Funworld April 2008

Industry Notes

by Keith Miller

New Discovery Center Combines Science, Entertainment

LEISURE ENTERTAINMENT CONSULTANCY (LEC) of Long Beach, California, and SM Prime Holdings, the largest mall operator in the Philippines, recently opened the $10 million SM Science Discovery Center in Manila.

Called “the first fully immersive ‘scitainment’ venue in Asia,” the 43,000-square-foot operation merges science and entertainment in a more direct way than is traditionally done in museums, according to LEC President Jim Levesque. “The attractions are probably 60 percent entertainment and 40 percent science facts,” he told FUNWORLD. “When you go into a museum, the exhibits usually aren’t themed. But here, we took a theme park approach, and all of the elements are themed.” LEC provided the master plan, themed exhibit and show design, and management services for the project.

The science center, which is on two levels, consists of 10 “core zones”: “Virtual Reef,” “Spaceship Earth,” “Media City,” “Robot Inc.,” “ImagePort,” “Transportation Nation,” “City Science,” “Life Clock,” “Lego Mindstorm,” and “Grossology.” Each zone has interactive exhibits with themes based on technology and science. An hourly special effects and light show interacts with all of the core zones.

The flagship attraction is the E&S Digistar Planetarium inside a 52-foot sphere that seats 160 guests. The planetarium has 3-D all-dome video playback and is complete with digital surround sound.

“Virtual Reef,” meanwhile, seemingly transports guests to an underwater world that highlights the habitats in coral reefs around the Philippines. Guests are introduced to “Mr. T,” an animated fish that interacts with them in real time. “Lego Mindstorm Robotics Center” combines science, technology, and engineering in allowing guests to build and program robots in a step-by-step learning process.

The science center is the anchor attraction of the Mall of Asia, the biggest mall in the Philippines and one of the largest in the world. A single admission is $7.60, but much of the attraction’s attendance since it opened a few months ago has come from school groups.

“[The facility has] exceeded its projected attendance,” said Levesque. “We pre-sold school tours and now they’re booked for the next six months, hosting 1,500 and 2,500 students per day. We have limited access to the public during the week because of the students, but it’s wide open on the weekend. We have 800 to 1,000 walkins on weekends.”

The web site for the new discovery science center is www.sdc.websitedesign.com.ph.

Sega to Build Indoor Theme Parks

SEGA CORPORATION, a global leader in technology-based interactive entertainment, and Emaar Malls Group, the shopping mall subsidiary of Dubai-based Emaar Properties, have entered into a partnership to develop and operate indoor theme parks in malls in the Middle East and North Africa.

The partnership’s first project will be a two-level, 76,000-square-foot indoor gaming and entertainment center in the Dubai Mall, located in downtown Dubai. The companies said the complex will feature “high-adrenaline, action-packed attractions that will appeal to children and adults alike” and be based on Sega’s entertainment development in Japan called “Tokyo Joypolis.”

It will introduce a full lineup of Sega’s headline ride attractions, including motion ride simulators, an indoor roller coaster, and one of the largest assortments of games found anywhere in the world. Themed zones will provide various kinds of adventures, with one focusing on sports experiences, another on speed thrills, and another on redemption games for younger visitors.

“Entertainment is about living dreams,” said Hajime Satomi, president and CEO of SEGA Corporation, in a An artist’s rendering of a possible Sega indoor entertainment complex statement about the partnership. “It is about experiencing joy and culture. In joining with a company of Emaar’s stature and power, we hope to convey the pleasure and excitement inspired by great entertainment to people all over the world.” Visit www.sega.com.

Century-old Clementon Park Gets a New Look AFTER 100 YEARS OF ENTERTAINING GUESTS in southern NewJersey, Clementon Park and SplashWorld will open Memorial Day weekend this year with new ownership and management, a new logo, an extended operating calendar, and millions of dollars in enhancements. Adrenaline Family Entertainment Inc. of Edmond, Oklahoma, bought the 55-acre park last August. Company CEO Hue Eichelberger said when they looked at the park, they liked its potential: “We saw a lot—it fit our model perfectly. It has about 4million people within 50miles of the park, and it has significantly under-penetrated its market.We knew we could bring inmarketable attractions and change that.” Changes will include a new welcome sign featuring the park’s new logo, a new park entrance, and a Victorian-themed main street area. Other changes include new landscaping, new in-park entertainment, updated restaurant menus, and newly renovated group dining areas. The SplashWorld waterpark will now boast a large new Polynesian themed multilevel aquatic play area called “Laguna Kahuna,” which constitutes the largest expansion in the park’s history. General Manager David Dorman said the park is adding 34 days to its operating schedule by opening on weekdays during the month of June and by adding a Halloween event called “Hallo Screams.” Eichelberger said he expects these changes to increase attendance at the park 40 percent or 50 percent. Visit www.clementonpark.com.

