Tag: Spinball Whizzer

Blog, Reviews

Alton Towers – Festival of Thrills – The Smiler Takeover 2023

Loops&Lapbars

This is Alton Tower’s first event this year and the second time we’ve had the Festival of Thrills. In this blog, I’ll compare it to last years event, see what worked and what didn’t and give my verdict.

As it’s The Smilers 10th anniversary this year, Alton Towers have branded this years Festival of Thrills as The Smiler Takeover. This means the Ministry of Joy, a fictional group who are behind the construction and running of The Smiler, are out and about and have invaded certain parts of the park. The interactions we had with the staff were great and they really did keep in character, coming across as reassuring and blatantly fake, in line with The Smilers story. They were very well acted!

As for the park itself, there were several displays dotted about each of the big roller coasters were the ministry were conducting tests to find new and interesting ways to being back peoples smile, such as terrifying them on Th13teen, or measuring excitement levels on Rita. You couldn’t interact with the scenes as they were static, and it would have been nice to see some lights or sounds on at least one of the displays! There was also a stamp collecting element, where each ride had a stamper that is used to emboss a card you pickup at any of the stations or at the park entrance. Once you’ve got all 6 (from the 6 big coasters) you can post yourself on social media with it for a chance to win an overnight stay in the resort hotel.

Over in X-Sector is where the bulk of the event was taking place. There were 3 shows to watch, Meet the Ministry, The Ministry fear Test and a karaoke show. We didn’t see the Meet the Ministry show as we were in the wrong place at the wrong time, but we did see the Fear Test and Karaoke shows. The Fear Test was pretty decent as it put a chosen subject through a series of daft tests designed to raise their fear levels and earn them a one way trip to The Smiler. The actors were entertaining and kept in character very well. I really liked the fact that once the tests were done, the test subject received The Smiler fast track tickets which was great to see!

As for the karaoke show, it was very cheesy and maybe a little bit lacking on quality. It wasn’t so bad it’s good, or so bad it’s terrible, just somewhere in between in my opinion! some of the songs being sung were linked in subtle ways to the event though so that was something.

Outside of the event, we got our first ride on Twistatron, the parks newest Retro Squad ride. This is a self built trabant/wipeout style ride but the seats face out from the centre. The ride took ages to load and unload and when we got on, it was actually quite good fun until it got properly going as the seats and restrains mean that the ride simple feels like its trying to throw you out. Usually this is a good fun element to rides but here, it just felt uncomfortable. Thankfully Alton Towers don’t run these rides at full speed for long so it was still enjoyable. On the fair circuit however? I wouldn’t want to ride knowing it would run faster and for longer.

Spinball Whizzer was finally up and running (which was actually it’s first day this season). It’s had a bit of an overhaul so I’ve read, and if so, then it is noticeable! The first thing we noticed were the restraints are now very tightly locked in place. This wasn’t so much an issue for me, but it was for Tracy. She ended up having to take her coat off and ride the ride cross legged in order for the restraint to close far enough. I think this is a bit overkill as we’ve never had anything like that issue before on Spinball or Dragons Fury at Chessington. I hope they relax this just a tad as Tracy said it’ll be a ride she won’t rush to go on in future because of this.

It’s not all doom and gloom though as a positive change seems to be that the break runs now longer jolt the car as they pass through. When we rode it, we sailed through all the break runs and it made for a much better experience! The final break run is still quite abrupt, but you can prepare yourself for that one much easier.

Other than those two rides, there wasn’t that much to talk about. The Smiler was running great and queues were quick, Th13teen was the same and The Curse at Alton Manor ran nice and smoothly today too.

Overall it was a good day, but the event was definitely lacking somewhat. I’ve seen a lot of criticisms about the event online and some are daft, while others I agree with! I feel that they didn’t quite take the takeover far enough and it felt a bit like the scenery around other rides was an after thought, though the park wide audio was great. Another criticism is the lack of event specific merchandise, or at the very least, something to commemorate The Smilers birthday! I’d have loved a pin badge or t-shirt to take home but unfortunately, there wasn’t anything for us!

How does it compare to last year? Well I certainly thing last years was better myself. The music used for The Smilers stage last year fit much better, and the Festival of Thrills was overall a bit better quality than this years offering. It’s a shame as I was quite looking forward to it, what with it being The Smiler themed and The Smiler being my top coaster (currently). I hope we see something come out through the season to commemorate this great attraction.

