2010 Merlin Annual Pass, New Restrictions

[nadroJ]

Yesterday I took my new boyfriend to purchase a Merlin Annual Pass (naturally ;]) and after getting excited about the fab new glittery-blue cards I had a little read of the restrictions on the back.

http://www.annual-pass.com/faq/annual_p ... .asp?css=1

At first glance it just appears to be the regular rules regarding annual pass usage, then you get to clause 12.

No longer does a normal annual pass allow you unlimited access to all the named attractions throughout the year, there are now ridiculous
restrictions such as no entry to the London attractions in August.

The thing that upsets me most is the no entry to Thorpe Park on Fright Nights as this is where I get the most benefit out of my pass.

Merlin do now offer a 'premium' pass where, for the absolute bargain[/sarcasm] of just £200, you can have a pass that has NO restrictions!

This is my opinion is absolutely shameful and as someone who has owned an Annual Pass for four years now I just feel cheated. I recieved no e-mail or letter describing the new system, I've just been left feeling extremely ripped-off and generally angry at a company I've so often defended in the past.

 

[tks]

Merlin really do enjoy squeezing every last penny out of your wallet. The idea that anyone would want to pay £50/80 more just for the privilege of going to the London attractions in August / Thorpes Fright Nights is beyond me.

(I'm sure there was a rather large topic/discussion somewhere about this but for the life of me cannot find it).

I doubt i'll ever buy an annual pass again. I'm not as frequent a visitor as I used to be to the Merlin parks, and even when you get inside food and drink costs about the same as a small car.

 

[nadroJ]

Yh, I thought there might be one but couldn't find it, so decided to make a new one so I could have a moan =]

 

[Dave]

Ahh so glad I'm taking a break from theme parks for another year.

 

[Ollie]

I'm not sure if we're getting the passes again or not this year. If we do we'll only be getting the cheap ones by renewing the ones we have now. It doesn't matter about not doing London attractions in August this year as I've got the Euro-Live and we're going up north to do Alton and Flammy/LWV in the summer as well.

But I agree with the lack of information from Merlin. I signed up to get latest information about passes via email and they haven't sent anything. I only found out through another topic someone made here on CF otherwise we would of got to the park and found out at the desk.

 

[Snoo]

Holy **** that's expensive. Talk about a rip off.

 

[Uncle Arly]

Wow, that's a rip-off.

I know legally, they can do this, but morally, it's wrong. Especially if you've been buying the pass for four years, like you say.

 

[Ben]

To be fair, the August thing was in effect for at LEAST 2009...

 

[LiveForTheLaunch]

LOL TWO HUNDRED POUNDS?

Ridiculous penny pinchers. Sucks to be a Brit .

 

[Pierre]

Its here but it got locked because it got childish (as per) :lol:

http://coasterforce.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=27696

 

[marc]

You guys wait until Merlin take over more USA parks, I fully expect the Orlando Flexi pass to rocket in price. Bad times. 2 years ago the ticket was £92 for 2010 its £176.

To be fair the pass over the years has always had restrictions but the parks, Eye and MT simply did not follow them and let people in, now they have not choice.

Who would want to go to MT and the Eye in August anyway when they are rammed and you can not move, it's just one month out of 12.

The original topic is here.

http://www.coasterforce.com/forums/view ... sc&start=0

 

[Mark]

In terms of Fright Nights I reckon they will just run a similar scheme again this year where you pay a couple of extra quid.

Indeed Marc, during my last summer at MT we had to start sticking to the rule about APs more. In the end we could only let them in after 2pm. It was just getting far too busy and it was beyond a joke how many pass holders were coming up and basically screaming and shouting at the staff about how they shouldn't have to queue. What they are so often oblivious to is the fact it is in an indoor attraction and you can just keep sending people in willy-nilly. There is a limit to the number of people you can get in, just like anywhere else otherwise it gets dangerous and then you end up with everyone just bitching and complaining because they couldn't see anything.

Simple matter of fact is, the london attractions have been extremely popular amongst both the pass holders, the tourists and everyone else. Somewhere along the line something had to give and something had to be done! So to be fair, I can totally see why they have done this.

Has this put me off the idea of getting a pass this year... Not really no. I never used mine for the London Attractions anyways.

 

[marc]

In terms of Fright Nights I reckon they will just run a similar scheme again this year where you pay a couple of extra quid.

Mark was right the terms clearly state £5 extra fee, Peter also posted that in the other topic.

Exclusions: Entry is subject to attraction operating calendars and the following exclusions: No entry during the month of August at London Eye, Madame Tussauds London, London Dungeon and SEA LIFE London Aquarium. No entry during Fright Nights at THORPE PARK (£5 entry fee applies). No entry on 14th February at the London Eye. No entry on 30th and 31st October at the London Eye and The London Dungeon.

 

[Tomatron]

Disney and Universal have had this sort of policy for some time now, on their premium dates they can justify charging passholders extra. There are a lot of people who are prepared to pay for it.

Indeed Marc, during my last summer at MT we had to start sticking to the rule about APs more. In the end we could only let them in after 2pm. It was just getting far too busy and it was beyond a joke how many pass holders were coming up and basically screaming and shouting at the staff about how they shouldn't have to queue. What they are so often oblivious to is the fact it is in an indoor attraction and you can just keep sending people in willy-nilly. There is a limit to the number of people you can get in, just like anywhere else otherwise it gets dangerous and then you end up with everyone just bitching and complaining because they couldn't see anything.

