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
INTAMIN Yukon Quad Parc Le Pal France At the beginning of April, Parc Le Pal in Saint-Pourçain-sur-Besbre, France, launched its biggest ever attraction, Yukon Quad. Themed like a string of all-terrain vehicles, Intamin’s Family Launch Coaster covers a whole kilometre of track.
With ride theming creating a journey through a wild Canadian landscape, the quads launch at speeds of 65kph, with riders experiencing a G-force of up to 3G. The rollercoaster travels up, drops down, and winds its way along close to the ground, intensifying the feeling of speed. The coaster’s second launch reaches almost 90kph, following a series of tight bends and hills and an S-hump before the ride comes to an end.
“We’ve invested 10 million euros in this new attraction, that is to say 50 per cent of our turnover from 2017,” Parc Le Pal CEO Arnaud Bennet told local press. “That’s 5 million euros more than Twist, our most expensive attraction, built in 2011. So, we hope for a nice return on investment. Thanks to Yukon, we are expecting 50,000 additional visitors this year.”
The ride uses Intamin’s cutting-edge friction wheel drive system and features an upright seating position. It’s one of only three coasters of its kind in the world.
North Canada’s wilderness inspired
the ride theming
North Canada’s wilderness inspired
the ride theming
MACK RIDES TIME TRAVELLER Silver Dollar City Branson, Missouri Time Traveller, billed as the world’s fastest, steepest and tallest spinning coaster, delivers 360-degree controlled spins as the vehicle moves, meaning every ride experience is different from the last.
The Herschend-owned and run theme park invested of $26m in the new double launch ride, and in return is able to boast an attraction with top speeds of 80kph, a 10-storey, 90-degree vertical drop, a top height of 30 metres; and a dive loop, vertical loop and a zero-G roll making up its three inversions. The 920-metre track crosses over itself 14 times in total.
“This coaster’s state-of-the-art controlled spin provides riders a unique thrill experience while still appealing to families,” says Brad Thomas, president of Silver Dollar City Attractions. “Time Traveller is a revolutionary coaster ahead of its time.”
Time Traveller starts with an immediate, out-of-the-station,
gravity-driven 90-degree drop
Time Traveller starts with an immediate, out-of-the-station,
gravity-driven 90-degree drop
Time Traveller starts with an immediate, out-of-the-station,
gravity-driven 90-degree drop
GREAT COASTERS INT. Wicker Man Alton Towers Alton, UK Alton Towers’ highly anticipated Wicker Man ride opened in March, the theme park’s first wooden coaster, which boasts a six-storey flaming centrepiece and is the first such ride to combine wood and fire effects.
Operator Merlin Entertainments used Great Coasters International to build and install the £16m ride. Holovis created the pre-show and queue line, which feature extensive theming and elaborate projection mapping, while Picsolve supplied the photo-capture solution.
“We started to come up with themes that made the most of wood as a material,” says Bradley Wynne, creative lead at Merlin Magic Making. “We thought it was interesting that people really love that combination of wood and fire and so we began to think about how we could recreate that somehow in a safe way. That was the challenge – how to set a wooden coaster on fire and for it to be safe.”
The 618-metre wooden coaster features a blazing 20-metre-tall wicker man that bursts into flames on three occasions during the course of the ride. Featuring a lift hill and 22-metre drop, the ride lasts about three and a half minutes.
Wicker Man also has a themed area around the attraction, with a shop, games unit and kiosk
Wicker Man also has a themed area around the attraction, with a shop, games unit and kiosk
Wicker Man also has a themed area around the attraction, with a shop, games unit and kiosk
MACK RIDES ICON Blackpool Pleasure Beach Blackpool, UK Mack Rides’ ICON – the UK’s first ever double launch rollercoaster – opened in May, marking a £16m investment for Blackpool Pleasure Beach in north England.
Riders board copper gold carriages, crafted from German steel, and are fired out of a tunnel, with the layout of the rollercoaster navigating in and out of the theme park’s other rides multiple times. The 1.14km grey steel track boasts a high point of 27 metres, with drops of up to 25 metres.
