I reckon if merlin want to be on terms with universal they need to do a few things. 1. Reconsider prices for everything e.g, parking, food, air to breathe. 2. Scrap fast passes to make queuing fairer. 3. Get ride operations sorted and ensure you have enough staff to avoid having to shut rides on technical issues when in fact its the dispatcher wanting the loo. 4. Keep the parks open beyond 5pm , usa parks open until past 9pm?
I could see extended parks hours during the summer as it has been done by thorpe during this season. I can also see alton after dark Rolling out across more dates (I would say half term breaks and summer holidays are the best.)
When universal was first announced the park i was most worried about was pleasure beach, however with merlins current direction and if the things that are planned for pleasure beach happen then for me personally i am most worried about towers as at the minute towers seem to be one step forward two steps back for example announcing about the hush top spin followed by the news of the removal of 3 rides.
@coaster_dad agreed personally I think one think towers/merlin should of done with blade is said the original model is sadly at the end of its life but bring in a newer/updated model of the ride.
Thing is the likes are pleasure beach will always have a captive audience as they are a seaside amusement park in a famous seaside town/resort, so what else is possible? Universal could affect them to some extent? It wouldn’t be quite as bad as that I don’t think, after all towers opened up 40 years ago and pleasure beach managed to do just fine and compete in their own way, granted that was during the Jeffrey Thompson era of the park but still. All pleasure beach needs in my opinion is a new younger member of the family to run it. Somebody who will concentrate on the park and Get all the problems sorted out over time. Universal is a much bigger threat to Merlin than pleasure beach, hence why they’re spending all this money on Chesington and Thorpe because they’re much closer to where this universal is going to be, once they’ve done some investment for those parks I think towers will then get some again at a later date.
Merlin is the dominant player in the uk theme park industry and when you look at the competitive nature of the european market. you quickly realise that our parks ain't up to scratch. disneyland Paris, Asterix Parc Europa Park Phantasialand Efterling compare the overall experience in those to Alton towers Thorpe Park Chessington you quickly realise that Merlin needs that kick up the bum. The outgoing american Merlin CEO wanted to focus on the american Merlin properties so hopefully now Merlin will alter that
I semi disagree with that quote, I would say IPs are hard to implement well into a park, paultons was one that made it work well with peppa pig and the same could be said about Thomas land at Drayton manor. However, those only worked because of the amount of attention to detail and money they spent on actually trying to create an immersive experience. This is critical as customers are a lot of the time going to be subconsciously comparing it to what they’re already familiar with in the source material. I would add that the uk parks should focus on more original park based IP and characters like they did in the 80s and 90s, it would certainly create uniqueness. I think the sentiment of the quote is that there are better options than blindly slapping an IP somewhere without applying much thought and due care, eg 99% of the implementation in the uk apart from the aforementioned 2.
Yeah to be fair IP work well in some cases like the Disneys and Universals who own the IP and you’re right Paultons did well too. But many parks do it just for the money and that doesn’t make sense.
Original IP like Nemesis are great, but they dont exist outside of the park. Every disney show and movie is an advert for Disney World. Merlin should try to get some TV shows made based on their IPs. Imagine a SciFi show about Nemesis and Phalanx, the stories could introduce us to other rides in Forbidden Forest
@ yeah, and there’s pluses and minuses to that. But the major upside is the fact it’s unique and park specific, professor burp was a pseudo mascot for chessington in his heyday… the real issue is as John wardley always stated, the British parks never needed to fully mimic what Disney were doing, they needed to create the magic and enchantment for the British audience and with the original park specific characters in the 80s and 90s - I think they did just that.
@@coaster_dad i think what made paulton’s peppa pig work so well was the fact that it was an entire land added on to the park and the architecture and rendering of the scenery had a lot of attention put into it. Heck, all of the flat rides have pieces of theming sculpted to them to ensure they blend in with the design of the series. The problem is with Merlin, they never think about the full picture, they just think of how many people they can lure in with a brand attachment.
