Christmas Town
- Thread starter Thomas
- Start date
Apparently they estimated the crowd would be 14k today and it ended up being 22k+
Based on experience this weekend, I would advise everyone to check the schedule for the times of Twas that Night, and if you are not attending the show, avoid France/New France at all costs after show times. You literally cannot move.
On a side note, I cannot believe how many strollers there were in the park. They are a pedestrian nightmare.
On a side note, I cannot believe how many strollers there were in the park. They are a pedestrian nightmare.
From my perspective, CT is the one time of the year, when I expect and accept tons of strollers at the park. This event, more than any other, really is targeted at small children and families.
I am also fairly unsurprised at the heavy (overwhelming) crowds that have been reported on the paths. CT has never has a lot of open attractions (like roller coasters) that would pull people into queues and off the main thoroughfares. Unfortunately, this year, they got rid of the penguins and didn't open EitA, so there are even fewer places to for people to go other than the shops, eateries, and shows. I honestly think it would relieve some of the crowding, if they found a way to keep a few of the more popular rides open, like DarKastle or Tempesto. I think they should at least open a second coaster on cheap ticket days (or maybe they shouldn't have sold quite so many of those).
One interesting question that comes to mind: given how bad the crowds apparently have been this year, what is the long-term impact of the cheap ticket days? Presumably, they make a ton of money, since there isn't much to do at CT besides eat, drink, and shop. Are the crowd levels so unpleasant, however, that they will deter people from returning in the future (perhaps next year)? I can see arguments either way, and I doubt we have the data to answer the question, but I am curious, regardless.
I am also fairly unsurprised at the heavy (overwhelming) crowds that have been reported on the paths. CT has never has a lot of open attractions (like roller coasters) that would pull people into queues and off the main thoroughfares. Unfortunately, this year, they got rid of the penguins and didn't open EitA, so there are even fewer places to for people to go other than the shops, eateries, and shows. I honestly think it would relieve some of the crowding, if they found a way to keep a few of the more popular rides open, like DarKastle or Tempesto. I think they should at least open a second coaster on cheap ticket days (or maybe they shouldn't have sold quite so many of those).
One interesting question that comes to mind: given how bad the crowds apparently have been this year, what is the long-term impact of the cheap ticket days? Presumably, they make a ton of money, since there isn't much to do at CT besides eat, drink, and shop. Are the crowd levels so unpleasant, however, that they will deter people from returning in the future (perhaps next year)? I can see arguments either way, and I doubt we have the data to answer the question, but I am curious, regardless.
The Twinkle Tickets force people to buy the tickets without knowing for sure which day they will go. So, when a Sunday with such amazing weather comes early in the Christmas Town season, everyone decides this is the day to use their ticket. A couple more Twinkle days with amazing weather, and by the end of the season, the park will be empty on the last few Twinkle days.
As this is the 2nd year of these tickets, and there were large crowds from their use last year, it would seem we have our answer.
My gut feeling is that people would be willing to pay $14 just to walk around the park to see the lights, see a couple of shows (and excellent ones, at that, if they see Gloria and Scrooge), and the sky ride or train ride. And be very happy about it. This simple itinerary can easily be done at capacity crowds, even for someone with no idea how to navigate the park.
Nicole said:
As this is the 2nd year of these tickets, and there were large crowds from their use last year, it would seem we have our answer.
My gut feeling is that people would be willing to pay $14 just to walk around the park to see the lights, see a couple of shows (and excellent ones, at that, if they see Gloria and Scrooge), and the sky ride or train ride. And be very happy about it. This simple itinerary can easily be done at capacity crowds, even for someone with no idea how to navigate the park.
My understanding from talking to people who experienced the park yesterday was that the paths were completely unnavigable and there were even long lines for the bathrooms.
While I agree that CT is an event that you can enjoy with large crowds, if the stories I heard were true, there were too many people to be able to even wander around and see the lights.
As I said, I have no idea what long term affect this might have on attendance, but I can see pass members being less interested in visiting the park, when there are no longer any quiet days.
