Sep03FrontRowNews

Waterparks Far and Near Make a Splash this Summer with Additions Large and Small.

By Kevin Moffett

Gardaland Theme Park Premieres Escape from Atlantis
Castelnuovo di Garda, Italy

Visitors can now explore the mysterious world of Atlantis at Gardaland, Italy’s largest theme park located near Venice. Alongside an array of additions, including new shows and attractions, this year the park has added a new Intamin water coaster called Fuga d’Atlantide. The new ride, which debuted on June 27 with a nighttime fireworks display, is Intamin’s first installation of its SuperSplash water ride, a highly modified flume—think a shoot-the-chutes on steroids—themed on Greek and Western mythology, with an area of more than 11,000 square meters (118,403 square feet). The spectacular scenery and reconstruction of Atlantis temples includes ruins, columns, and more than 150 sculptures of gods, marine creatures, and a huge replica of Poseidon. Gardaland, which opened in 1975, has been in growth mode for nearly a decade, including the addition of rides, redesigned layout, and overall aesthetic improvements.

Can Tho Waterpark
Can Tho, Vietnam Opened July 8
Installations by Amusement Leisure Worldwide

You may not have heard of Can Tho, a city of about two million people in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta, but it is now home to the second waterpark in Vietnam. Can Tho Waterpark’s grand opening on July 8 drew more than 600 guests in a ceremony that included various dignitaries from around the area. “Can Tho Waterpark will be a healthy recreation center for local people in the region, and we expect to receive around 400,000 visitors a year,” Park Director Nguyen Van Chau says.

Amusement Leisure Worldwide (ALW) provided 14 attractions for the $7 million park, including a wave pool, children’s pools, interactive play equipment, and four of ALW’s signature rides: a double Vortex AquaWhiz slide, which looks like a funnel; a four-lane Surfhill Racer; a Backlash slide, in which riders start out going in backwards, go up a hill, and change directions; as well as a Sidewinder MK-1 slide.

“We are extremely proud to be a part of this world-class waterpark development in Vietnam,” says David Orr, ALW president. “Vietnam is a challenging marketplace for foreign companies due to banking regulations, inexperience in the marketplace, and the high level of bureaucracy not common in Western markets. Nevertheless, we completed the project in just over six months.”

Orr points to various hindrances to park construction projects in Asian markets. “In Vietnam a Western bank can’t deal with a Vietnamese investment bank. We had to locate products within Vietnam that met our standards. The government was involved in every step of the process.”

Orr predicts strong attendance for the new park, citing demand for this kind of attraction in the area. “Asia, as well as Eastern Europe, is a virgin market for waterparks,” he says. “Waterparks are both profitable and socially responsible for the regions.”

Amusement Leisure Worldwide recently broke ground on a new waterpark in Singapore and it celebrated its first season on another of its recent openings—Aqualand waterpark in Santa Cruz, Bolivia—which attracted about 200,000 customers since it opened last year.

The 16-hectare (40-acre) Aqualand, the only waterpark in Bolivia, opened in November 2002. ALW provided the Aqualand waterpark with eight attractions, including a 35-meter (114-foot) wavepool, a Lazy River, and a Jetstream speed slide. Orr says there are plans for a hotel to be built, as well as a convention facility.

“Aqualand’s opening was later than expected due to construction delays, poor weather, and the change in government,” says Orr. “However, the park is beautiful.” He adds that the park was highly anticipated in Santa Cruz. From start to finish it took three-and-a-half years to finally open. The park opened full time in August and has a capacity of 5,000 people per day.

Duke’s Lagoon
Dutch Wonderland Lancaster, Pa.
Opened May 2003

Dutch Wonderland opened its new interactive water play area this season on Memorial Day weekend. Called Duke’s Lagoon, it is the focal point for the park’s summer season with its tropical island theme and “sprayground” of family fun, complete with palm trees, water-spilling coconuts, geysers, and four large interactive play stations.

“The elements in the attraction are unique because they were designed for this park,” says Chris Barrett, Dutch Wonderland's assistant general manager. “Everyone in the family can have fun there. It’s not a waterpark. It’s a water play area. We wanted it to be very family friendly.”

Barrett adds, “Duke’s Lagoon is definitely the centerpiece attraction for us.” The former family-owned attraction was purchased in 2001 by Hershey Entertainment & Resorts Co.

Three of the water play area’s units have been custom-designed for Dutch Wonderland, and feature Smart Control Technology, which mixes different media such as water, air, sound, and bubblers.

The new water area is themed on Duke, a dragon, who welcomes guests to Duke’s Lagoon from his perch under a palm tree cascading with water. The second element, the Giant Flow Lab, is an elevated, winding stream with continuously flowing water that circulates around a number of interactive stations. Third is Under the Rainbow, a tall, colorful play station incorporating eleven different spray elements. Kids and parents can trigger any one of three pushbuttons, two levers, two hand wheels, or three rope pulls to create showers for anyone nearby. The fourth element, the Spray-N-Splash Fun Shack, is an overhead structure with spray and water effects and six interactive water elements that fill and dump buckets, and water troughs that teeter overhead.

