Tiger Island Refurbishment - Dreamworld 2016

[bladex]

the fence area will prob be a viewing area

[themagician]

Staff member at Tiger Island said that it will be closed from Feb 29.

[ThemeTendo]

3 hours ago, themagician said:

Just been to DW and these posts have been put almost all the way around, at this point I can't figure out what it's going to be, I'm imagining a fence, but not sure how that will work with the space. There were also quite a few workmen walking in and out of the Kevin hill building.

I assume it's for a larger enclosure for the cubs to move into while the Tiger Island refurbishments are going on.

The works inside Kevil Hill (the briefing rooms) could consist of an additional indoor enclosure for more tigers? but I'm not sure if that would make much sense. Maybe all of this is part of the Tiger Cub Kindy area that will be around, if it is indeed an area, and not another form of VIP experience.

3 hours ago, themagician said:

Im thinking once the Cubs can move into the main enclosure this whole corner of the park will he fenced off so major works can begin.

What do you mean by major works, exactly?

Are you referring to Tiger Island as "this whole corner of the park," or something else, because Dreamworld has stated that Zombie Evilution will be staying as a Scare Maze for Screamworld, which means the arena is staying and not being demolished for the Tiger Island refurbishment.

As a bit of proof of this; in an email sent from Dreamworld; I asked:

Quote

Q: ...Such as ZE closing to be used as part of a Tiger Island expansion?

A: ...But ZE, has nothing to do with the Tiger Island...

[Note: this is all part of a much larger conversation]

So uhh; consider the "Tiger Island Expansion" rumour debunked.

 

Oh and can confirm, no one else cares about the marquees, went there on Saturday, everyone seemed to be looking at the tigers when I was looking at the marquee, couldn't work out why?

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

1 hour ago, ThemeTendo said:

Oh and can confirm, no one else cares about the marquees, went there on Saturday, everyone seemed to be looking at the tigers when I was looking at the marquee, couldn't work out why?

Well, the park has done a such a bang up job of convincing everyone that nothing needs to be themed, so...

oh wait - Dreamworld just spent a fortune re-theming a rollercoaster! Perhaps theming DOES matter.

But of course - your 10 minutes spent at the tiger nursery is sufficient research for you to conclude that "no one else cares"

Did you conduct a survey? Did you ask anyone their opinion? If I were there, I wouldn't walk up to a total stranger and tell him what I thought of the marquees, but i'd be inwardly annoyed at the lack of attention to detail. Further - whilst I'd normally get home, tell family and friends about the awesome new exhibit I just saw at <park> i probably wouldn't do so, or I would tell them about the tigers, but explain how disappointing I found the exhibit itself.

It's funny though - a while back, VRTP was building this new coaster - called Storm. And while they were doing it, they were also realigning the flume channel for Vikings. And they had this horrible temporary fencing which looked like shit. Many members of this forum were bitching about it on these boards.

Now - call it a coincidence, but shortly after that discussion, VRTP outfitted the temporary fencing with this green grass banner, which they now use everywhere.

In an emergency, packed attendance day, where capacity is reached and people are suffering in the heat, I have no issue with a park trotting out any and all measures to increase guest comfort... but when some ragtag ramshackle shitbox of a quickshade is put up over a week in advance of the media day, and it's still there with guests visiting, thats pathetic - You claim that no one else cares about the marquees, I claim that this just shows the park doesn't care... which, given their efforts in improving the overall park aesthetics, is really disappointing.

Edited February 22, 2016 by AlexB

[ThemeTendo]

2 hours ago, AlexB said:

 

It's funny, because I was just taking the piss with that comment, but oh well, I didn't label it accordingly.

Either way though, the *general* public don't really seem to care about stuff like that, it's only the kind of people that are on here that would bring that stuff up. I agree that the park could have used something new, but I don't think it's necessary.

Look, I acknowledge your opinion, I just find it stupid that you're making such a big deal out of it all. I personally don't think it's a big deal, it's essentially a tent. It works for it's intended purpose, and that's it and as I stated previously, unless it's 'one of those people' on here, the general person whose going to see the tigers, is going to see the tigers and not look at the marquee they are using to provide shade.

Look at it this way; It's infront of Kevil Hill, so the marquee is ripped, faded and patched in order to fit into the post-apocalyptic theme.

