joz

Don't know what everyone's on about, Boxing Day was packed (at least at SW, though I can't imagine it being any different at MW, DW and WnWWW). Traditionally, it's not the biggest day of the holiday (that honour normally goes to the first Monday after Boxing Day), but it was still a couple thousand more people then on Xmas eve, a fairly noticeable jump I can tell you.

Its interesting to hear the park claim people were complaining about the parks size as an excuse to close HBL/LWL. I'd be surprised (very, very surprised) if either DW or SW were smaller then WL. IMO, Its purely a profit thing. There's a lot of money to save by shutting an area of the park off which might not be instantly obvious. Each department no longer has to staff that area of the park, which would save 100s of hours labour per day. Maybe the park was reducing the parks capacity since they thought they were paying for a capacity they didn't need?

Eh, it was bound to happen eventually. 8)

lol It was a typo, and completely changed the meaning of the post.

nah, I reckon they look pretty cool. Some people make model planes and whatnot, whats with model rides?

lol thats the one, thanks for bringing back the memorys

Cletis, the slack jawd yokel. Theres a song to go along with that somewhere

Shark Bay has been delayed until Easter. Delays with getting labourers at the start of the construction slowed everything down. The priority was always to finish the enclosure first, so the sharks could be removed from the water park and the water park could reopen. Everything (like viewing areas) except the pools and filtration system is still a construction zone. Its not a total loss though, you can see the sharks in Shark Bay (which include 8 baby sandbar sharks, a couple small rays and tiger sharks) quite well from the top of Polar Bear Shores and from Mid Monorail Station. Some work still remains to be done on Wild West Falls, so there will be some down-time after Xmas. The damage affected everything at the top of the mountain, from rock work to electrical equipment, themeing and everything in between. Probably the most noticeable thing that still needs work from a regulars point of view is one of the main pinnacles still needs to be replaced on the top of the mountain. I'm yet to check out the ride myself since the fire, but I dare say that any improvements to the ride will be made after Xmas. The real priority was to get the ride up and running for the holidays. Damage to the ride was around the $1,000,000 mark, and the repair only took 19days, which a very impressive effort.

Its Christmas, which means the peak holiday season is just around the corner. If your one of the 300,000 or so people heading out the Gold Coast parks in the next couple of weeks, then here's an update of what's going on: Dreamworld will open 2 holiday attractions, the walkthrough Tomb Raider attraction, and Nicktoons live show. Both attractions run until January 23. Movieworld has reopened Wild West Falls, and the Official Matrix Exhibit is the parks new attraction. The park will also have special holiday shows by AMICA until the 9th of January. Seaworld reopens the water park on Boxing day, and Planet SOS in 4D (3D) is the parks newest attractions. The park will also be open until 5.30pm until mid January. Wet 'n' Wild Water World will again offer the traditional Dive in movies, as well as a Kids New Years eve party, with Whirlpool standing as the parks latest addition.

Merry Christmas to Daniel and everyone!

Cheers mate, although you will note that my miss-spellings are quotes from nightshifter.

This post is directed to nightshifter: I don't believe that to have a world class park, all you need is a world record ride. Wonderland has a former world record holder in Space Probe, as well as having the tallest coaster in Oz. These features haven't made the park world class. You mention Dreamworld as being a world class park, while stating the importance of having a terrific coaster... which coaster at Dreamworld is terrific (keeping in mind that ToT is hardly a coaster )? Also, about the claims that not many people know about Luna Park in Sydney's west, can you please point me in the direction of where that information came from? I live on the Gold Coast, and knew about Luna Park when I was 7, long before I had an interest in parks. About the 'its like a non stop festival' claim: When festivals are in Sydney, are they popular? I think people are more likely to "pay $30 to ride a few carnival rides and a lousy replicare of a wild mouse" then they are to pay $70 to ride a few run-down flat rides and a lousy replica of a crap paramount coaster. Don't forget as well, there are still a lot of people in Sydney who remember the 'good old days' of Luna Park, and will take their kids to see it for nostalgic reasons. Think before you post, because your posts are littered with flawed logic, incoherent ramblings, and half baked conclusions. Back on topic: Good to see Wonderland advertising, but I'm surprised to see Wonderland giving out coupons in the Xmas period. WVTPs and DW attract huge crowds over Xmas by simply being open, and save coupons for quiter times in the year. For Wonderland to have to give out coupons to get people into the park at the busiest time of the year really makes you wonder how strong the parks appeal to the wider community is.

hmm, probably fair to say as they haven't put as much thought into the parade floats as Movieworld have... Nice pics as always flea, keep it up!

