Review of the News: March 27 – March 31

Monday March 27, 2017

Disney will debut food ordering system in Pandora
Satu’li Canteen, a fast-casual eatery coming to Pandora — The World of Avatar at Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park, will debut the company’s Mobile One system, which will use the existing My Disney Experience app.


Tuesday March 28, 2017

Legoland Park Includes ‘Quiet Rooms’ And Other Features For Guests With Autism
Legoland Resort Florida has been teaming up with the North and Central Florida chapter of the organization Autism Speaks since early 2016 to make its amusement park more friendly for guests on the autism spectrum.


Wednesday March 29, 2017

City of Myrtle Beach honors historic wooden roller coaster
This week, city officials recognized the historic significance of the Swamp Fox roller coaster on its 51st anniversary.

Six Flags New England to offer lights, rides and shows during Christmas season
Six Flags New England, which has historically been a spring through Halloween attraction, will be open in November and December for the new Holiday in the Park celebration.

SeaWorld San Diego Slashes Prices for Limited-Time Tickets
The marine amusement park unveiled a couple of value ticket options: a single-day, $55 ticket, valid on weekdays now through June 16, and a new “any-day” ticket, valid now through June 11, for $69.

Dreamland opening date delayed as further expansion plans announced
The opening of Margate's Dreamland has been pushed back four weeks until Friday, May 26, following further expansion of its 2017 plan.

Joyland carousel may spin again in 2018
The carousel salvaged from the defunct Joyland amusement park may be whirling again as soon as next year, the executive director of the Botanica gardens said Tuesday.

Disney World changing the location of their metal detectors for an enhanced arrival
The metal detectors and bag checks that greeted visitors right before entering Magic Kingdom now take place at a location closer to where you park. They will be located at the Transportation and Ticket Center starting Monday, April 3rd.


Thursday March 30, 2017

Cedar Point hiring 5,000 people for Summer 2017 season
The Sandusky, Ohio amusement park is looking to hire more than 5,000 people this summer. Jobs include everything from ride operations and security to park services and accommodations.

Drunk thug bites ear of M&D's security guard after being denied entry
A drunk thug bit part of the ear off a security guard at M&D’s after he was denied entry to the amusement area.

New Festival of Wonder at Silver Dollar City
The all-new Festival of Wonder opens April 6, presenting acts of curiosity and larger-than-life performances, all billed as “A Most Amazing Entertainment Experience.”

Universal Orlando Announces Ticket Prices For New Volcano Bay Theme Park
Visitors to the new Volcano Bay water park will spend $67 for a one day ticket – which is $5 more than Blizzard Beach at Walt Disney World. A one day pass to all three Universal Orlando parks will cost $219 for each person.

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk seeks permit for two new rides
The proposed new rides stand 20 and 25 feet above city 40-foot height limits for park zoning, but will keep company amidst the neighboring 125-foot Double Shot and 70-foot Giant Dipper.

Canada's Wonderland set to hire 4,000 seasonal employees
As Canada's largest single-location employer of youth (hiring more than 4,000 associates annually), Canada's Wonderland is now accepting applications for a variety of positions including Food and Beverage, Operations, Admissions, Retail, Aquatics, Entertainment, Security and more.

HK$350 million proposed for struggling Hong Kong Disneyland by US parent company
Walt Disney has agreed to inject an extra HK$350 million into its Hong Kong theme park’s six-year expansion plan and waive part of its management fees for two years after renewed public outcry over the deal’s “unequal” financing.

Halloween Horror Nights: American Horror Story returning in 2017
The FX television series will be featured in a new haunted-house maze at this fall’s event at Universal Studios theme park. It will include three installments from the anthology.


Friday March 31, 2017

KS House votes to strengthen inspection rules for amusement park rides
Kansas legislators are accelerating work on stricter regulations for amusement park rides following the death last summer of a lawmaker's 10-year-old son on a giant water slide.

Disney, Universal ramp up spending amid intense competition
The parent companies of Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando are on spending sprees as they build increasingly elaborate attractions to compete with each other.

Universal: How to check out 'Tonight Show' musical acts
If you don’t have a ticket to see a taping of the “Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” during its stay at Universal Orlando, you can still be part of the experience. The talk show’s musical acts will be taped on the Music Plaza Stage inside Universal Studios theme park.

Paultons Park puts £10,000 towards new playground in Copythorne
Owner and managing director of Paultons Park, Richard Mancey, donated the cash to kick-start the fundraising process after hearing about the local cause.