Dead right. That also goes for the outdoor attractions too - rather epitomised in the difference between Ghosterforce 2008 and 2009.

The Thorpe Park Ghosterforce last year was amazing compared to the last couple of years because they forced people to pay for the premium, limited guest numbers and as a a result everybody won. The park made a ton of cash by making people pay more to get in, and people spent more money in the park because they didn't have to queue obscene amounts of time to get on the rides and for the food outlets.

It does seem like a stab in the back to customers who've had passes for years and regularly go their attractions. But as much as it will annoys a few people, at the end of the day Merlin is a business, not a charity, and if they feel that this is what they have to do to stay competitive in the market, then they will do it.

 

[Nemesis Inferno]

Considering I got my AP last year at Halloween of course I wasn't informed back then that this was due to happen...

Does it affect me though? Nope... As Mark said the London attractions will be solid in August (and possibly July), but what will be interesting is if they allow APs in when the place is relatively empty...

As long as I can still go to Chessie and Alton a lot, I don't really care that much...

 

[nealbie]

I don't think it's a sense of having to "stay competitive", Tom. They're beyond that, they practically have a monopoly of the UK's best attractions. This is a case of doing what they like (do. what. you. like :roll: ). Although they are doing it within reason.

But yes, people forget they are a business and that their main aim is to make money. If a couple of enthusiasts grumble along the way, do they care? No.

 

[HarryBoyy]

Thats really out of order. If a child gets an annual pass, 50% of the time in august is when they are more likely to go to the london dungeon, and teenagers get annual passes because they want to go to fright nights and places, but they have school so it wouldnt only work out in an adults point of view. It blockes out over 30 days of the year, what a waste

 

[silenthillXD]

To be fair this sounds reasonable, and whilst I am an annual pass holder, I am glad they are making sure the paying guests get their moneys worth. Allthough the £200 one is rediculous!

 

[Martyn B]

God it really sucks how much the AP's are these days. The last time I got one it was £90, good times!

I used it alot when I had it, but not often enough really. I live at least 150 miles from all 3 parks, so it wasn't really saving me much money as I was spending so much on petrol.

If you're not going to visit the parks more than 10 times a year, you're probably just better off using the BOGOF vouchers that can be found EVERYWHERE by spring time, and then buy the 'bounce back' tickets at the parks.

Do you still get 20% off food and merchandise at the parks?

 

[Mark]

God it really sucks how much the AP's are these days. The last time I got one it was £90, good times!

I used it alot when I had it, but not often enough really. I live at least 150 miles from all 3 parks, so it wasn't really saving me much money as I was spending so much on petrol.

If you're not going to visit the parks more than 10 times a year, you're probably just better off using the BOGOF vouchers that can be found EVERYWHERE by spring time, and then buy the 'bounce back' tickets at the parks.

Do you still get 20% off food and merchandise at the parks?

Yes, they are still offering all the same discounts and so on. They are also launching a new "Unlimited Drink Refill" scheme for pass holders too which starts in March.

Thats really out of order. If a child gets an annual pass, 50% of the time in august is when they are more likely to go to the london dungeon, and teenagers get annual passes because they want to go to fright nights and places, but they have school so it wouldnt only work out in an adults point of view. It blockes out over 30 days of the year, what a waste

Well, to be fair, in theory anyone under 16 can only visit the Dungeons with an adult anyways (same as merlin Attractions). I know full well that I didn't particularly want to spend my summer holidays with my parents. I wanted to go places with my friends. Naturally I appreciate that others are different.

In terms of Fright Nights. They can go, they simply have to pay the £5 to pre book. It really isn't that big a deal!

You say it blocks out 30 days of the year. OK, so for 30 days of the year you can not visit the London attractions but on the flip side of that, it is still less then the 4 months that you can not visit the theme parks because of the fact it is off season. That is the whole point. In the time the parks are closed you can then visit the non theme park attractions to fill the rest of the year.

God it really sucks how much the AP's are these days. The last time I got one it was £90, good times!

So many people forget, or are simply not old enough to remember that when the pass was in its early 'Tussauds' days. It was £120. This was back when my parents first started taking me to theme parks when I was 11. That was 15 years ago. Naturally the price did drop from that because by the time I was 18 the pass had dropped to around £75. I would imagine that this was because nobody was buying them. Now that people are buying it (in their masses I hasten to add) they will continue to edge up the price according to the demand levels. Merlin does not have a gun up against anyones head forcing them to pay it. If people don't like the price and think they can do it cheaper on BOGOFS then do that, what is the big deal?

Anyways, it seems to me that people are far too heavily focused on the things they cant have and not even looking at what they DO get. Is this another case of Merlin bashing because it is Merlin? Personally, I don't like the company but the one thing I have always felt works well is the Annual Pass system.

I think about how many times I visited Thorpe, Chessie and Alton with friends I had made from CF within a single year. I don't really live that close to any of the parks and I don't drive so I would just get the train. Without the pass there was no way I would have been able to afford keep having random meetups with people down at Chessington or Thorpe every other week or on some occasions, every month.

The bottom line is, if you don't like it, don't buy it and then subsequently don't visit the park. If enough people were really that unhappy that they all did this, the people in charge of the Annual Pass scheme would notice it and they would look at why etc etc.