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World News:
---- THE LATEST GLOBAL NEWS ----
(12/20/2024) India's Wonderla Parks Open Adventures of Chikku: Wild Ride
(12/7/2024) Japanese Law Enforcement Is Seeking To Confiscate Harry Potter Replica Swords
(12/6/2024) France's Marineland Closing For Good in January 2025
(12/2/2024) A New Chocolate Themed Park Is Being Planned For Brazil
(11/30/2024) UK - Brighton i306 Files For Administration
(11/22/2024) Lots of Water Park Projects In The World's For Brazil
(11/22/2024) China's Theme Park Popularity Is Growing
Australia - (5/19/2024) Blooloop reports that Wavegarden has now opened their new URBNSURF surf park in Sydney, Australia. This massive new surf park attraction has been created at Sydney Olympic Park, and based on the success of Wavegarden’s first park over in Melbourne. The Sydney locations features a “46-module Wavegarden Cove”, two restaurants, a skate park, a leisure pool to relax in, an official surf school program, a surf shop for your gear and more.
Wavegarden claims that the programmable wave technology is able to create over 20 distinctly different style waves. This new Sydney location is the 8th Wavegarden in the world, and the second in Australia. Currently Wavegarden has attractions in Spain where it was first created, one in the UK (Bristol), Switzerland, South Korea and two in Brazil. Four more are planned to open over the next couple years, including one in Scotland, Tel Aviv, and two in the USA (Virginia Beach, VA at “Atlantic Park” and in Palm Springs, CA at “DSRT SURF”.
Follow the link for more details about the creation of this latest attraction in Australia.
 Brazil - (12/2/2024) A new theme park is said to be in the works for Sao Paulo, Brazil called Cacau Park. The park would be from Cacau Show, a large chocolate maker in Brazil, with the hopes of having it ready to open by 2027. A highlight of the park would be laying claim to the largest roller coaster in Latin America, to be built by Vekoma, standing 55 meters tall and hitting a top speed of 120 km/h (74.5mph) via a launch system. The coaster is thought to be either a Vekoma Ghostrider layout, or a variant of the design.
A list of other major attractions include three more roller coasters, VW Beetle shaped bumper cars, Ferris Wheel, NebulaZ, Starflyer, a Flying Theater and more, spread out across five areas, plus a CityWalk style area outside of the park entrance. Follow the links to see more pictures and details about the proposed park, as well as a video preview.
(11/22/2024) A press release from WhiteWater about the current projects they are working on mentions a number of exciting developments coming to Brazil over the coming years. This includes the Thermas dos Laranjais park opening a new tower with two six-person raft slides that will feature a fusion of three iconic slide features for the 2025 season. Elsewhere in Brazil, Beach Park will also be opening “the tallest water coaster in the world”, a Master Blaster slide launching at 27.9 meters (91.5 ft) in height.
In 2026 the Brasil Surfe Clube is expected to open Endless Surf Angra, the largest surf pool in South America.
(11/22/2023) Wavegarden soft opened Surfland Brasil on Nov. 17th, a massive new surfing lagoon attraction located in Garapaba. According to the article at Blooloop, this is the seventh Wavegarden Cove surfing lagoon project. The project also includes a 78-bed condo-hotel that can be booked along with reservations for the surf lagoon. The unique new cove features “52 modules” which allow for the creation of over 20 different wave styles.
(9/30/2023) According to reports online a 22-year old woman who was riding a Wave Swinger style ride at Brazil’s Mirabilandia theme park was injured last week when the chains broke and the suspended seat she was in broke free from the ride, hitting the ground. According to the Twitter post below, she suffered fractures and a traumatic brain injury - WARNING! While the video does not appear to show the accident itself, there are some chilling images of the aftermath, so view at your own discretion.
