Theme parks are ruined if you don't pay for a fast pass?

[Twoweeksinaugust]

AIBU to think it's hardly worth even going to a theme park on a sunny day unless you want to pay the £300 extra for a fast pass?
The queues are absolutely awful, and it's very hard for the dc to understand that although it looks like we'll be on the next turn, a dozen people come through woth a fast pass and teh queue doesn't move at all.
It just feels beyond the reach of a normal (but expensive) day out, and is now in the realms of a once every two years thing if you want to buy the passes?

We went to Thorpe park last week and the longest queue we had was for the water dinghy one which was 45 mins. Everything else was around 20 and some were only 10 mins so we went on a few times each. I was pleasantly surprised as it had been a long time since I’ve been. We went on all the rides we wanted to and only missed stealth as it was shut. When the kids were little, I got fed up at gullivers by the management of the RAP though, whole rides were being taken up by one family as one child had a RAP-not their fault but the teenagers running the rides who didn’t understand that only a portion of each ride should include RAPers.

Love the Efteling, the scenery is amazing!

I went to Pleasurewood Hills recently and had a great time but why so much concrete?! And barely any parasols near the picknick tables so no reprieve from the sun.

You'd think this but the busiest day this year at Chessington so far this year was a term time Friday! I think lots of people locally had the same idea... 😂Might work if you go further afield

Was at Alton Towers on Friday and longest we queued was an hour for 13. Everything else was 30 minutes max. We did nemesis three times and managed all rides except Rita as it was closed.

Never been any different for me either and we’ve been loads - we have Merlin passes again this year.

The last time I went to AT was about 10 years ago, and 13 had massive queues even then. Is weird because it is rather a sedate ride (until the last bit 😉).

Bloody amazing in the dark.

It's private equity firms that ruin everything.

Off the top of my head Europapark has been owned by the same family from the start and Efteling is owned by a non-profit foundation.

I've seen Paultons Park recommended a lot on this thread so I've looked up who owns it, it's independently family-owned.

we can only hope people will stop going and force businesses to rethink their numbers

I tried to google when fast passes started in AL and found an article from 2011 referring to them having been introduced "many years ago". So we are probably talking nearly 2 decades, and the parks are only getting busier. Therefore I think it's unlikely people are going to vote with their feet in protest.

and, um, restaurants absolutely DO water down drinks to make more money, why do you think they chuck so much ice in to soft drinks etc.

I’m old enough to remember when Blackpool Pleasure Beach was free to enter and you could pay per ride or get a book of raffle tickets and use them to go on rides! Couldn’t believe when they started charging just to go in. Loads of people would go in with their kids and pay for a few rides and probably get food and drink. Now those people just won’t go.

They tried the same with Pleasureland at Southport and their footfall dropped dramatically. It’s now free to go in there again and you just pay per ride (or was the last time I went a couple of years ago).

We’ve been to Coney Island many times and it’s free to enter and you can get a card and load it with money to swipe for the rides. Barely any queues there, unless it’s for food!

Normal restaurants do not water down their wine, where on earth do you go?

I don't take ice in my drinks, if you ask or accept drinks full of ice, then of course, they are watered down. It's your choice

I remember that too, and from a family perspective it would be great, however… Blackpool has a huge problem with drink, drugs, stag and hen parties. If everyone could just wander around without paying it wouldn’t be a safe or nice place to go.

Yes, I did say that to DH the first time I took him to Blackpool. It was actually October half term and the illuminations were on and I remember that when I was younger the Pleasure Beach would always be open in the evenings when the lights were on. I thought it was strange (we got there late afternoon so there was still some daylight), then thought about security and they probably think it’s more hassle than it’s worth now.

How would all the people moaning solve the issue?

Stop fast passes? okay but the queues would still be just as long.

Cap the number of people allowed in the park?

Okay so but carry that through to the logical conclusion = YOU might be the unlucky 10,0001 person who tried to book and therefore can't go to AT at all. Which, if you are currently unhappy with it being too busy, is a solution you can achieve yourself anyway now by...not buying a ticket. There you go, sorted it for you!

Why would AT implement a system that people could do themselves if they wanted to vote with their feet and stop going in protest - but, despite years of the same issue, they clearly don't, as parks are only getting busier!

