear people saying that an Amusement Park is nothing like a place like Stone Henge though. Of course, on the surface they are totally different and I agree but that because that is how we percieve it to be. We are expecting this to be like every other Amusement/Theme park but it simply will not. This will be a heritage site depicting an era of British history just as Stone Henge does. It is difficult, but you have to make a clear distinction between the two. In fact, I wouldnt be surprised if English Heritage were heavily involved anyways, considering their involvement with listing the Scenic Railway (and thereby confirming that the site is of historical importance)
In terms of moving forward, most museums are lucky to get many new additions if any at all so they make do with temporary exhibitions to draw loyally returning visitor bases. That could be achieved solely in a 'local' sense. Obviously their net of local will be a little wider. I daresay this will be a rather pricy 'Local' Museum to run but how many other local museums have the potential of a whole country of people that may have visited Margate as their seaside/holiday destination in the past.
Bear in mind that there are all sorts of bizarre, unusual historical sites and museums out there. Museums that feature the strangest of historical timelines in the sense they exhibit a history of an item that we might consider unnoteworthy. I daresay that some people out there think the idea of a Transport Museum or a museum of clocks are the single dullest ideas ever whereas others are fascinated by the insight it gives us into a Britain gone-by. Think of sites like the 'Secret' Nuclear Bunker in Brentwood, Essex. As little or 'local' as it is, it still ticks over because it still gets visited. It doesnt need bells and whistles and brand new attractions because that is not what it is about.
Dreamland will be the same. It will not need the brand new attractions because that is not what the modus operandi will be. Sure, they will probably pick up 'new' attractions in the sense of ones that are now old throughout the rest of the industry but in general they will survive quite happily on the crowds of people that will visit fascinated by the way in which Brits used to enjoy their holidays/days out.
Personally I LOVE the idea of visiting that history of British holidaymaking coupled with the history of another of my great loves, rides. I wouldn't half mind a job there!
EDIT - I have just realised that this is probably a bit off topic despite being inspired by the original post so I will put this in the actual Dreamland topic too for those who want to continue the discussion.