Overall, we still had a great time but it just could have been a little better here and there!

Blog, Fantasy

Alton Towers – What I’d do if I were in charge

Loops&Lapbars

Here’s a big park to tackle with this blog series. Alton Towers.

For me, the park doesn’t really do many things wrong, it has some of the UKs premier attractions such as Nemesis and The Smiler. It’s also been a testing ground for many worlds first attractions such as Air, Oblivion and Th13teen and I’ve personally had some of the best days out here.

That being said, there is still room for improvement. As the park has added new attractions and rethemed areas, it’s caused a few issues here and there with existing rides.

– THE MAJOR CHANGES –

Rita and the Dark Forest

The first big change that really needs addressing is Th13teen and Rita. Poor old Rita gets a lot of flak for its ride duration and theme. When it first opened in 2005 in the Ug Land part of the park, it didn’t really fit, and with the opening of Th13teen and Ug Land becoming Dark Forest, its theme was altered to fit the area.

I actually like the idea that Rita was once a drag racing machine that is now abandoned and used to escape the forest, but I know that not everyone agrees.

To remedy this I’d either take Rita out entirely and sell it onto another park or move it somewhere else in the park so another more fitting ride can occupy its space. As for what I’d put there, I’m not 100% sure!

One idea I’d like to see is an Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC) Raptor coaster, similar in concept to Rita but executed in a much better manor. The ride would be racing away from the creeping vines and roots as Rita once did, but since Raptors are capable of tighter turns, this would lead to a much better experience. The ride would be custom built and heavily themed to really bring the Dark Forest to life!

Failing the RMC, then maybe a really good quality interactive dark ride. Something like Gangsta Granny but with interactive shooting elements and more special effects.

Dark Forest could also do with a permanent supporting ride in place of the current Retro Squad offering. Something like a Chance Rides UniCoaster or even a new type of log flume/water ride to absorb guests.

Galactica

The second issue with Alton Towers is Galactica. Similarly to the issue Rita faces, Galactica doesn’t really fit its area. When it was unveiled in 2002 as Air, the world’s first ‘true’ flying coaster, it didn’t fit with Nemesis in the Forbidden Valley section of the park.

While Ripsaw and The Blade, were both themed to look intimidating and threatening and Nemesis themed to a dangerous monster, Air was themed to be more tranquil and quiet and almost an escape from the terror surrounding you. In 2016 it was updated and transformed into Galactica, with a space flight theme. This still didn’t work and personally, I think this is the biggest mistheming issue that Alton Towers has, more so than Rita.

At least with Rita, the ride is trying to fit in with it being used as an escape vehicle! Air/Galactica hasn’t ever fit in properly with Nemesis or its supporting rides.

So what would I do? I’d certainly not scrap Galactica as I think it would do great in another park, such as Drayton Manor, Flamingoland or Oakwood. In its place I’d put another beast of a ride. Maybe a floorless rollercoaster, another flying coaster, or even a B&M Wing coaster. Name it Vindicator or something similar and have it up to the rider to decide if its themed to attack the Nemesis monster, or to aid it in its destruction!

– THE MINOR CHANGES –

Mutiny Bay and Wickerman

So we’ve tackled Rita and Galactica, next is Mutiny Bay. This area is perfectly fine for the most part but it could be improved so much to fit Wickerman in. All they’d need to do is loosen the pirate theming a little, add a lot more wood and a few fire torches and make it more of a cultist village. Wickerman would fit right in then!

Katanga Canyon

Katanga Canyon is also fine, though I’d give Runaway Mine Train a little attention. I’d turn the tunnel into a properly themed mine, and spruce up Congo River Rapids so the water elements work and maybe add new interactions along the way!

Duel and Gloomy Wood

Working our way around to Duel and Gloomy Wood. I don’t know if Duel could be moved to Dark Forest and rethemed to the dark ride I previously mentioned, or kept here and given a full refurbishment.

Assuming the latter, I’d look at slowing the cars down during most of the ride, overhauling most of the scenes so there is more to look at and shoot. Next I’d give it small coaster elements like a section where the guns aren’t used and the car travels much faster around twists and turns and down hills and such. Really amp up the haunted house strikes back as I do like the idea that the house is actively out to get you and you’re fighting your way through. Air blasts and water jets would be excellent additions in my opinion!

