Blog Relaunch

Due to starting University, I haven't had much time to focus on keeping this blog up-to-date! However, updates will resume from Saturday the 3rd. 

In the meantime, the theme park pages on this site will be up and running within the next few days - so check back for updates! Also, I intend on having a Twitter presence so that you can be notified immediately when a new article or piece of Orlando theme park news arises. 

See you soon!

Is Transformers coming to Universal Orlando?

In a recent interview, legendary director and major influence on Universal creative, Steven Spielberg, recently spoke to Orlando Sentinel and possibly suggests that the Transformers franchise is coming to the east coast.

 “I always like to hear that people are still coming to the attractions we already have in the park. I know everybody’s going to Harry Potter right now. But we think Transformers is going to pretty amazing. We’ve been working on that for about three years now. It should be ready soon. I don’t have an announcement, yet, but it should be coming there soon,”

TBA: Transforming Universal
Hollywood and soon Orlando?

Earlier this year, I suggested that Universal might be anticipating a removal of Spiderman and replacing it with the Transformers ride that is going into the Hollywood and Singapore park. However, Universal are currently spending a lot of money on improving the digital projection of Spiderman, so the future of Spiderman and for the moment, Marvel Superhero Island seems to be in tact. So where would Transformers go? Personally I'd love to see it replace Twister in the Studios but by the looks of the plans for the other parks, the building doesn't seem big enough. There is however, a big space between MIB and The Simpsons Ride... 

Or is Spielberg merely getting his Universal parks mixed up? Who knows, perhaps we shall find out in the near future.

Child Swap: An increasing problem?

For those who might not have had the joy of child swap, the premise is that a member of a party with a young child, waits off of the ride with the child (either in a room at the attraction or at some parks, not in the attraction at all) whilst the rest of the party rides. When the party come off the attraction, the person that waited off the attraction is allowed to ride with none or limited wait time, with 1 other person (Disney I believe allow 2, or they did in 2009).

SheiKra: Busch Gardens' Child Swap
appears to work efficiently.

Firstly, Busch Gardens (Disney also do, however, didn't have to use Child Swap at Disney!) actually have the best system in place. The person waiting with the child is free to stroll around the park, perhaps waiting in a kid's area for the rest of the party. Those in the queue have a child swap ticket that is stamped at the top of the queue by the ride op. When the person re-rides, this ticket is collected. (For some reason the system was a little different at SheiKra, though the TM seemed to not have a clue what he was doing!) A system that doesn't allow for people to completely abuse Child Swap, allowing people to merely walk up the exit, re-ride the attraction or use multiple combinations via the Child Swap queue. Which brings me to Universal...

At Universal, Child Swap lines are often
easily accessible through the exit.

Now I am a 100% full-fledged Universal fan. The abuse of this queue isn't even the TM's fault. People would merely go round and round the Child-swap again as there was no proving that the rider who stayed off with the child hadn’t already been on (no receipt). One day there was a receipt system in place at Rip, Ride and Rock It, however, I still witnessed families going round and round again with different combinations of family. Some people even had the audacity to enter the ride through the child swap line (often it’s very accessible through the exit) and claim they were using Child Swap, and then proceed to ride again and again. Ultimately this makes the queuing time longer for everyone else, including the almighty Express Pass lane.

Whilst it’s not a huge issue currently at the parks, it’s something that theme parks should take note of. This is a form of queue jumping which shouldn’t go unnoticed! What are your views? Please post them in the comments below!

Tomorrow: WetnWild’s unique selling tactics!  

We're off to see the Wizard...

Sorry for the lack of updates in the past month, it's been a hectic one! However, with a two week visit to Florida beginning on Monday, many personal and in-depth new posts can be expected upon my return. Stay tuned! 

Monorail Hours Cut and Primeval Whirl Testing

The Orlando Sentinel recently reported that the iconic Monorail service at DisneyWorld will now be running a reduced service. 

Monorail closures: Will the reduced operating hours
impact on-site guests?

This is mainly a problem for on-site guests that pay a premium for these kind of perks, however, the boats will still be operating. As someone that doesn't stay on-site at Disney, I wonder how much this will impact those that do. Will this encourage them to perhaps rent a car rather than rely completely on Disney's transport systems? The main advantage of Disney providing transport, is that it doesn't allow guests to venture off into Orlando to visit other theme parks, other amenities and restaurants! I personally don't think it is a big enough push to persuade someone to rent a car, but who knows.


On a side note, Primeval Whirl has been reportedly begun testing according to Screamscape. Perhaps we will see this attraction re-opening before the summer's end. However, this could merely be part of their on-going investigations into the attraction.

Streetainment!

The first thing that comes to a person’s mind when they think of theme parks, is certainly not street entertainment. Street entertainment comes in all shapes and sizes – whether its character greeting, impromptu shows or even a talking tree – it’s often these smaller aspects that give that feeling of ‘magic’ or awe that enthusiasts thrive on.

Lights! Camera! Action!: Hollywood Boulevard at DHS
is often the location of street entertainment.

For instance, the two theme parks in Orlando that are based on the movies – Universal Studios and Disney’s Hollywood Studios, seem to understand the importance of the smaller details. At Universal, you will frequently see old Hollywood stars like Monroe and the I Love Lucy Cast on the streets and posing for photos. Disney’s Hollywood Studios often have impromptu shows along Hollywood Boulevard which showcases a director trying to spot ‘talent’. Often these guest interactions make for life long memories at the parks.

How Devine!: Performance Artist at Animal Kingdom

Of-course there is the obvious character greeting, which some visitors make an art form! There are tonnes of websites out there that are devoted to snapping a photo with these characters. However, Disney’s Animal Kingdom has a kind of ‘character greet’ that is slightly more unusual. ‘Devine’ is a performance artist who blends in to the shrubbery and trees, only to be seen when she makes a slight movement. The intricate and small details just show how much Disney values theming and guest interaction. Disney claim that Devine is used to try and encourage guests to question their opinion on nature, and make them see that ‘nature is not always what it seems’. However, personally I think Devine is a small detail of a park, that will stay engraved in people’s minds.

How Magical: A cheeky fountain at Universal
interacts and splashes guests!

Similarly, Universal has also adopted this approach with their talking fountain, known as ‘The Mystic Fountain’ which is located in now the much smaller island of the Lost Continent. Universal’s website includes a comment from a guest who describes the fountain as “Magical”*. ‘Magic’ is often a word used by Disney enthusiasts to describe the X-factor that Disney has over ‘amusement parks’ such as Universal – however, this clearly suggests Universal are more than capable of doing this too! In fact, this has been happening more frequently in the theming of the exterior of their attractions, such as The Simpsons ride where a telephone outside might give a guest a laugh or two! More recently, the toilets in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter reportedly have Moaning Myrtle sounds playing in the toilets – now that kind of thinking is Universal at its best!

I Kid You Not: A talking bin pulls in the crowd's at DisneyWorld

Finally, Disney could be claimed to be the pioneers of such intricate street entertainment. For a long time now, one of Disney’s main stars has been “Push” – The bin! This talking bin even has its own scheduled times that it will be making ‘an appearance’. What a load of rubbish…. ;)

Apologies!

Sorry for the break - it has been a busy couple of weeks. Those promised articles are on their way!