What I would take from the closing of Merlin Magic Making is a scaling back of yearly updates/new rides to each park with maybe a new ride at Thorpe Park, then 3 year development of a new ride at Alton Towers, then a 2 year development of something ar Chessington as an example ie 1 project at a time. This to me is the most logical as you could contract a design team in the NW for 3 years, then once that is built and running go to a different company based down south. Basically you don't have an AT development team constantly bringing new stuff to just that Park every year and a TP team doing the same thing etc
Towers is hard to get to by public transport where as the london parks are much easier to get by public transport, plus most people will combine universal with london so the london attractions and parks make more sense
@@coaster_dad They've made it more difficult by doing away with the shuttle links from nearby stations. I think they've done this so you have to stay in their hotels.
I would think if Merlin are competing with Universal they would concentrate on the southern parks because Alton Towers is a pain to get to. First thing we look at when booking a European Park is how will we actually get there and for people abroad it must be quite a challenge to figure out how to get to AT.
the southern parks will get the most hammering from universal as universal is aiming for smooth transport from the capital up to their park whereas its a faff trying to get to chessington and thorpe. Alton towers will still be able to fight along with BPB for the northern and midland markets.
One thing I’ve noticed about US and Asian theme parks is that they are very close to major highways or roads. Making for easier access to and from the parks, some of them also have transportation hubs nearby. This is what Universal are planning on doing in the UK to make it much easier to get to/from. This is the downside trying to get to places like AT, they are little too isolated. Which might make some foreign tourists a little hesitant to visit?
The new Gardaland pirate boat ride theme was said to be rolling out to other parks in the future, so can imagine Dungeons being converted to that. Then again it’s miles from Mutiny Bay. Though AT isn’t the best at sticking to one theme per land, the whole park is a mess of themes.
One thing I've just realised could be a reason the Galatica re theme got cancelled... the multi million pound repair bill for the sky ride which they wasn't expecting
The problem with Alton Towers is it's too hard to get too. If you don't ahve your own vehicle it's near on impossible now unless you stay in one of the way over priced hotels. In the 90s British raild did a great day trip Rail Journey and admissiion combo from London to Alton Towers. Now there's nothing like that.
A great video as always mate , and very informative 😊👍. I hope Merlin can compete and I’m sure they will, they just need to get the strategy right to do so. Like removing rides and then charging more for Merlin passes isn’t an ideal way of doing it 🫣😬. Hopefully BPB can still compete aswell 😁, as it has a unique and special offering that we need to keep 😊, what do you reckon matey
Yeah agreed. I’d like to think Merlin have a plan but if they do it’s not obvious what it is right now. That said BP may be the same. It’s had a few rough years and now there’s signs it’s making moves. So hopefully Merlin sort themselves out.
@ I like your thinking mate 😊👍. Hopefully it’s the truth and will happen 😊. I’d love to see a very competitive Merlin and BPB again, it would be amazing. The UK could be the place to be for theme parks (excluding Florida) 😂👍
I maybe in the minority here but... I'm a child of the 70s, started going to the towers in the very early 80s with family, past my driving test in the early 90s and took my mates on a theme park tour twice a year till the early 00s. Then started taking my own family. In all that time the golden years of the towers where in the 90s. A good mix of flat rides and coasters without the big thing around everything having a theme or back story. I would much sooner have more rides to choose from that cover the whole family. What I find staggering is areas closed off because the only attractions in those areas, the coasters are offline and there's nothing else to do in that area because the other attractions have gone. I'm sorry to say it's a shadow of its former self. Maybe merlin overstretched itself and there isn't the money available to put it back where it once reigned supreme. 😕
I'm going Disney land Paris next year and cost me a fortune I think this is only going to be for a low percentage of certain people it won't be affordable for everyone and I've been saving a while for probably a once in a lifetime trip to Disney I don't know tho just my opinion
theme park insider go on any bank holiday monday as theme parks are dead. avoid the next day as youll be shocked that its busy and busy with a big B. i noticed it when i worked at alton towers probably as i were older too. id been working at theme parks from 1997- 2011. i would so work for universal studios uk.
