What would you do if 'you' owned or managed DW?

[skystar_a320]

In a 'Dream' land you have the power, you own or manage DW. *** THIS IS ONLY HYPOTHETICAL *** What changes would you make? What would you improve? What would you keep? What would be retired or thrown out? What do you think is needed to make DW Number one? Also I know we could say you would build hundreds of 'super' rides, but lets be SEMI Realistic and think of it from a business perspective, you want it to be the best but you don't want to be bankrupt Looking Forward to hearing what people think could be done. I know there is dribs and drabs of this in other topics, but lets have a fresh one that is about DW only and things that you think could realistically be done. i.e not demolish and start over Maybe DW will read this and discover some fresh ideas???? I want the goldrush area to be re done. With a new roller coaster. As much as i loved the mine ride they need to do something!! Get rid of the chair lift stations already! Rides with higher PPH. the cyclone and TOT take to long in peak times. A new Thril Ride, and not another Motorcoaster style THRILL RIDE!

Edited January 10, 2008 by skystar_a320

[www worker]

sell it to WVTP along with WWW

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

sell it to Sunway... they have a great reputation with doing something great with theme parks that are tanking...

[BNErider]

I'd rather Disney to buy it, but I can't see that happening.

[Spotty]

Ash, if Disney brought Dreamworld they would probably just look at it and freak. Then they'll bring in the Bulldozers and start fresh

[rappa]

Ok I'll answer seriously... -First I would do a radical shape up of how the opertations department runs the park. All of the rediculously low capacity ways of running rides would be out and the staff would have to haul but and get the people moving through there. I would put in place an incentives program where by staff compete for the highest throughput on their attractions and are rewarded appropriately. -Second I would be doing a walk through of the entire park and every single piece of damaged, missing, broken theming would be going and be replaced with stuff that is going to hold up against the abuse of patrons. Anything that required continual maintenance would be going because realistically in a theme park environment that just doesn't happen. -Before any new attractions were even considered some of the existing ones in need of love would be attended to. The mine ride would be opened or removed, chair lift would go, the cars would stop using a car port as a station and so forth. -The park would be abandoning the idea of thoroughly themed attractions, because they have never managed to build one and it's just not their market. I am a strong believer that no theming is better than half assed theming. Future attractions would be nicely presented and have a simple theme attached to them (like the claw). Budgeting and reworking of capex would be initiated so that a new major THRILL ride could be installed to put the park back on the map. -A new entertainment offering would be considered for the old Blue Lagoon site. A show has the ability to draw huge numbers out of the park greatly reducing the stress on rides to soak up the numbers in the park. That's me for now.

[nev]

I'd make that sweet-as salt and vinegar chicken that they sell next to Wipeout available all over the park. That's all Dreamworld really needs to do to get on top.

[Gold Coaster]

And a churro stand in the shape of a churro - Keep Ocean Parade ... improve the theming to make it more islandish... add 2-3 other DECENT flat rides. - Keep Gold Rush area and incorporate Rocky Hollow into it. Improve level of theming, get rid of anything that doesn't fit into the concept. Open improved version of Eureka ride, add some tech to the rapids ride and improve theming on that. Put in a cost-effective but decent coaster (family woodie?) - Reopen and extend chair lift system to allow transport along the middle of the park. - Develop the island to a new themed area. Put in a landmark coaster not just an Australian-first for the sake of having an Australian first. - Boost Operations standards to get hourly rider capacity up and like 'dj' said, offer incentives for best ranked staff - Put a shooting dark ride where Blue Lagoon was/where the function centre currently sits. - Look at available land for expansion.

Edited January 12, 2008 by Tony Teulan

[www worker]

And a churro stand in the shape of a churro - Keep Ocean Parade ... improve the theming to make it more islandish... add 2-3 other DECENT flat rides. - Keep Gold Rush area and incorporate Rocky Hollow into it. Improve level of theming, get rid of anything that doesn't fit into the concept. Open improved version of Eureka ride, add some tech to the rapids ride and improve theming on that. Put in a cost-effective but decent coaster (family woodie?) - Reopen and extend chair lift system to allow transport along the middle of the park. - Develop the island to a new themed area. Put in a landmark coaster not just an Australian-first for the sake of having an Australian first. - Boost Operations standards to get hourly rider capacity up and like 'dj' said, offer incentives for best ranked staff - Put a shooting dark ride where Blue Lagoon was/where the function centre currently sits. - Look at available land for expansion.

I Think WVTP owns the land behind DW and WWW but aren't allowed to clear any of it because protected trees are in the area. Edited January 12, 2008 by www worker

[Lotl_90]

I Think WVTP owns the land behind DW and WWW but aren't allowed to clear any of it because protected trees are in the area.