Problem Solved.

Edited February 22, 2016 by ThemeTendo
Grammatical fixes

[bladex]

maybe they are zombie cubs?

[themagician]

6 hours ago, ThemeTendo said:

What do you mean by major works, exactly?

Are you referring to Tiger Island as "this whole corner of the park," or something else, because Dreamworld has stated that Zombie Evilution will be staying as a Scare Maze for Screamworld, which means the arena is staying and not being demolished for the Tiger Island refurbishment.

I'd forgotten that they weren't removing it. So yes that means I'm referring to the whole corner of the park being Tiger Island. Do people think then that they will be doing the plans that were stated on here last year, where a grand stand will be installed to one side?

[joz]

I hope so, the shows at Tiger Island have always been a bit of a pain in the arse to go to.  The standing around in the sun with an obstructed view kind of kept me wanting to go back and watch the show more than once.  I think if there were Tiger shows in a decent stadium, it'd get significantly higher attendance, so IMHO a venue of 1,500+ seats with shade would be an awesome and worthwhile addition to the park. 

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

12 hours ago, ThemeTendo said:

Either way though, the *general* public don't really seem to care about stuff like that, it's only the kind of people that are on here that would bring that stuff up.

I'm not making a big deal out of what they've done. I made an observation.

The rest of this particular discussion has been revolving around you saying nobody cares, which - firstly - was your own opinion - and then secondly was based on some... gosh i don't know - telepathic survey you conducted whilst in the park?

MOST members of the general public who dine at a restaurant who receive bad food or bad service don't stand up in the middle of the restaurant and shout it to everyone else in the restaurant, nor do they go out of their way to find the manager's office to lodge a formal complaint. Most people who have a poor experience simply do not go back.

It doesn't mean they don't care. In service industries, word of mouth is huge. This quote relates to sales and customer service, but being in the entertainment and tourism industry, it can broadly be applied to a theme park experience also:

Quote

Customer service gurus know that while one happy, satisfied customer might tell five friends and family members about their pleasant experience, an unhappy customer is more likely to share the bad news with up to 100 people.

Recent research into word-of-mouth (WOM) sharing practices of households within the United States show that bad experiences spread like wildfire – much to the chagrin of companies with less-than-stellar service records.

What the Numbers Show

In this latest study, 3,295 consumers were surveyed to find out whether they were likely to share bad news about a customer service experience to others. The survey found that one in every four (26%) would be far more likely to talk about poor customer service with family, friends and co-workers. Even customers who considered themselves loyal to a particular company or brand were willing to talk about a negative customer service experience with that particular company to others. In fact, 31% of consumers in this category said they would be more likely to share information about a bad customer experience than a good one.

The survey also found that while 75% of the general population said they would share a negative experience with friends and family members, only 42% said they would recommend a product or service they particularly like.

I appreciate that you think my view stupid. You are entitled to have your opinion, I just don't agree with it, based on my own experience. I spent many years working in and training people in customer service, both in and outside of theme parks. Just because you don't see the general public complaining about such things, doesn't mean that they don't notice it, and doesn't mean that it doesn't negatively impact on their experience, and doesn't mean that this doesn't then influence what they have to say about the exhibit to others.

We talk about it here because it's what we do here - we talk about the parks. Chances are if you somehow engaged most of the general public visiting that exhibit in this discussion, they'd agree with me that it would have been nicer if the park had invested in something nicer looking, and more suited to the exhibit.

More often than not, we do pick on the small details... but it is the small details that matter. Disney is as successful as they are because of their attention to detail, and you have only to look at the positive response that Adventure World is getting, both on these boards AND on social media after fixing up the little things to see that it isn't hard to achieve that without a Disney budget.

Dreamworld have been doing a lot of late to make their park look fantastic. After all that effort, for them to trot out something that looks like they found it at the local dump shows they dropped the ball. The park should have a couple of these things, done up in generic dreamworld livery on PVC that they can throw up wherever and whenever they need to, instead of torn, faded generic off-the-shelf nylon that looks like shit.

