Seaworld TR

[scott]

My mum, sister and I have just spent 2 days at Nara Resort just behind Seaworld. The resort is pretty good and I recommend it if you are spending a few days at the coast. After a bit of pleading mum agreed and let me go into the park today. I got 4 rides on Vikings, 2 on Bermuda, 1 one the Pirate Ship (Don't really like them) and 20 on CorkScrew. There were barely any queues throughout the day and the ride op's were great- a special mention to Megan and Gresham on a great job operating CorkScrew. Seaworld op's are actually good and don't stop the train several hundered times like Cyclone's operaters. CorkScrew needs a bit of a paint job and the ceillings need some dusting but apart from that there wern't any other problems-except for the price of food which was pretty expensive.

[rappa]

You should have gone down to Cartoon Beach and given the ride ops down there a hard time! I hear they are real bad these days, hiring anyone. Glad you liked the park, I think the staff there are fantastic and the parks looks beautiful. As for Corkscrew yeah maybe a few bits of paint but it's still running fantastic and I'm told they actualy skipped the planned down time because of its condition so I guess no paint. Funny you mentioned the braking, Joz and I often comment on this. At SW the Ride Op actualy parks the train MANUAL, no computers just human control and most times its just straight in first go. Cyclone uses computer control and thus 'jogs' the train in which is a complete joke. Just another reason why GO SEAWORLD!!

[joz]

You should have gone down to Cartoon Beach and given the ride ops down there a hard time! I hear they are real bad these days, hiring anyone.

Thanks for the support man Yeah Cork is parked manually, and most ops get it parked right first, if not second time. Cyclone on the other hand is all computer controlled, and last time I went on it took 6 times to park it right. I'll be sure to pass on the kudos to Gresham and Megan. Which day was it that you visited? Glad you had a good day in any case

[Drewboy]

Hey scott, I'm glad you had a good time at Seaworld Nara Resort. We stayed there a few years ago and we were fairly disappointed. The hotel is hardly any better than a Mercure or hotels of a 3.5 star standard and when we were there, there "room only" rate was much higher than hotels of a similar standard. As it's location is a bit inconvenient and we were only going away for a short break we decided to get a rate that included unlimited entry into Seaworld. I think we are still undecided on whether it was the right way to go or not. We didn't really need much more than 1 full day to spend seeing the attractions at Seaworld as we didn't going during peak time. The only real benefit of staying at Seaworld Nara Resort with unlimited entry is that you can drag your exploring of Seaworld out over the duration of your stay. One thing I do remember is mum and dad telling their friends how accommodating and pleasant the ride ops and general staff were at Seaworld. This is a great compliment to them as my parents have a real thing about manners and being polite. Mum was especially impressed with the staff on The Burmuda Triange. I personally haven't been to Seaworld for a few years now because I find that I get bored spending a whole day - the animal exhibits don't really do it for me. Based on what I remember though, Seaworld has fantastic staff, and dare I say it- The best staff out of all the Gold Coast theme parks. Perhaps if Seaworld were to build a world class thrill ride, I would visit it more frequently.

[GoGoBoy]

I agree about Sea World Nara Resort... it's not so great. It's a shame because it has potential. When it first opened I remember it was a bit more impressive. We stayed there a few years back and kept reading all this advertising saying how the resort had just been through a massive refurbishment. But nothing seemed to have changed! I think they had some new chairs in the lobby and that was about it

[scott]

I'll be sure to pass on the kudos to Gresham and Megan. Which day was it that you visited? Glad you had a good day in any case

I visited yesterday. And yes the resort wasn't superb but it's in a great location-right next to Seaworld and the beach. I also started to run out of things to do, which was partly one of the reasons I rode Corkscrew so many times. If it weren't for Planet S.O.S, Dolphin Cove, and the Ski Show I don't think there would be enough for the whole day, which is pretty rare in a park. Oh and tell Megan I was the kid in jeans with blonde hair who kept putting his hand up to go on Corkscrew by himself Also, on the way back from the coast we passed MW and they seemed to be doing alot of construction. It looked too far away from the main park to be for Superman though; I think it might be for a new set.

[T-bone]

Has the stages been re-built from the fires yet?

[scott]

Hmmm, I'm not sure, maybe that's it.

[joz]

The soundstage is just about done, the main construction you saw is, I believe for Outback Spectacular. One thing you guy may be interested in knowing is that Warner Village Theme Parks don't operate the resort. We do cooperate with certain things, but Seaworld Nara has its own Human Resources, its own Union agreement, its own training standards and what not. In my time at the parks, I have only been into Nara once, and that was for a training session for theme park staff, given by theme park staff. Its major refurbishment was more a less just replacing all the beds in the resort, a few paint jobs and that sort of thing. BTW Scott, Megan says shucks.