Canada - (5/18/2024) Story Book Park in the Ontario region of Canada, reported on their facebook page that they opened a new ride this weekend. I’m not sure of the exactly model ride, there is an SBF logo on the car, but the ride itself sort of mimics the action of a Zamperla Rockin’ Tug style ride, but with a very different ride vehicle.
No name seen on the ride itself, which appears to be a portable model they’ve set up, and currently the park’s website is under construction, so no mention of it there either.
(10/25/2023) The TELUS Spark Science Center in Calgary, Canada opened RO5iE, their new RoboCoaster attraction last month. According to the official website RO5iE offers five different motion programs.
China - (11/22/2024) According to a report at ChinaDaily, the theme park industry in China is not only alive and well, but based on soaring attendance figures, it is growing rapidly! The article mentions that attendance at China’s theme parks in 2023 was said to have served 130 million visitors, which is an 71.84% increase over the previous year’s numbers. Of course, 2022 was still a year very much affected by the COVID pandemic and restrictions, so keep in mind that an attendance increase from 2022 to 2023 was expected, but this combined with a 97.86% boost in revenue also being reported in 2023 from the previous year, it does seem clear that theme parks have not only arrived, but are a very welcome form of leisure entertainment in the nation.
(5/27/2024) Melco Resorts & Entertainment has confirmed that as part of their plan to bring back the famous “House of Dancing Water” show to the Macao area in late 2024, they have now entruested Our Legacy Creations (OLC) to perform the task of ‘remounting’ the complex and iconic spectacle. According to the press release, OLC was founded by the desire to “extend Franco Dragone’s artistic legacy” and will not only return the cultural landmark performance to market, but also “a commitment to enhancing the theater with modern updates to captivate future audiences.”
Franco Dragone was the creative force behind a number of large scale spectacular shows over his lifetime, including a number of Cirque du Soleil’s early mega-hits within Las Vegas, including Mystere and “O”, before venturing off to start his own production company where he worked on even more Vegas spectaculars like Celine Dion’s A New Day at Caesar’s and La Reve at the Wynn.
As I understand it, Dragone’s “House of Dancing Water” was created as a way of taking what he had done with “O” in Las Vegas to the next level, and it performed from 2010 until June 2020 when the show was shut down due to the pandemic. Dragone himself passed away in late 2022, thus the reason for bringing in a group such as OLC who are dedicated to returning The House of Dancing Water to the stage.
Just before the pandemic shut down the original show, Dragone posted an excellent video all about the famous production on their YouTube channel which you can see below.
(4/28/2024) Another Peppa Pig Theme Park project is moving forward, this time in China. Unlike the small parks in the US, this will be a full scale park taking up 48 acres and located on Changzing Island, about 91 Km north of Shanghai.
(2/4/2024) Fantawild will open a new themed resort park in China on Feb. 12th call Boonie Bears Bay. The “Boonie Bears” represent an original animated IP created by the company that has become popular across China. The resort will feature a traditional dry attraction park called Boonie Bears Land, a Boonie Bears Water Park, as well as an onsite resort and a street full of retail and restaurant options.
(12/30/2023) Pictures of abandoned theme parks are always super interesting with a heavy dose of mega-creepy vibes. It is always so strange to see a place that was once full of thousands of joy filled families now sitting empty and abandoned, paint now peeling and buildings suffering from extended weathering with no one to care for them. It really does create a sense that you are viewing a window into some kind of future apocalypse stricken land.
A small collection of photos taken inside a now abandoned theme park somewhere in China can be found posted to the New York Post. I didn’t see a name listed, but they claim the park was just opened in 2014 before it quickly failed in 2018 due to a lack of attendance from high ticket costs.
(10/28/2023) Crayola LLC has confirmed that a Crayola Experience attraction will be coming to Beijing, China as one of several attractions to be built in the “Top Park” attraction complex that will feature a number of well known international IP attractions. Look for Top Park to open sometime in 2026 with at least five major-IP based attractions, a themed hotel and retail area located not far from the Universal Beijing Resort area. The project is being overseen by Max-Matching Entertainments who operated a large number of FEC attractions across China in partnerships with brands like Hasbro, mattel, Aardman and now Crayola.
