joz

That's definitely a thing. Ever since the 3 park super pass this has been a thing. I think not having a multi day ticket for tourists would be insane. BUT the theme parks are the biggest attraction on the Gold Coast. People if they're coming to the Gold Coast are most likely going to the parks, particularly in peak times. I know I'm beating a drum here, but if you blocked out holidays on the cheapest pass tourists WOULD buy the next one up. That is the biggest place money is being left on the table IMHO.

I think the idea that you're going to condition people to pay $300 for a pass is a bridge to far. If that was brought back out of the blue even with blockbuster attractions at each park they'd struggle to sell them. Realistically to get people to pay more you need to appeal to however much people are willing to pay. Some people will only be prepared to pay $70, some people (particularly tourists) will be prepared to pay more, so how do you get the most out of what people are willing to pay? Teired tickets with blackout dates, 12month passes instead of 'this financial year' passes, and f&b discounts for higher passes all seem like great places to start. I think also prepared to take a hit the year you bring it out, because I think after all these cheap tickets for so long a lot of people would be 'worn out' with theme parks. Though giving people the option of buying a pass like a gym membership where you pay a fortnightly fee of $5 per pass ($130 a year) as long as you want and your pass never expires until you cancel it may negate that worn out thing.

^ Oh yeah of course! Somewhere around the $110-$130 seems about right, then $150 gets you all that and night events plus some other crap. They'd take a hit in the first year of course but as it is now they're taking a hit, they should at least take a hit in a way that sets then up for the future better. I also don't see the point in doing it like a season pass. We don't have seasons, we're just open, so how about just making it 12 months so you don't have to do some crazy discounts in the back half of the year?

I don't think night time events should be in the base ticket, but I don't think the peak of school holidays should be either. The $70/$90 price point is something the market expects now, so rather than get rid of it all together, take away some days so the park is more tollerable on peak days, and hopefully less empty on quiet days.

Why shouldn't all staff know about the park they're in? I don't care if you're the CEO or doing work experience scrubbing toilets, the phrase 'I don't know I only work here' isn't good enough. At least the photo staff were able to send you in the right direction, and didn't just want to give up on it like Guest Services did. I'll give the benefit of the doubt and say he wasn't being rude to guest services, but wanted an answer to his question. Fair enough. I think the real answer is 'There will be a gold pass but no one knows anything about it, because no one in marketing has spun the big wheel that determines what perks are included and how much it'll cost yet.'

Cue my yearly rant about making stuff up on the fly, no long term vision, under valuing the parks and inconsistent ticketing themes. I think this is being rushed out quite early this year to boost what has been financially a rather lacklustre year. Obviously that'll weigh down next years results and oh my we're back onto no long term vision again aren't we!

Well sometimes you're designing something and ADHD happens.

The thing is that modern coasters are designed around the heart line anyway. There's no need to place you between the rails because the track curls around you creating the same effect. it's interesting as a curiosity to see a different approach to making a smooth coaster, but really the superior design won out.

^ Not even a little bit.

Movie World did just get a rather expensive and elaborate kids ride. It's good to see Sea World's kids area addressed, it's been looking rather sad for a while. The rumor mill suggests a pretty good collection of kids rides that almost border on family rides and are visually interesting. I think from a ride point of view though the parks more pressing issue is it's thrill ride line up. It needs 2 good thrill rides to balance things out.

I was about to make a comment along the lines lf 'does it?' to Alex. I'm down with the weeds

AUSSIETHEMEPARKS: please stop quoting entire posts for no reason.

At the top of the lift it's 'Get down, it's ganna blow!' followed by an explosion sound and strobe. Wild West is 'Get out, she's ganna blow, out now I tells ya' Eureka's was much slower and deliberate, where as the Wild West one is more frantic and has the hillbillies accent. That concludeds today's episode of 'Things Joz remembers that no self respecting adult should'

But what is it?

