DaptoFunlandGuy

22% were commuters - meaning they were using it to get to and from work. That doesn't mean 78% were tourists. Punters would frequently use it as an alternative method to get the hell away from the S.E.C. after a large act had finished a show. There were uses for it other than tourism, but it was hampered by the lack of other great attractions on the circuit. Plus - it was hardly 'an attraction'. For an international tourist's bucket list - Bridge, Opera House, Luna Park, Taronga Zoo, Manly Ferry, Bondi Beach, Centrepoint Tower are usually the only things in sydney. Branching out and you'll start to hit things like featherdale, or Scenic World.... but I doubt many people (other than rail enthusiasts) would have had the monorail on their list. Z - the problem is for Push - he WOULD keep the delivery service, because he likes it, and would gladly pay extra to keep it running. He doesn't use logic, or common sense. He doesn't consider the bigger picture. As far as he is concerned, every business in the world should do the things that he wants them to do, regardless of good business sense. The point is, you can't reason with him no matter what you try.

It's a shame they took a wrecking ball to the area, instead of removing some of the signage and themed elements first. I'm sure many fans would have paid handsomely for some of that.

I'm with you Skeet - especially number 3...

They could get the designers of JDS back in to do another Mini-Movie World, and a dreamworld, Sea World and WnW... since they're all on teh gold coast...

#calledit

what... no caps lock?

"The Harry Potter Zoo Experience"

^Except for the lawn on the opposite side of the entrance to Green Lantern, as I proposed months ago - but I do think the western area is likely going to see an expansion of some sort....

HKDL - The thing to remember about HKDL is that it was always designed with the non-riding photographer asian in mind - as I said earlier - they have many great photo spots. There are more park photographers in HKDL than i've seen in any other park, and whilst you're wandering through - especially if it's with friends and family, it's well worth the five minutes to get some really awesome shots (and not have to carry a camera around). OP - It's not so much the heat. I've done OP in February and could still do with cooling off, especially if you're hoofing it up and down the mountain - word to the wise - as mentioned - start at thrill mountain, work your way down. Don't skip something to 'come back to it later' as you will literally be pushing shit uphill. Raffles - I've sat in their courtyard and watched as the bartender poured and mixed the Sling from scratch. It was 5 years ago, but I also don't think it was $36 - but even if it is, enjoy at least one - IMO it is well worth it.

Just as confirmation - Nearmap is pretty spot on too, even if my track tracing isn't perfect... it's close enough...

I think the author has gotten a few things confused here - "Baldwin" and "Perry" have been interchanged halfway through - the first part says the Perry was gifted to the ANGRMS and the Baldwin was on track yesterday, but the second part says work has gone into the Perry, and the photo caption says it was the Baldwin now at Woodford...

I would suggest the diesel loco will be back on the tracks today now that we're out of holiday peak season with school going back today. TBH - I'd be happy if they ran steam \ diesel on alternating days - if thats what it takes maintenance wise for the steamer to stay in service... but I don't think it's worth running two trains on such a small track. For starters they'd need to double their current carriages, and even then - I don't think i've ever seen a time when the train didn't have enough seats for those who were waiting... so adding twice the number of seats 'to reduce waiting time' wouldn't really be worth it.

Comments on DW's facebook page this morning (from Dreamworld) suggested they were happy to see the steamer back, but that 'it takes her a lot longer to get going these days due to her age' - so i think we'll only see her out for special events. It would however be nice to see them commission a new loco altogether, one that will last for many years to come.

And 45 minutes on Kraken vs. an hour at WnWS are comparable - especially since AW isn't a full-water park, and WnWS is... not to mention the sheer size, and population surrounding would increase things for WnWS. I think it's a fair comparison, and is not at all a slight against AW.

#stillagirl

Sometimes, you learn something old...

The operating hours for the train have been that way for some time...

There is merit to the idea of a 'staff entrance' - there is currently a passage backstage on the 'down street' end of Roxy. With some of the theories we've spitballed about a new attraction or precinct going out the front near Stars Cafe - relocating that passage to the courtyard behind Rick's would be the first step in repurposing the front area.....

Did either of you manage to get a photo?

What does that have to do with the price of fish?

I'm in. Let's go Dreamworld... bring back the steamers!!!

so...... thunderbolt?