It’s so depressing what we put up with. And people saying you can do stuff cheaply but then it’s book years in advance and sit behind a pillar at a mid afternoon show so it’s almost affordable or yay we managed 8 rides in an entire day, how wonderful is the most depressing thing. We just accept huge queues and shit service and that our children will prob spend longer in the toilet than they will in total on all the rides they manage in one day. And we then pay £100s without fast passes!!! That’s the thing that angers me! These are EXPENSIVE days out to start with. Over £100 before you’ve bought a bottle of water or a snack and then you have to queue for 6 hours of the day because someone else can afford an additional £300 for a slightly quicker queue! It’s madness that we’ve all just gone yeah sounds great

What we put up with??? What are you going on about. This is a theme park!! YOU decide if you want to go to somewhere where you can whizz around fast on a rollercoaster or down a water slide. It isn’t a god given right!! If you don’t like the experience… you leave or you don’t return.

So weird peoples sense of entitlement to something like a theme park!

oh come on, expecting for people to have a decent experience is not that outrageous, why the race to the bottom.

Of course you don't HAVE to go, but maybe some people like it, and their kids deserve to at least experience them once or twice.

Paying an expensive ticket and expect to have access to a reasonable number of rides is normal.

If you go to the cinema, you expect to see the screen,. In theatres, you are warned about limited view and it's your own choice.

Theme parks should sell tickets with warning: limited ride access. Then you choose.

But obviously many many many DO have a “decent experience” because they keep on returning. Year after year after year.

but maybe some people like it, and their kids deserve to at least experience them once or twice.

why would they like it if it’s not a “decent experience”?

Theme parks are expensive. You can be savvy though. Collect vouchers, depending on your children's age many have a toddler plus adult ticket or reduced family tickets, at some you can get a blue light discount.

Different theme parks have a different level of busy. Alton towers is always busy, mine spend a lot of time in cbeebies land so that is ok. As they get older we will need fast passes for the bigger rides so will need to factor that in. Legoland too is busy with tourists, we've been twice and got more out of the second visit as got there at opening, We have been to Paultons park twice outside of holidays over a weekend. We got there for opening, headed to peppa pig land first, took meal deals so kids could eat on the go. That way whilst other people were sat down having lunch we checked out other areas of the wider park. We made the best use of the time we had there. We have visited Drayton Manor several times, going in Scottish school holidays and heading to Thomas land first or splitting up as our oldest likes bigger rides.

We've been to Gullivers in Warrington and they often do cheaper tickets on some weekends. We often go to Flamingo land but before English summer holidays. It is often still busy due to school trips but not massively so.

My tips would be to have some sort of plan as to which rides you want to do, get there for opening, take lunch and snacks with you as theme park food is overpriced and not particularly good. Think about the time of year you are going and keep an eye out for vouchers and discounts.

Depends on the park and the strategy ime.

In the last few years I've taken DC to Disney Paris, Drayton Manor, Gulliver's and Peppa Pig. The last three had hardly any queues (max 15mins), and with Disney we timed the most popular rides for times we suspected it would be quieter. The longest queue was 40 mins but most were under 20.

These were all in the summer holidays or sunny weekend days.

I never buy fast passes on principle.

You should have to acknowledge what can happen without them before you pay for any ticket. A kind of health warning to coin a phrase. The attraction should have to declare how many maximum number of fast track passes are sold on any given day.

Then you are making a decision based on information.

I don’t think it’s worth it without fast track, no.

I wish they would do days were tickets are more expensive but with a very low cap on numbers. Then other days with cheaper tickets but higher cap. This way everybody could choose what suits them best.

I love theme parks but I would never go to one on a weekend day In August in a million years!

I'd only go on a rainy week day in low season, absolutely hate queueing and too tight to pay for a fast pass.

I think this must be the case. I had just applied for DS’ Nimbus pass when Merlin announced they were doing away with RAP’s for certain disabilities. Then there was a big outcry and they backed down. But Nimbus wanted additional evidence, I think to support all of the adjustment “symbols” I had requested on the card which were not typical with his primary diagnosis. They were satisfied, and the process is quite efficient, but it definitely felt “thorough” iykwim!

And ofc you can’t book the RAP until you have the card… 🤪

We did that to Lego land, it was busier than a weekend. It was a popular inset date.