X-Sector

X-Sector is almost perfect. Assuming Enterprise is running and The Smiler and Oblivion are doing their thing then little needs changing here. However, Enterprise is regularly down and suffering quite badly with its age now, so maybe it’s time it was replaced with a newer permanent ride.

For its replacement, I’d go with a Zamperla Gryphon. It has a similar style to Enterprise but offers something different at the same time. Still giving single rider experiences and looking great to boot, but also having good throughput and theming flexibility.

I feel that when Mixtape was in the area that it fit right in (aside its colour scheme). So I’d love to see a permanent version of one of these installed where it initially stood (and Spinjam now occupies). Either that, or one of Zamperla’s Blendez models. These look just right in my mind for X-Sector, and probably aren’t as intense as they look too!

The rest

CBeebees land, Gloomy Wood, Towers Street, World of David Walliams, The Towers and gardens are all absolutely fine as they are. I wouldn’t change anything here. I’d change out Spinball Whizzer for a Mack Spinner, in the same vein as Storm Chaser at Paultons Park, but a little bit more intense.

The Hotels and waterpark are also great, little changes if any needed here too. Extraordinary Golf could use a freshen up, though I’ve heard that they’re in the process of doing so for its 15th anniversary this year.

Finally there’s the car park, monorail and entrance. I think the monorail windows need clearing so you can see the park properly as you travel from the car park to the main entrance.

A new purpose built entrance should be made at the Galactica gate for car park users and hotel guests, with a speedy lane used for hotel guests to keep that special element included in overnight stays.

There was a lot to write about here. Alton Towers is a fantastic park as it currently stands and I’m more than happy to visit with its current ride line up and themes, but I’d love to see it taken to the next level. These are all purely hypothetical ideas that I’ve had, and the probably isn’t anyway an RMC Raptor could be used to replace Rita, or Duel having a huge overhaul, but it’s fun to discuss nonetheless!

Leave any comments down below, start a discussion, lets see what else Alton Towers could do!

Blog, Reviews

Fireworks Spectacular – Alton Towers

Loops&Lapbars

Our final visit for the 2021 season was Alton Towers for their Firework Spectacular event. Our intention was to ride as many rides as we could before the fireworks closed most of them at 5pm, then head to the lawns for a good spot.

Our day started like most at Towers, getting onto Wicker man first before the queues became too long, then onto Battle Galleons as there wasn’t a queue and next to Rita. We were intending to ride Th13teen, but due to the new rules, it can’t run in the rain. There was a bit of mist about, which I assume was why it was closed earlier on in the day but we never actually got any rain all day. It did open later but we were always miles away from it!

Next we went on Roller Disco, one of the Retro Squad rides that were brought in to relieve queues on other rides. Roller Disco is probably the weaker of the Retro Squad as it didn’t have much force or spinning to it. I’m not normally a fan of Waltzers due to the stop/start nature of the spinning but even I would have liked a little more!

Next was Gangsta Granny: The Ride, which was fine once again, and even with this being our third ride, I still noticed new fart jokes in there!

After checking our photos for Gangsta Granny, we headed to The Burger Kitchen for some dinner, which was nice. Chips could have done with cooking a bit longer, but it was nice enough. I think they could have done with opening up the whole restaurant for seating though as it was very cramped!

Our next visit was X-Sector for rides on Mixtape and Oblivion. The Smiler was still down so I couldn’t get a final ride of the season today, and through out our visit neither of us saw any action at all from the ride. Hopefully it’ll be back next year!

Mixtape is arguably the best Retro Squad ride, at least for Tracy and myself as it is a really fun, decently forceful ride! Even though the soundtrack to all three is the same, I think it fits Mixtape the best.

We then headed to Spinball Whizzer, Runaway Mine Train, Duel and finally Funk n’ Fly. Funk n’ Fly is only the second Super Trooper that I’ve ridden and this one’s sequence was the best. When it initially tilted, it felt just like Clarence Pier’s one, but when it went the other way, it did so with enough speed to properly shake the gondolas which was a thill and certainly woke us up!

With our last ride done before the fireworks, we headed to Towers Street. Festivities started at 5pm warming everyone up until the show at 7pm. All in, the were about 16,000 people in attendance for the fireworks, and looking around, you’d think there were a lot more!