Aye they can’t just whip something up in the final year. But I heard someone saying they may be trying to go with reverse psychology on Universal. ie lose money and make it look like the UK is not profitable to scare them off. 🤷♂️
In short, No. Day tickets to Universal are going to be around £100 per person per day. They are going for the European market as a holiday resort, not the same market as Merlin. UK people will try out Universal, but wont be able to justify the price as a regular treat. As long as Merlin invest in their parks they should br ok.
Yeah I agree it’ll be a very different price point. Nonetheless I hope Merlin don’t sit on their laurels if this happens. They still need to up their game 🙂
@@TheHesK9 Ill definitely be interested in an annual pass, but theme park trips are a once a year thing for most families. I just think the audiences for Universal will be different than Merlin parks. Both should be able to do well.
I always believed if you wanted to use 3rd party ip on a ride you have to pay them not them paying you. So minecraft + merlin should be costing merlin extra ? I can think of a few usa coasters that did that and have since rebranded to remove the tie and save money
It’s a good point. I’ve always wondered which way round it is. If it is Merlin paying then that’s bonkers. I thought of it more like a sponsorship. Where the IP owner paid to advertise basically. But I can see it going either way.
@@coaster_dadthose investments would probably have been sorted out several years back, maybe before the last CEO change. Weird things seem to have happened since then, though.
No It wouldn't surprise me if disney are in advanced talks to buy Blackstone and to take over towers if universal build in Bedford then disney has to have a uk presence towers is the obvious target
I think Merlin will be looking to sell some of their assets in the coming years, so they can at least reinvest heavily into their popular parks. Sadly they’ve just left some things too long and now it’s going to take an immense amount of money to get things back in shape.
Another great video Chris, in my opinion Universal know that the parks over here are below par and that Universal can easily dominate the UK market. Are the Upper management of let's say Merlin and the PB going to be up to the task to take on Universal, my initial thoughts are No.
I know everyone is excited at the possibility of universal coming to the uk. However, is there a chance it could decimate the themepark industry in the UK with the parks we have now not being able to compete financially. Which would leave them and a few smaller parks in, say 15/20 years
It’s a risk. But I can’t see universal being anywhere near the £30-£40 a day that current parks are. So yes it’s competition but at a very different price point.
Yeah, Merlin have done alright this year, when you said Merlin do Tussauds stuff, and Legoland and theme parks but Legoland is a theme park though as you know lol When Merlin does start building, which the word is now a go they will def have to up their game. But why Minecraft of all IPs and not original ideas or even if 1 other IP as they have Jumangi stuff now! As for Alton Dungeons, I have said many times them Dungeon attractions should never be in places like theme parks/castles etc But should of never of been an up charge attraction. As for The Blade why didn't they just get a new ship/structure and rebuilt it???? Flavio’s Fabulous Fandago however, not bothered that is closing. I really miss when: The Tussauds Group owned it instead which as you know they owned a lot of attractions like: Wookey Holes Caves Resort, Warwick Castle, The Rock Circus, Thorpe Park, etc
British theme parks are not a patch on what the likes of what Universal do, I'm not just talking about the rides it's the atmoshere they create in the the park and more than anything else the asthetic when walking round. They don't just stick up a few rides then have tacky themed areas, they go the whole hog and really immerse you in whichever part of the park you are in. Why Merlin don't do the same here as they do with say Icon Park in Florida just bemuses Me. The biggest hurdle Universal will have is balancing the cost of park entry in the long term, it's like $119 and $179 for an adult in the U.S, this is not the U.S and being Universal I think you are going to be looking at £80+ for adult entry which is slightly more than Legoland Windsor charge for walk up guests.
I'm wondering if project horizon has been shelved because of the current trend of parks getting rid of their hydrologic launched coasters, could RITA'S days be numbered?
@coaster_dad It's gone awfully quiet. Sadly we've been here before with Universal though. They have purchased land previously overseas and not gone through with it. Let's hope they do come through this time but with all UK parks struggling it does seem a huge risk. Where as with Universal the quality will obviously be done to a high standard the price will also reflect that. Can people even afford it?