The general contractor for Duke’s Lagoon was Air-Tech Systems Inc. NBGS supplied Duke the Dragon under a rain tree, three palm trees with water-spilling coconuts, and three Lil’ Squirts in the shapes of a fish, whale, and crab, all of which can also be found on the zero-depth wet deck. The three customized interactive science stations, (Giant Flow Lab, Under the Rainbow, and Spray-N-Splash Fun Shack) were supplied by Wizard Works Product Development Company, using its interactive Smart Control Technology.

MY WORD
Trey Smith, attractions manager,
Paramount’s Carowinds, and IAAPA Waterpark Committee Chairman

Obviously my father, Cleveland Smith, has had a huge influence on my career. He has been in the industry since 1961, so I have been around theme parks all my life. In fact, my earliest childhood memory was on an amusement ride.

The lessons my father taught me are important in any field—values such as integrity, honesty, loyalty, and the idea that your reputation is everything. These are principles that any father would pass along to his son, but I did benefit from having the opportunity to be around some of the top professionals in the industry while growing up.

I was a competitive swimmer in high school and college, so with my skills in the water as well as my family background, working as a lifeguard at a waterpark was a good fit. I started as a lifeguard at Wet ’n Wild in Texas and have worked in the Orlando and Las Vegas parks in various capacities. I left Wet ’n Wild to work in ride and show operations at Universal Studios Florida just prior to opening and for the first three years of its existence. It is there that I received an early lesson about prototype rides.

I worked at Raging Waters in San Jose a few months before Paramount Parks purchased it, and that is how I came into the PPI system. In 1997, I moved to Paramount’s Carowinds for the opening of WaterWorks. In 2001, I was responsible for both the rides and the waterpark and am currently attractions manager. I joined the IAAPA waterpark committee in 1998 and have been the chair for the past three years.

I am amazed at the commitment level of the many people who volunteer their time and talents to IAAPA; selflessly and for the betterment of the industry. I have also been fortunate enough to work for and with some of the top leaders at great parks around the country, especially here at Paramount Parks. I have had many mentors at every stage of my development and have learned invaluable lessons throughout my time here.

I love the variety in the job; it’s truly never the same day twice. I do like to spend time at the rides exits and watch people as they get off the rides, excited and enjoying their day. It is satisfying to be a part of providing family fun and memorable experiences. In this job you have the benefit of that immediate reaction and instant gratification.

I got to spend the summer of 1982 at the World’s Fair in Knoxville, Tenn., and as a kid I learned about crowd dynamics. Long lines would form at the most popular attractions and people would get in any line that would form, not even knowing what they were waiting for. I found it amusing to inform men that the line they were waiting in was actually for the ladies’ restroom.

It is really difficult for me to imagine not working in the amusement industry because I have been around the business for so long. I enjoy visiting other parks, but it’s hard for me to stop working when I go because I like to take note of good ideas. Sometimes my vacation pictures contain more photos of signage and facilities than of my family. When we do go on vacation, it is during the offseason—it’s nice to do the typical family beach vacation with lighter crowds and avoid thinking about work.

Many people say you shouldn’t worry about things that you have no control over. This is very true. However, I would also add that this should not be an excuse for inaction—you most likely have more control and influence to make a difference than you realize.

Alton Towers Opens Europe’s First Waterpark Hotel
Staffordshire, U.K.
Opened June 1, 2003

Earlier this summer, Tussauds’ popular theme park Alton Towers debuted its waterpark hotel, Splash Landing. Inside the hotel, Cariba Creek is a brand new tropical waterpark—the centerpiece of the bustling new Caribbean-themed hotel, open exclusively for the use of Alton Towers Hotel and Splash Landing guests.

Splash Landing has been designed in typical Alton Towers’ style with a strong Caribbean theme. The 216-room family hotel is filled with H2O-themed features, including bubbling water fountains, tropical plants, and a whimsical plumbing design that runs throughout. Guests can dine on authentic world cuisine dishes in Flambo’s 300-seat restaurant, and enjoy a Caribbean party atmosphere with Pina Coladas and daiquiris in Ma Garritas tropical terrace bar, which overlooks Cariba Creek.
In the hotel, guests can ride the Master Blaster, the longest water coaster in Europe that moves riders at 10 mph, or climb the Wacky Water Treehouse with 70 interactive elements, including water cannons, waterfalls, and pumps. Or guests can just relax on a tube in Lagoona Bay, a large pool with jets of water, geysers, and water cannons that can be fired at other swimmers. A mini-lagoon area designed for younger children includes water squirters, two slides, and a spinning umbrella that sprays water. More than 15 miles of pipe work will keep the water flowing around the park.

The hotels, waterpark, restaurants, bars, spa, and conference rooms are an integrated resort development with indoor access throughout. Unlimited waterpark and theme park entry is free to guests of both hotels during their stay. Guests who stay at the hotel during Alton Towers’ season can ride all the major thrill rides, including Air—the world’s first flying coaster—Nemesis, Oblivion, and dozens of family rides and attractions, and also benefit from early entry to the park.