Alton Towers has a roller coaster problem
Alton Towers is the UK’s biggest theme park, attracting roughly 2.3 million visitors in 2021, despite restrictions. The park has a series of bespoke rides; none more unique than Nemesis and Oblivion. These rides make use of the terrain, but they're getting old - roller coasters don't last forever. What happens when they want to replace these rides? Hence, Alton Towers has a roller coaster problem.
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00:00 Introduction
01:19 Nemesis and Oblivion
04:52 Roller coasters don't last forever
09:30 Alton Towers is running out of space
11:43 What's next to go?
VIDEOS:
Attraction Source: • Oblivion [4K] 2022 Fro... , • Nemesis [4K] 2022 Fron... , • Corkscrew Classic Foot...
Oblivion render: / @virtualtowersonline
Nemesis construction: / @thomascodlingdesigns
Ride Review: • Diving Machine G5 / 飛天...
Six Flags Great Adventure: • Official Batman The Ri...
pampie11: • Kanonen Liseberg 28 ju...
GaryH: • Black Hole Final day A...
Canobie Coaster: • Jet Star 2 Off-Ride Fo...
Universal Orlando Resort: • The Incredible Hulk Co...
LADventure: • CROSS VALLEY WOODEN CO...
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Grona Lund.....Space issues? Hold my beer....Alton does have a ton of room. They just need to be more creative.
Very poor information Oblivion was built so that the underground bit can be replaced And nemesis is adding new parts too
Because this was when REAL QAULIFICATIONS were needed.. If it was Built today I wouldn't go near any of them !
just because i don't subscribe, im not awesome? how dare you. i'm more awesome than you. worst video ever.
I remember going with school when nemesis first opened, all the shoes in the bottom of that pit still makes me smile to this day
Alton towers is such a good example of restrictions actually forcing designers to do something that ultimately resulted in a better outcome. Having to dig down and work around restrictions results in rides that feel much more immersive and embedded in their environment.
This is what I came to comment- it makes a notably more fun experience!
Totally agree. Restrictions necessitate creativity to get around
Also a good example of modern day greed. Park over filled. No limits daily
@@NUFC2412and you are an example of ignorance, declaring things immoral when you do no know the reason or the subject.
Yes. Alton Towers seems like a great park and i really wish to visit it one day. It really reminds me of my home park, Phantasialand in Germany. It also has heavy restrictions put upon it. The biggest problem is the size limitation of the park, it has one of the smallest footprints of all major european theme parks. It also has a height limitation and produced the rollercoaster Black Mamba, which is similiar to Nemesis. Both amazing coasters in amazing parks.
The idea of such iconic roller coasters getting old and being removed makes me feel very sad.
I was very upset when they took down the corkscrew, I rode that with my dad and a friend of mine from school, my dad died over 30yrs ago now and I’m 52 lol, time waits for no one 😢
I am sorry about your dad 😟 Rest in peace. Theme parks and rides always remind us of good times with our beloved ones. The Corkscrew was an true icon too. Time goes by too quickly for us human beings and rides as well.
Makes me feel very old I remember going on Corkscrew in about 1982 - twice !
@@mrb.5610 Wow, 1982 was a bit ago, but do not feel old. As long as we are able to ride roller coasters, we will still be young 😊
@@carjaveri I bet the park's changed a bit - there were the gardens, the shell of the house, a cable car, Corkscrew and Cinema 2000 - I think a boating lake too but we didn't go on it. All in for a fiver each !
The most impressive thing about Towers for me is how they managed to build such groundbreaking coasters with the harsh restrictions they have been forced to oblige by
John Wardley da goat
Restriction breeds creativity.
That's how the smiler was born with it bring crammed into 14 inversions
they’ve been able to build them BECAUSE of the restrictions, not in spite of them. People talk about an ideal Towers with no height limit, then it would just be any other theme park
@@maxwell5066 So are you saying Cedar Point sucks cause it doesn't have a height limit?
They should build a hyper coaster that goes directly to the Bed and Breakfast pub we stayed at in Alton
Of course you like rollercoasters ...you made Thomas (tank) do a barrel roll!
huh? can someone X-plain @@ThatCoalSoul
🤣😂👍
I've often wondered what an underground rollercoaster would be like. Moving through different set pieces. Wonder if that'll ever happen one day. Alton Towers would be a good one to do it.
WAYYYYYY
Glad to see they’re refurbing Nemesis, I love that ride and it’s not one you get tired of. Did it on the front. In the dark. That was something. I can see Oblivion being an issue though, while it is great fun, it’s a short ride and once you’ve done it a few times … Although an unexpectedly fun thing about Oblivion is sitting in the cafe next to it, and every few minutes
Nemesis in the dark is so awesome!
Yeah, oblivion was great until the face first drops became a feature of other rollercoasters instead of the whole rollercoaster. Would be nice if a refurb included putting some more actual rollercoaster on it
I've not been since the Smiler was added but Nemesis always used to be the only one you'd never get bored of. Oblivion and Thirteen were gimmicks and I'm a bit bored of them
@@dlake1224 I went back a couple of years ago and did the Smiler. I'm a lot older now. Nearly blacked out in one of the dips. It was awesome.
Oblivion has always been and will always be my favourite!
If you've ever played Rollercoaster Tycoon you know how hard it is to replace a coaster into ones existing place when its integrated into the landscape and scenery :D
For sure!
Exactly! If it's hard in a video game, just imagine how hard it is in real life
This 😅
Alton towers has always held the title of “first coaster that....” then a year later America makes a bigger version without height limits
And yet, Nemesis still exists and is still better than all that followed.... :-)
@@TheDaern yep definitely one of my favourites 👍🏾
Did the American one go through the landscape like ours?
