PREVIEW - Alton Towers' 'Rollercoaster Restaurant'

Spending a weekend exploring everything that it has to offer, it becomes clear very quickly that the Alton Towers resort is no longer a single-day affair. Yes, thousands still flock to the Staffordshire theme park for a one-off day of thrills, spills and adrenaline, but over the course of the past two decades, Towers has gradually taken the Walt Disney World approach of supplementing the theme park itself with a number of themed hotels and guest experiences. Wandering between the park, water park and various hotels, the ‘resort’ label couldn’t be more fitting - it’s a colourful, vibrant, brilliantly themed world all of it’s own, and there is far more to see here now than can be fitted into a single day’s outing.

Even pushing aside the fantastic quality of experience to be found at any of the three distinct accommodation options you are faced with, the main park itself is now so positively bursting at the seams with rides, shows and distractions that to try and cram it all into a single day - even with a comprehensive Fast Track pass in hand as we did on our visit (which essentially cuts out any and all queueing) - will inevitably lead to missing out on chunks of what the park has on offer.

GALACTICA - The future of the rollercoaster?

Chief amongst these in 2016 is the revamp of what was previously the ‘Air’ coaster - which has now taken a step into the 21st Century by becoming the world’s first Virtual Reality coaster. The same track and skeleton for Air remain in place, but it’s quite surprising how transformative the VR experience - courtesy of a perfectly comfortable attached headset - proves to be, and is a genuinely exciting indicator for how other rides and parks may implement this burgeoning technology. 

Galactica - formerly 'Air' - has had a complete design overhaul in addition to it's new VR technology headsets

Some may perhaps feel the headset cuts out some of the natural visual and visceral appeal of height, speed and other sensory thrills that come from being on a coaster, with the end result of Galactica feeling more akin to a particularly vehement and thrilling simulator if anything, but it’s nevertheless a quite dazzling and exciting experience like no other at this or any park.

Plus, you can always take the headset off and ride it as per ‘Air’, though the park expressly prefers you to embrace the VR technology.

THE ROLLERCOASTER RESTAURANT

The main focus of our visit was to preview the original, brand new ‘Rollercoaster Restaurant’ which opens to the public on May 13th (booking in advance highly recommended!), is situated next to Galactica and in many ways illustrates the site’s most open embracing of a distinctly high-concept , innovative approach to the experience offered to visitors.

The central concept of the restaurant is the delightful idea of your meals and drinks being delivered via - you guessed it - a rollercoaster track. It’s a brilliant concept that was visibly appreciated by adults and children alike, making for a completely unique dining experience that is buoyed by the complete control the restaurant gives you in making your order. 

The interior of the 'Rollercoaster Restaurant', showcasing some of the overhead tracks and loops orders are delivered on

Tablets on each table give an interactive menu which, after a very brief demonstration by waiting staff, is your means of controlling what you eat and when you eat it. Simply select through the various courses, sides and variables - including vegetarian and children’s options, naturally - and sit back and await your order to come whizzing down one of the overhead tracks. In the meantime, watching another table’s beef burger loop-de-looping its way overhead (safely secured in a strapped down metal pot) as a bottle of Coca Cola whizzes by underneath it never gets old.

And, should any gremlins interfere with the mostly automated, technical side of things, there’s a highly attentive and friendly waiting team at the ready (particular credit to servers Lou and Heather on our visit) to check in on any queries or questions you may have.

The restaurant itself is, as to be expected, themed around the rollercoasters of Alton Towers’ history. It also has a welcome embrace of heritage; showcasing not just the big, thrilling super coasters of today, but also the ‘Black Holes’ and ‘Corkscrews’ of yesteryear. Take time to check out the fascinating design sketches and concept art on the rear wall for an intriguing look into the creative process that goes behind each of these mammoth constructs.

