The Original Belinda Brown

Hi all, Firstly let me try and give some responses to the questions I have missed over the last week or so. @ClassyDaedra Yes,last Halloween we played with a lot more themeing and added ghosts to windows, more atmosphere and a few nice family style activities like a Trick or Treat for children across the park. It is not a space we want to dive heavily into as the parents of smaller children often check that we don't have "scary" characters wondering around and we can answer that in a positive as our Zombies are contained. So, we will continue to play with a more family friendly version of Night Events such as Screamworld Halloween. You mention challenging Movieworld, but I would question why when they do a great job and it is their appeal so we would most likely be the difference not the same. @T-bone You had a few questions so here we go. 1) No plans to have Baldwin run more regularly. The old girl doesn't like it like she used to but she enjoys the first Saturday of each month and we love seeing her out, so that keep everyone happy for now. Staffing is not the major factor here. 2) The Fire Engine has gone for a make-over and will return. You will see many of our stationary props go out for some love and come home again now. We've already done the hearse from Gold Rush and many more, and they come back restored and shining. 3) I'm not sure anyone has considered a Steam Train Tour, but I am happy to float that idea around. Great suggestion. 4) Ah - well, yes it (train ride entertainment coming back) has been considered. First we have some track cleanup to do but that is not out of the question for the future. 5) Hit Music in Gold Rush...hmm. It should be more themed and I will pass that along to the music gods. 6) There was a 6th :-) Lighting doesn't exist in that area of the park so that would be a longer term plan for night events. 7) Yes, there was a 7th too! Have we received feedback on the music, absolutely. Most love it and if comments are to be made it is usually around volume not content. Or letting us know if an inappropriate song sneaks in to the playlist somewhere (which we are very grateful to be told). I am not surprised that the Disney songs in Main Street are hit and miss for the opinions on here, the staff who listen all day would agree with the "miss", but for me, as an ex-Disney employee it is the best and I have a great time. So this is personal opinion for which most feedback so far has been really positive. @Santa07 We collected that many comments and requests for screens to be added to this queue-line that we listened to the majority, sorry. @Theme Park Girl You mentioned a few things that were themes touched on by the above so I hope I have your comments and questions covered up there too. @Theme Park Ninja Yes, Billabong is getting another refresh in a few weeks but that will be it for a while. And, don't be concerned, I didn't get scared. To the contrary... this has been fun. To my knowledge we haven't had a Dreamworld endorsed person on here before? However, after some lengthy discussions I may have to stop participating in this forum and out of respect for the site managers I have been quiet for a while while we chatted. I don't think he would mind my sharing the conundrum, so I will explain. By posting as Belinda Brown it seems I fall into a Commercial Category, which comes with a sponsorship fee. This thread was changed (not by me) to be called a Dreamworld Q&A and this also had an impact on how my engagement appeared. My idea and objection was to have some fun, provide some clarity, and answer some questions, not to be on here as a commercial opportunity (that is not my role within the park either). So, since I am not able to be here representing Dreamworld without being a paid sponsor of the site, and being here as me personally would be a conflict of interest, we are at a bit of a stalemate. I can also fully appreciate where Parkz.com is coming from, the last thing I have wanted to do was cause any fraction to a relationship we've been working to foster, so I am treading carefully. I am sure we will continue to talk to find a happy medium.

I like my job. :-)

Hi @Ashley - No plans for either ride to go anywhere. Can't see it being left just as a big Tower landmark, it would have to become something. No new rides planned for WhiteWater World this year due to current project list but we might do something special to mark the birthday occasion.