(9/22/2023) China has opened what may be one of the world’s most frightening attractions onto the famous 1,100 foot tall Aizhai suspension bridge. Hooked up to a walk-way the runs under the bridge, they have now added a thrill ride where a solitary rider is strapped into a a harness. The floor then pulls back, revealing the chasm below, and then they are slowly lowered down by an arm below the bridge structure, only to be released into a Skycoaster style plunge.
You can watch the horror show in action in the video clip below to which I simply say, “Nope!” You will never catch me on this thing! Never… ever… EVER! I love roller coasters and other fun thrill rides, but this is where I draw the line. And don’t ask me how they get that poor fellow back up onto the bridge… that part of the experience was not included in the video.
Dominican Republic - (7/12/2023) Blooloop has posted a great article about the new Katmandu Park in Punta Cana and the rise of their “resortainment” attraction concept. They also delve into the concept and growth of the original Katmandu in Spain and how it has evolved over the years, now reaching out even beyond the physical parks into the world of online gaming and experiences.
(5/30/2023) Our buddy Arthur has posted a write up about the new Katmandu Park in Punta Cana that is worth reading. Towards the end he mentions a couple of things about the future of t he concept. For starters, new locations are in the works where they can combine new Katmandu parks with adjoining hotel resorts, with plans to expand into sites in the Canary Islands and in Mexico’s Playa Del Carmen.
He also mentions that a Phase 2 is in the works for the Punta Cana site that will be called Falcon’s Central. The plan is to open it in 2024 where the site will add new dining, retail and entertainment venues, including an aquarium, a “next-gen arcade” and more.
France - (12/6/2024) Blooloop reports that Marineland in Antibes, France is closing down on January 5th 2025 following the passing of a law in France that bans live shows featuring Dolphins and Whales within the country. The marine life park’s 4000 animals will be relcoated to ther parks and zoos across europe it is currently assumed that the park’s two Orcas / Killer Whales may be relocated to Loro Parque in Tenerife.
(5/28/2024) The O’Gliss waterpark in France is slated to open their new Stingray waterslide next month. According to the website, I believe it will open to the public on June 22nd.
Germany - (9/17/2024) Sad news from Germany’s Oktoberfest this week, as it was reported that a 20-year old worker was struck and killed by the Olympia Looping roller coaster during testing ahead of the opening on Saturday.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time this has happened with Olympia Looping as a similar incident took place when the traveling coaster was in Vienna in 2022 when another employee was struck and killed. Currently the accident is still under investigation and it isn’t known if the coaster would be cleared to open with the festival on Saturday.
(8/18/2024) An unusual incident happened at a music festival in Germany where a couple of cars on a large ferris wheel set up at the event caught on fire. No deaths were reported, but reports do mention some injuries reported due to issues with the smoke.
(1/25/2024) A fire broke out and caused severe damage to a small “Western” themed park in Germany named Pullman City. The fire was eventually brought under control and put out, but according to the official website the park will remain closed until further notice while the damage is assessed. No cause for the blaze has been given at this time.
(9/19/2023) An accident has been reported as taking place in Munich, Germany at the Oktoberfest event. According to the local news reports two trains are said to have collided on the popular Hollenblitz spinning indoor roller coaster. Eight riders were treated for minor injuries and two taken into a local hospital for further treatment.
The coaster is massive, and is commonly thought to be one of the largest portable rides of it’s type anywhere in the world, with most of the ride running through a massive dispolay of lights, lasers, music and other special effects. You can view the ride experience in the video below.
Hong Kong - (8/20/2024) The Sega Joypolis indoor parks are known throughout Japan, but now the first flagship location outside of Japan has just opened in Hong Kong as the Joypolis Sports Indoor Sportainment Park. The new Hong Kong attraction is five-stories tall and features over 20 attractions as well as a Hungry Tiger Hidden Dragon restaurant and bar.
