WTF Merlin?

[Trax]

Not sure if worse or equally bad, but you got a point.

 

[Tonkso]

They need to change the model. Low cost entry, upcharge upcharge upcharge is outdated, belongs back in the 2010s. Look at the parks which are doing well and none of them use this model. Phantasialand, which seems to be the gold standard here, normal entry costs and a limited Fast Pass offering. Or closer to home, Paulton's Park.

Thorpe was apparently (according to a Google Search, this could be wrong!!) £18 on the gate in 2000, which is about £34 now. Actually not far off the actual gate price today, BUT most do not pay the gate price as Merlin has 2-4-1 offers all over the place and various other discounts. Do people need to get used to paying the gate price? Does the gate price need to go up to reflect other costs? Min wage is a lot higher in 2025 than it was in 2000, and energy costs are vastly different.

Guest experience is getting better, using Thorpe as an example the park is looking like they care again with repaints and refurbishments, but they did get a reputation and it still lags behind its European counterparts. I am visiting Parc Asterix again next weekend for the first time since 2019, this should be Thorpe's parisian counterpart*, but Asterix feels like it's in a league above Thorpe. Where are we going wrong?

Something has to give at Merlin, because there are still things at Merlin parks you just wouldn't expect in other parks, and this isn't a good thing. Also, outside of the parks there's something completely 'merlin' about their attractions that screams... 'merlin'...

*As in the big thrill park on the edge of a metropolis, serving that market.

Also, honourable mention. Hyperia's extended downtime last year cannot have helped them. Not necessarily their fault, but they would have lost a lot of revenue there.

 

[Trax]

Phantasialand, which seems to be the gold standard here, normal entry costs and a limited Fast Pass offering. Or closer to home, Paulton's Park.

Phantasialand has shifted since COVID. They used to be just a bit cheaper than Europa Park, but now they constantly have promo offers for early birds and you can get tickets for as low as 28€, and even during holidays a discount of >30% is easily possible. The park is completely overcrowded thanks to this great policy.
But they don’t try to upcharge you everywhere, so still better than Merlin.

 

[Tonkso]

I wasn't aware of that aspect, but Phantasialand is noticeably never quiet (at least on a weekend) when you could find quieter weekend days before. Phantasialand have consistently good operations however, and whilst they do experience downtime (sometimes extended) it doesn't feel as rampant as in a Merlin park. Phantasialand just feels better run, this is totally subjective and hard to quantify, but it just seems to be consistent? I know I am going to have a great day at Phantasialand and get plenty of rides in, even when its packed. I can't get that from a Merlin park.

I don't want to put Merlin down too much as I love their parks, they're special to me and I would not have invested in a Gold Pass otherwise, but there are still some fundamentals that just aren't done right, and it's hard to explain.

 

[JoshC.]

Thorpe was apparently (according to a Google Search, this could be wrong!!) £18 on the gate in 2000, which is about £34 now. Actually not far off the actual gate price today, BUT most do not pay the gate price as Merlin has 2-4-1 offers all over the place and various other discounts. Do people need to get used to paying the gate price? Does the gate price need to go up to reflect other costs? Min wage is a lot higher in 2025 than it was in 2000, and energy costs are vastly different.

I think with Merlin parks (and likely many others), it's become a lot more difficult to say what the "gate price" is.

For Merlin, they specifically focus on online sales now. There's a lot less of the 2-4-1 offers, etc about now. It's all a drive for buying online, which will cost between £29-£39 depending on the day. If you were to walk up tomorrow and buy a ticket at the park, it would cost over £60 I believe (a quick look on the website doesn't show me the price)

That's still cheap for what is technically a big park with some big, premium ride experiences though. Perhaps too cheap.

I wasn't aware of that aspect, but Phantasialand is noticeably never quiet (at least on a weekend) when you could find quieter weekend days before. Phantasialand have consistently good operations however, and whilst they do experience downtime (sometimes extended) it doesn't feel as rampant as in a Merlin park. Phantasialand just feels better run, this is totally subjective and hard to quantify, but it just seems to be consistent? I know I am going to have a great day at Phantasialand and get plenty of rides in, even when its packed. I can't get that from a Merlin park.

I have noticed Phantasialand seem to have a constant stream of offers and such. My midweek, non-German school holiday visit earlier this year was particularly busier than expected (quite possibly the busiest I've had outside of peak Winteraum days), and I do think in part it's down to them going down a route of having more offers and making it cheaper to get into.

 

[rollercoaster.jpg]

Phantasialand notably stopped offering seasons passes a few years back, right? So it's a different business models.

During my time in the UK last summer, my Merlin season pass averaged to less than £15 per park day. But I'm one of those 'undesirables' that doesn't spend in park.