Zipping Through Texas for Fun

IT’S ONE THING TO FALL IN LOVE with an attraction adventure that you experience while on vacation, but it’s quite another to be so enamored that it makes you decide to open a similar attraction of your own. But that’s exactly what happened to Michael and Kristy Robinson when they visited Belize last year.

There, the Robinsons took a zip line canopy tour and were so impressed that they’ve opened a zip line of their own in Wimberley, Texas. Called Wimberley Zipline Adventures, the venture offers guests a combination walking tour and thrill ride between two mountains and highlights the ecology of the area. The Robinsons partnered with two friends, Jim and Cheryl Turner, who brought extensive construction experience to the project.

The tour begins with a “fl school,” where guests are tau proper zip-lining techniques, t proceeds to an “eco” walking tou the area, and finally to five zip line rides ranging from 225 feet to 900 feet long at heights of up to 100 feet, with views of up to 15 miles.

Michael Robinson said the tours can accommodate a wide range of guests. “We can take kids from 10 years old to adults of any age, as long as they can walk a half-mile uphill,” he said. “One hundred riders a day would be really good for us, and we expect school groups, Boys Scouts and Girl Scouts, and corporate groups.”

The tours take about two hours and cost $60 per person. For more information visit www.wimberleyzipline.com.

DreamWorks Building New Theme Park in Dubai DREAMWORKS ANIMATION STUDIO in Hollywood has teamed with the United Arab Emirates’ state owned Tatweer to build the studio’s first theme park, to be located in Dubai. The 5 million square foot park will feature rides that showcase char acters from the studio’s animated film hits, such as the “Shrek” series, and its upcoming release, “Kung Fu Panda.”The park will be built at Dubai-land, the massive entertainment complex being constructed by Tatweer. Headed by Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks is just the latest Holly wood studio that plans to benefit from the burgeoning vacation and entertainment center of Dubai. In the past year, Universal Parks and Resorts, Paramount Pictures, and Warner Brothers have all struck deals to have a presence in the tourist des tination. “We are thrilled to bring the first DreamWorks Animation dedicated theme park to Dubai,” said Katzen berg in a statement, and added the partnership would“create an exciting destination where families and tourists will enjoy the unique oppor tunity to interact with DreamWorks characters and brands.”

Leave Your Cash and Keys at the Door

ON FEB. 29, KEYLIME COVE indoor waterpark opened in Gurnee, Illinois, about 40 miles from Chicago, and became the first all-cashless waterpark in the United States.

Utilizing Smart Band RFID (radio frequency identification) wristband technology, the 65,000-square-foot park completely eliminates the need for guests to carry money or room keys, and parents can pre-fund their kids’ wrist-bands and monitor purchases. “It just offers a great convenience for guests not to have to carry money or [credit cards],” said Michelle Hoffman, the resort’s spokesperson, “and the technology within the wristband is synched into the [resort’s systems] so that guests have no need for a room key.” Wristband scanners are located on the doors of the resort’s 414 rooms.

Though the system has benefits for guests, Hoffman said it also offers advantages to the resort: “We can keep track in one central location of where guests are spending their dollars, so we are also able to modify or update our [operations] centrally.”

When asked if the waterpark can still operate if the RFID system goes down, Hoffman told FUNWORLD, “Absolutely. All of the locations will still be able to utilize cash and credit card technology.”

Keylime Cove is the inspiration of Dave Anderson, founder of Famous Dave’s Legendary Pit Bar-B-Que and the Rainforest Cafe. The new resort’s web site is www.keylimecove.com.

 

Mining for Fun in South Africa A NEW AMUSEMENT PARK with a novel theme is going to be built in Rustenburg, South Africa, with the goal of opening its doors prior to the World Cup of soccer, which is coming to the country in 2010. Called Platinum City, the $100 million park will focus on the past, present, and future of South African mining.The Rustenburg municipality and Archway Projects will develop the park in a partnership. Some of the planned attractions in the park include a mining hall that will trace mining through the ages and show the impact that it has had on the history of the country and its people. Also, a “wall of remembrance” will pay tribute to those who died, mostly laborers, in making South Africa one of the mining centers of the world. According to Simon Crawford, marketing manager of Archway Projects, “The key element to the theme park will be a simulated mining exhibition and an interactive mining museum that will tell the story of mining through the eyes of the mine worker.” Visitors will be brought to the coalface of an underground operation, experience visuals, vibrations, dust, and noise, and see how platinum is extracted from ore and refined for use in jewelry and in technology products. Phase one of the park will cover 34 acres and phase two will cover another 50 acres. Regarding other elements of the park project, Crawford said, “Essentially there will be a few elements, namely a hotel, conference/exhibition center, offices, and a retail area.”