@@blindbrad4719 No, there’s over 100 track layouts worldwide but they’re all built on flat ground with not much scenery, that’s why Nemesis is iconic coz it goes through valleys and below ground level with water and loads of near misses of trees and bushes so it wasn’t over the height limit but it makes feel tighter and more claustrophobic
@@TayWoode oh I see, I just thought America would try to replicate that being how they are but without the height restriction. nemesis Inferno at Thorpe Park near me goes over the path, which is a great place to be to squirt water up as it goes past 😂 and if you were really mean kid sticky Coca-Cola. but can't remember it doing much else except for the fake scenery it goes through but I may be gaslighting myself on that as well, I've been blind a while now and coasters aren't as much fun for me anymore, used to be when I could brace for which ever way I needed to lean into, but now I have to stay stiff/braced the entire ride, swarm is great because it's such a comfortable holster that keeps you in.
Always thought that Alton Towers could do a tunnel-based horizontal launch coaster really well. Using a tunnel they could go under protected elements and 'pop-up' in the non-protected spaces. With the tunnel they could simulate hyperspace, or something akin to the star-wars trench run with projected displays and a matt black track that all but vanishes with brighter side displays. Epic.
That would be pretty cool!
That would be mint
That would be far too expensive.
@@simontay4851 yeah, probably. Fun to dream.
borrow a small railway tunnel borer, like those used on underground lines.
Nemesis might be approaching 30 years old but it is still probably the best roller coaster I have ever ridden both for smoothness and intensity and it would be a tragedy if it was removed or changed too much. Glad to see it is getting a major refurbishment. Of the others, I would miss Galactica the least.
Yes. I have been on many coasters over the years, but Nemesis is unique. Its such a thrill, you dont get thrown around and the whole experience of swooping down, and over and around the hill side and through tunnels is incredible. All I would like to see is the blood in the waterfalls return. They used to be red when it opened, there was a food colouring dye in there and it looked amazing, all these pools of blood and red water coming over the falls. There is nothing like Nemesis anywhere simply because of the location and the way its on different levels, as you walk in on the que line past all the various parts, and waterfalls its just brilliant.
Agree that Galactica should go, I found it to be somewhat of an underwhelming gimmick. I bet it's a maintenance headache for the park as well.
It is most definitely the best ride there. I could spend all day on there and never get bored.
Have you tried swarm at Thorpe park? That's super comfy! I don't think it's got for visuals of nemesis as I believe it's above ground, I'm blind so that's a bit tricky for me to tell you about, but it's by far the smoothest post office at the park, you don't get rattled around like you do on Colossus. It's got a super spongy chest brace and emulates bats flight I believe.
@@Simon-xc5oy 100% agree. The red waterfall etc were brilliant theming
Can't build above tree height. Alton Towers: Hey USA, how much does it cost to transfer a Redwood?
There’s more redwoods in the UK than in the US so we don’t need to go that far.
@@Jabber-ig3iw But the US's are much taller.
I reckon Rita will be the next big coaster to go due to the size of the space it takes up and the cost of its operations compared to other coasters on the park.
The inevitable choice to be honest unless Spinball is the other choice.
@@thecinematicmindThey just invested money in spinball, they wanna keep it for now
@@thecinematicmindyea
Not likely.
Rita is quite popular though with the gp
we went to alton towers during covid, we were able to walk on a ride with out a queue, get off and walk straight back around and get straight back on. we did this 5-6 times per ride. it was like having the park to ourselves. Nemesis is by far my favourite
A few years ago on a rainy Tuesday at a Thorpe Park we were able to just stay say on Nemesis Inferno as long as we liked. I got off after the 6th time because I felt like I was going to puke. Good times.
Had this during a mild October during the scarefest events. Not quite as dead as when you went, but barely any queues and the park closes at 9pm to allow for scarefest to take place in the dark of night - those extra few hours really let you get on everything. Just gotta pray the weather holds. Did Nemesis 3-4 times in a row and did not feel good after the last one!
I remember when Air (now Galactica) opened. It was the best rollercoaster I’d ever been on. It was smooth, fast, I didn’t bang my head (like I did constantly on Nemesis) and I loved the corner where for a second you couldn’t see any track or anything. “Prepare for AIR.”
Good to see another Air fan!
Air was the best man I always loved that one
I was too small for Air when it launched and thanks to "friends" not respecting my limits in my teenage years, now have an irrational fear of all rollercoasters. 😒 I can't remember which rollercoaster it was (in Thorpe Park) but they made me go on it when I wasn't in the right frame of mind and only one of the group realised thier mistake when my knuckles were white and eyes shut before we'd even left the station. Seriously people, if you have a friends who isn't keen on going on a particular ride (for whatever reason) don't force them, especially with sheer peer pressure... You'll only ingrain thier insecurities more.
I remember Air too. That ride felt very unique. Sure, there are more options now across the world, but Air will always hold a special place for me.
I went to Alton Towers shortly after The Smiler opened. I never bothered to ride The Smiler because the queue was 2 hours long. I went on Air... there was no queue at all, the car wasn't even full up. I'm glad I did, because it's different to any other rollercoaster I've ever been on - it's not trying to be scary or intense, it's just fun, and it really feels like flying. It was almost relaxing. Easily the best experience I've ever had on a rollercoaster.
I love how Alton Towers has this split personality with the towers themselves open for the public to explore unsupervised (you can even go on the roof). Parts of the building are really old and of historical significance and this kind of access to a historical site is really rare, normally they become closed-off preserved spaces you look at through glass or they fall into ruin. There are preservation and restoration efforts ongoing with the towers, which are made possible by the revenue of the park - it's a real win-win. Boring geezers like me get to explore a historic building (without British Heritage staff telling you off for walking out of bounds), and park fans get to enjoy their rides in a beautiful setting rather than a parking lot full of kitsch fiberglass sculptures.
How fab to hear! I’m taking my kids & their friends, am not going on any rides as such - so now I know what I’ll be doing!
Haha I have done this eventide we go we go for a wander and see what we can find ❤❤❤
@@ArifGhostwriterhaha did you go? What did you find? I go for a wander every time and always discover something new. I ended up on a bridge looking down on everyone going about the park haha I love it ❤❤❤
I hope he went round the towers in the end! I haven't been for years now. Kissed my first girlfriend on the roof, that's a core memory right there. The book Alton Towers: Past, Present & Future claims that there is a part of the original structure which dates to the middle ages, now merely a section of freestanding wall, the rest of the Towers having been cobbled on in onion layers over the centuries. I'd try to find that bit of wall if I went back now. THAT'S dad mode. "Honey, want to go on a roller coaster?" "Not now dear, I'm looking for an old wall."