Hong Kong Disneyland For me, regardless of whether it is busy or not, I recommend 2 days minimum at HKDL. I've been both during Chinese New Year - pre-expansions, and in May - Post expansions. Both times were solid two days. We had plenty of time to re-ride, especially the more intense rides as the locals tend to steer away from those, but it gave us the time to enjoy ourselves without having to stick rigidly to a schedule, whilst still catching all the shows. Don't miss Festival of the Lion King, and although it isn't in English, the Golden Mickeys is something worth catching at least once - its a musical stage show, and all the songs are in english, so it's still very good. Stitch Encounter is also quite amusing. There is nothing in HKDL that I could say 'it's ok to skip that' - do them all at least once - even the smaller kids rides in Toy Story Land are enjoyable. Space Mountain remains my favourite there, but Mystic Manor runs a close second, followed by Grizzly. Make sure you get a map and tick off things as you go - you don't want to miss anything, and the park layout may lead you astray. If you're into doing the full Disney experience - make your first stop the Plaza Inn and make reservations for the Star Fireworks Dinner. The meal is an 8 course degustation of traditional chinese dishes - and it was awesome to try their culture in a setting where you could be confident the food quality was there. In addition to the dinner, their staff will then escort you to reserved seating areas in the hub, prime position for the nightly fireworks. Here's the menu: (remember, the price is HKD) Even if you get the whole park done in one day - allow two - you never know if you might need it - but don't try to rush the park. A lot of HKDL was made with the chinese tourist (photographer) in mind, so there are very picturesque spots everywhere that are beautifully landscaped in every detail, so take some time and smell the roses... (On the topic of photos, they offer a photo pass deal - one price, all day, every photographer and ride photo in the park for no additional cost, with every one available as digital download for 2 weeks. We found it was well worth it to get some really good pro shots within the park too.) Ocean Park Ocean park is well worth the trip, but is always a disaster. Worst days to go to Ocean Park are Thursday through to Monday. Tuesday and Wednesday are the best options, although near Chinese New Year, they may not be good options either. Main reason for this is "Mainlanders" from China do day trips (or long weekends) to the park and generally cause havoc. Thursday is ok, if you get out by about 3pm. As per other advice - get in the gate ASAP and go straight to cable car or train. Train runs first, but cable car is less likely to have a lineup. Do the top of the mountain first. kill EVERYTHING up the top quickly, and work your way slowly down the mountain towards the older rides. Don't miss the mine train (its very unique), as well as Hair Raiser. Dragon should be done once - especially for credit chasers - but once only (and take some panadol). I recommend Dragon to be the last thing you do on the mountain if you can help it. Many of the run-of-the-mill rides like ferris wheel can be skipped if you've done them as they're no different - but the spaceshot has a very unique view. Grab the rapids and the flume to cool off, or visit the penguins for better effect. Polar express is a kiddie coaster, but quite an enjoyable one - so try and fit it in if you can - the capacity is awesome so don't worry too much about queues. Despite being a 'marine' park - i've found the marine animal shows to be at best disappointing and at worse alarming, when compared to the care, conservation and 'natural' look of our Sea World. You're not missing much if you choose to skip the dolphin or seal shows, but do try and catch the bird show. The other animal exhibits are quite interesting - especially the goldfish (who knew there were so many) and the pandas. The grand Aquarium WILL become a crush if the Mainlanders arrive before you get to it, and since it's near the exit, it'll be the last thing you hit up before leaving. It is still 'just an aquarium' at the end of the day, so you can skip it without missing much. Most people are done with OP by late afternoon. There is a dancing fountain show in the waterfront lagoon (outside the aquarium) after dark. I haven't seen it myself, so I can't say whether it's worth hanging around several more hours, but if you do find yourself there at the right time it'd be worth a look. All i read and saw before going suggested it wasn't a 'World of Color' show... That said, since you're doing Singapore as well - you won't miss much if you find time for 'Wings of Time' - the replacement to the ever popular 'Songs of the Sea', which in my opinion was a contender worthy of comparison to World of Color. Since WoT replaced SotS less than two months later... i assume WoT is equally impressive. Singapore As mentioned by others, USS tends to be a bit heavy on the 'right' hand side. I prefer to head left and go through Madagascar and Faire Faire away first. You'll be close to Waterworld for the first show of the day when it comes, and you'll get most of the afternoon sunshine whilst doing the outdoor rides (mid-morning tropical showers are likely, which is why Madagascar and Shrek are better for the morning being mostly indoors). I'm mixed on whether the fastpass is necessary - I went in September (around the time of the Singapore Grand Prix), and whilst we did spend some time queueing, and did see some people using them, they weren't really needed (although we did split up to single rider for the JP Rapids). Pay attention to showtimes, and head for LMA early, but USS is really easily done in a day. Allow another day, if you can, to spend time on Sentosa, catch Wings of Time (as mentioned above) do the zipline, the luge, ride a bike around if that's your thing - the whole island is worthy of your time. If you still have time, another day should be spent on doing the Singapore Zoo, and the Singapore Night Zoo (the bird sanctuary thing isn't really appealing for me). Other randomness in no particular order for both HK and Singapore: Singapore Merlion. There are several - one on Sentosa and one near Marina Bay Sands, but the real one is on the opposite side of the harbour. Marina Bay Sands in Singapore is worth the trip up if you have a night free Raffles hotel - the ONLY place to try a Singapore Sling The Peak (Hong Kong) A Symphony of Lights (Hong Kong) right on the harbour - I recommend the Kowloon side so you're facing HK Island - English narration is available Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Out of time to write this now... PHEW! if I think of more i'll come back and add later... In short you'll never be short of something to do in either place. Enjoy!

We follow the parks very closely. We pay attention to every sneeze and sign. Of course we know HWSW and Cyclone are the same ride. But when Joe public reads in the paper that dreamworld has an all new roller coaster called "HWSW" he's just going to take it at that value, and take the family to the park. Of course, once they realise they are the same, they're already in the park, so they'll enjoy their day, and probably won't complain either.... therefore - the marketing works.

Don't be sorry. All of Australia calls them chips... As does UK. Americans call them fries...