@solskjaer1195 it’s a good question on people affording it. But the other universal parks are usually rammed so even if locals struggle it’s bound to bring in a lot of tourists. Which can only be a good thing
Merlin might be sandbagging to put off Universal. I believe(according to the internet) that there was supposed to be a Universal Park in France, but they cancelled it because of the poor performance on Disneyland Paris. Mmmmmmm...
Sandagging theory makes no sense to me. Tourists are comming to London and Paris regardless. If a new universal park is built people are comming to check it out regardless. If another theme park chain ain't doing well that's their own problem not Universal's.
@@coaster_dad What Merlin might be trying to do is put the element of doubt in Universal's and, more importantly, the government's mind. Universal will want some government money; else they won’t open a park in the UK. Firstly, Merlin wants to communicate why you are giving Universal money when we are making redundancies and closing attractions. Secondly, the people handing out the money, who likely know absolutely nothing about theme parks, might think, Why should we give Universal money if Merlin is struggling? Merlin's timings are very good as well; i.e., making the announcements at the same time Universal is negotiating with the government, Merlin has only got to influence the treasury, which releases the funds to end the project Universal. If the announcement keeps getting delayed, the plan could be working. Even if they're not using this tactic, Merlins blunderings could affect the Universal/Government decision and why the announcement keeps getting delayed.
Towers is nice but the food quality it terrible allegedly the same company that runs prison kitchens for a rip off plus the maintenance has sucked quite a bit this year
I wouldn't trust Starmer to be able to pull it off. I would LOVE for it to happen but I dunno, I just have a horrible feeling. Universal said an announcement would be made by end of year but i'd have liked one by now if it were positive news
Merlin absolutley no fit state, i worked there 2011 to 2016 and rhe cuts that were made behind these scenes then you are now seeing coming through, food, ride parts, staffing, all have been cut since 2011.
In practice, are they not keeping the same number of flats? Two out with Blade and Flavio, two in with Hex and Top Spin. I'd also like them to do something local with the Dungeons ride system, it'd match brilliantly with Hex in the Towers.
You could add Hex but it’s one that’s been there for 24 years so not really a new addition. And yeah I hope they do something with the boat ride too. 🤞
@@coaster_dad I mean it's been closed for basically two full years, so from a capacity/ride count POV they're holding steady from 2024 to 2025. I do wonder if they have concerns about the Walliams license and are waiting for that to go before they go all in on Horizon.
I reckon if merlin want to be on terms with universal they need to do a few things. 1. Reconsider prices for everything e.g, parking, food, air to breathe. 2. Scrap fast passes to make queuing fairer. 3. Get ride operations sorted and ensure you have enough staff to avoid having to shut rides on technical issues when in fact its the dispatcher wanting the loo. 4. Keep the parks open beyond 5pm , usa parks open until past 9pm?
Agree on all of these. Can’t see it happening though
I could see extended parks hours during the summer as it has been done by thorpe during this season. I can also see alton after dark Rolling out across more dates (I would say half term breaks and summer holidays are the best.)
When universal was first announced the park i was most worried about was pleasure beach, however with merlins current direction and if the things that are planned for pleasure beach happen then for me personally i am most worried about towers as at the minute towers seem to be one step forward two steps back for example announcing about the hush top spin followed by the news of the removal of 3 rides.
That’s my concern too
@coaster_dad agreed personally I think one think towers/merlin should of done with blade is said the original model is sadly at the end of its life but bring in a newer/updated model of the ride.
Thing is the likes are pleasure beach will always have a captive audience as they are a seaside amusement park in a famous seaside town/resort, so what else is possible? Universal could affect them to some extent? It wouldn’t be quite as bad as that I don’t think, after all towers opened up 40 years ago and pleasure beach managed to do just fine and compete in their own way, granted that was during the Jeffrey Thompson era of the park but still.
All pleasure beach needs in my opinion is a new younger member of the family to run it. Somebody who will concentrate on the park and Get all the problems sorted out over time.
Universal is a much bigger threat to Merlin than pleasure beach, hence why they’re spending all this money on Chesington and Thorpe because they’re much closer to where this universal is going to be, once they’ve done some investment for those parks I think towers will then get some again at a later date.