Morning, Just popped in quickly before heading out to greet our guests today, so I will answer a few questions left overnight that other forum users have not already answered for me :-) @reanimated35 - We wanted used a different coating which should be a higher grade of the non-slip varnish originally on the stage. @AlexB - Much of your query has been answered already. 7 years is a long time for anything tech-based. There are also many components to running a themed attraction such as licensing, visitation, and staffing- all needs to be considered when choosing new directions. @Jamberoo Fan - 1. Contrary to popular belief, our industry is as supportive of each other as it is competitive. We all have interests in each other on a multitude of levels. Ideas, technology (not just rides but POS systems etc), tourism, of course some competition however all Theme parks strive to have a slice of the market appropriate to their style of park. We often talk and share. 2. This is a completely subjective response, you see each group is different. Young families enter and head straight, Teens often turn right, groups of mixed ages tend to negotiate or split. AS you would imagine the back of the park i.e. Corroboree is the last to fill as guests stop along the way to experience what they come across, and it is the first to empty as guests naturally migrate back towards the exit. If we have a major ride down then the whole pattern of the guests changes, as does having a certain promotion in park. Thus the reason to move away from suggested itineraries and move more towards build your own experience itinerary. A, because guests get to structure their experience around their personal interests, and this would allow us to collect better data on the who, how and when. 3. I will let the forum guys get that for you, because again the experience is subjective i.e. I prefer Giant Drop at night west side, but I am sure this will be wildly contested. 4. We've kept 1 or 2 of them all and we do hope to have the time to go through our archives at some point to display some of the really fun items. It is a task though, we've had a long time to hoard. 5. I have no idea. I will ask around. 5.a See @reanimated35 reply. 7. No, as it would be seen to be commercial content for which we are not allowed to provide within this forum. Good rule, as I also would not have time :-) Of course we consider WhiteWater World part of Dreamworld, but it is WhiteWater World. Just as I would consider SkyPoint as part of Dreamworld but it is most definitely standing alone. A water park is its own entity during hotter months and during the winter months it is a bonus. Around the world many water parks only open for a portion of the year, we keep our guy going. But Ibis Island... well that is not its name, it was what I called it. My apologies if it seemed "official".

It is too!!! I give up.

I don't know what happened to my profile photo and banner :-( But I put it back. And yes, Marketplace is the right space to be looking in.

It has been one of the ideas that has been discussed. Hey, Theme Park Girl pretty much answered that for you. Fluffy retired :-( Hi ClassyDeadra, 1. The technology was really dated and became almost a full time job to keep it going. So when talking about what we would have to do to keep it going we decided that we would be better off letting this type of attraction be someone else's speciality. I know it was loved, and it was a long debate to have to make that decision. 2. That is some great feedback, but also part of the reason we have a centralised system now. While great that the style was so personalised, it should be consistent with the park not the operators. That doesn't mean we don't want to take on suggestions for style for consideration when we do update playlists. 3. I am happy to throw this on the table. We have discussed it before and to be honest we have avoided it in the fear that it locks out first time visitors who should also get the chance to book a session. We trialled it once too and found that some people booked but didn't turn up, and wanted to change dates or refund etc. In the meantime we had been turning guests in-park away, so for the moment we have stuck to allowing Night Rider bookings online and trying to keep most FlowRider sessions for those in park on the day. Thanks for joining the Q&A session. Sorry about the responses. Hey Razza, So hard to get this right and make everyone happy. We get asked about kids rides for under 100cm the most at the moment, then about bringing back some of the past attractions, more for non thrill seekers to do, and from this group we get asked for a big coaster more often than not. It is a balancing act we have to match against current plan, available capital, precinct development and demand. I'll keep your request in mind :-) Regular visitors will tell you that you can already see the change and we most definitely have long term plans that will bring a lot of change and additions to the park. He was giving you his honest opinion and showing the determination. Look at me go... :-)

These two.

Ninja knows. He just side-tracked me by suggesting the Fairy Shop would go.

Nah, he is safe. Just.

Movie-World, Sea-World... Dream-World. We were built from a dream to have an Australian style Disney inspired park. Something to be much loved, by many, for many different reasons. The direction is to remain an Australian Celebration, which is why we have started with the Corroboree project. To celebrate all elements of Australia with some theatrics. Direction and plans, identity discussion can go on for days and are all part of bigger strategies. At the end of the day, all those memories you had of Dreamworld when you were a kid, that become treasured memories are the same ideals driving us today. Hey, I touched on Lego above. Cub Kindy will remain an activation space but the cubs will become part of Tiger Island when their real home reopens.

