Hope they've improved the ride a bit. Rough like HWSW the two occasions I rode it.

32 minutes ago, Levithian said:

It's amazing what massive budgets can buy/afford you. I was watching footage of some of the rides in shanghai disney; wow, next level theme work on pirates of the caribbean.

Yeah, that Pirates looks absolutely breathtaking. Still can't work out how they do the effect at 2:36 of the video you posted, if anyone knows please enlighten me  .

7 minutes ago, Santa07 said:

Yeah, that Pirates looks absolutely breathtaking. Still can't work out how they do the effect at 2:36 of the video you posted, if anyone knows please enlighten me  .

Very fancy projectors it seems. 

The photos coming through of Pandora at Animal Kingdom look amazing as well 

2 hours ago, Levithian said:

It's amazing what massive budgets can buy/afford you. I was watching footage of some of the rides in shanghai disney; wow, next level theme work on pirates of the caribbean.

 

Wow! What an adventure!

I haven't seen the movie, so I probably don't have the complete appreciation of everything in the ride, but nonetheless it's incredible. Some of the effects are nothing short of breathtaking. I especially love the part where a skeleton turns into what appears to be Johnny Depp as the pirate! Awesome.

Sometimes to be honest, I'd prefer not to know how it's done, and just enjoy it as the magic it's meant to be.

Edited May 1, 20179 yr by pushbutton

3 hours ago, Santa07 said:

Yeah, that Pirates looks absolutely breathtaking. Still can't work out how they do the effect at 2:36 of the video you posted, if anyone knows please enlighten me  .

It's 'just' a peppers ghost effect. Definitely one of the best executed examples of peppers ghost I've seen!

Loving the new turfed area at DW

Perfect for picnics 

Amazing how quick it can change. @Theme Park Girl Posted this on April 20 and it looks perfect

Great news for SW today with the birth of 2 polar bear Cubs. 

Will no doubt be a big draw card in a couple of months when they go on show to the public

@Brad2912 September, according to the membership email 😆👍

"As a Village Theme Parks Member you will also have the opportunity to be amongst the first to see the cubs when they come on exhibit in September. We'll send you an email with your invitation soon!"

So I guess now it's over to DW...

they are still in 'recovery mode' and will be for a while longer.

their two major competitions will have large attraction pullers coming in September in terms of both thrills and animal offerings. 

Will DW sit on their hands? Or will they announce something of their own? It's too late for a ride instalment unless it's been already contracted and stayed on the down low. So what will they do to arrest some visitor numbers from VTP??

"Don't worry about the country's best Coaster and the polar bears Cubs, come to DW, we have jelly beans and breakfast from 9am" won't cut it....

@Brad2912 I guess continuing the TI expansion competes with the polar bear cubs well enough. But yeah they probably are low on funds at the moment but if they continue to sit on them and do nothing they're not going to increase. I think they need to take a risk.

34 minutes ago, Brad2912 said:

"Don't worry about the country's best Coaster and the polar bears Cubs, come to DW, we have jelly beans and breakfast from 9am" won't cut it....

But you could go to DW for 9am, have breakfast, play with some LEGO, buy some Jelly Beans, and then go to MW for the coaster.

In serious though, I do hope DW do pull something out of the bag this year, but am doubtful as they have to remove the river rapids. But there is also the Corroboree stage 2 as well. I think this year for DW is about making the park looking great in all aspects. WWW could always install a couple of new slides.

All I know if they need something, and Stage 2 of TI isn't nearly enough.

Dont forget a heap (maybe 50% of more) of their pass holders are currently running on 'free' time due to the 6 month extension we received. In 8 weeks time, all those passes will expire and without some sort of strategy for the future, a lot (myself included) won't be renewing straight away... 

Does TI#2 really interest anyone? I really like Tiger Island but I feel like that ship has sailed. I'm sure it's going to be a nice addition but it doesn't 'excite' me. It's like if MW added a new street to the Villains Unleashed area... I would check it out, but not be very excited unless something totally next level was added.