@@boiledelephant 🤣🤣🤣🤣👍🏼the place is amazing and it still baffles me it is not used more in some way
I first went to Alton Towers when I was very much not a fan of coasters. Despite that, my friends did cajole me into getting onto Nemesis, which I still rate highly now as one of the best flowing coasters and most thrilling experiences. The year I went was the year Oblivion opened, and that too I was cajoled into riding. I'm terrified of heights, and for that, Alton Towers' approach of digging down to build coasters actually makes it somewhat friendly to those afraid of heights.
Have you been cajoled into any of the other roller coasters at Alton Towers?
I think it has to be said that there's two sets of rollercoasters in alton towers. There's the regular ones, and then there's the secret weapons. The secret weapons are without fail, record breaking coasters. Oblivion was the first dive coaster in the world, Th13teen was the first freefall drop, Smiler has the most inversions, etc. The non secret weapons are much more often either smaller in scale, mass produced, branded, or have been replaced already. Due to the significance of some of these records, I think they've got much more interest in keeping the secret weapons around in the park, and putting them through rebuilds or redesigns, like Air being turned into Galactica and fitted with VR (albeit only temporarily for the VR). Because of this, I'd suspect the next one on the chopping block to most likely be Rita, simply due to it not having the same status as Nemesis (SW3), Oblivion (SW4) or Air/Galactica (SW5), and not really being tied to the environment like the rapid rafts, or the smaller footprint of spinball. The other possibility would be the runaway mine train, as that is the oldest thing in the entire park, has a very low RPH value due to doing multiple loops, and as such only accomadating one train at a time, but the mine train also dips in and out of the ground similar to nemesis, though not on quite the same level.
Can we have a tldr lol
@@Buzzap558 Rita will probably be the next to be removed since it isn't a secret weapon
Mine train will stay as it has got history to it the same way hunted manor has
@@andrewhoughton8606 see you say that, but haunted manor literally shut twice already. It has just gone from being duel the house strikes back to curse at Alton manor, which is a completely different experience.
@@andrewhoughton8606 I think it is very possible that the mine train might go next. It might be the oldest in the park, but its not so old as to really have "history" in the same way many of Blackpool's coasters have
There was something so satisfying about the way you expanded and reduced the screensize for the older clips!
Your subtle traditions from 16:9 to 4:3 aspect ratios is a great small detail from someone that puts a lot of time into their editing. Well done!
Thanks for noticing and for the kind comment! :)
Haha, I couldn’t agree more. I’ve actually never seen that done before and it isn’t half pleasing on the eyes. Great little detail.
😳🤭
@@coasterbot I should add: your channel isn’t particularly my go to topic of interest, but this pacing, narration, editing and paired with an interesting story really drew me in. You gained a sub 👍
Refurbing Nemesis was a no brainer because that version is unique compared to the other variation of that type of coaster.
Black Mamba in Phantasialand is similiar and had a similiar approch done to it. It is funny because the Phantasialand is also facing a height restrection. They actually were only allowed to build their drop tower because they did it indoors and so it wasn't noisy. Well anyways, both Nemesis and Black Mamba are top tier attractions!
I also believe that getting rid of Nemesis will hinder her sister coaster. They are a set and I personally believe that Inferno is worse and will make some people resent the ride. Asking "How come Nemesis got removed but this shitty version is still here". On the flip side, there could be arguments made about it becoming more popular but I dont think its generally a good ride to support that claim. Nemesis makes Alton Towers as great as it is, the rest is just a bonus.
What did they do to Nemesis in the Refurb? Not too much I hope. It was my favourite Roller Coaster.
It’s a real shame that they don’t upkeep the castle. It would be so cool to walk around
They actually opened it up one year, you could freely walk around most of it! It was pretty cool, although there wasn't much to see really as it's so decayed
They do, they've invested lots into refurbishing many sections, including most recently the main stained glass window at the front. Normally they open it up to explore from March till August, but this year it didn't open at all sadly.
It used to be almost completely open to guests, but perhaps sections of it have become less stable (Or - More likely - They've had issues with inappropriate guest conduct) in more recent years.
There is constant work going on at the towers. They open and close them from time to time. They’ve even had horror mazes in them before now. I used to go in them all the time. They’ll open them back up eventually.
one of the things about oblivion is that the hole you go through looks wayyyy too small from the top 😂
So true!
Nemesis works fine as a refurb. Oblivion needs extending. Maybe 3 or 4 inversions. How about a launch? The drop is amazing, just give it some more elements. Replace Rita with a new generational Intamin launch like Velocicoaster. Also build a cross valley RMC.
I think everyone could get behind Rita going in favour of a VelociCoaster type ride!
I doubt we'll see significant track change to Oblivion given the extremely tight constraints of the plot of land where it's placed. There simply isn't room to do it...
@@coasterbot I feel like the tenth dentist on this. Multi-launch rides are great and all but hydraulic launches are the single most exhilarating thing I have experienced on any rollercoaster to date and I'm not happy to see them phased out. I can't be hyped for the new TTD, and even more lacklustre ones like Rita (which would be incredibly mid were it not for the rarity of its launching mechanism) pack a punch that LSMs are heretofore unable to replicate. Obviously the operational problems with hydraulic launches make abandoning them simply an economic no-brainer for parks which can count on large numbers of visitors anyway (and less intimidating launches probably attract more riders on the whole), so it makes rational sense, I'm just surprised that enthusiasts don't seem to lament the gradual extinction of an irreplicable experience more.
Oblivion is one of the rides that never seems to have a queue when we visit. I think due to the waning popularity it'll be gone soon. Air- or whatever it's called now- is such a nice smooth experience it would be a real shame to lose it. I honestly miss black hole and I'm glad they have a new dark ride hopefully a coaster planned. We were shocked to see the flume gone on our last visit- makes sense as it was also unpopular but so iconic!
