I went to Alton Towers this year after not visiting since the start of the 2010. I really had forgotten what a wonderful theme park it is even if Hex and some other rides were closed.
After The Smiler drama last year it's nice to see the park slowly returning back to it's usual busy vibrant self. And with SW8 replacing The Flume in 2018 it shows that the future for Towers might not be as bleak as it looked this time last year.
It made me think beyond 2018 and to the park's long-term future. If they were to add a coaster after SW8 (which they will of course) where would it go? With limited space for coaster building and with all coasters ultimately having a shelf-life, which of the big six coasters would likely be sacrificed for a new development?
Here's a list of what coaster is most likely to be scrapped next in the next 5+ years starting with least likely.
6. The Smiler
With it back up and running this year with either the longest to second longest queue in the park I think this would be highly unlikely. The Smiler was such a huge investment for Alton Towers I think they built it with staying power in mind.
More than that- the Smiler looks incredible and is the most modern, polished ride in the park. Hopefully it'll be a good few years before those revolving screens start to break or those bright yellow entrance gates start to fade.
5. Th13teen
Another newer ride and one that still seems quite popular. It's unlikely Merlin would get rid of one iconic coaster (Corkscrew), replace it with this highly themed much advertised coaster than demolish it just over a decade later.
Th13teen seems to get mixed reviews from coaster fans but as a family coaster it works very well.
It's certainly not the most iconic or most intense coaster in the park but with it's relatively low age I'd reckon Th13teen has a good while left in it yet.
4. Nemesis
This is where things start to get tricky. On paper the odds are stacked against what is my favourite coaster in the entire world. It's the oldest of the big 6, clocking in at almost 23 years old. It certainly isn't getting the queues it used to either with it having one of the lowest wait times consistently the day I went.
So why number 4?
Nemesis is iconic- one of the highest praised coasters not just in the UK but around the world. It's status definitely keeps it out of the firing line. Soon I feel it will become an almost heritage style ride- the coaster that reinvented what it meant to be a mega new theme park attraction.
Add to that that the whole landscape is formed around Nemesis- you'd struggle to fit another ride in it's place without a lot of difficulty.
Maybe it is just my bias- but I don't think Nemesis is leaving- possibly even in my lifetime. One can hope anyway!
3. Galactica
Alton Towers' newest ride- but not really. Galactica is Air- this will never change. Galactica is just an option riders can take to enhance the experience.
Air suffered from a case of 'world-firstitus' in my opinion and isn't the only ride at Alton Towers to have down so. Being the world's first flying coaster is fantastic for a few years as the same cannot be found anywhere on the planet. But then after just a short while this was no longer the case. The new rides based on the same idea were bigger, more intense and utilised the technology even better.
Thus Air became rather dated rather fast. Next to Manta at Seaworld Orlando or Tatsu at Six Flags Magic Mountain Air is a pussycat which is maybe why it was chosen for the VR treatment first.
The thing is though, VR has given Ai..Glactica a little more staying power. In a few years they just have to update the headsets to a new video and they can advertise it as a new attraction again.
The track and coaster-design itself will forever be rather tame however which puts Galactica higher on this list.
2. Rita- Queen of Speed
Rita- favourite of absolutely no one. It's not a bad ride. Just one that's over far too quickly and lacks theming and atmosphere to such an extent it was changed from a prehistoric ride to a dark forest ride between seasons.
In defense of Rita it is still relatively new with it only opening 11 years ago. It also has quite a small footprint and doesn't take up a huge amount of space as it curves round the edges of the dark forest area. I'd struggle to think of a ride that would go exactly in it's place.
That being said though it's anything but iconic and they could tear it down with a minimum of protest. It almost spoils the dark forest theming of the area and it would be nice to see a coaster in there with a similar aesthetic to Th13teen that isn't last minute pasted on.
The new woody is going in place of The Flume in 2018 but it'd still be nice to see something nice and rickety looking over in Dark Forest as well.
1. Oblivion
You know that 'world-firstitus' I mentioned earlier? No ride is riddled with it more than poor old Oblivion.
I love Oblivion- it's a total rush. Unfortunately at this point however is feels just a little more than a drop tower with the actual experience minus lift hill lasting just a couple of seconds. And with better themed and better designed dive-coasters not just in America but also in Europe now I think Oblivion's time may be limited- to the next half decade or so anyway.
The area around it is also a bit concrete feeling and the theming all feels a little dated and faded. The videos and music played in the queue haven't aged overly well either and feel very 90s. The vertical drop used to dominate the area but now with The Smiler at the entrance to X-sector it skulks away in the background.
Towers were thinking about Robocoaster technology a few years ago when they were throwing ideas around for Th13teen I'm pretty sure so I think a coaster of this type would be perfectly suited next to The Smiler. It's just a shame we'd have to say goodbye to what was, at one time, such an intimidating looking coaster.
It also had the shortest queue times the day I went and I don't think it has the same staying power as Nemmy.
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| The future? |
In an ideal world I'd like to keep every coaster at Alton Towers and just see the place get even bigger in size. It'll be an interesting time in the coming years to see what the number 1 UK theme park does to improve and lure guests in with. I'll always look forward to finding out what they've got in the ever changing theme park pipeline.
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