THE FAIRYTALE SHOP??? ARE YOU MAD?? It will be located near Front Entry. Let the speculation begin. Skylink is not coming back. Yes, we should find time to remove the old towers. It has been replaced with new attractions a few times over in the time it has been gone.

Wow... where is the trust Skeetafly? I've said we had some upkeep to do, that we have some areas we needed to improve first, a few new activations that allow variations of the business to develop as quickly as the demand for them, such as our events. I didn't say it was never happening. You have to remember that we see ourselves as a little bit for everyone, and that is what we do, add a little bit of everything and all to a greater plan. TOT isn't too old, he just has a headache and will be back soon.

oh this one. How could you be forgetting Lego? No, I can't tell you what is happening to the Kevil space just yet. Sharknado never really had "us" in mind, he was putting out a concept he would like to get going somewhere, and is still working on that plan from what I hear.

We might, but we are project full up to our eyeballs for at least the next 2 years.

Kenny would not make it through without crying. Did I really miss your query?

The Westfield Development has been in limbo for a long time, with as recently as yesterday getting a little more solid movement, so many things are still on the table around that site. Possibly, we have people dedicated to looking at new technology all the time. Have you tried it? If not in-sync with the ride it is not a wonderful (read nauseating) experience but technology moves quickly so that brings me back to, possibly! And as a business we would be looking for return on investment so I dare say there would be a hire fee involved. not much chance of that, no. Hi, Blue Lagoon was mostly closed down to focus on opening a full sized water park rather than a few slides and a pool. The house is a shell, and not really a house so that has mostly gone. The Studios future has two ways to go, and since not yet within the project list could change so the nest answer I can give there is, of course we wish to expend to include those areas at some point in time. The Paddle Wheeler could only come back as a ghostly version of itself I am afraid. Would the Bush Ranger Show come back? No, bringing it back would never be the same. We now try to bring new street entertainment to the park each peak period to keep it fresh and more on trend (Dreamworld trend). The sheep shearing show now has our farm animals. I think it is time for another visit. Perhaps post September when Tiger Island reopens. Phew... I think I got them all. I am going to Screamworld tonight :-) I am a bit sad about Buzz and TOTII not being up for it but Kenny is a chicken anyway.

oh no... Parrot fever. We do have plans for Ibis Island () & the river. Well the Dreamworld dome was going to be real. I can't think of one off the top of my head but it is probably time to cook Kenny's dinner now. I will think about it.

Hard to get good help these days! Wait! I am the help :-( Thanks Alex B. That made everything worth it.

The 180 changed some things but visitation and usage also played a part. How guests view WWW and how they use it became a new world during the introduction of all inclusive passes. It changed the way Themeparks operate enormously. Once a stand alone park, we like to think of it as part of Dreamworld now and that is something that helps make us unique. We are a wet, dry and a zoo all in one. We still have plans for expansion in WWW. The smaller additions to the park are still part of the greater plans, just not as quickly as the perception may have been originally. Thanks joz, Koala fingers make it surprisingly hard to type too. To answer you question though... Absolutely. Cheaper passes have meant more return guests and they have noticed, responding positively for sure.

We knew, that conversation is long gone.