Aside, not only was Black Hole not a unique ride it wasn't even unique to the park- Beast, all of a hundred feet away, was the same ride without the tent 😂
@@ACWells13 Black Hole had a special place for me as "the first coaster I got to ride 6 times back to back" due to a bunch of priority passes that had used everything but it XD Was kinda fun too~ Air was my favourite at the time, was a lot less rough on the head bangining then most coasters, and I got family members to go on it who otherwise wouldn't touch coasters. Oblivion is like, the most iconic ride I know though. Always gone on when I've been.
I hope not, Oblivion is my favourite! Maybe a track extension and a fresh coat of paint to spice it up? They really should fix the queue though, that walk round is ridiculous considering the shorter lines ide turnover.l, I'm out of breath before I hit the actual loading zone. xD
Haha it is always dead because it is a hard core ride and most say f that never am I going on it 😂😂😂😂😂and those that do go on it a high percentage will say f that I am never going on that again 😂😂😂😂😂❤❤❤❤love oblivion only the hardcore will ride again ❤❤❤
Personally, I'd love to see Oblivion receive an extension when the time comes for it to be re-tracked like Nemesis was. With the space they have available nearby, they could keep the iconic drop, but then after it surfaces, the banked turn could then lead into a fast, low layout off the ledge and around the woods with an inversion or two (a Zero-G Roll and a Dive Loop/Immelmann could work well) and some pops of airtime before returning to the station. Just something to bring it more in line with more modern Vertical Drop coasters while keeping what made it iconic!
Yes they can just replace the track with new like they are with Nemesis and tweak it if they want, change colours, cars etc and it will be like new for many more years. They are likely to do that if its still popular and it would be easier to do than Nemesis is as the access for lifting machinery is easier there....
The problem is by the time it's out of the ground it's lost most of it's potential to do any of those elements above ground and below the tree line. So you'd need to remove a lot of the ground the same as nemesis. The cost of that is high and getting permission won't be easy.
@@robwalker4653 I take it you haven't ridden oblivion?? you come flying out of the back end of the tunnel and back up the hill to the station, at which point the brakes slam on very hard taking a good few seconds to stop. I've always thought the momentum those carts have is wasted.
@jwalker7567 is it just momentum or is there some power there ?
@@jwalker7567 I've ridden it plenty of times and know the area around that ride well and there isn't space for an Immelmann loop like other dive coasters the Immelmann would have to start coming out of the ground and then finish far higher than a normal loop unless they dig up the ground.
I think Rita is a problem. It doesn’t take up much space & can’t be expanded with protected land around it. It also goes over all of dark forests pathways so if it’s replacement was low to the ground to maximise the space then that would affect crowd control for dark forest I do think Galactica & Spinball Whizzer sit on the best sites I’ve said for a while I expect Nemesis & the smiler to be retracked due to their popularity but nothing else. Oblivions site isn’t too bad, they could fill in & redig the hole & with the flat ride sites there is some extra space
removal of rita provides an opportunity to reroute pathays and make the area more inclusive, rita dissects the area into two and doesn't offer an all-out amazing one-of-a-kind ride experience
Could the path of Oblivion be reversed to make something like Stealth/Top Thrill Dragster, whilst staying under tree height? It might not be unique enough though.
@@jackw7714 obviously not 😂😂
Wow, now I feel old - I remember when Nemesis and Oblivion were newish and we went from school and did the “Jelly Challenge” on the big 5 rides of the time - a few years later I lost my cap in the pit of Oblivion never to be seen again 😥 So don’t think I could stomach these rides these days 😳😬
We did the ‘Big 5’ coaster too when I was a nipper, my friends and I from my street used to love going to Alton Towers, it was the best place of all times for 11, 12, 13… and so on, year old me
Has also made me feel old 😅 Last time I went was 2004 and Galactica (or Air as it was then called) was pretty new. Now its over 20 years old! 😱😱👴
You feel old riding them? I went with my school back in 1985. When the pirate ship was new.
@@DJ-Daz That's the only ride i refused to go on..seeing people gripping on for dear life and hearing story's of people being flung off just added to the fear
@DJ-Daz do you remember the concrete sledge run that was near the Pirate Ship? A friend and myself stayed on the Pirate Ship 5 times in a row because there was hardly anyone there. I'm old enough to remember when I used to go there and it was just a nice walk in the gardens.
I've been going to Alton Towers since the early 1970s, pretty much every weekend through summer, when it was just gardens, a small childrens fun fair, donkey rides, sea lions, cafe and gift shop, you could also explore part of the ruins. Admission was just basically, very minimal pay to park in a field, I can't remember the exact amount but in equivelant money today it was perhaps free or certainly less than 50p per car if that!😊😮 I remember going when the first big coaster went in, The Corkscrew and some other attractions, this was also the time the park turned into a proper theme park and the admission price went up to £2 each per adult⚠️😲😳 We queued for hours and hours in the car because you paid at a booth on the drive in which caused quite a bottleneck. My dad saw the prices and just turned back! We were gutted. So.from paying less than 50p per car to something like £10 plus for a family, was a huge hike in prices. To be fair at that point there wasn't much extra apart from the corkscrew.
Didnt go every weekend, but i remember going before all the rides were installed
Galactica has a lot of potential to be reimagined...perhaps as B&Ms first launched flying coaster. Also, Oblivion' s short duration makes it a strong candidate to be reimagined too. At least 4 unique elements ie a spike, switch track, launch or even a show room would do wonders for it. AT's restrictions is "a problem" that could continue to birth some amazing rides.
Yeah. They could add a whole underground section to Oblivion, and then replace the wave turn at the end with an outer bank. And give it lapbars, like the ones on B&M Hypers. And they could give it an underground launch to add an extra block zone.
We're gonna ignore they can't develop the land around it... It's on park boundaries and pretty sure they can't remove trees there, could be wrong about the tree part tho
Isn't Galactica a reboot of 'Air' already?
@@jarthurs It is indeed - It was meh at best, hence the reboot.
Remember when it used to have Virtual Reality headsets on it don't even know how long ago now but it was a first
Nemesis was the first full-size rollercoaster I ever went on, and will always be my favourite. We went on a school trip in about 1996 and I had always been too terrified to go on rollercoasters - I got peer-pressured by my friends into riding it and I was absolutely hooked after that.