1 hour ago, Brad2912 said:

All I know if they need something, and Stage 2 of TI isn't nearly enough.

Dont forget a heap (maybe 50% of more) of their pass holders are currently running on 'free' time due to the 6 month extension we received. In 8 weeks time, all those passes will expire and without some sort of strategy for the future, a lot (myself included) won't be renewing straight away... 

Yep, I won't be renewing either. MW is where the action is at, so that's where I'll be. If DW want me back, give RMC a call.

1 hour ago, ash.1111 said:

Does TI#2 really interest anyone? I really like Tiger Island but I feel like that ship has sailed. I'm sure it's going to be a nice addition but it doesn't 'excite' me. It's like if MW added a new street to the Villains Unleashed area... I would check it out, but not be very excited unless something totally next level was added.

Admittedly whenever I do photo updates on my blog about TI2, they seems to generate little interest... only a handful of likes compared to the typical 20-40 that most others pull in. So you may be right there. Especially when it's an upgrade (rebuild of current facilities) rather than a completely new attraction. 

Goes without saying that the Hyper is the red hot topic atm, interest for that is off the scale whenever new updates are posted.

Huge difference between the two. 

5 minutes ago, Theme Park Girl said:

 

Goes without saying that the Hyper is the red hot topic atm

No, it's magenta, not red.

 

 

 

 

 

😉🙃😜

Dreamworld haven't added a new ride for a year but honestly I've enjoyed myself more at Dreamworld in the past 18months than I have at any Australian park for many years.  It's so nice to walk into a theme park and actually feel like the staff want you there.  I'll be renewing and I would hope that members on this site would do the same.

I'll definitely be renewing my pass for DW, not only to show my support, but because I love the park. As @joz has said, you actually feel like the staff want you there, and are always making conversation, smiling and having a laugh. VRTP on the other hand. There are some great staff at MW and SW, but I think that is one of the things that really lets down the parks. I don't expect them to all be happy, all the time, but just a hello when walking into the park would be good enough (the majority of the time they do, some staff don't bother though). 

In regards to Tiger Island, of course a massive all new coaster will generate plenty more interest than a smaller exhibit (and remember that was originally planned to be opened with the original offical opening last year). 

Nice one @joz and this is so absolutely  true. Sorry MW but when I arrive and leave every time I visit no one has the decency to say hello or goodbye.What a lasting impression? It would be nice if someone from HR paid attention to this because bugger me, that is simply unacceptable.

3 hours ago, joz said:

Dreamworld haven't added a new ride for a year but honestly I've enjoyed myself more at Dreamworld in the past 18months than I have at any Australian park for many years.  It's so nice to walk into a theme park and actually feel like the staff want you there.  I'll be renewing and I would hope that members on this site would do the same.

Ditto. And despite my prev post re. the differences in current attraction appeal between parks,  it certainly doesn't reflect how my family or I personally feel about the park at all.

Truth be told, we proudly visit Dreamworld all the time... have done so since it reopened in Dec last year, and also made very frequent visits even before then. My husband and I even make a weekly date out of it whilst the kids are at school 😂😜

Half the time we don't even go on rides, just do a couple of laps of the park, visiting the regulars - Luke, Lance & the other blokes in the sheep shearing shed (hubby will have a chin wag with them for at least a good half hour between shows lol) Lilly & Sparky the dogs, Goldie the eagle, Harvey the big red etc - and taking in surroundings. It's just our thing "to do", part of our weekly routine and we love it. No other park holds the same charm ☺️

Last week was the first time I had actually walked into Movie World in ages, same for Sea World when we made a family trip there. Both visits were very brief, to say the least. I made a solo trip into MW, and virtually walked straight out again after doing a quick lap (I hate admitting that, but it's the truth) 😕 Other than the coaster construction which can be witnessed externally, there is really nothing particularly appealing inside VRTPs atm to currently warrant frequent return visits. 