[scott]

BTW Scott, Megan says shucks.

I see I'm not all that surprised that the resort isn't run by Warner Village, but it is pretty close to the park. I remeber seeing on the website that it is Australias only theme park resort- but then again it's the only one isn't it?

[Whombex]

I personally haven't been to Seaworld for a few years now because I find that I get bored spending a whole day - the animal exhibits don't really do it for me. Based on what I remember though, Seaworld has fantastic staff, and dare I say it- The best staff out of all the Gold Coast theme parks. Perhaps if Seaworld were to build a world class thrill ride, I would visit it more frequently.

I see Sea World's future differently. I'd prefer to see more Animal exhibits, so that MW and SW take on even more different identities.

[scott]

I think it's a matter of keeping a good balance between the two. I like the animal exhibits but there are not enough for the whole day, and they aren't really interesting enough for families (except for Dolphin Cove). The only place where there is really enough space for a new ride is between Bermuda and Corkscrew, and the only coaster that could fit there would be an Impulse, or one similar to RR at Movie World.

[joz]

I think Animal exhibits are, and should be a big part of Seaworld's future. However, of all the Gold Coast parks, Seaworld is the one that's most due for a new (thrill) ride. There is a demand for it in the park, people want more thrills now that Thrillseeker is no longer in the line up. As for the not enough land thing, I don't fully agree with that thought. There is plenty of space if you know where to look for it. For example, a S&S tower ride could easily be placed where the lighthouse currently sits (and even partially enclosed in a lighthouse?), a road runner coaster style coaster could be squeezed in where the current Seal Rocks is (which is meant to be moved soon-ish). In between Bermuda and the Castle is dead space that could house a small ride (It'd have to be small, but I'm sure something could go in there), so that's 3 extra rides without replacing anything, and not mentioning the land between Bermuda and Corkscrew. In addition, there's a few other places around that could house new rides. Really, when the time comes to use that land between Cork and Bermuda, one would think it'd just about time for Corkscrew's retirement, which would leave quite a bit of free land, especially if you retire Pirate ship at the same time. I know, there isn't much of a desire to get rid of Corkscrew or Pirate ship (both on these forums and within the park), but I'm sure if the park decided to replace them with a Seaworld Orlando style floorless, then I suspect there wouldn't be much resistance. Besides, you could probably relocate Pirate Ship to somewhere else within the park anyway.

[scott]

Well yeah, I really don't want to see Cork gone, it's such a fun ride. But it is getting old. How big could the coaster be if that space was available?

[Gazza]

I think the way to go would be to build vertical or linear rides as Joz has said. Types that could be built include: Impulse Coaster Halfpipe coaster Ball Coaster Space Shot Gyro Drop Thrilling Flat ride Vekoma Mad House Observation Wheel Coaster Wheel The park could also try compact coaster layouts (like Daemon at Tivoli Gardens, or coasters that have open cicumnaveragal layouts around areas of the park, for example a coaster that does a lap around the waterpark. A ride might be able to make use of the roof space above bermuda, but there would need to be some modifications to the roof. Or prehaps a coaster could be designed to have a narrow out and back layout, for example, there would be a lift straight out of the station, then a straight drop, then a zero g roll (a fairly straight element) then a cobra roll to be like the turnaround, then a vertical loop, then an airtime hill and the MCBR, then after that another straight drop followed by a corkscrew or two, then some compact twists and turns to bring it back to the station.

[ScReAMmachine!]

I remeber seeing on the website that it is Australias only theme park resort- but then again it's the only one isn't it?

Der Fred!

[dreamworld_rulz]

My sister and i stayed @ the resort and it cost us $195 each per nite i couldn't beleive how much they rip ppl off.We were sharing a room which sleeps 4 ppl no worries but yet we still had to pay for each person.We also bought the unlimited entry which was cool.The only prob staying @ the resort is that u need a car coz once the park closes u have to walk 800m from the bus stop to the resort.One more thing NEVER get a drink from the mini bar.My sister grabed a 300ml (before the 390ml came in) coke and it cost $4.Would have been cheaper to go to SW and fill my 750ml bottle for $2.90

[dreamworld_rulz]

By the way Scott : Great report.Glad u had a great time.

[scott]

Thanks. Just wanted to add that I also saw planet S.O.S, and that was great. The only bummer is people groping stupidly in front of them thinking there's actually something there.