Ha, that’s exactly what happened with me, in 94 or 95. Decided I was going to be braver than on my previous visit when I sat out all the big ones, but then arriving on the monorail as it passed over Nemesis I shat myself and bottled it. But I queued with my friends rather than wait alone, planning to bail just before getting on, but then got hustled onto the ride without having time to really think about it or object too much. And then proceeded to have the best 30 seconds of my life, lol. Went straight back round for 2 more rides in a row, what a thrill.
@@rhythmace1 that feeling of going up the lift ramp for the first time thinking "WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING???"
I went will school in 95 or 96. Sat at the front of the nemesis . Spent half the time hiding in the woods with a few mates with beers n spliffs 😂 Delayed the cable cars by making them swing, was late back to the bus and got a rollicking for holding up the whole coach load of us.
Last year I went to Phantasialand, another small park (granted, no issues with height compared to AT) and it's both night and day looking at both parks. I do think Rita was a missed oppertunity though, it was more of a "hey we're gonna get a launched coaster" without much of thought to what happens after it - I reckon that will go next.
Phantasialand is a wonderful park. Taron is my favourite coaster, the water sides are so fun, that stream-punk looking ride which I've forgotten the name of is beautiful (although kinda not that great to ride). Very good footprint.
The great thing about Phantasialand is that every ride has been designed to be the best experience it can possibly be. Whether it's the theming on the topspin ride, the village of Klugheim, the soundtrack on Chiapas... heck, even the chair swing is over a fountain. They really think about things carefully and maximise the guest experience. Merlin could learn so many lessons; unfortunately I'm not sure I can ever see them taking the same level of care and attention with Alton Towers!
.."no issues with height" - Phantasialand probably as much restriction as AT. They had to build noise barriers because local residents sued them and also they are only allowed to build the roller coaster so high that one cannot see into the residents' gardens. The park is in the middle of a town, so this is not that high.
What works in Oblivions' favour is it is very easily maintainable as it is very old school. The ride has 7 shuttles and can only run with a maximum of 6 so that one is always having its annual strip down, this is because it was originally intended to be open majority of the year with the parks overall mission to be 365. I know alot of money has been spent in the shuttles over the past couple of years, and all the harnesses are being gradually replaced with the new light pastel orange ones. Hopefully, they have a plan in place for the track in the tunnel ad you highlighted.
Interesting to hear! Do you know what the plan in place for the track within the tunnel is?
@@coasterbot unfortunately not but I think that ride has a good number of years left in it yet.
Couldn't they install smaller track sections within the tunnel that fit through the hole?
@@coasterbot My memory may fail me, but wasn't the track installed after the tunnel was dug anyway? This being the case, it could always be removed and replaced the same way....?
@@TheDaern yeah from a quick google search the track was indeed placed after the tunnel was completed so change could be easier than we first thought 😊
Such a well made video. The editing, narration and story was paired with a flow that made me disappointed that it came to an end. One of my quickest subs, top work 👏
I'm sure they'll do their best to keep Oblivion, like Nemesis. They are both iconic and still absolutely slap especially if you haven't been in a while.
Hopefully!
@@coasterbot Its already been confirmed by the park that Oblivion is closing permanently at the end of this season?
I can’t see any reason why, if they need to replace the coasters with a different one, they wouldn’t just use the terrain given as a means of inspiration and if necessary excavate even more if they feel it is necessary. However, given how iconic those two rides are, I can’t see them ever replacing them with something completely different (maybe a tilt coaster to replace oblivion).
Honestly, if the tilt coaster goes back in style after Circuit Breaker at COTAland, I could see either B&M making their own version of it and using it to replace Oblivion. And if that becomes a success than who knows, imagine Valravn at Cedar Point and Griffin at Busch Gardens Williamsburg being tilt coasters.
@@Jolei33 I would love to see that happen!
@Jolei33 I *desperately* want to ride a tilt coaster, really hope they come back into vogue.
I'm very pleased to see Nemesis getting renewed this way. It's the only coaster I've ever been on which made me need a sit down when I got off... before leaping straight back on. The degree of its integration with its surroundings is (IMHO) unique.
As I only go every few years, I will never get bored of Nemesis. So glad to hear it's sticking around!
Nemesis at thorpe park is nowhere near as good! Feels jerky chucks you about, doesn't have the smoothness of the original
There used to be flats in Oblivion’s infield, but those are gone so Oblivion could get an extended layout if they really tried after the drop
Rip those flats :(
@@coasterbot they have mostly plus there is some land behind it as well
That would be good as if oblivion is still how I remember it, it's a really short ride.
This is probably the absolute best "what's next for this park?" video on youtube. I barely realized it was a prediction video the whole way through!
Thanks for the really kind words. I didn't really want to be a prediction video, more of a 'here's what's happening, what do you think could happen next' video? I don't know ha ha
@@coasterbot I think you really slid into that area! You posed many more questions than you answered, while still giving a good overview of what's happening, which is how I think it should be done!
Thanks!
My guess is Rita, purely on the basis that as more and more hydraulic launch coasters get removed or retrofitted to magnetic systems, it's going to become harder and more expensive to find replacement parts.
It isn't so much replacement parts becoming harder to find because both Intamin and Hagenbuch are still in business. Pretty much everything on Rita is commonly found across heavy industry. The problem is having to replace those parts in the first place, spend enough time working on one and you soon realise that you are changing a hose of some description about once a week. Add that to all the other components that need replacing at regular intervals and you will see why LSM systems have come a long way in the last 15 years or so.
I miss some of the old rides. I remember The Beast, the Thunderlooper and Corkscrew being some of my favourites.
Great video as always! You really deserve more subs.
6:52 if you didn't get a chance to ride the black hole, it just got relocated to furuvik in sweden and still operates to this day as rocket
That's an awesome factoid!
oops, i just realized that it closed again
But it's not in darkness, which was the whole point
Excellent video Harry. Really paints the picture of Alton Towers' current position very clearly. With the hype around Nemesis's refurbishment, I've seen virtually no discussion on what would happen to Oblivion. The idea of Towers retracking that too seems unlikely; perhaps they'll use Project Horizon as a way of softening the blow when they announce the removal of Oblivion, or one of the other major coasters. Personally I'd be very sad to see Galactica go, as Europe's only B&M Flyer.
