I was trying to save the Dungeons until Scarefest but I couldn’t resist any longer & decided to experience it last Saturday. I hope you all enjoy and I would love to know your thoughts on this new attraction for 2019 below in the comments.
Disclaimer: This blog will contain a few spoilers as to what happens inside this attraction. If you don’t wish to know anything keep an eye out for our Trip Report from Alton Towers later today. But if you don’t mind knowing a few spoilers continue reading.
For merlin annual passes the pricing is next to nothing at only £2.50 with the Alton Towers app. However if you don’t own a pass showing the app will get you entry for only £5. As for the upcharge I do feel as if it doesn’t get as many people in the attraction as it would if it was free. But during the likes of Scarefest I completely agree with the upcharge but during normal season I don’t think it should be a thing.
Entering the attraction our time slot was actually 15 minutes late. But once you head inside you have your photo taken by a themed actress and then wait in a small queue line. You get a briefing about what to expect and not to do then you enter into The Judges Room. The theming & atmosphere within this area was definitely well done.
Within this room 3 people get picked out of the group for their trial. It’s very interactive room which is a lot of fun. The actor within this room was fab and played his role so well. I personally reckon the duration your in this room is pretty much perfect.
We never rode Charlie before so didn’t know anything about the layout or duration of this ride. However getting onto the ride is fairly simple and well organised the boats seat 9 people with 3 a row. The theming is really fab inside but without a doubt there’s too many pitch black / blank areas. In some sections you get water dripped on you and sprayed to match the scenes. The projection mapping is done perfectly throughout with the animatronic looking real scares. Overall the boat ride is very creepy but perfect for the overall theme.
I thought this smaller scene was really fab as it just kills time whilst waiting for the rest of your group to get off the ride. The projection mapping again is done perfectly. Within this section it explains what you’ve seen whilst on the boat ride. During our experience the mans face kept falling asleep with the actor waking it back up by clapping and shouting. Again it was done perfectly and wasn’t too long to wait before heading into the next room.
This room in our opinion was probably the weakest. You could feel the actor overcompensating for her role and it was pretty obvious. Within this room 2 guest get picked on with one been locked in the cage & the other in the torturer chair. The overall story for this room is quite funny but if the actor didn’t overdo it would of been much better.
Weirdly this was one of my favourite rooms the way the effects & actor combine is fab. Within this scene you sit across two rows of chairs which have speakers either side of your head. There’s a bar at the centre of the room. The actor was really fab in this room and explained little bit of story & How Dickturpin was about to enter. This then leads to the effects been used like back pokers, speakers. It creates the effect of Dickturpin walking across the room as some peoples speakers would be louder one side of the room then quieter the other side etc. As the lights come back on the main actor is in front of someone which creates the perfect jump scare. Then a barrel at the front sprays the audience.
Similar to the Highway Man room there two rows of seats with the main set at the front of the room. When walking into the room there’s a body on a hospital bed with sheets over it and honestly it looks so realistic. Again one person gets chosen out of the crowd to sit in the chair at the front. The actor within this scene was one of my personal favourites. The seating has effects which made it feel like the loaches from the jar which have escaped are underneath your bums. When the actor pulls the insides out of the dummy on the bed effects were fab again. The bladder she pulls out she says is full and squirts the audience with water from it.
I heard nothing but amazing reviews from within this scene before entering but wasn’t 100% sure what to expect. But entering the room sadly the actor broke character when speaking to the group. However once the story began she was fab at telling the story. This room your sat around the edge of the room with a table in the middle. The story of Molly Lee is told and the lights go out the actor has gone but the stuff on the table begin to move by themselves creating the illusion of paranormal activity. Next thing the lights go off and Molly appears in front of you and that happens 2/3 times around the room. Truthfully it was the best room out the whole experience and definitely the scariest thing we’ve witnessed from the Dungeons we’ve experienced. The jump scares within this section are insane and the lighting & overall experience is insane.
After the finale I was expecting nothing to happen within this exit corridor. But the actor from the previous room pops through a window in the wall creating the perfect jump scare ending.
It’s a fab edition to Alton Towers and the fact they are using the boat ride is another factor to why we loved this attraction. Admittedly there’s room for improvements with every corridor been blank and lacking so many potential scare moments. Which also goes for the Black River Boat Ride there’s many areas which aren’t put to full potential. It’s definitely worth checking out and it’s perfect for younger children who are brave enough. We’re very excited to see how it will change during Scarefest and can’t wait to experience again.
What’s your thoughts on this brand new attraction? Let us know in the comments.