ALTON TOWERS THRILLS

摘要

In a summer punctuated by coach operators' Honk for Hope protests about the loss of much of their work in these strange times of lockdowns and social distancing, here is a reminder of one of the many popular destinations that have attracted large numbers of coaches from far and wide. The Alton Towers estate in Staffordshire was developed as a theme park in the 1980s and greatly expanded in the 1990s with the construction of a series of new rides offering extra thrills for visitors. It was acquired in 1990 by the Tussauds Group, which in turn became part of Merlin Entertainments in 2007. As a venue keen to maintain and develop its links with coach operators, it hosted the UK Coach Rally for three years from 2013 to 2015. The rally had been held at Brighton every year from 1957 to 2009, then moved for the next three years to Peterborough. Alton Towers had more to offer, but lacked the space to attract more coaches to the rally, which maintained its links with Merlin Entertainments by moving to Blackpool from 2016.