I think Oblivion should stay - it just needs something to make it more exciting.
@@jackw7714 I don't know what's possible to improve Oblivion significantly. At present, I don't think it's worth a serious investment like Nemesis was. Time will tell though.
I feel like if they bury Thirteen that could give a very cool and horror themed (as always with Alton Towers) back story to the new ride, with the ghost of Thirteen buried away is haunting the new one etc.
Woah that sounds very lilkly to Phantasialand. They also have a massive space problem and residents who complain about the disturbance of the peace. And I think they also have a height limit. The tallest building is the free-fall tower at around 50 m and the two newest roller coasters are multi-launch coasters. All tracks are also very deeply embedded in terrain and theming. In the past, many attacks were demolished for new ones. Make a part 2 to this video with Phantasialand.
Nemesis is still my favourite ride. I was 11 the first time I went on it. It’s still incredible in my late 30’s. There’s no way they’d get rid of it.
That's awesome
Great interesting video! I think Phantasialand is in a surprisingly similar situation. They've been removing classic fan favorites and very unique rides for years due to being surrounded by residential and protected areas. I'm predicting Hollywood Tour is being torn down right now, and next the indoor roller coaster Temple of the Night Hawk (now Bats I think) will be replaced entirely due to age.
Also Crazy Bats is no longer the world's longest indoor coaster after Guardian's opened in Epcot. So the record that it held is gone, so not much of a reason to keep it.
Always a great to see another video!
Thanks man!
This is a pretty great video. I don’t like heights and never been or want to go on a rollercoaster, yet this video was entertaining and interesting. I will deffo check some of your other videos out.
I really love Alton Towers! Visited in 2008 on a student exchange trip and went there in 2022 with my now husband and fellow enthusiast. It is so unique, every ride is so special. The landscape is beautiful! We had some lovely chats with some enthusiast operators in Alton. Even after 28 years, Nemesis was almost buttery smooth (thanks B&M!). Due to Phantasialand being our homepark, we are very much used to height restrictions with the coasters. Really can't wait to redo our UK tour in a few years! Alton will be the top destination (well maybe along with Thorpe Park... ;-)). Enough love for Alton, I am really looking forward to the Nemesis remake! Edit: The first I would replace would be Spin-ball-whizzer... but I also see potential space with Galactica/Air, Rita, Oblivion, since they are not as "novel" as they used to be.
Thanks for the comments, it's lovely to hear about your positive experiences of the park! Phantasialand is an incredible theme park too :)
Anyone remember the Black hole coaster? Loved that. And Corkscrew! That was fun!
Was the corksrew the one that was really painful? haha, It was either the black hole or the corkscrew but it was so rough and shakey!
@@piddlydiddly corkscrew was a bit shaky, my head was bashing on the shoulder support bits and it wasn't comfortable, but it was so fun. Black hole was the one in the black "tent" by Oblivion, you sat in a sort of rocket thing, it was fun!
Yeah, the Black Hole was so different - being launched into the dark unknown with no idea what was coming next. I miss it.
I've been to quite a few theme parks, and Alton Towers has always been my favourite by far, especially visually. The way you don't just feel like you're surrounded by tonnes and tonnes of metal - everything feels so much more engaging. I think the treeline rule really benefited this park and the vibes its managed to make. Honestly, I've been a few times, and I'm not sick of it (haven't been able to go since the pandemic though, so looking forward to my next visit, whenever that is).
The UK got so many castles and old things they really said "yeah this one's a theme park now" 😂😂
Yes, and we've got a stately home which has a wildlife park in it's grounds (Longleat).
There is hundreds of these things, historic stuff literally everywhere here
I would make a different prediction. Nemesis will be around for a long, long time, since it's such a classic. The others will eventually be replaced. But the pits won't be filled or watered. Nor will the new coaster be shoehorned into the same pit. Alton Towers has shown they're willing to do significant terrain work, so they'll just... Change the pit.
The tunnel on Oblivion would be a perfect fit for a dive loop on something new.
Love the videos❤ Can you make a video explaining virtual queues? Thanks 😊
I'm certain that tunnel section of Oblivion could have its track replaced within the existing structure. A replacement ride might plausibly be routed via the tunnel too, because static concrete structures usually have lifespans significantly longer than the steel track elements. It's up to the operator whether they think its worth reusing it of course and whether it would fit in with the concept of a new ride.
Nemesis was my fave ride ever, I remember when it opened, rode that one tons of times on numerous visits, we would get off and run straight back to the queue as many times as we could before the queues built up too much, we always literally ran straight for Nemesis when the park opened in the morning, good times. Oblivion terrified me, dropping into that hole felt like I was dying, rode it at least 5 times before I stopped trying to bear my terror.
Nemesis is always a great ride! :)
I remember the year it opened and the queue was 6 hours long 😅
I can indeed confirm Nemesis is being refurbished. I was there 2 days ago and I saw them lifting new track into the area with cranes.
I think the images in the video confirmed that already
Here in the Netherlands the Efteling also refurbished and slightly improved the python, they tore down the entire ride and fully rebuild it with some slight modifications like altered entries and exits of the loopings for more comfort
'Galactica' really threw me off it was branded 'Air' last time I was there. Showing my age I guess. I loved Alton towers but it always felt like it should be a two day visit, a day on the costers, a day in the gardens. I learnt some stuff, thanks.
Rita’s time is up I think and it would be nice to see it replaced with a Mack spinning coaster something similar to time traveller or the ride to happiness. Oblivion needs re tracking and maybe having a slightly longer layout developed. Galactica is the first flying coaster but it shows as it’s kind of boring compared to others now out there in other parks. They may need to think about planting taller trees 🌲 I also think they are missing a high quality water ride at the park. And certain areas are probably ready for tlc and redevelopment like the entrance.
Absolutely! Ever since they removed the duck, they've been sorely lacking a water ride. Sure, there's the rapid rafts, but I'd hardly call that a ride so much as just...bumper boats.