“We have been on an incredible journey building this rollercoaster, seeing its towering presence on the park and entwining with some of our most popular rides. It really has been epic,” says Amanda Thompson, the attraction’s managing director. “It’s a smooth but exhilarating ride like no other rollercoaster in the world.”
German steel is manufactured using cutting-edge engineering processes for a smoother ride
ZAMPERLA Thunderchariot Discovery Kingdom Dalian, China Italian ride maker Zamperla recently opened its third Thunderbolt coaster, at Haichang’s Dalian Discovery Kingdom in Liaoning province, China. The rollercoaster follows a fairytale theme inkeeping with the design of the area in park.
Named Thunderchariot by Dalian Discovery Kingdom, riders traverse the 675-metre track in one of four, nine-seater vehicles, reaching speeds of up to 85kph. Zamperla has installed its Thunderbolt ride at Luna Park, New York, and OWA theme park in Foley, Alabama. A fourth is to open at Mason Robotland in South Korea.
Thunderchariot is the third of Zamperla’s Thunderbolt installations
Thunderchariot is the third of Zamperla’s Thunderbolt installations
COMPANY PROFILES
Holovis
Holovis is a privately owned company
established in 2004 by CEO Stuart
Hetherington. [more...]
QubicaAMF UK
QubicaAMF is the largest and most
innovative bowling equipment provider with
600 employees worldwi [more...]
An opportunity to reimagine one of the UK’s most recognisable towers has been formally
opened by Rivington Hark, as St Johns Beacon invites operators and partners to shape its
next phase. [more...]
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
INTAMIN Yukon Quad Parc Le Pal France At the beginning of April, Parc Le Pal in Saint-Pourçain-sur-Besbre, France, launched its biggest ever attraction, Yukon Quad. Themed like a string of all-terrain vehicles, Intamin’s Family Launch Coaster covers a whole kilometre of track.
With ride theming creating a journey through a wild Canadian landscape, the quads launch at speeds of 65kph, with riders experiencing a G-force of up to 3G. The rollercoaster travels up, drops down, and winds its way along close to the ground, intensifying the feeling of speed. The coaster’s second launch reaches almost 90kph, following a series of tight bends and hills and an S-hump before the ride comes to an end.
“We’ve invested 10 million euros in this new attraction, that is to say 50 per cent of our turnover from 2017,” Parc Le Pal CEO Arnaud Bennet told local press. “That’s 5 million euros more than Twist, our most expensive attraction, built in 2011. So, we hope for a nice return on investment. Thanks to Yukon, we are expecting 50,000 additional visitors this year.”
The ride uses Intamin’s cutting-edge friction wheel drive system and features an upright seating position. It’s one of only three coasters of its kind in the world.
North Canada’s wilderness inspired
the ride theming
North Canada’s wilderness inspired
the ride theming
MACK RIDES TIME TRAVELLER Silver Dollar City Branson, Missouri Time Traveller, billed as the world’s fastest, steepest and tallest spinning coaster, delivers 360-degree controlled spins as the vehicle moves, meaning every ride experience is different from the last.
The Herschend-owned and run theme park invested of $26m in the new double launch ride, and in return is able to boast an attraction with top speeds of 80kph, a 10-storey, 90-degree vertical drop, a top height of 30 metres; and a dive loop, vertical loop and a zero-G roll making up its three inversions. The 920-metre track crosses over itself 14 times in total.
“This coaster’s state-of-the-art controlled spin provides riders a unique thrill experience while still appealing to families,” says Brad Thomas, president of Silver Dollar City Attractions. “Time Traveller is a revolutionary coaster ahead of its time.”
Time Traveller starts with an immediate, out-of-the-station,
gravity-driven 90-degree drop
Time Traveller starts with an immediate, out-of-the-station,
gravity-driven 90-degree drop
Time Traveller starts with an immediate, out-of-the-station,
gravity-driven 90-degree drop
GREAT COASTERS INT. Wicker Man Alton Towers Alton, UK Alton Towers’ highly anticipated Wicker Man ride opened in March, the theme park’s first wooden coaster, which boasts a six-storey flaming centrepiece and is the first such ride to combine wood and fire effects.
