DALnetizen - Place review: Alton Towers

Place review: Alton Towers
by Mentality

Alton Towers is one of the most popular theme parks in the United Kingdom and is famous for some of its rides across the world. The UK's answer for Disney Land you might say! It is the second most visited attraction in the UK (next to Madame Taussauds in London) and is now owned by the Tussauds group. It is located in a small town called Alton, on the grounds of a large castle - Alton Towers itself. In this review, I want to cover some of the park's history, what is there nowadays, some of the negatives, and some tips if you do plan to go.

Originally, the towers was owned by the King of Mercia in the 8th century. After a long line of ownership by various Earls, the gardens were first open to the public in 1860 and by 1890, fetes were being held in the grounds that were attended by over 30,000 visitors. By 1924 however, the land ended up being owned by a number of local businessmen and during a period of World War II (1939-1951) was held for use in the war by the war office. By 1952, the first rides were appearing in the grounds, but they were very simple travelling funfair rides, not the mechanical beasts we see today!

28 years later in 1980 the first ever rollercoaster opened in Alton Towers - named 'The Corkscrew', it was a breakthrough of its kind. It towered over everything else, and brought a lot of publicity to the park. The corkscrew still exists today, although has had numerous improvements in safety and a new lick of paint (and is nowhere near as impressive as the new rides of course) - at one point, the corkscrew looked extremely shabby after 20 years of sitting in the park, there was a lot of chipped paint and clanking!

Some of Alton Tower's other feats of technology includes 'Oblivion' - the world's first completely vertical drop rollercoaster. I was there on the opening day in 1998, and queues were spreading the entire length of the park - queue times estimated to be reaching 6 hours (almost the entire opening time of the park). Myself and my stomach can confirm, the drop is completely verticle - all 115ft of it! The most recent ride to be opened was in 2002, called 'Air', the first ride in Europe to let you ride it lying face down. Alton Tower's constantly develops the site - the next ride to be opened soon in 2004 called the 'Spinball Whizzer'.

If you don't like all these stomach-churning rides and have smaller children, Alton Towers could still be for you. There are two entire sections of the park dedicated to rides for smaller children. There is also a large number of arcades, fast food stalls and entertainment shows throughout the day. The park is huge and has a large Skyride system with wheelchair access to navigate the park quickly.

And as if that isn't enough, Alton Towers even has two of its own hotels, one including a water park, where, for a little exta, you can enter the park early to access the rides before others.

The downsides? Unfortunately, it can't be forgotten that Alton Towers is located in England. Renowned for erratic weather, should you get a bad day and have a particularly stormy, rainy day, it may take some of the enjoyment out for you. Secondly, the park is very vague about its closing times - the website only specifies that it may be 4.30pm, 5pm or 5.30pm depending on the season, although when I went there last it was 6pm! This makes organising a day out that bit more difficult. Opening times are more precise, the park opens at 9.30am and rides open at 10am.

Finally, the price. In peak times, prices to get in are around £30, which is about $50-$55 (USD). At non-peak times, it's £20 entrance fee which is around $35 (USD). This is quite steep given the erratic closing times and the erratic weather of the country it's situated in, but well worth it too. You also have to factor in the price of food and drink if you don't take your own. The hotel costs around £75 per person, per night (around $135 USD), including theme park tickets, and early goes on the most popular rides before other people enter the park as well as access to the water park.

So, if you're going on holiday to England any time soon (or in the future), check out www.altontowers.com and find out where to stay (or stay at Alton Towers itself!) - or if you live in the UK, I highly recommend a visit to Alton Towers at the weekend some time. A few tips:

- Purchase the extra tickets that allow you to jump close to the front of the queue for the most popular rides (called 'Fast Track') - it's worth the extra £5, it saves at least 1-2 hours of queuing time. There are a limited amount.

- Organise well in advance. The park is a HUGE place, you couldn't cover it all in one day. Prioritise what you want to do. You can pre-book tickets.

- Get there at 9.30am sharp - the park opens at 9.30am but it takes at least 15-30 minutes to get into the park..and then you have to get a map and set yourself up..

- Take your own food. Queuing for food at the fast-food stalls is a waste of good time and money (and not particularly healthy!)

- Don't take expensive stuff. Video recorders, expensive jewellery, passports, your Armani suit and so forth can be stolen. You can leave your personal belongings in closed cages next to the ride, and a member of staff *usually* stands next to it to ensure security, but the park clearly states it won't be held liable for anything lost or stolen. In the case of two of the very wet rides at the park, you have to take all belongings with you on the ride...would you take your expensive camcorder 50ft into a pool of water? Into a waterfall or a shower? No? Don't take it then!

If you do plan to go, I hope you have a great day, I know I did :)

Written By: Mentality
© (2004)

Place review: Alton Towersby Mentality

Place review: Alton Towers
by Mentality