I am looking forward to Nemesis reopening next year! It is a sad thought that Oblivion could well be a coaster that shuts down permanently and all that space cannot be reused so much. I get that, at the time, it was an ambitious project to have a rollercoaster go quite high (or as high as the surrounding tallest trees are) and go underground to get that thrill up, but yeah I agree, what can be done to either refurbish or even replace Oblivion? Still though, no matter what, I'll ALWAYS go back to this Theme Park, and now I have a niece who's parents are thrill seekers, I want to make it my mission that this little one will get to experience incredible rides! (she loved her visit in May, so much so she kept running around XD)
I dont know what they'll do with oblivion but i reckon it'll be much easier to turn into a different rollercoaster, because even if half of it is underground, the entire ride is about the drop so half the ride is not very much, and they can quite easily design another rollercoaster that has a drop into a tunnel at a given point but it can be more exciting in the rest of it. I dont know how they'll approach replacing the parts, but if they do fish each bit out part by part they might be able to keep the above ground open for the public, which iirc would otherwise block off two off the shelf rides and a restaurant so its in their interest to keep it open, especially the restaurant.
Great video really enjoyed it!
Thanks for watching! :)
Nemesis is being re tracked which is awesome! As for some of the others I think they should do the following... 1. Make oblivions drop actually 90degrees, like the other dive coasters. Change the trains to cope with this.They should also put an inline twist inversion inside the tunnel as its coming up out. That would be next level! They should also make new trains floorless! 2. Rita should be rectracked but with a whole new layout. It should go around the perimeter of thirteen and go much faster. They should make it the first coaster in the UK to reach 100mph! U dont need height for this, keep it low with dips and hills below treeline, through the forest which would be insane. 3. Galactica im unsure. This would be the hardest to upgrade. All i can think of is a launch (60mph lets say) into a second section of track. So First half is relaxing and second half more thrilling, catching you off guard. Again low to the ground. 🤷🏽♂️ Just my ideas.
I think a launched flying coaster would be awesome for Towers!
Great video ! Good explanations! I think that Alton Towers will want to keep them so it's not a problem to not be able to remove them
Hopefully they can keep them running for the foreseeable future!
For sure. Alton towers has a very different experience to any other park on the same scale in the country, if not the continent or the world. It's not really there to appeal to fandoms, nor to adrenaline junkies. There's something for everyone, no matter what they like, even that one family member who just wants to sit and watch the ducks. I think that largely ties in to why they still see pretty regular attendance values, both as a park and on a per-ride scale, even for the really old things. So long as they can keep the quality of the rides up, all for them sticking around despite their age.
That would be nice if they did keep the rides, however people will start to get bored of the same coasters being there. People wont want to go on the rides that have been there for years and would much rather go to a themepark that has new rides coming in every few years or so on
@@themeparkerystoyeah and especially if a new park ever opens in the UK. We saw how terrified merlin were with the London resort idea.
@@themeparkerystoNot as true as you might think! Nemesis continued to be one of the most popular rides at the park before the retrack even if it was almost 30 years old at the time :)
It's so weird learning about a park I've loved as a kid and now enjoying as an adult. Honestly this video was so well done and I was so intrigued, thank you for sharing. I will miss nemesis, I'm glad I rode it before it closed (I didn't even know it was closing). Lol plus this video made me feel old haha
Thanks for watching! I think Alton Towers is a part of many people's childhoods in the UK
The 25 years you mentioned is most likely the design life in the specification that the coaster was designed to. This will be driven by fatigue, specifically crack growth in high stress regions or welds and to a lesser extent corrosion and some track wear (though this is largely born by the replaceable wheels through proper material selection). Just like with other machines, power stations, ships, oil rigs etc, you can extend the design life through an extended inspection regime, checking for crack growth in welds etc. This is likely how nemesis was allowed to operate for another 4 years.
Nemesis is going to last for a long time bc of that re-track
Hopefully!
why the hell haven't ppl been feeding them trees ...sneak in, feed trees , sneak out
Love it
Ah yes, fond memories of Corkscrew and Black Hole - remember staying at Dimmingsdale Youth Hostel, on the other side of the Churnet Valley from Alton Towers, and you could see and hear one of the coasters for 2 seconds at a time when it popped up over the treeline \m/
I didn’t realise Nemesis was new when I went. Loved it, 6 goes in the day. But remember going to Oblivion when it released. Lovely grounds. Plenty quiet space down in the lower valley.
I was expecting this video to be about the number of times Oblivion has failed to disengage the lock at the freefall point 😬 It happens every couple of years, sometimes just for a minute or two, sometimes needing a full ride evacuation.
Happened once when I was there
Really nice editing at making the portrait boxing stretch out to 16:9 at 7:05. I love detail like that.
hey, thanks!
i'm glad they're preserving nemisis, it is my favorite in the park. Air was a close second (galactica). RIta never seemed to have as long queues so i think that'll be the next to go
It does have long queues first time I went it was a 3 hour queue and on a less busy day it still had a 90 minute wait
Great video! And yes... lots of food for thought.
I think that it's great that Nemmy is getting a re-track and after seeing it in person today I actually love the new colour scheme now and it deffo made sense to do that because even after all these years it's still a solid layout and ride. However Blivvy is getting on and I can't see them retracking that, it's seen by many as "boring" as far as dive coasters go now there are bigger and better ones. (Even though I still love Oblivion) I'd like to see something new when it comes to the end of it's life, but I'd love a bigger dive coaster with inversions which I doubt they'll do.
Wow, i feel so old. I remember when all these rides were brand new except nemesis.
I do hope Rita, oblivion and galactica get reimagined in a different way to nemesis adding at least 2 elements and new trains possibly because since galactica has quite a lot of space in the area it occupies I think they can fit some more elements in maybe a small zero g roll and for Rita I think reprofiling of some elements removing some elements and using the same footers and adding some more footers they can maybe add a mosasaurus roll a zero g roll or stall and maybe a wave turn and with the new launch coaster trains in the industry it would be amazing and oblivion I think adding an Immelmann airtime hill and zero g roll would be great
Idea for oblivion: When oblivions time has come instead of retracking it the park can create the UK’s fist tilt coaster in its place and use the space used by the current retro squad rides for and some of oblivions original break run for an extended layout. The ride will also keep the oblivion theme (If anyone who is a higher up at towers is reading this PLEASE BUY MY IDEA)
Another great video!