I do think the park needs to examine the cheap ticket process. Perhaps they should make people pick a date in advance the way other parks do. That way they could control attendance and spread the crowds across more days. It would make them less likely to be overrun when the weather is nicer.
While I agree that CT is an event that you can enjoy with large crowds, if the stories I heard were true, there were too many people to be able to even wander around and see the lights.
As I said, I have no idea what long term affect this might have on attendance, but I can see pass members being less interested in visiting the park, when there are no longer any quiet days.
I do think the park needs to examine the cheap ticket process. Perhaps they should make people pick a date in advance the way other parks do. That way they could control attendance and spread the crowds across more days. It would make them less likely to be overrun when the weather is nicer.
I had an excellent four hours at the park on Friday during a Twinkle Ticket night, other than Twas letting out into Wild Reserve. The park was dead in several areas, so much that it was just my group and I in Oktoberfest at one point.
If it was really that deserted on Friday, then I am even more convinced that BGW needs to limit/control the number of cheap tickets that are sold per day. It seems that few people were there Friday, while an overwhelming number showed up Sunday. The extra guests really should be better spread among the available dates.
... I was there yesterday; a friend of mine from VB had free tickets and we all met up at the rope drop. It might have been the single worst experience I've had at a theme park ever.
We were there Friday night. I wouldn't say it was "Deserted", it was actually just about right. Light enough that you could get in to see the shows, yet busy enough that there was some buzz in the atmosphere. I was surprised to hear it was so bad on Sunday. If I had pulled up and seen the cars backed up on the exit or parked over in the lot across the street, I would have found something else to do. Anyone who has been there on a busy day should know what to expect when its like that. Throw in the factors of Christmastown mentioned above (fewer open attractions, etc) and you have a recipe for a bad night. We come up from Raleigh, but always give ourselves an extra day or two to cover for crowds or weather.
Speaking of weather....I swear that it rains EVERY freaking time we come up there in the summer! Perhaps I should head over to the BG Facebook page and complain.
Speaking of weather....I swear that it rains EVERY freaking time we come up there in the summer! Perhaps I should head over to the BG Facebook page and complain.
There is no reason at this point for them to offer the Twinkle Tickets. Christmastown isn't the secret it was six years ago. Eventually they will have to do like Disney does and only offer one day tickets as a specific event. On Facebook several people stated they would be willing to pay more to not have that crowded experience again. Time for them to drop these discounted tickets, or only offer them to passholders. There will be a point where people will not return if they have such bad experiences.
Rainy days in the summer are the best! Before I had a kid that's the days I'd pick to go to BG. I would have a drink at Grogan's until the storm passed, then moved on and enjoyed the short lines.
lazerdoc said:
Rainy days in the summer are the best! Before I had a kid that's the days I'd pick to go to BG. I would have a drink at Grogan's until the storm passed, then moved on and enjoyed the short lines.
Nicole said:
I agree with limiting the amount of tickets sold and maybe the park should look at opening earlier for the discount days. I was in line for parking at 1:20 and didn't get to a parking spot till 2; that's just insane. By the time we got inside, the queue for Scrooge No more was already full. I know it was bad last year but this year was way worse. I think I'll try Fridays from now on.
Friday was not deserted. It was a light crowd until 5/5:30. By 6pm the Festhaus had closed the front entrance and started using the side. It was "full" depending on if you moved with the crowd. Those guests that started in the front and move counter clockwise from show to show got stuck within a large pack. Especially if they tried to do the 5:30 Twas show. The restaurants were slammed full during the 6-7 hour with fairly long lines. The 7:30 show of Gloria was not full. The 9pm show of Scrooge was not full. They were using Germany, Italy and Ireland parking lots. France was saved for handicap and preferred, and it wasn't full. It was a pleasant night, but one needs to have a plan, especially if food is involved. I was able to see 4 of 5 shows easily, I skipped Twas. I felt it was similar to a typical summer Friday night crowd.
We went to Christmas Town this past Friday and Sunday. Two different experiences in the park.
