Park Opening Times.

[Chris Brown]

Blackpool Pleasure Beach recently had an email survey and one of the questions asked if guests would be open to a possible change in opening hours, they wanted feedback as to whether customers would approve or disapprove a change to 12pm - 9pm opening time.

I firmly believe a shift to the 12 - 9 would be an excellent all round decision from the park. I know a few may be against this, possibly ride ops or other park employee's.

What do you think?

 

[zazobo]

I don't mean to be a total wang, but do you mean 12pm-9pm?

 

[Chris Brown]

I don't mean to be a total wang, but do you mean 12pm-9pm?

I knew I'd get that wrong... I'll try edit

 

[DelPiero]

Blackpool's one of the parks I prefer to go to with the family, I won't just go with the wife, we always take the kids.
Because the kids are quite young, later opening would be of no real benefit as they would be cranky, maybe in 4/5 years later opening would be beneficial, but not now. Same would go for any family park, Chessington, Paultons, Adventure Island etc.

Alton/Thorpe for example is a totally different question, 100% later opening.

 

[Smithy]

Think they're caught between trying to be a theme park and a seaside amusement park. Their current model of moving more and more towards the theme park scale of operations appears to be working judging from the upturn in financial results, but it's disillusioned an awful lot of people if the BPB fansites are anything to go by.

I think a 12-9 would be a terrible idea mid-week for a large chunk of the season as it would turn away a lot of families, but would possibly be a great idea at weekends? Chuck in a reduced wristband for after 6pm like AI do and they'd mop up a lot of the visitors that pour out from the Merlin attractions down the prom at closing time.

 

[Lofty]

It's not gonna turn families away, at all. Two hours difference in the morning opening when you're in South is absolutely nothing - having worked in that area, it only really proper started to get busy at around 11am when most people have made their way from North Station down, or people have been at Wetherspoons for breakfast etc.

 

[Howie]

Depends on the park, and the time of year. You wouldn't, for example, want Peppa Pig World open til 9pm in September, but generally speaking, yeah, more parks should open for more evenings more often. Everybody loves a night ride!

 

[Sandman]

BPB is busier in the late afternoon/evenings, even when it's only open till 5-6pm! Weird, isn't it?

A few people have mentioned other parks as comparison for late openings, but I think it's difficult to compare BPB with any other park. I don't think BPB has been successful under the 'theme park model', it succeeds when it invests in the right areas at the right time. That said, I do agree with what Smithy says in that I wouldn't expect 9pm closes every weekday throughout the season, as that also isn't entirely logical. But I think the proof will be in the pudding, and if they implement these new hours we should see a significant difference, even in the park ambiance. I'd imagined we'd see something like this around the time of Construction 18 opening.

 

[Hyde]

Later times, better night rides. :emoji_thumbsup:

 

[Smithy]

It's not gonna turn families away, at all. Two hours difference in the morning opening when you're in South is absolutely nothing - having worked in that area, it only really proper started to get busy at around 11am when most people have made their way from North Station down, or people have been at Wetherspoons for breakfast etc.

I mean, you have got someone with a family saying it wouldn't really be of benefit to him. Not that I necessarily disagree, just think it'd cause an issue mid-week.

Agree with the post above though, BPB is very much a unique example and it's impossible to say "they should copy X, they should do what Y are doing", it's such a unique park in a unique town (might be the nicest thing I've ever said about Blackpool tbh),.

 

[nadroJ]

It's funny since working at a theme park seeing just how many people show up at 1/2PM, even on days the park closes at 5PM. I just think for a day that's meant to be leisure it's a bit **** to ask people to get up at the crack of dawn and close so early. I'm all for the 12-9PM schedule. Bet it'd mean more money spent in restaurants too.

 

[Smithy]

Is it not likely those families have annual passes?

 

[nadroJ]

Nope, I see them wandering around trying to find a ticket booth.


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[Lofty]

I mean, you have got someone with a family saying it wouldn't really be of benefit to him. Not that I necessarily disagree, just think it'd cause an issue mid-week.

Agree with the post above though, BPB is very much a unique example and it's impossible to say "they should copy X, they should do what Y are doing", it's such a unique park in a unique town (might be the nicest thing I've ever said about Blackpool tbh),.

Yeah, my post was directly at BPB, as you can see. I think for parks such as Towers etc., the 12pm opening time is way too late, but the parks close so early, it feels anyways, especially in summer when it's still very much bright.

I see Blackpool as similar in nature to Gröna Lund and Liseberg are like, in terms of the type of experience they offer and the clientele that visit - both those parks open a bit later and close a bit later and it works perfectly for them. I think this really could work for BPB.

 

[Rachel]

Later opening times personally....for the night rides of course and I always feel a bit more relaxed rocking up later and knowing the park will still be open, as opposed to getting there early morning and then feeling rushed to get everything done before 5-6. I know in theory the opening hours are the same duration, but there's just something about a park atmosphere going into the evening.
But yea, obviously depends on the park itself and the target audience.

 

[Robbie]

It baffles me that Alton closes at 6pm in the height of summer - if it was later, I'm sure it would ease congestion and they could have more opportunities for selling food. Maybe there's restrictions on the noise they can make at night (or maybe they're just being tight)