Lightwater Valley - Future?
- Thread starter CrashCoaster
- Start date
I do fear for Lightwater valley with this news and their new direction. There isn’t much extra at Lightwater Valley that you can’t find at a local farm attraction for a fraction of the cost.
I do also fear this will have a knock on effect on Flamingo Land. Competition is good, Flamingo Land no longer has any realistic regional competition and their owners seem more focused on a long standing battle with a Scottish community about opening a resort up there. The lack of competition in FL’s immediate vicinity could see the investment drop off while they expand their market elsewhere.
I do also fear this will have a knock on effect on Flamingo Land. Competition is good, Flamingo Land no longer has any realistic regional competition and their owners seem more focused on a long standing battle with a Scottish community about opening a resort up there. The lack of competition in FL’s immediate vicinity could see the investment drop off while they expand their market elsewhere.
sneakycoasters
Roller Poster
To be fair I think Flamingo Land stopped putting a ton of effort in quite some time ago. I'd say in the late 90's the two parks were basically in the same position. After Flamingo Land got Velocity and Kumali in, Lightwater stopped really being much competition.
Lightwater kept throwing up temporary fairground rides while Flamingo Land was installing permanent ones, and permanent buildings, expanding their holiday park etc.
Now that Flamingo Land built Sik, I dont see them putting much effort in for a long time, they don't need to. They've had the north east and Scotland as devoted visitors for a long time anyway.
It's quite depressing as I think there was always space for both parks to exist and survive together. I always thought Lightwater could have become some kind of mini-efteling, a more quirky and beautiful park with unique attractions, whilst Flamingo Land would have had the bigger budget rides albeit with the holiday park stuff and not as interesting of a place.
In an alternative universe I could have seen Lightwater getting The Ultimate rebuilt in a new form by a proper manufacturer, or sections replaced to smooth it out with new trains. A woodie down near where Soopa Loopa was. A mixture of family friendly dark and flat rides.
Right now the park has:
The Ultimate and its building SBNO.
Raptor Attacks building, queue, station and old gift shop boarded up and abandoned.
Whirlwinds concrete foundations sat empty and bare.
The area around where Widows Web used to be is littered with old concrete footings and stuff.
Toad Hole sat abandoned since 2005.
Lightwater Wheel foundations sat empty.
The wave pirate ship foundations/lake/waterfall sat empty.
The old go kart track partially built over with remains left.
Skate Kart track left as just a random bit of tarmac.
Hungry Harbours roof has fallen in ages ago and so it's all just closed up.
My guess is they're planning to separate the park from the area where the Ultimate is, to potentially sell off that land and redevelop it. Posh houses would be my guess.
Lightwater kept throwing up temporary fairground rides while Flamingo Land was installing permanent ones, and permanent buildings, expanding their holiday park etc.
Now that Flamingo Land built Sik, I dont see them putting much effort in for a long time, they don't need to. They've had the north east and Scotland as devoted visitors for a long time anyway.
It's quite depressing as I think there was always space for both parks to exist and survive together. I always thought Lightwater could have become some kind of mini-efteling, a more quirky and beautiful park with unique attractions, whilst Flamingo Land would have had the bigger budget rides albeit with the holiday park stuff and not as interesting of a place.
In an alternative universe I could have seen Lightwater getting The Ultimate rebuilt in a new form by a proper manufacturer, or sections replaced to smooth it out with new trains. A woodie down near where Soopa Loopa was. A mixture of family friendly dark and flat rides.
Right now the park has:
The Ultimate and its building SBNO.
Raptor Attacks building, queue, station and old gift shop boarded up and abandoned.
Whirlwinds concrete foundations sat empty and bare.
The area around where Widows Web used to be is littered with old concrete footings and stuff.
Toad Hole sat abandoned since 2005.
Lightwater Wheel foundations sat empty.
The wave pirate ship foundations/lake/waterfall sat empty.
The old go kart track partially built over with remains left.
Skate Kart track left as just a random bit of tarmac.
Hungry Harbours roof has fallen in ages ago and so it's all just closed up.
My guess is they're planning to separate the park from the area where the Ultimate is, to potentially sell off that land and redevelop it. Posh houses would be my guess.
sneakycoasters
Roller Poster
Have they actually brought back skate karts..... Ok I forgive them for everything.
But yeah continuing their level of investment.
But yeah continuing their level of investment.
sneakycoasters
Roller Poster
Demolition has begun.
EDjanaika
Mega Poster
It looks like they're storing the carriages of the park's best ride inside the building that used to house the park's second best i think if that's Raptor Attack. Sad photos
sneakycoasters
Roller Poster
Thanks for sharing my photo. Broke my heart seeing this. The lift was pulled over with everything in-situ, all of the signs etc. Even the heras fencing they'd put on the lift to stop urbex people climbing it - was left on there to be destroyed.
The park seems to be managed and operated by extreme penny pinchers who are happy to destroy the parks icon for a bit of scrap money.
Yep that's where they are. Old Raptor Attack building also with all of its queue and themeing sat there but no coaster at the end of it.
The park seems to be managed and operated by extreme penny pinchers who are happy to destroy the parks icon for a bit of scrap money.
Yep that's where they are. Old Raptor Attack building also with all of its queue and themeing sat there but no coaster at the end of it.
Peet
Giga Poster
Another update from @sneakycoasters:
I'm surprised they're going to the effort of such a thorough removal, always imagined the track through the woods would be left to rust away, I suppose scrap metal prices must be fairly high at the moment.
I'm surprised they're going to the effort of such a thorough removal, always imagined the track through the woods would be left to rust away, I suppose scrap metal prices must be fairly high at the moment.
Peet
Giga Poster
And yet it's still only at 3.5/5
RevolutionRuleZ
Mega Poster
An extremely sad sight.