Brad2912

If that’s what it utilises it works. The area before the station has mounted fans, and it didn’t feel hot in there at all

Got to experience JR today for 3 rides. the queue is fantastic and evoked memories from Indy at DisneySea. The atmosphere is great, the use of sound, the rumble/vibrations are felt when the train passes through etc. my only complaint would be I’d like to have seen the large snake have an animatronic involved to bring some movement to that area, but the water features and detail are fantastic and set a standard well above anything DW has ever delivered on. loading is simple and efficient. There are signs to direct you to one of 2 queues for either forward departures or backwards departures. Grouper lets through 2-3 cycles worth into the station so it’s quick and easy. great attitude and energy by staff, “get ready for jungle rush” etc by the main ops in the booth. the ride itself is a heap of fun. Won’t describe it in detail but the dark ride sections are fun, I think I personally prefer the backwards departure but understand there could be some level of variation depending upon the day/time etc. really punchy on the corners make for some rib tickling on the side of the train if you are an arms up rider. Did I mention a fully inside queue, air-con and fans? Because I should have, as it made all the difference to the guest experience ride photos were a bit problematic with the screens not refreshing which meant keeping track of time and heading to the photo place at the exit, but it’s still in tech rehearsals so I won’t complain about that. the clear winner by daylight in terms of the new GC park additions

Fantastic venue and akin to something you would see in good theme parks worldwide. Lots of theming and small details, and they haven’t skimped on things at all with the theming running right through to the bathrooms. service was a little slow but you can understand people still getting on top of things so I wouldn’t be too critical food quality for price was great for our group. Everyone enjoyed their meals and it’s was a relaxing, and cool environment to spend torn in. Will no doubt be our regular food option now at DW.

So time to share my impressions Munchkinland/Forecourt the entrance photo op statues look great. Little close to the brake run for SE imo, but I get they working with limited space so will ignore it. The walkway down to the forecourt is great, the rainbow effect is great and the transitional music change is really good. The theming in the forecourt is great, and in the 50mins we were there there was photo op with Wicked Witch, a Dorothy performance, and a photo op with Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man and Lion. All great, however I’d like to see how regular this becomes or even if it still exists in off peak Emerald City Lighting and design is decent. They’ll want to keep those wall projections functional (unlike other projections in the park) or it will be bland and boring. The wizard projection is quite good, though would have been fantastic to have it have more random or lengthy dialogue sets as it does get a little tedious being so short and just on repeat. Flight of the Wicked Witch The internal queue is fantastic with the room of Poppies and then the enchanted forest. You feel immersed in the story, and even my son said “wow this is like a Japan-level queue” and then boom - you walk downstairs and you are in an outdoor cattle run with no shade, and ridiculous slow ops and burning to a crisp in the sun. I can’t overstate how much the experience is wrecked by this. The immersion is gone and you just want to get it over with. You enter the castle for the final part of the queue which does look good, but it’s not air conned so there is no respite from the baking you’ve just had. They only let 1-2 groups into the castle at the time. The ops just seem entirely haphazard. The 2 cycles where I could visually see what was happening has 4-5min waits between guest disembarking and next guests being let onto the platform simply because the sorter is also the harness checker and they didn’t start sorting until the previous ride disembarked. The entrance to the ride gates is in such a close proximity to the entrance, they have to fill gates 4/5 which are directly in front of the entrance last as you wouldn’t get people past them otherwise. the ride itself is punchy and smooth, and a much better experience than similar coasters I have been on, so gets a big tick on that. There is a short jolty break mid final turn prior to the full break run which is a little strange in terms of forces, and the ride photo for mine is far too late in the ride, but aside from that no complaints. Kansas Twisters I could probably copy the same as the previous tbh.. the starting internal queue is great, immersive and fun. Then you are outside. In the sun. The grouper, who is deciding whether you get in the yellow or the orange train queue, had absolutely no concept of counting. We were told to join the orange train queue, which is on the opposite side of the station so you have to head up and over the track inside the barn. After a couple of cycle, it was blatantly apparent he couldn’t count as we were probably 3-4 cycles from getting on the orange train, and there was only 6 people waiting for the yellow. Cue us excusing ourselves back past another 10 plus people and jumping the rail to join the yellow train queue. Did I mention it was hot? And the barn had no air con or fans? Who designed this place? the ride itself is fun on the forwards cycle, but to be honest I found the return journey just too slow to really consider re-riding again. You walk off to look at chain link fencing and the 30 year old back of house offices. We’re not in Kansas anymore Toto… i also didn’t mention that there was no announcements over the speakers on either ride, no “enjoy the ride” or “you’re about to take flight on blah blah”. The only thing said by staff was yelling “don’t touch the seatbelt, we will do it up. Don’t touch the seat belt” on FOTWW. overall if they spent $100m they need their better people making the financial decisions for the park. Whilst it’s clear nothing is going to change short term, they need to drop some money into this thing before next summer to at a minimum have some shade sails over the queue line, and put some air con or fans into the internal queues. Then they need to sort out their ops. promises so much, but just misses the high mark it set for itself unfortunately. It’s not a fail by any stretch, but if it’s a 2 horse race between Oz and Rivertown - DW has is won by the length of the straight

Gates opened 9:55am but only to the rope under the arch. Rope down at 10:01am. Twister queue opened 10:08. witch opening now at 10:11

Back this morning to check out Oz after no luck last night. I do find it crazy that even if the rides open at 10 that they don’t open the park gates at 9:30 to let people in. Queues out to the roadway for all gates and it’s already bloody hot in the sun.