No WVTP doesnt own the land behind DW and WWW. The Employee handbooks will tell you that much. Dreamworld Is currently occupying 35ha of an 85ha site. Plenty of room for expansion.

[www worker]

No WVTP doesnt own the land behind DW and WWW. The Employee handbooks will tell you that much. Dreamworld Is currently occupying 35ha of an 85ha site. Plenty of room for expansion.

yer i was thinking of something else at the time but they have asked the council to clear land and GCC ave denied it because of protected trees in the area.

[rappa]

Could that mean they have to be creative and build something that uses the natural surroundings rather than bulldose a nice big flat patch dirt and plonk something easy down.

[ads086]

I would firstly reduce the number of themed "lands". I would keep Nick Central, Ocean Parade and Gold Rush. I'd move the animal enclosure from the left side of the park to the back side of Tiger Island. The Log Ride would be assimilated into Gold Rush, perhaps themed towards taking a trip down the river in search of Gold. The Mine Ride would need to be reopened as a matter of urgency. I'd stop increasing ticket prices until such time as new attractions are added. Like djrappa I would rework the operations of the park to focus on the highest throughput without compromising safety. Following comments made by the current CEO in the Courier Mail about leading edge technology becoming "bleeding-edge", I'd look into improvements for these rides. I assumed he was talking about the Tower of Terror. Considering Dreamworld just spent $10million with them, I'd be hitting them up for any improvements they've had in the technology used for this ride. Giant Drop and Tower of Terror need to be integrated better. I would move the entrances for each a little closer to each other. I would stick with the current oil rig theming of the Giant Drop, but I would have the queue line walk towards an elevator. It would look like an elevator, and an attendant would be waiting for them when it arrives. They would be wearing overalls and a shirt, and have grease smeared on their face. They would step inside, and the doors would close. Some form of effect would take place to make them feel like they were falling down 30 floors, into the deep underground. They would step out the other side, and into the actual ride enclosure. All the staff would have the same uniform with grease smeared on for effect. With Tower of Terror, I would get rid of the skull. The whole ride would be themed to be a nuclear testing lab. The premise of the story would be that one of the nuclear substances has become unstable, and could explode at any second. However, as you would be queuing, it would just seem like any other science lab building. Maybe put a looping projection onto a wall to make it appear that there are people coming out of one room, walking down the hallway and into another room. Once you get far enough through the queue, someone in a lab coat comes out and says welcome, that they're expecting you, and that they're sure you're eager to see some of the experiments being carried out. Another projection screen and you'd see people in HazMat gear, carrying a small jar of something through a large glass window looking in on a lab. Your guide will check that you've signed in at security, and then take you through the evacuation procedures (which would get you into your lines) and then an alarm suddenly goes off, meaning you all have to evacuate, then they'd let you into the room where the station is. With the Cyclone, I'd take a leaf out of the Runaway Reptar book, and have it just as it is. No story, no premise, it's a rollercoaster, and that's it. That's all Thunderbolt ever used to be. I haven't been to Dreamworld in quite a while, but anything that requires a lot of attention (anything more than daily watering) should be ditched. Obviously, removing the chairlift would happen, unless there was a legitimate use for it, which I cannot see. Personally, I'd like to remove the railway. A train ride isn't exactly exciting for most people, and it doesn't seem to provide any proper transport from A to B, so I would like it removed. The Motocoaster. Well, it is what it is, and it is where it is, so I would probably just leave it until people get sick of it. In order for them to get sick of it, I would add something else new. Probably get in contact with Bolliger and Mallibard (Mabillard????) and get a designer out here to see what they could do, especially with the space between the old water park and the Big Brother house. Turn it into a themed area that recognises the importance of the natural vegetation and makes significant efforts to educate visitors about how important it is. Like was previously mentioned, I think a show would make for a good way to take some of the guests off the street for a little while. I think an acrobatics style show would do the trick. Something amazing that not many people can do. Or get gymnast/dancers and have a massive cheerleading show like the finals from Bring It On. On the business side, I would get rid of the directors who approved the reduction in quality standards to increase profit margins. Entertainment is a business that involves spending vast amounts of money, which you get back by delivering a quality product. Clearly, MLT doesn't understand this. I would vote to sell Dreamworld. The ACCC wouldn't allow WVTP to buy it, but I'm sure there are enough business minded people who would get together to purchase it.

[stardust]

I'd make it seem more exciting, always have the music working, make it more.. magical. An adventure area for kids.. I would make sure the discounts for max action don't read August 2007 in January >:X And make things more prompt re the pass. Hire better marketing staff. Fix the mine ride OR replace it.

[Lotl_90]

yer i was thinking of something else at the time but they have asked the council to clear land and GCC ave denied it because of protected trees in the area.