1. These all would really require in-depth answers, so I hope you don't mind if I give you the gloss version. Its not a new desire, just one being realised due to the ability to restructure resources to try and achieve both new projects, keep up the existing assets and stay on our annual maintenance schedule. Having a bigger park comes with bigger requirements but we seem to have found a way to get this all happening. An old park looks quaint and blended, when you put new in the effect is often that rather than dazzle guests, it highlights what it old. So, we are trying to keep up with a makeover one precinct at a time. I would be surprised if you have been able to avoid doing one of our smartfeedback survey's when visiting the park, and this feedback comes to us in real time, the data is amazing and allows us to monitor sentiment and desire. We listen to what guests are actually asking and what ranks highest, gets the most attention. Of course this is mixed in with what we collect from calls, social media and email feedback. 2. the first answer actually touches on that, and yes we watched and listen. 3. That is the benefit of approaching this as a 10 year plan, we have the ability to know what is in the pipeline and can be fluid as required. This is also why we do our big announcements only once confirmed, as we have learnt it does not benefit anyone if I say, "Mine ride is opening 2016", then due to what we are hearing from our guests we decide that it needs to be pushed back to 2017. The loud message is then mixed with.. but you said Mine Ride in 2016. So what is 100% confirmed is what is put in lights. 4. I think a better question is, will be utilise this competitive advantage. The answer is yes, absolutely and there are plans. 5. Yes, all changes have been to reduce faults. The ride is one of our most sensitive and we operate to its maximum ability within stabilising measurements. And yes, this does change frequently as we update and alter rides and manufacturer specifications. 6. Currently it is close to 60/40. But this is during a campaign for B3G1F and launch of Memberships coinciding with an off peak period. What we sell changes around 4 times a year and this is why we leave our gate interchangeable in structure. 7. The Cyclone was a nice surprise that we managed to sneak in around other bigger projects so the reveal was on spec. 8. Gold Rush. Moto - Well we do have a few things we would like to do to Moto, and plan to before worrying about the track colour for now. More on ride cycle and greater comfort. But, we don't disagree with you it is all priority. Do guests talk about track colour or the experience? This is where where have to make the decision. The fencing around that area also doesn't match, so it is on many hits lists but will get to the action list when we can. Waterfall - Strategically we are moving faster towards water conservation with active changes rather than just following council restrictions. Water collection for more grey water use etc is one of the background changes we have been implementing. Thinker smarter and longer term. As we can upgrade to make older features more efficient then we can bring them back to life. Future - Yes I can confirm. Is it ready for discussion? no. Do I think it is the answer to the prayers I read here? No. but I think you will see the logic in where we are headed? Yes I do.

Hello There, Thanks for the welcome and the excitement of finding the expected questions waiting for me :-) Lets get those out of the way. 1 - Why did the mine ride close? - Well it was old, was no longer meeting safety specifications, and needed a lot of investment to keep her going and update to her to meet new requirements. It is still there because we loved it as much as the guests who still ask about it near on 10 years later, and we were not ready to let it go either. 2 - When will the mine ride open again? Good question. As you well know, we have done some preliminary testing and signs are positive. We have also been working hard on refurbishing, updating, and getting back on top of a lot of general maintenance that fell behind during some lean years. Significant investments such as the TI project are very much the priorities. It is all about available capitol, where to slot a "cross your fingers" project in to what we have already committed to. Cross your fingers is not because it is not a win we want to have, it is because there are a lot of maybe, and we think so, around what needs to happen to get it where it needs to be. So for now we are doing what we can, when we can, in-between everything else. Long answer short, I don't know yet. 3 - Why hasn't the mine ride opened already? See above. 4 - Why haven't you gotten rid of the motocoaster? Because, and stay with me here because I think this might come as a shock, it has major throughput, and holds much love for many. When the motorcoaster is down we hear about it as loudly as we do for Buzz and TOTII. 5 - Why haven't you moved the vintage cars back where they were and gotten rid of the motocoaster? Because that would be a major investment for a marginally loved attraction into prime real estate and what do we gain? 6 - Why are you still reading this when you could be reopening the mine ride? Who says I don't have tools at the ready, while I am replying? 7 - Is the mine ride open yet? see above. 8 - When are you getting a good rollercoaster or dark ride? - It is in the 10 year plan so sometime in the next 10 years. ;-) Thanks for the invite and I am happy to have the open conversation. I also appreciate the introduction reanimate35. I will answer what I can, when I can. This was fun, what else have you got?