Merlin is the dominant player in the uk theme park industry and when you look at the competitive nature of the european market. you quickly realise that our parks ain't up to scratch.
disneyland Paris,
Asterix Parc
Europa Park
Phantasialand
Efterling
compare the overall experience in those to
Alton towers
Thorpe Park
Chessington
you quickly realise that Merlin needs that kick up the bum. The outgoing american Merlin CEO wanted to focus on the american Merlin properties so hopefully now Merlin will alter that
Fingers crossed 🤞
"IP's in theme parks don't make sense" - Tell that to the management of Paultons Park, but then they know how to run a park, unlike Merlin.
I semi disagree with that quote, I would say IPs are hard to implement well into a park, paultons was one that made it work well with peppa pig and the same could be said about Thomas land at Drayton manor. However, those only worked because of the amount of attention to detail and money they spent on actually trying to create an immersive experience. This is critical as customers are a lot of the time going to be subconsciously comparing it to what they’re already familiar with in the source material. I would add that the uk parks should focus on more original park based IP and characters like they did in the 80s and 90s, it would certainly create uniqueness. I think the sentiment of the quote is that there are better options than blindly slapping an IP somewhere without applying much thought and due care, eg 99% of the implementation in the uk apart from the aforementioned 2.
Yeah to be fair IP work well in some cases like the Disneys and Universals who own the IP and you’re right Paultons did well too. But many parks do it just for the money and that doesn’t make sense.
Original IP like Nemesis are great, but they dont exist outside of the park. Every disney show and movie is an advert for Disney World.
Merlin should try to get some TV shows made based on their IPs.
Imagine a SciFi show about Nemesis and Phalanx, the stories could introduce us to other rides in Forbidden Forest
@ yeah, and there’s pluses and minuses to that. But the major upside is the fact it’s unique and park specific, professor burp was a pseudo mascot for chessington in his heyday… the real issue is as John wardley always stated, the British parks never needed to fully mimic what Disney were doing, they needed to create the magic and enchantment for the British audience and with the original park specific characters in the 80s and 90s - I think they did just that.
@@coaster_dad i think what made paulton’s peppa pig work so well was the fact that it was an entire land added on to the park and the architecture and rendering of the scenery had a lot of attention put into it. Heck, all of the flat rides have pieces of theming sculpted to them to ensure they blend in with the design of the series. The problem is with Merlin, they never think about the full picture, they just think of how many people they can lure in with a brand attachment.
What I would take from the closing of Merlin Magic Making is a scaling back of yearly updates/new rides to each park with maybe a new ride at Thorpe Park, then 3 year development of a new ride at Alton Towers, then a 2 year development of something ar Chessington as an example ie 1 project at a time. This to me is the most logical as you could contract a design team in the NW for 3 years, then once that is built and running go to a different company based down south. Basically you don't have an AT development team constantly bringing new stuff to just that Park every year and a TP team doing the same thing etc
Towers is hard to get to by public transport where as the london parks are much easier to get by public transport, plus most people will combine universal with london so the london attractions and parks make more sense
Yeah towers is a pain to get to for sure
@@coaster_dad
They've made it more difficult by doing away with the shuttle links from nearby stations. I think they've done this so you have to stay in their hotels.
I would think if Merlin are competing with Universal they would concentrate on the southern parks because Alton Towers is a pain to get to. First thing we look at when booking a European Park is how will we actually get there and for people abroad it must be quite a challenge to figure out how to get to AT.
Yeah I hear you. It’s kinda weird that their “flagship” park is in such a weird location.
the southern parks will get the most hammering from universal as universal is aiming for smooth transport from the capital up to their park whereas its a faff trying to get to chessington and thorpe.
Alton towers will still be able to fight along with BPB for the northern and midland markets.
@@coaster_dadI’ve always felt Thorpe park as the flagship weirdly
One thing I’ve noticed about US and Asian theme parks is that they are very close to major highways or roads. Making for easier access to and from the parks, some of them also have transportation hubs nearby. This is what Universal are planning on doing in the UK to make it much easier to get to/from. This is the downside trying to get to places like AT, they are little too isolated. Which might make some foreign tourists a little hesitant to visit?