Im pretty sure thats the area down behind BB and the old blue lagoon, and around the side of the log ride that they cant clear. That would be why all of the developing is happening around the old thunderbolt site, and moving back down that side.

[rappa]

That Courier Mail article is kind of amusing. If you read behind the lines is basically says Dreamworld is looking for ways to build less big thrill seeker rides and more interactive attractions. Where as WVTP is saying roller coasters are still number one, we want those.

[Richard]

I hadn't read that article until now (http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0...95-8362,00.html). It certainly amazed me how plain uninspiring Gregg's comments were. He has said straight up that they want to move away from conventional attractions into cheaper skill-based attractions (which are typically upcharge). To top it off he's even gone and said that they don't even want to take a gamble on new technology. Certainly a change from the quote attributed to him in the Motocoaster press release, "This new attraction shows Dreamworld’s commitment to introducing cutting-edge ride technology and new experiences to the Australian market". For what it's worth, I think if Dreamworld were so confident in experiences like FlowRider as the future of theme parks, we'd have seen them install half a dozen of them and have it included in the admission price. The other thing of interest is the comments by IAAPA chief Charlie Bray have absolutely nothing to do with digital/interactive attractions; those comments were entirely about utilising social networking sites and Web 2.0 style technology to its fullest to engage with and communicate with the market. On that I couldn't agree more with the comments of AJ of East Brisbane. It won't be long now before the market cottons onto these slick marketing techniques and dismisses them completely. It is refreshing that WVTP at least understands the market well enough to know that the time-tested theme park model will deliver them long term success in a much more reliable manner than cost-cutting new age fads.

[Ninja]

^^ hmm.. The most disturbing piece from that article :

'But Mr Peet said local thrillseekers won't see a giant ride open on the Gold Coast for some time yet.'

Not good.

[BNErider]

I think that's the most crazy thing I've read in a LONG time. It's basically admitting they don't want to spend big bucks to build something thrilling. I think Movie World would be LOVING this, and good on them. I'm glad someone still cares about building something big and thrilling. Sorry, but this is another nail in Dreamworld's coffin. They've dug their grave in the past, and I think they just jumped into it.

[GoGoBoy]

This is terrible news and ha confirmed all of my greatest fears about Stephen Gregg. Get rid of him I say! I can't believe he would want to change a formula which has been such a success for so long. Dreamworld is Macquarie Leisure's main revenue source and a total cash cow. So why does he feel the need to change this? The idea that modern teenagers only want 'interactive skill based' attractions is an outdated notion. They were saying this in the 1990's and we ended up wth interactive parks like Sega World which were total failures. In the end teenagers (and everyone else) want passive thrilling rides when they visit these parks. We want to be strapped in and thrown around. This is unbelievable

[T-bone]

I would like to think that when Stephen Gregg (Cough) Tool (/Cough) Says this that he is talking about interactive dark rides and all that sort of stuff, but I don't think he is. But I can tell you now that if this is the business model they are going to follow, you won't see me or my family there again.

Edited January 14, 2008 by T-bone

[BNErider]

The only reason all my friends go to Movie World is for the THRILL RIDES. Most familes would like what Dreamworld are starting to build, but to wipe-out thrill rides all together? hmm...something isn't right.

[Guest jake-train]

ok guys dreamworld is the best place on earth OK! what is or sould happen is WB by dreamworld becasue WB have done and built some amazing things in the last yr's ok but all i recon is dreamworld to do they's small things: 1. Build something on the island and than have like a draw bridge for the gest to get across. 2. Re-theme the "giant drop" and "cyclone" 3. Do something with rockey hollow like extend the logride or something.. but thats onley my ider

[kainaussie]

Well 1 I Would HAve A Few Flow Riders Mabe Make It Stand up or knee board make it 2 ppl on it at a time so like split it still but u get unlited goes for 1 hour for 6 bucks get rid of the tower of terror and update Bring Bak the euraka mine ride and heaps more but il say a few more mabe get e few more rollercoasters close the mick doohan motocoster and loads more lol

[ILUV SUPERMAN ESCAPE]

I Would 1.Re-open Eureka Mountain Mine Ride 2.Take The mickdoohan Out of the big six but add a new thrill ride so it would stay the big six. 3.Tidy up the park and theme the Rocky Hollow Log Ride 4.Take the dinosaurs out of thunder river rapids and replace them with something that makes sense. 5.give all the rides much needed Maintenance and a paint job. EDIT: I just read that article and what mr peet said is c**p, or atleast I hope it is. Dreamworld have jumped in the coffin, Its been nailed shut, and movieworld are pushing it in to the grave.

Edited January 16, 2008 by ILUV SUPERMAN ESCAPE