Aleatha Ezra, director of park
member development, WWA
Being a great community partner has proven to be a powerful tool for waterparks and aquatic venues looking to raise their goodwill profile. There are a couple of ways to launch a charitable initiative that can make a difference in your community while elevating your brand.
One way is to create your own charitable programme from scratch. For example, in 2008, Merlin Entertainments founded Merlin’s Magic Wand, a charitable organisation that enables seriously ill, disabled and disadvantaged children to enjoy a day out at a Merlin attraction. Over the past decade, this program has helped more than 377,000 children and their families make precious happy memories.
A second way is to find a well respected partner and put your full support behind them to raise money or awareness. Since June 2016, Center Parcs has partnered with Together for Short Lives, a UK charity that raises awareness and funds for children’s hospices. Center Parcs matches fund donations made by guests and donates 25 breaks a year to the charity. As well as national support, each Center Parcs village fundraises for their local children’s hospice, allowing them to make a real difference to their local community.
Both examples have merit, However, if creating your own programme seems daunting, the second option can be a more manageable way forward. Whether you choose to host a duck race in your leisure river to raise funds for your local children’s hospital or you hold a canned food drive once a month to support your local food bank, there are endless ways to become a force for good.
Aleatha Ezra, Director of Park Member Development, WWA
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2018 issue 2
People profile: Damien Hirst
Turner Prize-winning artist Damien Hirst exhibits a series of spot paintings and huge sculptures at a Norfolk stately home
People profile: Penka Kouneva
Movie and video game composer Penka Kouneva moves into the world of attractions with the Heroes and Legends exhibit and VR installations
Industry Opinion: Zoos & Aquariums
WAZA’s Sabrina Brando on providing animals with opportunities for choices, stimulating environments and enriching activities
Interview: Sultan Al Dhaheri
With the launch of Warner Bros World and
the Louvre in Abu Dhabi, the Department
of Culture and Tourism’s Sultan Al Dhaheri
explains how investing in attractions is
helping the emirate meet its tourism goals
Animal sanctuaries: Paws for Thought
The UK’s Big Cat Sanctuary is the subject
of a recent BBC documentary. Managing
director Giles Clark explains how the
facility works – and introduces Maya
the jaguar and Willow the cheetah
Science Centres: Getting Engaged
Researchers Dr Amy Seakins and
Dr Heather King explain how science
capital empowers science centres
to engage wider audiences in STEM,
plus European initiatives in action
Digital art: Light Fantastic
Tokyo-based digital art collective teamLab is
on a mission to change the way we interact
with and experience art. Magali Robathan
reports on the group’s installation work
and their upcoming museum launch
Aleatha Ezra, director of park
member development, WWA
Being a great community partner has proven to be a powerful tool for waterparks and aquatic venues looking to raise their goodwill profile. There are a couple of ways to launch a charitable initiative that can make a difference in your community while elevating your brand.
One way is to create your own charitable programme from scratch. For example, in 2008, Merlin Entertainments founded Merlin’s Magic Wand, a charitable organisation that enables seriously ill, disabled and disadvantaged children to enjoy a day out at a Merlin attraction. Over the past decade, this program has helped more than 377,000 children and their families make precious happy memories.
A second way is to find a well respected partner and put your full support behind them to raise money or awareness. Since June 2016, Center Parcs has partnered with Together for Short Lives, a UK charity that raises awareness and funds for children’s hospices. Center Parcs matches fund donations made by guests and donates 25 breaks a year to the charity. As well as national support, each Center Parcs village fundraises for their local children’s hospice, allowing them to make a real difference to their local community.
Both examples have merit, However, if creating your own programme seems daunting, the second option can be a more manageable way forward. Whether you choose to host a duck race in your leisure river to raise funds for your local children’s hospital or you hold a canned food drive once a month to support your local food bank, there are endless ways to become a force for good.
Aleatha Ezra, Director of Park Member Development, WWA
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2018 issue 2
People profile: Damien Hirst
Turner Prize-winning artist Damien Hirst exhibits a series of spot paintings and huge sculptures at a Norfolk stately home
People profile: Penka Kouneva
Movie and video game composer Penka Kouneva moves into the world of attractions with the Heroes and Legends exhibit and VR installations
Industry Opinion: Zoos & Aquariums
WAZA’s Sabrina Brando on providing animals with opportunities for choices, stimulating environments and enriching activities
Interview: Sultan Al Dhaheri
With the launch of Warner Bros World and
the Louvre in Abu Dhabi, the Department
of Culture and Tourism’s Sultan Al Dhaheri
explains how investing in attractions is
helping the emirate meet its tourism goals
Animal sanctuaries: Paws for Thought
The UK’s Big Cat Sanctuary is the subject
of a recent BBC documentary. Managing
director Giles Clark explains how the
facility works – and introduces Maya
the jaguar and Willow the cheetah
Science Centres: Getting Engaged
Researchers Dr Amy Seakins and
Dr Heather King explain how science
capital empowers science centres
to engage wider audiences in STEM,
plus European initiatives in action
Digital art: Light Fantastic
Tokyo-based digital art collective teamLab is
on a mission to change the way we interact
with and experience art. Magali Robathan
reports on the group’s installation work
and their upcoming museum launch
Expo 2030 Riyadh is being planned as a permanent visitor destination, with organisers
confirming the six-million-square-metre site will become a Global Village after the event closes.
The owner of one of Australia's best-known waterparks has acquired a major competitor,
creating a new attractions business spanning two of the country's largest visitor destinations.
The Toverland theme park in the Netherlands has announced a €98m expansion programme
that will add a resort, new attractions and staff facilities as it pursues plans to become a multi-
day destination.
Hotel de France, located on the British Isle of Jersey, has created a wellness retreat package
that includes a hot yoga session that will take place in Jersey Zoo’s butterfly sanctuary.
A new immersive attraction designed to transport visitors into the final hours of ancient Pompeii
is preparing to open near the world-famous archaeological site in southern Italy.
Experience design company, BRC Imagination Arts, has completed a transition that sees founder
Bob Rogers pass ownership of the business to four long-serving senior executives, while
remaining actively involved with the company.
Movie Park Germany has opened a new Paramount Pictures-themed attraction as part of its 30th
anniversary celebrations, using immersive storytelling and adaptive reuse to reinforce the park’s
longstanding “Hollywood in Germany” positioning.
Therme Manchester’s 28-acre development, which will include interconnected glass pavilions
that measure 65,000sq m, will be the largest bathing and wellbeing attraction in the world once
complete, according to prof David Russell, CEO of Therme UK.
Efteling has opened Hooghmoed, a new family drop tower designed to broaden the appeal of its
recently launched Sirene Island themed area and introduce younger visitors to thrill attractions.
A proposed Puy du Fou development near Bicester and Universal Destinations and Experiences’
planned resort in Bedford are emerging as part of a wider transformation of the Oxford–
Cambridge Growth Corridor into a major centre for UK leisure and tourism inv
+ More news
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