This looks and sounds very exciting! It gives Southerners a chance to stop over night if needed (Which is most likely). It will bring the extra cash in as well and good things will happen afterwards.

It's in a great place really.

If you were planning a relatively inexpensive family break, you could spend a day at LWV, stroll to North Stainley for an evening meal in a pub, spend a day walking in the dales, spend a day visiting Harrogate or York or Ripon, spend a day visiting a castle in Middleham or Richmond or going on a brewery tour in Masham. And as Craig says - just a place to chill out in a nice woodland setting, with some sports activities, climbing frames, barbecues etc can occupy time, particularly evenings.

There's easily enough to do in the area to warrant a fair few nights' stay, even with just one day at the theme park. With this regard there is a vast sum of money to be made if built and marketed right, money which hopefully will lead to long-term success and investment at the park.

Haha fair enough like to think in advance

I posted my opinion on Valley Mania, and have lazily put it here, rather than rehashing it here...

I thought this, taking the questions from the outreach document the best way to express my views.

1. What do you like about the ideas proposed?

It's about the right size, certainly as a foot in the water, and huge effort appears to have been made to make it part of the community, not at loggerheads.  It is sympathetic to the environment, and APPEARS to have the Theme park as it's USP - not as an afterthought.  Should appeal to the Center Parcs market, rather than being seen as you come to the park, you stop at the park. Good riddance to caravans too.

2. Is there anything you dislike?

It's a little bland, if truth be told, and could do with a proper adventure playground for the kids.  It could also do with some sort of play on the fact that it is Heritage GB behind it, to give it credentials as a 'place of beauty.'  The fear is though it really needs to be put in in tandem with a reason to come, and would imagine that it would be in place by 2014/15, in which case next year is a hugely significant one for the park in needing an attraction of note.  I would also hope that FOT and WRR gets some serious hard landscaping with the proximity to the site.

3. What tourist related development would you like to see included with the proposal?

I've said it before, and I will say it again repeatedly - use the Theatre as a year round Exhibition attraction, hosting the likes of the Dr Who, Wallace and Grommit, and Horrible Histories exhibitions, the truth of the matter is though these in their own right could bring in more revenue than the park itself, and crucially be year round.  It may also be worth looking at the possibility of approaching the lottery commission to see if the new development could be entitled to lottery funding for some art and culture installations within the resort.  Also a serious plan for the village needs addressing; it either needs to be a Food and leisure aspect, or something different entirely.  The village does the proposals no favours.

4. Is there anything that we have missed?

Pride in the theme park aspect - yes it's a nice looking project, but it really, really needs make sure it does not chuck the baby out with the bathwater; it needs to remember that it is NOT Center Parcs, Yet.  I understand the need to appear to be a relaxed area on the outreach to the local community, but to push the sedate nature in the literature risks putting it in the same grouping in the likes of Butlins in the Nineties - not healthy.  Choose your own adventure is the angle personally I'd prefer to see.

5. Do you have any other comments?

Definitely better. Would liked to have seen a handful of the hobbit homes in the proposal too, that would  have given it a very unique look.  I also worry that it looks too much like a suburban street than a holiday retreat, why personally I think there needs to be a large adventure playground. It is important to the park to also massively think about pushing an all weather message - the wrong sort of day, and the park can feel unpleasant to visit; going back to what I said before about needing an attraction of significance to birth in tandem to the development, it really does need to be an all weather one.

Looks relaxing and lovely, and an option I'd definitely consider should whenever I visit.

Is this what they've been saving their money up for? Or are they taking another development pot to produce this?

The project is being funded by their parent company, Heritage Great Britain PLC.

Nathan, when do you expect them to submit these plans for planning permission, and when do you expect the planning to be granted or denied and work to begin?

This was the make or break decision for LWV to be honest.

FL survives and always has on their Holiday camp, it's been their main source to invest in the park over the years. LWV needed this badly. I really hope the extra income secured from the year round accommodation enables them to invest in more.

I think they have the most difficult job of all the Theme parks in the country being so close to Flamingo Land which has had such a head start and whilst they own one of the best coasters in the country, how long can they realistically play on this?

I haven't seen their new area - granted - but they do seem very focused on what they do where as FL just plod along nower days it seems and they seem to have gotten cocky with their investments. In all fairness I enjoy both parks equally....

FL May have the better rides as a whole and is better themed and has KITTYS! but I've never left the park thinking "what an epic day" LWV on the other hand, apart from it being nostalgic to me (My first inverter Soopa-Loopa and being there in it's hey day) I adore the place in some strange way. The staff eclipse FL which counts for a lot I suppose, but I love their courage and down right ballsy attitude to things.