The new Gardaland pirate boat ride theme was said to be rolling out to other parks in the future, so can imagine Dungeons being converted to that.
Then again it’s miles from Mutiny Bay. Though AT isn’t the best at sticking to one theme per land, the whole park is a mess of themes.
Aye. I’ll take anything at this point. Just not more closures 🙈
6:13 you had me reaching for my phone!!
😂
One thing I've just realised could be a reason the Galatica re theme got cancelled... the multi million pound repair bill for the sky ride which they wasn't expecting
if they had kept up with the maintence they would not have the issues they had
Fair
@@Kyle-Russell blame the previous management for that
Let’s hope Merlin and Blackpool get themselves sorted and ready to compete if universals do come
Agreed!
ive worked at Alton Towers, Chessington World Of Adventures and Blackpool pleasure beach. i also have worked on the fun fair at clacton pier .
The problem with Alton Towers is it's too hard to get too. If you don't ahve your own vehicle it's near on impossible now unless you stay in one of the way over priced hotels. In the 90s British raild did a great day trip Rail Journey and admissiion combo from London to Alton Towers. Now there's nothing like that.
Yup it’s a pain in the backside!
Pretty random question but where did you get that graphic that points out your merch at 9:04?
It’s a plugin for Final Cut 😀
@@coaster_dad ah nice, thanks 😁
I think they will become 2nd place and mainly towers will become the park that used to be the disney of the uk unless they make major changes
Things definitely need to change
A great video as always mate , and very informative 😊👍. I hope Merlin can compete and I’m sure they will, they just need to get the strategy right to do so. Like removing rides and then charging more for Merlin passes isn’t an ideal way of doing it 🫣😬. Hopefully BPB can still compete aswell 😁, as it has a unique and special offering that we need to keep 😊, what do you reckon matey
Yeah agreed. I’d like to think Merlin have a plan but if they do it’s not obvious what it is right now. That said BP may be the same. It’s had a few rough years and now there’s signs it’s making moves. So hopefully Merlin sort themselves out.
@ I like your thinking mate 😊👍. Hopefully it’s the truth and will happen 😊. I’d love to see a very competitive Merlin and BPB again, it would be amazing. The UK could be the place to be for theme parks (excluding Florida) 😂👍
I maybe in the minority here but...
I'm a child of the 70s, started going to the towers in the very early 80s with family, past my driving test in the early 90s and took my mates on a theme park tour twice a year till the early 00s. Then started taking my own family.
In all that time the golden years of the towers where in the 90s. A good mix of flat rides and coasters without the big thing around everything having a theme or back story. I would much sooner have more rides to choose from that cover the whole family. What I find staggering is areas closed off because the only attractions in those areas, the coasters are offline and there's nothing else to do in that area because the other attractions have gone. I'm sorry to say it's a shadow of its former self. Maybe merlin overstretched itself and there isn't the money available to put it back where it once reigned supreme. 😕
Great Video Chris 😊.
Thank you mate 🙏
I'm going Disney land Paris next year and cost me a fortune I think this is only going to be for a low percentage of certain people it won't be affordable for everyone and I've been saving a while for probably a once in a lifetime trip to Disney I don't know tho just my opinion
It’s a fair point.
theme park insider go on any bank holiday monday as theme parks are dead. avoid the next day as youll be shocked that its busy and busy with a big B. i noticed it when i worked at alton towers probably as i were older too. id been working at theme parks from 1997- 2011. i would so work for universal studios uk.
If Merlin want to stay up there. They need to work now to be ready
Aye they can’t just whip something up in the final year. But I heard someone saying they may be trying to go with reverse psychology on Universal. ie lose money and make it look like the UK is not profitable to scare them off. 🤷♂️
In short, No.
Day tickets to Universal are going to be around £100 per person per day. They are going for the European market as a holiday resort, not the same market as Merlin.
UK people will try out Universal, but wont be able to justify the price as a regular treat.
As long as Merlin invest in their parks they should br ok.