Having just returned I'd say the biggest difference between this year and last is that it isn't stupidly cold this year. I think Carnivale might be my favourite of these nighttime events. There are entertainers everywhere and the place has a really great atmosphere. The food I thought was mostly the same as last year which still means it's very good. Though where has my truffle oil in the chip caravan gone? And for that matter the lattice chips and sweet potato fries? The addition of the bar in the plaza and indeed making the whole plaza licenced more than makes up for it in my eyes. It's so nice to be able to enjoy an adult beverage and not have to miss out on the entertainment. The red solo cups were a nice touch too. The parade is still the star attraction and just the scale of it alone is enough to make it impressive . The fact it's well done and just fun to watch is an added bonus. Though 'Electrical Light Parade?' Really Movie World? You had to steal Disney's parade name? I wouldn't care except each float has a few bits of rope light, not exactly the whole point of the parade like it is with the Disney Parade. Honestly though, when the biggest complaints I've got is a lack of truffle oil at the chip caravan and the name of the parade, you know they've done a ton of things right. I didn't attempt to go on any rides so couldn't comment on queues, except I did notice Scooby had a 15min wait at one point. I was reliably told it was a fairly quiet night though it felt perfect in the park. I don't see the point of these events as being about the rides, as much as I enjoy a night ride on Superman. To me it's about taking in the entertainment and the atmosphere, and just breathing it all in was blissful. I'll end on something I saw happen tonight. There was a performer doing their thing, putting in all this effort for the crowd. Except it was all for one little kid who was just standing there, completely awestruck and entranced. Except I didn't just see this once, I saw it all night, constantly. There were so many performers that they weren't crowded, they just mingled and interacted with guests all night. How many memories must have been created for all those little kids who got to interact one on one with the the performers. Wether it was shaking the tamborines or dancing with a stilt walker. Just brilliant to see, and it's that sort of thing that will bring me back next year.

No and I don't think any of those other parks will invest as much on their next coasters either.

As much as I like well themed escape type parks, I do have a bit of a soft spot for the old school type of park where everything has grown organically and everything is built pretty much over the top of everything else in a fairly small space (Blackpool Pleasure Beach is a good example).

It is designed to be walked over though. I'm not buying the idea it shoots up 60m though. That's the same as height as Batwing.

From the sounds of the comments here it almost sounds as if instead of building the best water park in Australia, they built the worlds best Local Swimming Complex. I think apart from that, Wet n Wild Sydney's issues are that is that they have a host of policies that are are guest unfriendly. You've just got to look at all the complaints and see there are some pretty consistent themes there. People don't like paying for parking, people want to bring food into the park, (particularly when the capacity of the f&b outlets can't keep up), the shuttle busses are inconsistent, pricing is all over the shop, the whole concept of fast passes run people the wrong way, and not enough trading days out of the peak season. And that's just scratching the surface. I think when you have the contempt for your guests that Wet 'n' Wild seems to have, it's not surprising that the repeat business has been sluggish at best.

Look touch wood, I'm lucky with with my health. I also think that if you're injured at work, you should be looked after. Having said that, I question the intelligence of someone who is able to injure themselves in such a way. Factory worker where you're going non-stop, that's where you're going to get an RSI, not someone who checks 7 things every 5mins. There's no reason to be pulling that hard, there's no reason it should be an RSI. Having done a similar job in the past, I think the claim is total BS.

I don't think she should get anything for future earnings, because there is no way that someone who couldn't check harnesses without injuring themselves would have gone anywhere in life. If it's a proven workplace injury, and assuming that Workcover paid for her operations, I think the most extra Dreamworld should have to do is clean a gutter for her to crawl up into, and they really only should do that for the good PR.

I won't go into specifics, but this type of injury is known to water park operators, and is why the rule 'Cross your legs' exists. You can walk over this particular fountain at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, and it looks like she copped a one in a million shot.

Which is why the Justice League can't be in both the Justice League ride and walk around characters. Oh wait a tick...

That's a good point, I've never been to Thorpe Park (sorry Mark!) but I have been to Alton Towers many times, and I'm always surprised at how many of the staff seemed to have a real pride in the place. The park on my visits at least has had a very pleasant feel, and each of the ride staff seemed convinced that they've got the best ride in the park. Just down the road though at Drayton Manor though none of the staff could crack a smile all day on my visit, and Drayton Manor advertises itself as being family run. It seems to me that the size of the company is irrelevant when compared to the intent of the company.

I'm so old school that I still think it should hit the 'R' in Tower