The Rollercoaster Restaurant is not the cheapest option for food in the park by any measure - mains start at the £12.95 mark each and can creep up to £25 for a fillet of steak and chips, for instance, and for a family unit the overall bill can creep up to a quite considerable figure, but it is the kind of full dining opportunity that the park was previously sorely lacking, and in practice the cost is extremely fair when levied with the quality of food on offer, the generous size of portions and of course the completely unique dining experience that is provided. There's also the option of the cheaper lunchtime menu, which will provide different options whilst sacrificing none of the overall fun and impact of a visit to the restaurant.

 A fun, quality dining experience like no other...

The Rollercoaster Restaurant is already proving to be be highly popular, and it isn’t difficult to envisage positive word-of-mouth spreading fast, so securing yourself a reservation is highly recommended - particularly if visiting at a weekend or during school holiday periods when the park is at its busiest.

THE WOODLAND LODGES & OTHER UNIQUE ACCOMMODATION

As mentioned, to take in everything Alton Towers has to offer - particularly including a visit to the new restaurant and a stop off at the indoor ‘Splash’ waterpark - really necessitates an overnight stay, and the resort has you covered with three (arguably four) very distinct, themed accommodation options.

The newest arrival - the Enchanted Village - offers either a series of delightful, Hobbit-like ‘Woodland Lodges’ or the more grandiose ‘Luxury Treehouses’, both of which gives guests a slightly more independent, self-contained stay, with the Woodland Lodges in particular delightfully characterful chalets which are only a short hop and a skip from the main monorail station and the other two accompanying hotels. The Enchanted Village by night, sprinkled with fairy lights and a cosy, self-contained ambience, is a thing of true tranquil escapism.

The Splash Landings Hotel, which also houses the aforementioned waterpark, carries it’s Caribbean theming through to every nook and cranny and feels every inch the holiday getaway, whilst the slightly more whimsical and empirical Alton Towers Hotel rewards exploration and offers up two of the best dining experiences in the whole resort in the Secret Garden Restaurant and the Emperor’s Grill. Both hotels also boast the opportunity to stay in some fantastic themed rooms, from the dynamic yellow and black stylings of the ‘Smiler Bedroom’, the girly decadence of the ‘Sleepover Room’ to a personal favourite, the beautifully realised arctic finishings of the ‘Ice Age’ rooms.

The Enchanted Village 'Woodland Lodges' offer a characterful, peaceful chalet retreat from the high-octane thrills of the main park

Naturally, a stay in any of the accommodation options can cost a fair penny - particularly if opting for the Luxury Treehouses or one of the special themed rooms (for which, again, booking in advance is an absolute must, particular at peak periods) - but, much like the rollercoaster restaurant, the overall experience is second to none, and the attention to detail, attentiveness and helpfulness of staff and quality of experience is generally of an exceptional standard across-the-board.

STILL THE UK’S BEST THEME PARK DESTINATION

As the iconic 34-year-old log flume back in the main park is slowly dismantled to make way for it’s intriguing new ‘SW8’ successor project in development (which, spoilers: information on the Rollercoaster Restaurant tablet hints at it being a new coaster of some sort), it’s in many ways a fitting analogy of the cyclical process which has kept Alton Towers in place as the de facto theme park of choice for so many around the Country. 

It may not have enjoyed the easiest of years, but bold new implementations of VR technology as evinced in Galactica, and the wonderful high-concept fun of the new Rollercoaster Restaurantare clear signs of a resort that remains dedicated to pushing its own frontiers and exploring new ways of thrilling visitors and providing the best possible experience for its guests. There seems to be a new impetus and lease of life across-the-board, with staff notably more enthused, personable and energised than on visits even 12 months ago, and from the ashes of a difficult time, the rehabilitation of Alton Towers couldn’t be more admirable or re-assuring; providing a diversity, quality and standard of theme park experience that is simply second-to-none in the UK.

- Kyle Pedley

Tickets: 0871 222 3330 (Theme Park & Waterpark)  / 0871 222 1100 (Accomodation)

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