Yeah I agree it’ll be a very different price point. Nonetheless I hope Merlin don’t sit on their laurels if this happens. They still need to up their game 🙂
If Universal have reasonably priced annual pass I can see some ppl goung for it.
@@christinacramsie5646 that would be pretty good. 🤞
They’ll have an annual pass. Even the Disneyland Paris annual passes aren’t outrageously priced, and imagine Universal will try to undercut that price
@@TheHesK9 Ill definitely be interested in an annual pass, but theme park trips are a once a year thing for most families. I just think the audiences for Universal will be different than Merlin parks. Both should be able to do well.
I always believed if you wanted to use 3rd party ip on a ride you have to pay them not them paying you. So minecraft + merlin should be costing merlin extra ? I can think of a few usa coasters that did that and have since rebranded to remove the tie and save money
It’s a good point. I’ve always wondered which way round it is. If it is Merlin paying then that’s bonkers. I thought of it more like a sponsorship. Where the IP owner paid to advertise basically. But I can see it going either way.
love the tshirt! subbed by the way! great channel
Thank you 🙏
It wouldn’t surprise me to learn than Merlin are looking to sell Alton Towers sometime soon.
Maybe. But you wouldn’t think they’d spend all the money on Nemesis and forbidden valley if that was the plan. Although maybe plans are changing. 🤷♂️
@@coaster_dadthose investments would probably have been sorted out several years back, maybe before the last CEO change. Weird things seem to have happened since then, though.
No It wouldn't surprise me if disney are in advanced talks to buy Blackstone and to take over towers if universal build in Bedford then disney has to have a uk presence towers is the obvious target
I think Merlin will be looking to sell some of their assets in the coming years, so they can at least reinvest heavily into their popular parks.
Sadly they’ve just left some things too long and now it’s going to take an immense amount of money to get things back in shape.
Yeah I think they’ve already started with things like bear grylls. It’s not really a big asset for them.
Another great video Chris, in my opinion Universal know that the parks over here are below par and that Universal can easily dominate the UK market.
Are the Upper management of let's say Merlin and the PB going to be up to the task to take on Universal, my initial thoughts are No.
when is universal bedford supposed to break ground ? and then how long before it opens ?
Well I think they said a final decision by the end of the year. And the expectation is to open around 2030
we'll be coaster-grandads by then (well i will be anyway)
I know everyone is excited at the possibility of universal coming to the uk. However, is there a chance it could decimate the themepark industry in the UK with the parks we have now not being able to compete financially. Which would leave them and a few smaller parks in, say 15/20 years
It’s a risk. But I can’t see universal being anywhere near the £30-£40 a day that current parks are. So yes it’s competition but at a very different price point.
Yeah, Merlin have done alright this year, when you said Merlin do Tussauds stuff, and Legoland and theme parks but Legoland is a theme park though as you know lol
When Merlin does start building, which the word is now a go they will def have to up their game. But why Minecraft of all IPs and not original ideas or even if 1 other IP as they have Jumangi stuff now!
As for Alton Dungeons, I have said many times them Dungeon attractions should never be in places like theme parks/castles etc
But should of never of been an up charge attraction. As for The Blade why didn't they just get a new ship/structure and rebuilt it????
Flavio’s Fabulous Fandago however, not bothered that is closing. I really miss when: The Tussauds Group owned it instead which as you know they owned a lot of attractions like: Wookey Holes Caves Resort, Warwick Castle, The Rock Circus, Thorpe Park, etc
Yeah agree with all of that. I did wonder the same re blade. It’s such a weird shaped space that surely only another pirate ship would make sense?
@@coaster_dad Exactly, if I owned the park that is what I would of done!
British theme parks are not a patch on what the likes of what Universal do, I'm not just talking about the rides it's the atmoshere they create in the the park and more than anything else the asthetic when walking round. They don't just stick up a few rides then have tacky themed areas, they go the whole hog and really immerse you in whichever part of the park you are in.
Why Merlin don't do the same here as they do with say Icon Park in Florida just bemuses Me.
The biggest hurdle Universal will have is balancing the cost of park entry in the long term, it's like $119 and $179 for an adult in the U.S, this is not the U.S and being Universal I think you are going to be looking at £80+ for adult entry which is slightly more than Legoland Windsor charge for walk up guests.