Ferrari World officially opens its latest rollercoaster
The rollercoaster 'Turbo Track' was officially launched at a high-profile inaugural event attended by Miral Chairman Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, Miral CEO Mohamed Abdalla Al Zaabi and Ferrari Chief Brand Officer Luca Fuso, among other distinguished guests.

Review of the News: February 22 – February 26

Monday February 22, 2015

Cedar Point Raises Admission, Announces the Closure of Three Rides
As the Valravn roller coaster construction nears completion, the park is also shuttering three rides: Shoot the Rapids water ride, Skyscraper and Challenge Racing.

Ferrari World Abu Dhabi to open Flying Aces coaster this week
Ferrari World Abu Dhabi has begun the countdown to unveil its all new record-breaking roller coaster Flying Aces later this week on February 24.

New rides, promotions help Six Flags enjoy record year
The company saw its revenue grow by $88 million, or 7.5 percent, to $1.3 billion over 2014, marking the sixth consecutive year of record financial performance, John Duffey, chief financial officer of the Grand Prairie, Texas-based company, said during a conference call on Thursday.

A theme park is selling a host of unusual items on eBay including a wooden log flume
Dreamland, which is based in Margate, revealed in December that it had debts of £2.9million following a summer of transport problems.  It agreed a five-year deal to pay back its creditors, and is trying to raise £500,000 by selling off some of its items.

Legoland Windsor unveil biggest Lego structure in the UK ever
Theme park staff have unveiled the biggest Lego structure in the UK ever - a scale model of the DEATH STAR.

Disney shares 'first look' at Star Wars lands
A segment during Sunday night's broadcast of "The Wonderful World of Disney: Disneyland 60," introduced by actor Harrison Ford, showed several "concept renderings" of attractions coming to Disney's Hollywood Studios and Disneyland.


Tuesday February 23, 2015

Autism Speaks Walk moves out of Dorney Park, citing treatment of special needs worker
The annual Lehigh Valley Autism Speaks Walk, which attracts roughly 5,000 supporters, is moving out of Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom this year — yet another event cutting ties with the amusement park after the viral story about the treatment of a special-needs worker.

Westchester may commit $58M in amended Playland deal
Westchester County would spend $58 million on 11 construction projects at Playland as part of an amended deal with the company that is set to take over the historic county-owned park, officials said.

Kings Island latest local employer to raise wages
A seasonal job at Kings Island will pay better this year as the amusement park joins examples of other local employers raising wages in a tightening job market with fewer unemployed workers.

Fight over Six Flags solar farm trudges on
There were more hours of opposing testimony on Monday night to Six Flags Great Adventure's controversial plans to construct a solar generation facility on 66 acres of existing woodlands.

Movie World signs up super villains
Super-villains will be centre stage at Warner Brothers Movie World's latest attraction, opening in October.


Wednesday February 24, 2015

Cedar Point won't raise fence in response to death of man struck by roller coaster
Officials at Cedar Point say the park will make no changes in fence height, signage or other safety procedures in response to the death last summer of a man who entered a restricted area under a ride and was hit by an oncoming roller coaster train.

FunPlex Amusement Park opens in Lagos
Fun-seeking children and their parents living in Magodo-Shangisha area of Kosofe Local Government Area of Lagos State may now heave a sigh of relief as FunPlex Amusement Park has commenced business on the CMD Road, Shangisha.

Two seals, including newborn, die at Hong Kong’s Ocean Park while red panda breaks into giant panda enclosure in trio of incidents
Two seals, including a newborn, have died at Ocean Park in two separate incidents in less than a week, a spokeswoman for the marine theme park confirmed last night.  A red panda also escaped its enclosure and entered a neighbouring enclosure, home to the park’s two resident giant pandas, Ying Ying and Le Le.

Hidden Mickey made of 48,000 solar panels spotted at Walt Disney World
A solar farm arranged into the shape of the famous mouse ears has been built near Epcot at Walt Disney World.


Thursday February 25, 2015

SeaWorld admits employees spied on protesters
Amusement park operator SeaWorld has admitted that it carried on a practice in which employees posed as animal rights activists in order to spy on those groups.

Cedar Fair Declares 2016 First-Quarter Cash Distribution
The distribution, which is payable March 28, 2016 to unitholders of record as of March 14, 2016, represents the Company's 30 consecutive year of paying a cash distribution to its unitholders.

Alton Towers is to be prosecuted over the Smiler rollercoaster crash
The owner of Alton Towers will be prosecuted over the Smiler rollercoaster crash after it left five people seriously injured.