As for the show, it went through the history of the park, starting in the 1850s when Alton Towers was finished, then onto 1980 when the park first opened as a theme park. Many of the rides get their own segments such as Nemesis, Oblivion and The Smiler, others were absent, most notably Galactica which didn’t get a mention at all. Maybe it really is curtains for Galactica?

The display featured dot matrix screens, fire and smoke, excellent audio, as well as many lasers that filled the sky above us, and of course many fireworks too!

The whole show lasted around 26 minutes and was a fantastic way to celebrate the 40th anniversary and round off the 2021 season. Last year was Alton Towers’ 40th anniversary but due to the ongoing Covid-19 Pandemic, the fireworks were called off. I am so glad they managed to get them in this year, and even though we grumbled at having to pay £20 on top of our annual passes, we thought it was well worth it in the end!

Those involved should be very pleased with themselves for bringing together all those elements and making it work so incredibly well! Even Tracy said that it gave Disney’s fireworks a run for their money! Let’s hope we can see more of this going forward!

For those who didn’t go and wanted to see it, I recorded the whole show and it’s on my brand new YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHbpfNFvoh0

Please give it a watch whenever you’ve got time!

After the show, we caught up with Theme Park Worldwide again, and this time managed a photo and met Charlotte too! They’re both lovely, and hope to see more of them on our travels!

Thanks to Tracy for taking this photo of Theme Park Worldwide and myself!

To round off our day, and the season, we had a ride on Galactica, the last of the big coasters we’ve yet to have a night ride on. It rode as well as it ever has and even though I think it’s day are numbered, I look forward to more rides in the 2022 season and beyond!

Blog, Reviews

Alton Towers – Oktoberfest 2021

Loops&Lapbars

Last year, Alton Towers launched a new event, Oktoberfest. Unfortunately we didn’t manage to get to it, but heard great things afterwards so this year, we made sure to go and visit and see what the event was all about.

We made a small break of it by stopping in the Splash Landings hotel for a couple of nights, having a day in the water park, and of course, visiting the theme park too.

Day 1 – Arrival

We travelled down with the aim of getting there for around 3pm when our room would be ready at the Splash Landings Hotel, so we could check in and head into the park for the last hour or so for 1 ride, take some photos and have a peek at what Oktoberfest has in store for us!

We saw that Th13teen had a 10 minute queue so thought it rude not to have a ride, but it turned out to be a walk on! Afterwards, we bought a photopass, giving us 4 printed photos for £20. Not quite the bargain that the old annual digipass used to offer, but not a bad deal, especially when compared to Paultons 5 for £40.

Next we meandered around the back of the park, taking photos and and taking in the afternoon atmosphere before we headed up to Towers Street where most of the festivities were.

Some of Oktoberfest as seen from the top of the Towers.

Similar to how Scarefest was laid out, we found many different food offerings and stalls, selling a range of beers and Bavarian themed foods such as pretzels and bratwurst. We had a beer and wandered around checking out all the stalls ready for the following day. I can definitely recommend Spaten lager!

Once we’d had our fill of the evening’s entertainment, we headed back to the hotel for something to eat.

One thing to note, is that we decided to go during the week for this visit with the hopes that it would be quieter and it certainly was! Even though it was a mid week visit, there was still plenty of entertainment running, and it even ran on until 6pm, an hour after ride closed

Day 2 – Oktoberfest

Day 2 dawned to a beautiful looking day, clear and bright, perfect conditions for a day in the park. As we were hotel guests, we were able to use the hotel entrance by Galactica, so we headed off and once we’d been bag checked, queued for our first ride of the day on Galactica.

We ended up having the privilege of being first on the ride so opted for a back row. As we intended to reride Galactica, it meant we could compare the back row to whatever row we managed to get on our second ride.

I’ll write another blog post going into more detail about Galactica, my thoughts and observations of the ride, but for now, both of us enjoy Galactica, it’s a gentle giant and a polarising change when compared with Nemesis, our second ride of the day.

Nemesis!

We ended up getting mid trains seats in Nemesis and it ran really well, not too much head banging and roughness today!