I'll always have a soft spot for LWV and The Ultimate and this holiday village I can only hope will provide the cash platform they so badly need for them to invest heavily. As I I think they would pump it right back into the park and with the amount of room they have, they could take FL for a ride and start a dominance war which could see both parks fighting for supremacy. Too long has FL ruled the Yorkshire Moors, It's time they had a lesson.  

Sam wrote:

Nathan, when do you expect them to submit these plans for planning permission, and when do you expect the planning to be granted or denied and work to begin?

I'd expect them to be submitted late August at the latest. As for how long it will take for the council to make a decision, I have no idea as I don't know how quickly the whole process moves TBH.

If they are applying for permission this summer then to me that suggests they are hoping to make a start as soon as this winter (assuming the plans are given the go ahead).

I'm at the park next Saturday, so I'll try and get some definitive answers. 

PS. If anyone fancies a visit to Lightwater, you're more than welcome to join myself and Valley Mania next Saturday. Admission is only £13!

I think I would have liked to see them keep a bit of space free for some touring caravan pitches. Touring caravans in the UK is UP big time, so it would be ideal for somewhere like Lightwater to latch on to the boom. PLus caravanning in Yorkshire is already popular.

100 wooden holiday homes would sound lovely in the area that LWV is set. My only fear would be the prices of these, if the resort continues to grow theme park-wise as well. I cannot stress enough that it would be a bad idea for some similarly high prices like Drayton and Alton. I believe it should be cheaper than a hotel room, they don't seem too big for the space that they've got. It's crunch time to see how more popular they can actually attract more guests, I doubt it as it's nestled so far away from nowhere and is a distance from a airport. I wish them the best of luck, but I believe that this project is a bit too ambitious at this current time for LWV.

Build around The Ultimate and the spaces developed shows that LWV has more to grow even than Drayton.

Lightwater Valley are wanting some help with a rather interesting little survey...

http://www.valleymania.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1488

Slappy McGuire wrote:

Lightwater Valley are wanting some help with a rather interesting little survey...

http://www.valleymania.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1488

tl;dr: they're investigating licensing, particularly: Noddy, Postman Pat,
Bob the Builder, Alice in Wonderland, Roary the Racing Car and Grimms Fairy Tales

Visiting LWV on Saturday for the first time in years, looking at buying The Ultimate Ticket - anyone done this / is it worth it?

Personally, No.

The parks rarely busy enough to warrant any time of front of queue pass anyway. Not sure where the meal voucher allows you to eat. But I wouldn't eat anywhere on the park apart from the Granary outside the park in the Country Shopping Village.

Tom G wrote:

Bottons had a pirate ship, but I'm not sure if it is still there this year?

Yep it's still there looking mighty fine and still No. 1 Pirate Ship in the country in my eyes

Well ended up getting the Ultimate ticket and didnt think it was to bad. The meal voucher is for a meal deal up to 6.99, the on ride photos which we normally wouldnt buy were a nice add in. Also the que for raptor attack was an hour yesterday when we got to it so the fast pass came in handy thier.

Howdy!  Whose coming to Frightwater this year?

Lightwater Valley have just released their "Frightwater Valley" promo clip.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbX_Fs3uDAo

We are big fans of Lightwater Valley here on TTF - so if your in the area make sure you try and attend the event!

Press release from Lightwater yesterday:

A worldwide phenomenon is catapulting into the North of England this spring, as Lightwater Valley Theme Park, North Yorkshire, confirms that it will be home to the UK’s latest Angry Birds Activity Park, opening late Spring 2013.

As the first Angry Birds Activity Park in the North of England, the site will cover over 30,000 square feet and represents a total investment of over £1.0 million.

The Angry Birds Activity Park will combine the digital world of the game with the physical world, through activity-based play, which will encourage visitors to move around and be active.

The Activity Park will be complemented by an Angry Birds retail store selling a wide range of Angry Birds official merchandise from pencils to back-packs to plush toys.

The Angry Birds Activity Park has been designed and manufactured by Lappset UK. A leading provider of play equipment, the Kettering-based company launched the Angry Birds concept last year which creates a new healthy way for the whole family to experience the Angry Birds theme.

The attraction is aimed at the whole family, allowing toddlers, children and adults to play together.

Mark Bainbridge, General Manager, at Lightwater Valley, comments:

‘We are delighted that the global phenomenon that is Angry Birds has landed at Lightwater. We feel that the new activity park is a really good fit for us as a leading family attraction – and what we really like is it will get children and adults alike active whilst having fun together. Its opening will mark the start of an exciting programme of developments, which will improve and diversify the theme park’s offer and reinforce our commitment to providing quality leisure experiences for the whole family.’