I'll second the food thing Richard. I ate in Fantisy Land and tried two seperate meals (at the same time) and was still quite hungry. I kinda put it out of my mind because I didn't want to waste my only day in the park eating. Sounds like you had a good day though, keep us posted on how your holidays going.

Back on topic (had to happen eventually): Movieworld is quite confident the ride will reopen by Xmas, as the ride systems themselves weren't damaged as much as first thought. The themeing was the main casualty in the fire. The only question is if the themeing will be back by Xmas.

Agree, all looks pretty good. Although, I went on one of those Pinfari rides in England, and as you've probably guessed as much: they arn't that good. Keep us all updated mate, and keep going for those 1000's of photos One question though; at what point are you going to get the pre-departure photos? :shock:

Maybe I should've miss spelled a few words and left it soaking in sarcasm for a bit longer - it seems like its a bit under done. No way was I being serious. Just thought I'd be the first one this year to bring up the Wonderland closing rumours, after all, it would've surfaced anyway.

*sigh* Not only is Wonderland operating at a loss, its also going to close in February!

I've not only done the Dolphins swim, I've also swum with the Seals and a whole bunch others You do have to buy a ticket into the park, and the interactive tours (Sorry, Animal Adventures) are an additional fee. It makes the whole thing very expensive, but I can tell ya, very worth worthwhile. Not only do I think its good, but I'm also yet too meet a paying guest who hasn't thought it was worth it. The Seal swim is also well worth it, as with the dolphin tours there are more then enough chances to pat the animals, as well as seeing some really cool behaviours you won't see in the shows. The tours are probably the best chance to really appreciate the animals in the park. Heck, even the behind the scenes at Polar Bear Shores is really cool. To see exactly how much space the bears have and to learn about the bears individual quirks is almost a must. That's why I'm pretty excited about the new Shark Bay programs, because the ones that the park has offered in the past have been beyond excellent, and if they are anything to go by, then Shark Bay should be pretty special.

Well what the hell are they spending it on then?

Thing is if I'd said that I'd have gotten a good bashing for it

Maybe I expect too much of Dreamworld. :? Your right, it is a mostly clean place, and the scenery is quite nice - and the great thing is all our parks are like that. Movieworld, Seaworld and Wet 'n' Wild more so, but Dreamworld is kept in pretty good nick overall.

I don't know about that. We might not have all the stuff that they've got over there, but there are some advantages to our parks. There's no off-season here, and for 3 quarters of the year you can avoid lining up for any longer then 15mins. Don't think you could get that anywhere else. The parks here are clean, and well maintained. Next year should see a replacement for Thunderbolt, which looks likely to be of the thrill ride variety. The relocation of Paradise Country as well as the Outback Spectacular (which looks very likely to gain planning permission in the next few days) and the 'new' Luna Park are a few of other major events too look out for. Then there's the great unknowns, Movieworld, Wet 'n' Wild and Wonderland. We may not be in the most crowded area for theme parks, but with 4 or 5 good quality parks, there's enough going on to keep us busy.

lol I just hope that Bush Beast can get up the extra 5 places it needs to make that speil good

Its been a tough year for Bush Beast, slipping 3 places in the Internet Wood Pool to be ranked 150th. Beastie slipped 13 places to be 156th, which leaves it more popular then Mean Streak (167), but not as popular as the criticly acclaimed Zipper Dipper (150) Hopefully with extra TLC, Bush Beast may get up to 145th, or even 140th. Now that would look good on an ad.