Fast passes

Following on from our forays in the Forbidden Valley, we went off to Towers Street to pick up our fast passes. Now I know fast pass tickets can cause a lot of controversy but I don’t mind them at all. They are expensive for what they are, and it does upset some folk that others pay to be ahead of them, but I don’t mind others doing it, or paying to do it myself. It allows me to have more packed into my day at the cost of money, as opposed to it costing me time in queues. As it turns out, the barcodes I printed were all we needed so this was a little bit if a wasted trip!

X-Sector

Once we’d gotten back on track, we headed off towards X-Sector. Our first attraction was The Smiler, and for the first time ever, Tracy rode along with me. It really wasn’t her cup of tea, too many inversions for her liking but I thoroughly loved it. It rode well, there was only a small amount of roughness that I could feel, though Tracy did mention she suffered a lot of head banging so I don’t know if being taller helps here!

The Smiler!

After being ‘corrected’, Tracy needed some time to cool off so we stopped for a break just outside X-Sector and found there were loads of hungry ducks! Both if us managed to hand feed a couple, which was a first for me!

Wickerman & Katanga Canyon

After that, we went off for a ride on Wickerman, the parks newest rollercoaster. We’ve had a fair few rides before and have both commented how Megaphobia is a better woodie, but today, Wickerman was riding like a treat. Smashing through the turns, bouncing all over the place and feeling properly unhinged as a woodie should. Hopefully with more and more time passing, it’ll cut its own grooves and really come into its own!

Sharkbait Reef next. We’ve had plenty of walk throughs of the attraction in the past, but it’s always nice to head in and see if anything has changed, as we found that Chessington’s Sealife had been updated when we went during Wilderfest.

Horseshoe crabs – One of many species to discover!

Not too much had changed from our last visit, but it was still nice to have a relaxed walk through and see the animals.

Next we decided it was best to do the Runaway Mine Train in Katanga Canyon while we were up this end of the park.

Runaway Mine Train is a fine example of a family rollercoaster! The ride operators always seem in excellent spirits and regularly engage with riders and tease sending them off on 2 or 3 cycles. We thought we were only getting two as the train had almost completely stopped before they sent us off on another run.

Between the ride operators, the ride itself and how it interacts with the rapids ride, as well as its theming, it’s always worth a visit to Katanga Canyon for a go!

Before heading onto Forbidden Valley, we stopped off for a ride on Duel: The Haunted House Strikes Back! It’s fair to say that we both really enjoy this ride, but it always breaks down into which is better, Duel, or Tomb Blaster! For me it’s Tomb Blaster, but Tracy backs Duel!

Either way, Duel is a great interactive dark ride, where riders score points by shooting at targets scattered around a haunted house. For me, it’s a thoroughly enjoyable ride, but could do to see a few more modern animatronics and maybe a system where shooting targets activates things.

Definitely worth the visit to have a go on Duel!

Back to Forbidden Valley & Beyond…

We then headed back to Forbidden Valley to reride Nemesis and Galactica. I managed to get the fabled back row, right hand seat on Nemesis and it really does feel like another beast riding from the back as it does the front.

Galactica felt very similar to our earlier ride and previous rides to this, though we have both remarked that mid train or front was generally better than a rearward seat.

Next we headed off to The World of David Walliams and a ride on Gangsta Granny: The Ride. It was just as I remembered from earlier in the year, but for me it didn’t feel as good as before, maybe the first ride spoiled me?

It didn’t help that people weren’t following the rules and the ride operators kept jumping in and telling people off over the speakers, which killed the experience a little!

Dark Forest

Dark forest next and a ride on Th13teen first. Middle of the train seat, not much to remark really. Not a bad ride here but not the best, as the best rides on Th13teen are when it’s dark!

Rita next and the ride operators was a lovely chatty lady and you could tell she was a keen thrillseeker too. Though she said she’d never had anyone ask her for a backrow which I thought was strange as many rollercoasters are better on the back row!

Rita and Th13teen!

As for the ride, it was just as good as its always been! I’ll have to write a post about my opinions on Rita entirely, but for now I really enjoy it! Our ride was great, a little bumpy in places but still as enjoyable as ever.

Our final ride of the day was on Spinball Whizzer, the parks Maurer Spinner. For long enough I’ve rated Spinball as the best of the UKs Maurer spinning rides, but as of late, Dragons Fury seems to be giving much better rides. I don’t know what’s changed between the two, but Spinball always seems to be the same no matter who you’re on with, or where you sit.

