Does anyone else feel like UK theme parks just don’t have the same magic as they did when we were kids or teenagers?
When I was growing up, places like Alton Towers, Thorpe Park, Chessington, and even smaller local parks felt legendary. A school trip there, or a new ride opening was one of the highlights of the year for me and my friends. People would talk about it for weeks, swap stories, and hype it up in the playground. Those parks felt like pure adventure. I was also lucky enough to have holidays abroad and visit the big international parks, I went to Disney World and Euro Disney. But even with all that, the UK theme parks still held a special place for me. They had their own unique vibe and excitement.
Talking to the younger people in my family now, that buzz just does'nt seem to be there. Don’t get me wrong, they’ll go, and they’ll have fun when they do, but it’s not like they’re asking to go or hyped about it for weeks beforehand like me and my friends used to be. Even the new rides opening don’t seem to get them talking the way Oblivion or Nemesis did for us. The “aura” just isn’t there.
I know some people will say, “kids just have more things to do now.” But to be honest, it’s not like the world was devoid of options back in the ‘90s and 2000s. We had console gaming, arcades, the early internet, TV, family holidays, trips out, the works. The only real difference between my generation and today’s is social media and being constantly connected. We didn’t have TikTok, Insta, or Snapchat.
But we did have our own versions of everything else, just without the pressure to be “always on” or the ability to see every ride and experience before we’d even been.
But I wonder, Is part of it just a lack of updating the parks? Or not as much publicity as they used to get?
There used to be loads of TV adverts for theme parks, new rides, and big events. Now you barely see anything unless you’re already looking for them.
So what do you think has changed? Is it the parks themselves? Less marketing and hype? Social media spoiling the surprise? Or is it just impossible to capture that same magic now?
33 comments
You might just be getting old mate.
That being said as an adult with money who’se been able to visit other theme parks, I can say I dont like them as much simply because what they offer is old hat compared to other places.
I think part of the “magic” was that we didn’t see everything before we got there.
Back then, going to Alton Towers or Thorpe Park felt like stepping into a world you’d only imagined — not one you’d already scrolled through on YouTube or TikTok. You didn’t know every turn, every drop, every queue time. You just *felt*it.
Now it’s different. Kids have already watched five POV videos of the ride before they even sit in it. The sense of discovery has been replaced by expectation — and that kills a bit of the thrill.
But honestly, I think we just grew up in a rare window of time — tech was exciting, but it hadn’t eaten wonder yet. Those parks didn’t just give us rides; they gave us *anticipation*, and that’s something the internet can’t recreate.
You simply aren’t a kid any more
They still go, my stepson was at Thorpe Park with school a couple weeks ago, but like with most things for kids [and everyone and everything else] now, it’s expensive as fuck.
It could just be down to sample size. My niece, nephew and my mate’s kid all get that “I’m so excited I can’t speak” when it comes to theme parks.
It’ll also depend on the age of the kids. When my mate’s and I hit our teens in the early to mid 90s, theme parks were still exciting but we wouldn’t lose our minds over it. Especially when you’ve “done” Chessington and Thorpe Park and going back for a victory lap. Always a great day but it’s not that young age excitement or the thrill of the new that would lead to counting down days off the calendar.
On a side note, Thorpe Park really looks like it has turned into an “all our rides will make you vomit” park. I miss the ride in the boat with the frogs at the end. Also RIP Logger’s Leap.
The whole world went to hell the minute they closed The American Adventure
The major parks are mostly owned by Merlin and they spend naff all money on them. Many of the independent ones, like Blackpool Pleasure Beach, are also having a rough time financially.
This new Universal theme park is going to be kill or cure for a lot of the existing UK parks.
You got older mate
Same reason numberjacks doesnt go hard anymore
Maybe you just happen to be talking to the wrong young people? I was like you about theme parks, but loads of people I knew weren’t.
Social media has killed it IMO. Park vlogs are ten a penny and you can fin park itineraries are found on blogs that make it seem like visiting them is less like a holiday and more like a mission. It takes the fun out of visiting because it plays into people’s sense of FOMO and not having the perfect day.
Getting old and cost!
Honestly, it’s a whole lot different having pay for it yourself 😂 I love theme parks, but I don’t fancy paying for the privilege of standing in queue…after queue…after queue.
Was it cheaper when you were young? getting into thorpe is going to cost at least £30 per person now, thats several months of saving for most children.
Nope you got old and spend more time looking behind the curtain than enjoying the moment. You got to approach it from a 10yo point of view.
Merlin owning Legoland/Thorpe Park/Alton Towers/Chessington created a monopoly. So they didn’t need to spend any real money on a consistent basis.
Hopefully Universal UK shoves a firework up their arse and we get more Hyperia level rides.
As it stands, Plopsaland, Parc Asterix, Europa Park, blow all of ours out of the water.
Oh, and stop only opening from 10-5pm.
Exciting for some kids not all I guess.
My 8 year old talks about going to Legoland all the time. He’s been to Chessington recently and hasn’t stopped talking about it. He is very excited about Viking village at Paultons and minecraft rides at chessington.
My 15 yo niece was buzzing to go to Thorpe park with her aunt in the summer. Her parents couldn’t take her, it was planned for 8 months and she couldn’t wait.
alton towers has really had such little investment it seems in the last 10 years, before going in 2024, the last time i had been was 2014, just before the smiler crash. They’ve removed so much theming or just clearly not rennovated any of it. Half of the rides that i used to love have shut or been replaced by super generic stuff, it’s just not as fun anymore
Queues.
They cram more and more people in without actually expanding the offering. When I was going to that sort of place as a kid an hour long queue would have been a considered a long one for *the* big attraction, now it’s the norm and for the major rides 2-3 hours is not unusual. Even the most British of young people is only going to be able to muster so much excitement for a day comprised of 2-3 hours of queuing then a minute and a half of excitement then another multi-hour queue.