That said, we are firmly retaining our Unlimited memberships and look forward to that factor changing soon when things pick up a bit more later in the year (September and beyond... bring on the Hyper, Polar Bear cubs, Fright Nights and White Christmas) 😆

Honestly, what Dreamworld lacks in new attractions, it makes up for in charm and other priceless aspects. We go for the personal experience of catching up with numerous animals and staff we have developed friendships & bonds with... that's not to say we don't have friendships at VRTP as that's not the case (esp since I've worked for them multiple times) but the ones we do know usually aren't in a situation to stop and chat, or socialise on a personal level - VRTP are a lot stricter in this department.  

We've held 4x memberships for DW for over a year now, with no intention of cancelling - heck, I dare say that divorce would be an issue if I ever considered doing so, that's how much hubby loves that park  😂😜❤️👍

Edited May 2, 20179 yr by Theme Park Girl

2 hours ago, themagician said:

I'll definitely be renewing my pass for DW, not only to show my support, but because I love the park. As @joz has said, you actually feel like the staff want you there, and are always making conversation, smiling and having a laugh. VRTP on the other hand. There are some great staff at MW and SW, but I think that is one of the things that really lets down the parks. I don't expect them to all be happy, all the time, but just a hello when walking into the park would be good enough (the majority of the time they do, some staff don't bother though). 

In regards to Tiger Island, of course a massive all new coaster will generate plenty more interest than a smaller exhibit (and remember that was originally planned to be opened with the original offical opening last year). 

Once again this morning as I entered Movie World, the guy just scanned my card whilst looking at and talking to another employee, and saying "Can you get on number 3 right now". He made no eye contact with me, let alone saying anything to me.

I felt ever so slightly better knowing he's rude to other employees too, and not only to mere guest scum like myself!

In a shop or cafe or bar, customer service is extremely important. In a theme park, I believe the level of enthusiasm and fun should be much higher than just customer service. It's a theme park after all, and anyone entering is there to have loads of fun (not just to buy something like in a shop or cafe).

As a bare minimum, eye contact, a smile, and a sincere and friendly greeting are just courtesy and really not too much to ask.

I've noticed this twice recently at Movie World. If it happens again I'll be taking notice of the name on the badge of the person, and reporting them to management as it's simply not good enough.

Edited May 2, 20179 yr by pushbutton

1 hour ago, pushbutton said:

"Can you get on number 3 right now".

Sounds like they had a big crowd and were looking to try and get people through the gate as quickly as possible. Although a greeting would be nice, I wouldn't consider it rude if they were otherwise occupied.

I go into the park for an experience. To be honest, when i'm at the gate I just want to get inside and am not going to let a lack of conversation with the gate staff ruin my day.

I'd be pissed off if the gate staff were having a chat with every guest entering the park. Especially if i was in the queue behind them and getting impatient at the time it was taking to get in. Eye contact \ smile would be nice, but not if they're trying to do their job as well as instruct another person to do theirs in order to speed up the efficiency of the queue process.

1 hour ago, pushbutton said:

mere guest scum like myself!

Quoted for truth.

1 hour ago, pushbutton said:

If it happens again I'll be taking notice of the name on the badge of the person, and reporting them to management as it's simply not good enough.

See previous quote. They're not going out of their way to ignore and be rude to you (although maybe they recognise you as Pushbutton? Just a thought), they're just obviously mad busy, and trying to be as efficient as possible, based on your description. I'm not one to stand for bad customer service, but there's a difference between someone who is dealing with peak loads, and trying to be as efficient as possible, and someone who is outright not living up to the corporate expectations for customer service and either deliberately not doing their job, or lazily disinterested in doing their job.

The sort of behaviour you want out of these staff needs to be natural, not forced. If you knock them over the head, you'll get a bunch of robots - no warmth, no sincerity, the proverbial flight attendant at the end of the flight.

You end up with this fakeness, where they don't care, and only do it because they're REQUIRED to, because someone complained:

 

1 hour ago, pushbutton said:

"Can you get on number 3 right now". He made no eye contact with me, let alone saying anything to me.

I felt ever so slightly better knowing he's rude to other employees too, and not only to mere guest scum like myself!

Wait. THAT'S your definition of "rude"??!!

Oh princess, who hurt you?