India - (12/20/2024) Blooloop reports that a new media film attraction called Adventures of Chikku - Wild Ride has opened at the Wonderla parks in Bangalore and Hyderabad, India. Chikku is said to be the mascot character of the Wonderla parks, so the new attraction is a great way to bring the park’s mascot character to life. Follow the link to find a preview of the new GCI action film.
(5/26/2024) Sad news came in from India this morning, as news agencies report that at least 27 people died when a small amusement park caught on fire this weekend. I don’t see the name of the park mentioned, but it is described as being in “Gujarat state in western India”. This may have been more of an FEC style attraction, as the structure was said to be used for bowling, go-karts and trampoline style attractions, and that those lost to the blaze included both adults and children, including four under the age of 12.
(4/26/2024) It appears that a Batman: The Ride clone may have been purchased for the new Wonderla Amusement Park under construction in Chennai, India as early as 2025. While currently the group if working to finish another new amusement park Bhubaneswar later this year, it seems the company has purchased the former Lightning coaster from Kuwait Entertainment City which was a Batman clone that operated from 2004 to 2016, and then finally removed from the site in 2020.
(1/1/2024) Two new “Wonderla Amusement Park” locations are under construction in India right now, that will join the three pre-existing Wonderla parks in Kochi (2000, Bangalore (2005) and Hyderabad (2016).
“Wonderla Amusement Park Bhubaneswar” is expected to open sometime in 2024 and will feature two roller coasters, a family caterpillar style coaster that will likely use the same “Termite” name used at other Wonderla parks, and the second will be a Maurer Rides spinning coaster. This coaster was formerly located in Habtoorland (Lebanon) under the name “Twister” but was sold when the park shut down. Photos of this coaster now in place in India were posted to Twitter, which you can see below.
Wonderla also picked up another former coaster from this park, the Colossus (Vekoma Boomerang) and moved it to their Kochi park in 2017.
“Wonderla Amusement Park Chennai” will be the next park to open in India, possibly as early as 2025. A list of attractions or coasters has not yet been posted for this park.
(1/15/2023) The company behind India’s three “Wonderla” theme parks is now in talks with the Madhya Pradesh government about building a fourth park in that area. Currently the group runs similar parks Kochi (opened in 2000), Bangalore (opened in 2005) and then just opened their latest park in Hyderabad in 2016.
Indonesia - (1/7/2024) A new small theme park is under construction in Indonesia. Based on the construction video posted to IG, I think it is called Funland Tanjung Morawa, but it may be part of the greater Waterland Tamora waterpark attraction. As you can see from the video, a number of small attractions are already installed and testing ahead of the planned opening in 2024.
(8/13/22) Another year and another newly proposed Paramount theme park. Or at least thats how it seems sometimes, doesn’t it? According to a post at Blooloop, Paramount Pictures has signed a deal with “Kios” to build a “Paramount-themed destination in Bali” that would become one of the largest theme parks in Southeast Asia at 57-hectares. The plan includes drawing upon Paramount’s various IPs for attractions as well as two hotels: the Paramount Grand Resort and a Nickelodeon Resort.
Previously Paramount content was slated to be incorporated into the London Resort theme park project as well as a Paramount branded theme-park resort in China and another Paramount park concept for Korea said to be in development with Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment as part of a new integrated resort project.
Japan - (12/7/2024) Would you believe that Harry Potter themed merchandise sold at the new Warner Bros. Studio Tour in Japan is now being recalled? According to the news reports, the problematic items are a collection of Harry Potter themed replica SWORDS being sold by the attraction that are now under scrutiny by the local authorities for a possible violation of the nation’s anti-weapon law because they’re a bit too realistic.