Operator Merlin Entertainments used Great Coasters International to build and install the £16m ride. Holovis created the pre-show and queue line, which feature extensive theming and elaborate projection mapping, while Picsolve supplied the photo-capture solution.
“We started to come up with themes that made the most of wood as a material,” says Bradley Wynne, creative lead at Merlin Magic Making. “We thought it was interesting that people really love that combination of wood and fire and so we began to think about how we could recreate that somehow in a safe way. That was the challenge – how to set a wooden coaster on fire and for it to be safe.”
The 618-metre wooden coaster features a blazing 20-metre-tall wicker man that bursts into flames on three occasions during the course of the ride. Featuring a lift hill and 22-metre drop, the ride lasts about three and a half minutes.
Wicker Man also has a themed area around the attraction, with a shop, games unit and kiosk
Wicker Man also has a themed area around the attraction, with a shop, games unit and kiosk
Wicker Man also has a themed area around the attraction, with a shop, games unit and kiosk
MACK RIDES ICON Blackpool Pleasure Beach Blackpool, UK Mack Rides’ ICON – the UK’s first ever double launch rollercoaster – opened in May, marking a £16m investment for Blackpool Pleasure Beach in north England.
Riders board copper gold carriages, crafted from German steel, and are fired out of a tunnel, with the layout of the rollercoaster navigating in and out of the theme park’s other rides multiple times. The 1.14km grey steel track boasts a high point of 27 metres, with drops of up to 25 metres.
“We have been on an incredible journey building this rollercoaster, seeing its towering presence on the park and entwining with some of our most popular rides. It really has been epic,” says Amanda Thompson, the attraction’s managing director. “It’s a smooth but exhilarating ride like no other rollercoaster in the world.”
German steel is manufactured using cutting-edge engineering processes for a smoother ride
ZAMPERLA Thunderchariot Discovery Kingdom Dalian, China Italian ride maker Zamperla recently opened its third Thunderbolt coaster, at Haichang’s Dalian Discovery Kingdom in Liaoning province, China. The rollercoaster follows a fairytale theme inkeeping with the design of the area in park.
Named Thunderchariot by Dalian Discovery Kingdom, riders traverse the 675-metre track in one of four, nine-seater vehicles, reaching speeds of up to 85kph. Zamperla has installed its Thunderbolt ride at Luna Park, New York, and OWA theme park in Foley, Alabama. A fourth is to open at Mason Robotland in South Korea.
Thunderchariot is the third of Zamperla’s Thunderbolt installations
Thunderchariot is the third of Zamperla’s Thunderbolt installations
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
Shedd Aquarium has opened the Immersion Theater developed in partnership with SimEx-
Iwerks, as part of a wider strategy to enhance the guest experience and create additional
revenue opportunities.
The UK government has announced a temporary reduction in VAT on visitor attractions and
children’s meals as part of a summer cost-of-living support package designed to stimulate the
visitor economy and encourage family days out.
As designer Yinka Ilori prepares for his first solo gallery show in London, he speaks exclusively
to CLADmag about his mission to spread joy, the power of play, and his bold approach to using
colour (including the colours you won’t see in his work).
The government of Thailand is exploring plans for a THB300bn (£6.3bn, US$8.3bn)
entertainment complex in the country’s Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), with officials
proposing a large-scale theme park and sports destination as part of a broader tourism and
economic development strategy.
+ More news
COMPANY PROFILES
Holovis Holovis is a privately owned company
established in 2004 by CEO Stuart
Hetherington. [more...]
QubicaAMF UK QubicaAMF is the largest and most
innovative bowling equipment provider with
600 employees worldwi [more...]
An opportunity to reimagine one of the UK’s most recognisable towers has been formally
opened by Rivington Hark, as St Johns Beacon invites operators and partners to shape its
next phase. [more...]
