I can't see it opening at Scarefest unfortunately. I could see it being closed next year as well, then any still closed rides reopening at the start of the 2018 season alongside SW8 as a sort of grand reopening for the park. Will be 3 years since the Smiler crash, probably long enough for most people to forget about it, they could then do a massive advertising push and call it a new beginning for the park.

Sawboss wrote:

I can't see it opening at Scarefest unfortunately. I could see it being closed next year as well, then any still closed rides reopening at the start of the 2018 season alongside SW8 as a sort of grand reopening for the park. Will be 3 years since the Smiler crash, probably long enough for most people to forget about it, they could then do a massive advertising push and call it a new beginning for the park.

The "relaunching" idea sounds like a possibility. Over the next 3 years they will be painting over Towers St, meaning that by 2018 the entrance's new look will be complete. That's a good opportunity to make a sort of new start for the park.

Having all rides reopened can be a part of this.

I rode the attraction back in august last year, one day before the ride shut, and planned to ride it again the following day as we were staying at the splash landings hotel. The next day we headed over the forbidden valley at around 1:00pm only to find sub-terra closed. I approached a member of staff, who was walking away from the attraction, and I asked why it was closed. I was told it was a minor technical fault however the ride hasn't opened since that day. The website does not list it as under towers loving care but lists as unavailable for your mission. On wikipedia it lists Hex as under refurbishment but list's sub-terra as SBNO however charlie and the chocolate factory is also listed as SBNO and the alton towers website list's at under towers loving care. Does this mean sub-terra is getting TLC or something else is wrong with it?

The truth is nobody truly knows what is going on with Sub Terra and Charlie, they could reopen but it's equally likely that they could be torn down without any sort of fuss being made. Just a case of wait and see really

I'm hoping for Charlie to be rethemed and sub-terra to be updated

I'd ike a Dungeons style attraction in Charlie. I think House of Monsters has proved how well it could be done!

I really hope ST opens again. It was a very enjoyable experience!

All theses rides are closed cause of 2 things:
1) The amount of staff they take to operate
2) To keep the bills down

Just thinking on Sub terra you got 1 outside. 1 sorting out the queue to enter the building. Then you got another just inside shouting where to stand and giving you orders. There must be 2 or 3 in the control room and 2 or 3 checking the bars and ordering you to leave after. Then you got the staff scareing you as you exit.
So I reckon there must be at least 12 members of staff working on the ride at 1 time.

They could combine CATCF and NST into one ride to save costs. Toyland Terror, anyone?

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Themeparksandy1981 wrote:

All theses rides are closed cause of 2 things:
1) The amount of staff they take to operate
2) To keep the bills down

The only argument against that is Galactica, which now requires more staff than before!

Charlie should be re-themed and will be a successful all year round attraction. As for Sub terra, it is OK as a filler attraction, but for what it costs to run, not really worth it. What would be good is to have this as a peak period attraction, opening at Scarefest/Firework and during the school holidays only helping keep the queues down on other rides.

There's been some speculation over on TS that the N:ST drop towers have been removed, obviously I can't confirm the accuracy of that. If it is true then it could be possible it's for a major overhaul, or with the rumours that have been going around it could be permanent.

Personally, I don't think we will be seeing a return of N:ST, which would be a real shame. Of course it was marketed ridiculously as always and it was a bit naff, but all of that aside it was a decent indoor attraction and it offered something a bit different. The building, theming and queue line really looked the part, a stark improvement over the trampolines and Lava Lump that had greeted you upon entry to Forbidden Valley for many years.

It wouldnt be cost effective to remove it

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It may not be cost effective in removing it. UNLESS:
Legoland Windsor got the haunted house ride approved eventually. This uses the same drop towers, as there is another one of these "haunted house" rides in another Legoland park.

I doubt Merlin will just scrap it when it's still early in it's life span.

I don't think it would be cost effective to remove it period, even if it did go to another park. It would cost a fortune to relocate and at some point the park would have to concede that they just don't have enough attractions left to justify operating such a resort. That means costly future replacements when they could simply just close it for a couple of years and then reopen once the coffers are looking healthier.

CJH wrote:

It may not be cost effective in removing it. UNLESS:
Legoland Windsor got the haunted house ride approved eventually.

I believe Legoland Windsor did manage to get planning permission for this attraction however they currently have no plans to act on this

Reading through various social media comments and I just think that Sub Terra is the perfect example of Merlin obsessed with the idea of world's firsts and things the public have never seen before. It's so simple, if they want to add to the thrill line up they need flat rides. So many people have pointed this out to them but they tried too hard with sub Terra so now they seem to have decided to just not try at all. I would not mind if it was closed permanently but in its place there should be something like Dynamo, along with replacements for Boneshaker, Submission, and Ripsaw. So many people have tried to tell them and have been ignored.

It depends how much it's costing them if it'd be cost effective to be removed. It was a very small investment as far as rides go. I personally like it because it's different. But I've heard that it's probably going to be shut for good. It'd surprise me if they moved it to another park etc because after removal,logistics etc you wouldn't be far off the price of a new custom made one. But I think it'd be a shame to go cause you always came off smiling.

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Themeparksandy1981 wrote:

All theses rides are closed cause of 2 things:
1) The amount of staff they take to operate
2) To keep the bills down

Not true. It's because of issues with the harnesses being too loose, people were trying to get out at the lower level and if they did so getting crushed by the massive sheet of metal the cars drop down with. They spent last season trying to work out harnesses that are secure and can be flung up quickly, but with no joy. Whether they are just being half arsed about it I'm not sure. But this is the main reason of the closure for last season and all signs being removed


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I really hope Sub-Terra isn't shut for good. I think I'm one of the rare people who actually enjoyed it.

tcw1993 wrote:

Not true. It's because of issues with the harnesses being too loose, people were trying to get out at the lower level and if they did so getting crushed by the massive sheet of metal the cars drop down with. They spent last season trying to work out harnesses that are secure and can be flung up quickly, but with no joy. Whether they are just being half arsed about it I'm not sure. But this is the main reason of the closure for last season and all signs being removed

The initial reason for Sub-Terra's closure in mid 2015 was restraint issues. It reopened briefly in July, however they were still having some issues. The reason for it's closure later on in 2015 and throughout 2016 was cost cutting. Similar rides have had their restraint issues fixed pretty quickly so there's no reason why Sub-Terra couldn't have reopened for 2016. The only reason for it's closure last year was money.