25 years for Big Bad Wolf In Virginia in the US was specifically set by Arrow Dynamics when it was opened in '84. it hit the time in '09 and that was that, but like you said with no restrictions it was somewhat easy to replace. Big Bad Wolf and Verbolten are both terrain rollercoasters though and Verbolten reused some of the big Bad Wolf footers.
I would love to see Oblivion replaced for a new style dive coaster, utilising the same pit for the drop but extending the layout to include some inversions across the space that Enterprise lived in. After going on some newer dive coasters across Europe, I really wish Oblivion had more to it as a ride. Obviously it was the first, so broke new ground there, but I would love a bit more added on.
The newer dive coasters in Europe are definitely awesome!
I like oblivion, a very interesting ride.
One of my favourite rides is the Vampire at Chessington World of Adventures which we visited when it first opened in the early 90's.
I think a form-fit-function replacement can occur on specific rides that remain popular. Perhaps, they will add iterations to theming to keep it fresh.
Smiler isnt going anywhere either is nemesis or oblivion and wickerman but galactica, rita, thirteen, spinball whizzer and runaway mine train are up for removal
Just been to Alton Towers today and this was a nice watch! I love how unique and dug into the landscape the rides are!
Awesome, I hope you had a great time!
Well Phantasialand is in this struggle for land for many tens of years now. They are enclosed from all sides and pretty much landlocked. They also just have to tear down old rides, dig deep down into the soil and build something that can be enclosed enough so that noise regulations are ensured. It's a real struggle and its questionable if parks like these can keep up with much larger parks in the long term or are better positioned becouse of their overall better quality and modern rides.
This video shows to me how long it's been since I last went to Alton Towers: I didn't know the Corkscrew was gone and I've never heard of most of the coasters! I remember going there several times before it was a theme park and was just a nice walk in the gardens.
The central corkscrew element track piece is now on display at the front of the park as you walk in. It'll never be truly gone.
Indeed, it was a cable car and a boating lake. You went there to look at the gardens.
I like how you slide the black bars in and out when switching to 4:3 footage and back again, don’t think I’ve seen that before.
Thanks for picking up on that! 😀
Oblivion sits on such an awkward spot of land with the surrounding roads. With the removal of Enterprise and Spin Jam being a temporary attraction you all of a sudden do get a decent bit of space to work with. Then comes the question, what to place there? My intiial thought was going out to a multi launch coaster with inversions but would it really be a good idea to have 2 massive inverting coasters right in that corner? Mack has shown before what you can do with a limited terrain height when looking at Helix. So it would be a good fit. New Vekoma is making waves.... Personallly, I think Rita is the first to go at this stage. Obviously this would be well after project horizon. But after that I could imagine her being the first to go. Opening up new opportunities for a new launch coaster.
What a great video. I remember going around the park just before Galactica - then Air - was being constructed, the track pieces lay around the landscape over a much larger area than the ride ended up covering (there were rumours it originally was supposed to encircle a large chunk of the park, not sure about that though). Some great memories here, the Black Hole terrified me before I went in there the first time 😅 I swear my neck still hasn’t recovered from Corkscrew 😂 Really glad they’re refurbing Nemesis and hope they keep Oblivion going for a long time.
I don't think my neck has properly recovered from Corkscrew either!
I love how they're not allowed to build bigger than the treeline, but no one said anything about lowering the ground!
Loch Ness Monster is even older. Opening in 78 and got a major refurbishment this past year, finishing in Dec. It's reopening later this year. So if the demand is present and is a fan favorite. I think they will keep Nemesis and Oblivion running.
The Efteling in the Netherlands did a "rebuild/refurbish" of the Python in 2018, a rollercoaster build in 1981. And has kind of the same height limitations.
I was one of the first to experience Nemisis back in 1994. Before that, I'd ridden corkscrew and some other rollercoasters with inversions, but never an inverted. The ride was extreme, exciting, fast, and unpredictable. Both the front and the back offer an awesome ride experience. Little did I know back then that the terrain manipulation, having the ride dodge land, fly over the ground and dodge in and out of tunnels meant it was possibly the best hanger that would ever be made. I've ridden coasters since all over the world, including other Bolliger & Mabillard hanging coasters, and none have reached that level of awesomeness of Nemisis, not even it's sister coaster Inferno in Thorpe Park. I was well aware of the lifespan limitations of rollercoasters (Corkscrew and Black Hole) and worried about Nemisis. But they totally refurbished it this year, renewing it for hopefully another 30 years, just as you predicted! Well done, Alton Towers!
They may take out Rita as Thorpe park has a ride which is similar but goes faster quicker and as both theme parks are owned by Merlin there’s a positive they would take it out to make an even faster ride or replace it with a larger ride
jeez @CoasterBot - thanks for making me feel old. You missed the bit about "the black hole" tent being removed and the name changing to "the beast" and another "black hole" being built.
There's a lot of comments about extending Oblivion, but it's not a good candidate for an extension. The main limit to a non-launch coaster's layout isn't the size of the drop, it's the size of the lift, because you cannot get out more than you put in. Oblivion has a small lift-hill due to the tree-line restriction, hence the small layout. Extending it would need a second lift-hill, like The Smiler, or a launch section. A launch section is not feasible as it would need a major modification to the trains, and a second lift-hill ruins the theming as it's all centred on the tension before that first drop. Adding a new bespoke pit behind the existing ride, running more layout in there and having the lift back to the station could work, but also becomes as complicated as replacing the ride entirely. There is one option for replacement: build a drop tower ride into the pit and use the exit tunnel for queuing and ride exit, and use the land freed up from the rest of the track to build a completely new coaster. Nemesis is constantly ranked as one of the best coasters in the world, which made refurbishing it worthwhile since it is still a draw. Oblivion is more of a historical curiosity, and does less to attract park-goers than other more elaborate rides. It has less chance of refurbishment when the time comes.