The key weapon the police are now interested in is the replica of the sword of Godric Gryffindor, that is a 34 inch long metal sword attached to a wooden display stand, sold at a cost of around $200 US. While not sharped like an actual weapon, the authorities believe that the blade is still sharp enough to possibly be in violation of Japan’s laws that control the sale of blades and firearms.
From the sound of things, those who have already purchased the replica sword from the Making of Harry Potter studio tour attraction are possibly being asked to turn the item into the police.
(6/22/2024) Blooloop reports that a new video game themed museum experience is now planned for Yokohama’s Nishi-ku ward, located about 30 minutes south of downtown Tokyo. Video game developer, Koei Tecmo, is working with a real estate developer to create the new “Game Art Museum” experience, with construction having started in February with the goal of being complete in Summer 2027.
The article also mentions that Nintendo is putting the finishing touches on their own museum project in Kyoto that is expected to open sometime this Fall.
(2/25/2024) Blooloop has posted a detailed breakdown of the new Immersive Fort Tokyo attraction set to open in Japan next month. In addition to revealing some of the details for the various attractions, it also goes into detail about some of the struggles to launch such an attraction in Japan where the concept of an interactive and immersive experience is not something well known or understood in the region. In addition to lots of experiences that involve adventure, there will also be quite a few with dark horror-like overtones as well, including stories involving Sherlock Holmes solving a murder and an encounter with Jack the Ripper.
(2/24/2024) According to a report at Reuters the Sanrio Puroland theme park in Japan (aka: the Hello Kitty park) was forced to close on Saturday after the park received a terrorist like threat by email. Police searched and investigated the park and did not find anything suspicious or dangerous within the park. A statement on the park’s website confirms that the park will reopen as normal on Sunday.
(10/28/2023) Some interesting news is leaking from Japan about the planned Immersive Fort Tokyo attraction. As previously mentioned, the new attraction from Katana Inc. will replace the now closed Venus Fort shopping area in Tokyo’s Palette Town complex. Before closing, Venus Fort was known as offering an indoor shopping experience that was extensively themed as if you were walking through Italy, complete with a fake sky overhead that would slowing change from day to night as clouds crossed the sky. To help you visualize this… in essence this was Japan’s version of the famous Forum Shops in Caesars Palace Las Vegas.
According to an update from SoarNews24, Katana Inc. knew it would be a waste to just take down all that extensive theming, so instead what was once an over-the-top retail mall will now become a mini immersive theme park experience, complete with horror and murder mystery experiences to participate in. Immersive Fort Tokyo is said to take-up a 30,000 square-meter space and will feature 12 attractions, and four different restauratns, one of which will become an “immersive show” experience for the diners as they eat. The article also mentions that one of Katana’s senior creative directors also previously served as a producer for the Halloween Horror Nights experience at Universal Studios Japan.
Immersive Fort Tokyo is on track to open in Spring 2024.
(10/25/2023) Our friends at Blooloop have posted an extensive article after speaking with the team responsible for creating the new “Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo - The Making of Harry Potter” attraction. Based on the popular Warner Bros. Studio Tour London attraction, the new Tokyo version also allows guests to set foot into some of the sets and view actual props and costumes used in the making of the Harry Potter films.
While they could have just copied the best parts of the original London attraction, they attempted to elevate the experience in Tokyo to the next level, as well as offering some brand new sets and elements you won’t find anywhere else, including stops in the Ministry of Magic and a visit to the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom. The later of which also gives guests the ability to learn “the art of wand combat”, where various objects in the room will move and react to your spellcasting.
Having been built from scratch just for this purpose, everything in the Tokyo attraction has been built to a much larger scale as well, which allowed for bigger sets and attractions, as well as increased space for guest flow through the attraction. Follow the link to see the main article and interviews with the creative team, which also features a ton of photos from the new Tokyo attraction.