[mickey_079]

7 hours ago, joz said:

I hope so, the shows at Tiger Island have always been a bit of a pain in the arse to go to.  The standing around in the sun with an obstructed view kind of kept me wanting to go back and watch the show more than once.  I think if there were Tiger shows in a decent stadium, it'd get significantly higher attendance, so IMHO a venue of 1,500+ seats with shade would be an awesome and worthwhile addition to the park. 

Similar to Odin's Temple at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom?

 

 

[T-bone]

I have seen the show at Discovery Kingdom, and whilst I like the idea of stadium style seating for their shows, I hope they don't follow the Discovery Kingdom style as it would be a shame to only see these animals from behind glass, and only in a "performance". The thing that I love about the current setup is the open view of the enclosure, and the walk through like Nature of the island. We will see.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

I agree with T-bone. Sure - glass lets you get closer, but it's not quite the same.

[New display name]

Yep glass does suck.  I don't like the glass at Australia Zoo.

[Brad2912]

Agree with all above. It is the open nature of the island that makes it the premier tiger enclosure in Australia (that I have visited). Much better than Taronga Zoo & Aust Zoo. I hope they keep that walk though style exhibit, the easy option for mine would be to demolish the retail store and build the grandstand in its place, potentially with a retail outlet below it. Given the cage is never open, that can go too

[pin142]

Look to be adding a more permanent viewing area in Ocean Parade. Glass walls with the game site side of the area having a frame for a wall up. 

[Whombex]

I'm all for moving the Tigers anywhere further away from rides. Pandamonium is probably too close to them, but I guess Avalanche was there before...

[mickey_079]

I was never really a fan of the show at Discovery Kingdom, one thing I did notice is the tigers would often get their claws stuck in the wire fencing and freak out a little. However it did draw the crowds, and I must say it being that close to the animals was unique in its own way. 

I do agree with everyone above me though and feel the current open viewing is much nicer.

[www worker 2.0]

NEW Tiger Cub Kindy

Opening next month will be a new home to our bouncing tiger cubs, Dreamworld's all new 'Tiger Cub Kindy' is one of the cutest up-close experiences the park has ever launched.

Specially designed for our next generation of tigers, you can catch the cubs' funny antics daily as they explore, play and wrestle in their purpose-built playground complete with cub-sized pool and guest interaction areas surrounded by glass for easy viewing.

[Santa07]

Sounds good. Bonus points if it ends up next to the kids area.

[pin142]

Between tailspin and the surf shop is where it is going, where stingray used to be. 

[themagician]

^Seems a bit out the way really. Why not have it in that patched area next to the lair. Wouldn't that make more sense, or is that path used by staff and any machinery for access into the park?

It just wouldn't make sense to have tigers in Ocean Parade. And it's a bit of a crap spot anyway to put something like this. I do hope this isn't true, otherwise DW are going backwards again.

[Reanimated35]

6 hours ago, www worker 2.0 said:

NEW Tiger Cub Kindy

Opening next month will be a new home to our bouncing tiger cubs, Dreamworld's all new 'Tiger Cub Kindy' is one of the cutest up-close experiences the park has ever launched.

Specially designed for our next generation of tigers, you can catch the cubs' funny antics daily as they explore, play and wrestle in their purpose-built playground complete with cub-sized pool and guest interaction areas surrounded by glass for easy viewing.

How much extra to get in and play with them?  

[pin142]

58 minutes ago, themagician said:

^Seems a bit out the way really. Why not have it in that patched area next to the lair. Wouldn't that make more sense, or is that path used by staff and any machinery for access into the park?

It just wouldn't make sense to have tigers in Ocean Parade. And it's a bit of a crap spot anyway to put something like this. I do hope this isn't true, otherwise DW are going backwards again.

If they are closing off tiger island for refurbishment where are they going to display the cubs for public viewing? What's to say they aren't touching the lair. Given the only place they put the cubs up for display is a quarantined area away from the other tigers (for health reasons) that will be blocked from public access the idea of a standalone viewing area whilst the work happens in a area somewhat nearby isn't that bad even if it isn't exactly next to the Island area.

Edited February 23, 2016 by pin142

[themagician]

^For a temporary area for the Cubs, then it wouldn't be as bad, but if it's permanent, then I'd be a little dissapointed. But the same could be said about the larger tigers, where will they be on display during the refurbishment.

[Brad2912]

I don't believe the adult tigers will be on display during the refurb, that's how I read into it anyway.