I wouldn’t say it’s the parks just technology has advanced massively. You can literally use vr to ride any rollercoaster in the world, why would a kid want to leave the house when they can do that.
When we were kids our day to da6 life was pretty grim. The theme parks held an unimaginable magic….
Now kids have 24/7 access to films, television and the kind of computer gaming that we could never have dreamed would exist.
Reality can never beat that.
They’re absolutely packed and 2 hour waits are expected on many rides. Mostly teenagers.
My guess would be they don’t watch traditional TV as much as they used to.
The adverts you’d see on TV used to really build the magic.
We grew up skint but as an adult, my first visit to Alton Towers made me feel like a child again, the anticipation definitely came from seeing all the TV ads.
I took a look at going to Paultons Park recently and almost spat out my drink. It was £45 EACH just for the privilege of walking through the front gate. Add in a couple of meals and drinks etc fir a family of four you’re talking the best part of £400 for a single day. Maybe I’m just out of touch but that seemed insane to me.
You have changed.
Too expensive, charge for everything, even the parking close to the entrance. not good value any more. And the in park hotels are just rip-off. Crap food in hotels and parks.
You grew old. That’s all. Kids and teens are still excited.
I’m a huge theme park fan and have been since I was a kid, but I do agree with what you say to some extent. Here’s my analysis:
Like most things, money has changed the UK theme park industry hugely. The gulf in resources between the smaller parks and the larger parks is huge nowadays and has ultimately caused the demise of lots of UK parks. Oakwood, Coney Beach and Flambards have all gone in the last 12 months and large parks such as American Adventure, Pleasure Island and Camelot have also departed within the last 20 years for financial reasons. There are plenty of other parks on the brink around the UK as well (Lightwater Valley, Camel Creek, M&Ds and possibly Pleasurewood Hills – albeit they were sold to new investors yesterday). Whereas small to medium-sized parks used to be able to buy something moderately impressive for a couple of million pounds, which would have pulling power, nowadays a larger scale ride is much, much more expensive.
With the proliferation of social media nowadays, people are able to see what a big, impressive ride looks like (usually in Mainland Europe, North America or Asia) and honestly, the offering from most UK parks pales in comparison. Generally, people would rather spend a bit more to get to Alton Towers or Thorpe Park or head abroad to ride something thrilling, as chances are your local park will not have anything close in thrill-level. This then means less people through the gates of local parks and investment dries up, before eventual closure. Meanwhile, queues get longer and Fast Pass prices (and various other expensive and often ridiculous add-ons) go up at the Merlin parks. As much as investment is there at the bigger parks in the UK, space constraints and local planning regulations (or NIMBY-ism, if you will) also put a dampener on parks in the UK and are one of the main reasons why parks in the USA, Germany and others overshadow them ride-wise, because they are able to build big rides with minimal backlash.
There are a couple of smaller parks bucking the trend in the UK currently, namely Drayton Manor and Paultons. Both parks have taken the family-friendly route, which makes ride-building more affordable. Additionally, they have done IP-tie-ins with Thomas The Tank Engine and Peppa Pig respectively, which has drawn in loads of extra visitors compared to other comparable parks and helped secure the money to continue expanding. Naturally, a lot of smaller parks are clamouring to get the next big thing IP-wise, but enduring big hitters on children’s TV don’t come around often nowadays.
I do think the Universal park will certainly spice up the UK theme park industry, but honestly I think it will just kill off more of the smaller parks in the UK.
As a heads up, I believe we are getting a Universal Studios
What happened? You grew up. Although as someone who was in teenager in the theme park heyday of the late 90s/early 00s and now has teenage kids, no, they aren’t as excited about it.
The change I have noticed most is the loading times of the rides. Safety has gone up and load times have gone down. I can’t bear to queue for over an hour for a ride. The parks seem happy to kettle the crowds into queues rather than improving throughput.
I often wonder about this. Is it because they are basically run down and lack investment? Is it because they have become money pits or were they always money pits but we didn’t notice because we were young? Is it because the day trip out isn’t what it used to be? You can go and watch video or a streamer of anywhere in the world. It’s not the same as being there but it’s an option.
Theme parks for me now are queues. That’s it. Queues. I know if I go I’ll spend at the very least 50% of the time in a queue for an at most 10 minute thrill. Where is the fun in that? Where is the fun in theme parks? Maybe I didn’t notice that when I was younger. Maybe kids today do notice it more than I did especially with the always on always connected world we live in.
All owned by big companies owned by venture capitalists.. money is now god
Theme park enthusiast here.
I went to all the UK parks as a kid, teenager and now as an adult.
You’re not wrong – UK theme parks are in a dire place, Merlin owns pretty much everything as has a vast monopoly – it has spent nothing in the last decade for this reason and actually reduced its offering whilst keeping the prices going up year on year.
An example is, fright nights used to be included and these are now optional extras
Shorter opening times when they use to be longer
Scraping old rides and not replacing them
It doesn’t stop their either – the literal fucking food you buy from Merlin parks is not only short of a second mortgage but provided by the same company that supplies UK prisons, I am not even joking.
If you have been fortunate enough to go to a US park, Disney, universal etc, you will also know that all of their offering shits all over Merlin and more the simply won’t and cannot keep up.
An independents? Such as pleasure beach, paultons etc – all are suffering from an economic crisis, extorting business rates and simply do not have the numbers and capital to keep up with the likes of their competitors.
Universal UK is going to cause a storm and Merlin have fully noticed this but building 1 world class coaster in 10 years is not going to cut it at all.