On Friday we arrived at the park early for a tour. Afterward we were able to see all the shows except ‘Twas That Night which we had tickets to on Sunday. We had decent seats for most shows as we chose not to wait in line beforehand. Ate at the Das Festhaus early thankfully with no waiting in line. Mach Tower was not running when we went by so did not get to ride that evening. The crowd level and some luck allowed us to get in everything we planned that night so we left at nine.
Sunday morning we ran the 8K. We arrived back at 1:45 for a leisurely stroll about the park to get in the few things we missed Friday. We came in from Route 60. You could see the cars snaking slowly to parking. I knew it was only going to get worse and it did. I have been in the park when it has closed due to capacity. This was something else entirely. At one point we could not get to the Quick Que entrance for the ice show due to the crowds at a standstill. We were finally able to get through by going sideways towards Trappers then around to the bathrooms where we were able to enter the show. We also made sure to eat dinner early which saved us a lot of grief. We spent the rest of the night shuffling along like zombies in a hoard enjoying the lights. Overall Sunday we enjoyed ourselves despite the crush of people. The phrase "glad we did that on Friday" was repeated often though.
The following are observations without judgement. As someone commented earlier Christmas Town is marketed as a family event for all generations. As such there were a lot of strollers, scooters, and wheelchairs--more than I recall from other visits during the regular season. Groups of people naturally tend to walk side by side down the paths (We gave up and walked single file in order to get through.) The 8K race had about 1,800 participants who were all given coupons for 50% off single day admission to Christmas Town. How many decided to attend that night because they were already in town and the weather was nice?
Busch Gardens has a difficult job balancing between attendance numbers and a quality guest experience. Improving the traffic flow around popular shows would help tremendously. Having enough peppermint fudge hot cocoa would be nice too.
On Friday we arrived at the park early for a tour. Afterward we were able to see all the shows except ‘Twas That Night which we had tickets to on Sunday. We had decent seats for most shows as we chose not to wait in line beforehand. Ate at the Das Festhaus early thankfully with no waiting in line. Mach Tower was not running when we went by so did not get to ride that evening. The crowd level and some luck allowed us to get in everything we planned that night so we left at nine.
Sunday morning we ran the 8K. We arrived back at 1:45 for a leisurely stroll about the park to get in the few things we missed Friday. We came in from Route 60. You could see the cars snaking slowly to parking. I knew it was only going to get worse and it did. I have been in the park when it has closed due to capacity. This was something else entirely. At one point we could not get to the Quick Que entrance for the ice show due to the crowds at a standstill. We were finally able to get through by going sideways towards Trappers then around to the bathrooms where we were able to enter the show. We also made sure to eat dinner early which saved us a lot of grief. We spent the rest of the night shuffling along like zombies in a hoard enjoying the lights. Overall Sunday we enjoyed ourselves despite the crush of people. The phrase "glad we did that on Friday" was repeated often though.
The following are observations without judgement. As someone commented earlier Christmas Town is marketed as a family event for all generations. As such there were a lot of strollers, scooters, and wheelchairs--more than I recall from other visits during the regular season. Groups of people naturally tend to walk side by side down the paths (We gave up and walked single file in order to get through.) The 8K race had about 1,800 participants who were all given coupons for 50% off single day admission to Christmas Town. How many decided to attend that night because they were already in town and the weather was nice?
Busch Gardens has a difficult job balancing between attendance numbers and a quality guest experience. Improving the traffic flow around popular shows would help tremendously. Having enough peppermint fudge hot cocoa would be nice too.
How many people can Forrest of Fun and Land of Dragons hold? I wonder if opening these up for Christmas Town would make a significant difference.
Forecast for Sunday is 70 and partly cloudy. Expect it to be a madhouse again.
PrincessArlenasDad said:
IMO, the best thing the park could do for capacity (aside from opening more rides) is probably open up the path between Nessie and LoD. I wouldn't mind seeing Nessie's loops strung up with lights, probably would help Flight of Lights not seem so dull between Germany and England.