It’s still definitely worth the ride and enjoyable for the most part with the only real nasty bits being the final brake run which can be quite abrupt. Other than that, it’s a decent ride, and the area always seems full of energy with it handling multiple cars on the track, and the audio being bouncy and fun. Love Spinballs musical score too, full of retro delights!

Finally we headed back around to the bottom of Towers Street to have some Oktoberfest food and drink and take in the entertainment. While we were on the green, I spotted none other than Shawn from Theme Park Worldwide! We stood and talked for about 15 minutes and what a lovely guy he is. Hope to catch him around again soon!

Unfortunately Charlotte was working which was a shame as we couldn’t meet both, but it was incredible to see someone in the flesh who I regularly watch on YouTube! A real theme park celebrity so far as I’m concerned, and it was the cherry on top of the cake for this visit to Towers! Thanks Shawn!

To conclude our day at Alton Towers Oktoberfest, we had a brilliant time. Even though we went midweek, there was still plenty of entertainment to enjoy, the ride queues were shorter than I’ve ever known them to be, and the park was running extremely well!

I can highly recommend Oktoberfest for anyone who likes good food, a tasty beer and lots and lots of over the top Bravarian goodness!

Blog, Reviews

Attraction soundtracks

Loops&Lapbars

One of the things I rarely ever hear anyone talk about are attraction soundtracks. The music that plays in the queue line, station building or themed area. Something that adds ambiance to an area, or builds up excitement for the ride you face!

I don’t know why this is as there are some excellent scores to some great rides here in the UK, and saying that, there are some excellent rides that are missing musical accompaniment!

The good!

When I think of musical scores, the first one that usually comes to mind is The Big One’s theme from Pleasure Beach or Helix at Liseberg. Both of these are euphoric dancey tracks, and even though I haven’t ridden Helix, I can imagine it fits really well. I could easily see Helix’s theme used with Icon at Blackpool Pleasure Beach.

Icon, with Big Dipper and Big One behind

Another score I really like is Galactica’s. It fits the ride perfectly, has a sense of wonder about it and adds to the space exploration theme Galactica has. I love this one!

Galactica. A lovely soundtrack to a lovely ride!

Nemesis also has a great theme, chilling and foreboding, it helps to add to the terror of the area and the ride itself.

Another thing I do like it how Imascore, who did the music for Galactica, Spinball Whizzer, The Smiler and Wickerman at Alton Towers included parts from In the Hall of the Mountain King, Alton’s unofficial theme. A very nice little attention to detail by some very talented musicians!

The same can be said for Thorpe Parks theme, it incorporates segments of the big 5 roller coasters, and the themed areas appear to have excerpts from the main theme too. I also like Derren Brown’s Ghost Trains score.

Tornado Springs at Paultons Park also has a great score, feeling very in keeping with the 1950s American theme they have there. Same for Storm Chaser, thats theme is great too, mixing 50s guitars and rock with the sounds of a raging storm.

Tornado springs at Paultons Park

Chessington World of Adventures has some good themes, its overall park theme is fun and inspires adventure, Croc Drop’s theme is also good, but Vampire’s theme is excellent and fits the ride and station building fantastically.

The not so good!

Personally I like, but don’t love Icon’s score. It has some excellent parts, but a lot of it I find to be quite lacking. I just doesn’t have the epicness in my opinion!

Rita is another rides whos score is just ok. I didn’t get to experience Thunder Rock radio when Rita was still part of Ug Land, but I could see that fitting really well. The score it has now, does still fit the Dark Forest and Rita’s final chance of escape theme, but it could be so much more. The fault lies in the fact that Rita doesn’t properly fit Dark Forest and didn’t fit Ug Land when it was there either.

The bad!

For me, the worst score that a ride has is Oblivion. The repetitive techno track doesn’t really fit the theme of Oblivion being a next level of fear that you have to overcome, riders disappearing into nothingness and not returning, but with a techno backing track? I really don’t like this one, but I do wonder what could be used instead?

Riders braving the drop (and score) on Oblivion

Aside Oblivion, I haven’t heard a score/theme that I really don’t like, but I’m sure there will be others out there that are good, not so bad and terrible!

I haven’t been to Europe or the USA to sample their delights, but I have heard a few scores like Taron’s and Helix as mentioned earlier, and I can’t wait to get abroad and see what hidden gems there are!