Universal Orlando releases image of Skull Island: Reign of Kong
The 3-D ride, which will be one of the longest ride experiences ever created at Universal, will  bring the next generation of King Kong to life., according to a release from the theme park.

SeaWorld Entertainment Q4 Loss Narrows From Previous Year
The company reported a Q4 adjusted net loss of $9.6 million, or a loss of $0.11 per diluted share, narrower than the loss of $17.8 million, or $0.20 per share, in the prior year period but wider than the loss of $0.10 expected by analysts.


Friday February 26, 2015

Theme park closes in Phnom Penh
Dreamland, Cambodia’s biggest amusement park, will close 1 March after the contact expires.  The amusement park posted on its facebook, Tuesday, that it was ending its business 1 March.

Review of the News: October 19 – October 23

Monday October 19, 2015

Dufftoberfest beer smooth, fresh addition to Springfield
Dufftoberfest is the first seasonal offering (available through Oct. 31) of Duff Beer at Springfield U.S.A. at Universal Orlando. The area, home of The Simpsons Ride, has been serving up Homer's favorite brand of beer since 2013.

London Paramount theme park gets £100 million from Chinese investor
The London Paramount Entertainment Resort, a Disneyland-style park planned for North Kent, has won its maiden investment from Chinese construction company SinoFortone.

Shanghai Disney to have world's longest parade
Shanghai Disney Resort will have the world’s longest parade every day along with some stage shows, musical events and acrobatics performances, according to the resort management.  The daytime parade route named, “Mickey’s Storybook Express”, will stretch across the 1.16-square-kilometer Shanghai Disneyland every day after it opens in the spring of 2016.


Tuesday October 20, 2015

Man says he was denied entry at Busch Gardens for wearing kilt
Nearly 2,000 people have shared a Facebook post of a man who says he wasn’t allowed into Busch Gardens Williamsburg’s Howl- O-Scream Friday because he was wearing a kilt.

‘Halloween Horror Nights’ maestro Mike Aiello brings nightmares to life
Mike Aiello knows the art of the scare. As creative director of Universal Studios Orlando’s “Halloween Horror Nights,” he has worked with teams of innovative ghouls and effects magicians to orchestrate frightening mazes, scare zones and live shows for the theme park’s seasonal event since 2003.


Wednesday October 21, 2015

Six Flags theme parks propose name change wagers based on NLCS outcome

Six Flags Great Adventure and Six Flags Great America, which are located just on the outskirts of New York and Chicago respectively, have decided to put their money where their mouths are when it comes to baseball.

Six Flags Great Escape to add metal detectors
A change is coming to a popular amusement park to make patrons feel safer.  Six Flags Great Escape is installing metal detectors at the park's front gates.

Universal Studios Hollywood extends Horror Nights beyond Halloween

Universal Studios Hollywood's annual Halloween extravaganza has been such a hit this year that the park is extending the event beyond Halloween.

Thursday October 22, 2015

Merlin signs deal to bring Legoland to Shanghai

A branch of the Legoland amusement park is to open in Shanghai under a likely US$300 million (RM1.3 billion) joint venture investment by Britain's Merlin Entertainments Plc, announced during the state visit to Britain of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Put away that spare change, there's no more pay phoning home from Disneyland
Thanks to the incredible growth of cellphones, the resort has quietly removed all the pay phones from its original theme park.

Bouncing Baby Rhino Arrives at Busch Gardens
Kisiri, one of the park’s adult southern white rhinos, gave birth to her third calf on Oct. 16, the theme park announced. The baby and its mother are doing well, park officials report, and are currently being cared for behind the scenes by the park’s animal care team.

Silverwood offers chance to name new water slide
Silverwood Theme Park announced Wednesday plans to open a new water slide at their Boulder Beach Water Park, and are inviting the community to help name it.


Friday October 23, 2015

Ferrari World prepares for second world record
Called The Flying Aces, the ride is a 1.5 kilometre roller coaster which will have the world’s largest roller coaster loop, the current record for which is held by one at 6 Flags Magic Mountain in California.

Disney lands celebrity chef Rick Bayless, Universal opens NBC Sports Grill
Thursday was a big day for Orlando restaurants as tourist attractions, with NBC Sports going into the bar business and Rick Bayless, one of the country's top chefs, announcing he's going to Disney World — or at least the Mouse-owned shopping plaza Disney Springs.

Baby flamingo is newest arrival at Hampshire theme park
The Chilean flamingo chick has emerged from its nest at Paultons Park and can be seen hiding beneath its mother’s wing.