Should be available for existing pass holders at a nominal small amount as well….

Correct

I do have to give them props for trying to fleece guests… when you buy tickets to the buffet (which is the quietest I have ever seen it -half tables are empty) there is pop up that asks if you want to add a Bugs bunny Christmas sack for $10, usually $20. I passed on it as I’m a little past Santa sacks. Lo and behold, you arrive at the buffet and your “free” gift is said Santa sack. i’d be pissed if I had paid for it also kudos on removing self service soft drinks from the buffet… certainly cuts down consumption when you have to get in a line at the bar to get a refill of your coke… no character visits either..

You on VTPs payroll now? it’s disappointing because they had a chance to do something that would have give thousands of people a great experience and chose not to.

Makes no sense. The more people that experience and love it will increase uptake in annual passes and increase positive word of mouth. in saying that, we’re now at 5 plus years of JL not functioning beyond 50%, and today there is no air con in the show building which makes for just fantastic fun… VTP more interested in GCB fluff pieces than giving people a great time

Why? Because it is now officially open, you have a sold out event and having it opens makes for a much better experience for everyone - and last time I checked the guest experience is their key metric (or so we are told). Having hundreds of people being told at the entrance to the rides it’s closed after allowing them to all walk down the pathway and into the land etc is just disappointing people.

WoO not part of WC this year. Pretty rubbish given it’s open now officially. WWF closed too And spaceshot…

Big fail not keeping WoO open for white Christmas

Haven’t been to SNW at USH, but have at USJ and it’s anything but cheap and unimpressive

I don’t think 6 years later anyone was still waiting on the answer…

I want to know what RSLs you are visiting….

Or just used the existing thread this was posted in 16 hours ago…

Fingers crossed it may be open for WC on Saturday night

haha, true that! It's a start

if only the park was open later than 5pm.... i'd make the trip. Maybe Thursday

Dreamworld to end human interaction with theme park tigers Dreamworld has made a huge decision regarding their hugely popular Tiger Island, one which could leave the animals stressed and depressed. Dreamworld has moved to end contact between humans and tigers for good at the Gold Coast theme park, after a handler was attacked by one of the venue’s resident big cats. Dreamworld is installing a series of fences and gates which will allow the apex predators to move between the Tiger Island attraction and areas back-of-house without having to come into direct contact with humans. Visitor encounters including photos and walks with members of the public were scrapped several years ago while the proposal to “phase out” tiger-handler interactions was first floated two years ago, but seems to now be close to becoming official. The latest move comes after a handler was bitten by a tiger at the theme park in September and taken to hospital suffering “serious lacerations and puncture wounds” to her arm and shoulder. Such incidents have been rare, with two handlers taken to hospital after being injured in 2011. After the September incident, Dreamworld promised a full review, and management has since decided to phase out human interaction with the park’s tigers. It follows similar moves away from animal encounters at other attractions, with Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary this year scrapping the iconic koala cuddle photo opp with visitors. In a statement, a Dreamworld spokesperson said the park had been planning the transition for some time and had “invested significantly” in upgrading its tiger habitats and facilities to enable this transition. “The safety of team members, guests and animals are Dreamworld’s highest priority,” the spokesperson said. “As a result, Dreamworld has now transitioned its tiger program to a non-handled operation. “Tigers remain a critical part of the experience at Dreamworld and for Dreamworld Wildlife Foundation, which has contributed over $2.2 million in funding for tiger conservation projects in the field via Wildcats Conservation Alliance since 2012. “Guests will continue seeing tigers on exhibit, and in time, will receive a re-imagined educational presentation at Tiger Island about the importance of tiger conservation.” However, some industry sources have expressed concerns over the move, saying hand-reared tigers who had known human contact for their entire lives may struggle with the changes. “All they have ever known is to be around handlers and this sudden cessation could have an impact on their welfare,” an insider said. During lockdowns at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, studies showed Dreamworld tigers exhibited signs of stress and depression due to the lack of human interaction. It eventually saw staffers spend their breaks at the Tiger Island attraction to give the tigers a greater human presence. Tiger Island has been one of the world’s most acclaimed tiger attractions since its opening almost 30 years ago, with the centre stimulating donations to wildlife projects and helping to diversify the gene pool for tigers in captivity through successful breeding programs. However, in recent years several long-term staff members have moved on. Another industry insider described the move as “the end of an era”. https://www.couriermail.com.au/lifestyle/pets-and-wildlife/dreamworld-to-end-human-interaction-with-theme-park-tigers/news-story/36509f4d097e4415087ee3156959169e

No you can’t… if you sign a 2 year contract at x per month, it’s a contract and you keep paying it. You can’t cancel it early unless you pay it out in full to terminate the agreement. you can choose a non-contracted agreement, but that monthly price is higher

Wow, the added greenery has really made the world of difference there is no doubt in my mind from an immersive perspective this is the best we’ve seen from a GC park, attention to detail seems fantastic and the weathered look and greenery still to grow in means the area won’t age negatively like many other themes areas we have seen in the past. Jane’s Restaurant looks on par with any themed offerings I’ve seen overseas

That’s a real bizarre take. The full price is written directly under it. It’s not like it’s an asterisks and down the bottom of the page. no different to a phone company advertising a plan to $50 p/mth rather than $1800 for the 3 year contract (which you will need to look for asterisks for…) it does not in anyway invoke that a discount is applied.