Water Wizardry

A COOPERATIVE EFFORT between Emotion Media Factory/Laserland and Kangwon Land Resort & Casinos has produced one of themost extensive and impressive multimedia attractions in Asia at the High One Resort in Jeongseongun, South Korea. Called “Water Wizard,” the show choreographs water curtains, water screens, lighting and flame effects, lasers, and
music in telling a story.

The project began in 2003 with the installation of large-scale screen projections incorporating lasers, lighting, and video. In 2006, a water curtain was installed on the resort’sman-made lake. Finally, last year Emotion Media Factory/ Laserland transformed the existing show into “Water Wizard” with a $2.6 million expansion. The water curtain was extended to a length of almost 500 feet. More than 3,100 computer-controlled water jets, fountains (with numerous effects and thousands of variations), high-resolution video projections, laser, light, and multicolored flame effects were combined to create the spectacular show.

Using a completely new type of media synchronization control system, Emotion Media Factory/Laserland was able to achieve a harmonized choreography with fully automatic operation
for the three-hour water-curtain show. The advantage of this for the resort is that function controls are fully automatic and can be activated simply by the staff on a touchscreen, eliminating the need for any extensive training of personnel.

A further expansion of the show system is planned for 2008, but Emotion Media Factory/Laserland and Kangwon Land Resort & Casinos were not providing details at press-time.

Thorpe Park Coasts to Approval for New Thrill Ride ON JAN. 30, THORPE PARK, located in Chertsey, Surrey, England, and owned by Merlin Enter tainments Group, received full planning consent from the local government to build its fourth roller coaster. Construction is set to begin in May on this yet unnamed Gerstlauer Euro Fighter located in the Canada Creek area of the park and featuring four loops, which the park proudly said will push it up to No. 3 in the world for total number of roller coaster inversions, with 18. The main ele ment of the ride will be a “beyond vertical” drop of 97 degrees from a height of 100 feet. The coaster cars will hold up to eight passengers, with up to eight cars on the track. In a statement, Peter Ronchetti, the park’s general manager, said of the 2,362 foot long ride, “Building on the successful launch of the park’s iconic ride, ‘Stealth,’ in 2006, the new roller coaster will add an element of edge to an already adrenaline packed breadth of thrills [we] offer. We are determined to establish Thorpe Park as the UK’s most thrilling attraction, and adding this development to our current portfolio will certainly do that.” Visit www.thorpepark.com

‘Believe It or Not!’ Castle Gets a Makeover

THE HISTORIC HOME of the very first Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum is undergoing a major renovation. The St. Augustine, Florida, museum is located in Castle Warden, a 19,600-square-foot citadel built in 1886 to serve as the winter home of the family of millionaire William Warden. Later it served as a popular hotel owned by Norton Baskin and Kinnan Rawlings until the Ripley’s museum moved there in 1950.

The renovations include the restoration of the castle’s original stained-glass ceiling. The entire glass assembly will be meticulously removed piece by piece and then restored to its original condition by Advent Glass Works in Gainesville, Florida. Also, “Li Che” and “King Kang,” the two Chinese generals whose statues have stood guard at the museum’s entrance for years, are being removed by Conservation of Sculpture & Objects Studio for restoration and will be sent to Chicago for repair.

Other upgrades will include a new roof, refurbishment of windows, repairs of cracks throughout the structure caused by age, and restoration of the castle’s original colors.

As for whether the castle is closed during the restoration, museum general manager Rob McCauley said, “No, we’ve made the repairs a part of our day-to-day operations, and we’re shooting for a total completion date sometime in April.”

Climb High for Coconuts INNOVATIVE LEISURE INTRODUCES THE COCONUT TREE CLIMB, a vertical climbing experience up the trunk of a pseudo coconut tree, now available with three trees.The attraction was built by Spectrum Sports and consists of realistic bark finish and fake palm leaves to top it off. An auto-belay system with certified cables makes sure each climber stays safe. And giving the attraction a competitive edge are newly designed climber timers and buzzers at the top of each tree. All versions of the tree—indoor, outdoor, and static models—are 26 feet high. Visit www.innovativeleisure.co.uk.