Yup
Forget the rides let’s hope sky ride is open again next year! My feet still hurt from my last visit !
Yup!
Will the Skyride be open at the start of next season and will the new water park being built in Manchester affect Splash Landing ❓🤠
Both good questions
I'm wondering if project horizon has been shelved because of the current trend of parks getting rid of their hydrologic launched coasters, could RITA'S days be numbered?
It almost certainly is nearly the end of its life. So you could be right.
Peak thumbnailing here
Thanks I’m quite happy with it 😀
@coaster_dad every thumbnail on earth except from your channel goes downhill from here
merlin will slim down no matter what they do when universal open they will not compete with the publicity of opening ???
If they open surely?
Indeed. But hopefully we find out soon
@coaster_dad It's gone awfully quiet. Sadly we've been here before with Universal though. They have purchased land previously overseas and not gone through with it. Let's hope they do come through this time but with all UK parks struggling it does seem a huge risk. Where as with Universal the quality will obviously be done to a high standard the price will also reflect that. Can people even afford it?
@solskjaer1195 it’s a good question on people affording it. But the other universal parks are usually rammed so even if locals struggle it’s bound to bring in a lot of tourists. Which can only be a good thing
Merlin might be sandbagging to put off Universal. I believe(according to the internet) that there was supposed to be a Universal Park in France, but they cancelled it because of the poor performance on Disneyland Paris. Mmmmmmm...
Oh interesting 🤔
This is the first thing that came to my mind when I heard of Merlin's "struggles".
Sandagging theory makes no sense to me. Tourists are comming to London and Paris regardless. If a new universal park is built people are comming to check it out regardless. If another theme park chain ain't doing well that's their own problem not Universal's.
@@coaster_dad What Merlin might be trying to do is put the element of doubt in Universal's and, more importantly, the government's mind. Universal will want some government money; else they won’t open a park in the UK. Firstly, Merlin wants to communicate why you are giving Universal money when we are making redundancies and closing attractions. Secondly, the people handing out the money, who likely know absolutely nothing about theme parks, might think, Why should we give Universal money if Merlin is struggling? Merlin's timings are very good as well; i.e., making the announcements at the same time Universal is negotiating with the government, Merlin has only got to influence the treasury, which releases the funds to end the project Universal. If the announcement keeps getting delayed, the plan could be working. Even if they're not using this tactic, Merlins blunderings could affect the Universal/Government decision and why the announcement keeps getting delayed.
yeah but building a disney land in paris meant having to ask the french to run it - poor decision imo
Tbh they are dooming themselves already. Especially AltonTowers.
Towers is nice but the food quality it terrible allegedly the same company that runs prison kitchens for a rip off plus the maintenance has sucked quite a bit this year
🙈
When? I think you mean IF.
Nothing is guaranteed until it's confirmed. And given this government I wouldn't bet on it as a certain
Definitely still if. But I think the odds are pretty high on this one. Guess we’ll find out soon.
I wouldn't trust Starmer to be able to pull it off. I would LOVE for it to happen but I dunno, I just have a horrible feeling.
Universal said an announcement would be made by end of year but i'd have liked one by now if it were positive news
Merlin absolutley no fit state, i worked there 2011 to
2016 and rhe cuts that were made behind these scenes then you are now seeing coming through, food, ride parts, staffing, all have been cut since 2011.
It does feel like a lot of this has been rumbling for some time and is going to bite them.
In practice, are they not keeping the same number of flats? Two out with Blade and Flavio, two in with Hex and Top Spin.
I'd also like them to do something local with the Dungeons ride system, it'd match brilliantly with Hex in the Towers.
You could add Hex but it’s one that’s been there for 24 years so not really a new addition. And yeah I hope they do something with the boat ride too. 🤞
@@coaster_dad I mean it's been closed for basically two full years, so from a capacity/ride count POV they're holding steady from 2024 to 2025.
I do wonder if they have concerns about the Walliams license and are waiting for that to go before they go all in on Horizon.