(10/10/2023) According to Blooloop, a new immersive indoor theme park will open in Spring 2024 in Japan called “Immersive Fort Tokyo”. According to the upside this will be a 30,000 square-meter location that will feature a dozen immersive attractions, along with retail shops and restaurants. The attraction will take over the 2nd and 3rd floors of the VenusFort shopping mall, which closed in 2022.
(9/14/2023) According to Nikkei Asia, Japan’s Mitsubishi Estate is making plans to build a large new theme park in Yokohama. The initial plans call for the theme park to be ready by 2031 and draw up to 12 million guests each year. The site for the park would actually be use formerly used as a U.S. military site and given back to the Japanese government in 2015. The theme for the park has not been selected yet, but they say that they’ve taken notice of the global interest in Japanese animation and video game worlds and characters, so they may try to bring some of those IPs to life. Of course, they will have to bypass the Nintendo line of products, who have already committed to a deal with Universal Studios.
(7/29/2023) MGM Resorts has reported that they plan to begin construction on the first “integrated resort” casino project in Japan sometime next year. If all goes according to plan, they have a lengthy construction timetable ahead of them, where the new $13.5 billion resort project has now been pushed back to open no earlier than 2030.
Mexico - (9/24/2024) Fire and Rescue crews arrived at the “Nucleo de Feria” festival in Jalisco, Mexico to rescue five riders trapped upside down on the “Super Loops” ride. It was estimated that the riders may have been trapped upside-down for about half an hour before the rescue crews were able to start bringing them down.
(8/31/2024) According to a video posted on Facebook, a man has been thrown from a Trabant flat ride operating at a carnival in Mexico. Just a word of warning, some viewers may find the video too extreme to watch, so follow the link at your own discretion.
(7/21/2024) DOF Robotics has announced that they’ve opened a new Flying Theater attraction in Guadalajara, Mexico. The new attraction is able to hold 40 riders at a time and a video of the ride in action can be found below, which I believe is located at the Jalisco Interactive Museum (JAPI) inside the Werika Theater building. DOF Robotics calls this the first 40-seat 6DOF Flying Theater in Latin America, which also features 4D style effects such as wind, water spray and scents to enhance the ride experience.
(1/22/2023) An interesting new themed attraction is opening in Cancun, Mexico that will offer a look into a unique aspect of Mexican culture. Luchatitlan will open at the La Isla shopping center in Cancun’s popular tourist-friendly hotel corridor, where the mall is already home to a large ferris wheel that offers views of Cancun and the ocean.
So what is Luchatitlan? This new themed attraction is dedicated to the popular Lucha Libre style of wrestling that Mexico is famous for. Lucha Libre wrestling often features high flying and very dynamic action from wrestlers who hide their face behind themed masks. If you’ve watched professional wrestling WWE anytime over the past 2 or 3 decades, them I’m sure you are familiar with Rey Mysterio, who is probably the world’s most well known Lucha Libre style wrestler.
Luchatitlan will take up a 30,000 sqft space that will not only feature a Lucha Libre hall of fame exhibit, but also a wrestling arena that will hold 580 people, plus a large themed restaurant and cantina. Look for Luchatitlan to put on various daily shows that will attraction not only tourists but also locals to enjoy their love for Lucha Libre. Currently they are planning on opening sometime in March 2023.
The Netherlands - (9/29/2024) A new indoor theme park is coming to The Netherlands in 2025 called Bommelwereld, themed to the world and characters of Dutch comic creator, Olivier B. Bommel. Jora Vision hosted a press conference to tell more about the project at the IAAPA Expo Europe event last week, revealing that the themed indoor attraction themed as Castle Bommelstein is still on track to open in 2025 and will feature a themed family coaster from Vekoma called Bulder Baan. Other attractions included will be a double-decker carousel, an interactive climbing tower from Sunkid, a Zamperla Rockinn’ Tug, and an ABC Rides mini flume ride. Follow the link to learn more about this new theme park experience.
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Qatar - (3/17/2024) We’ve mentioned the crazy new Meryal waterpark in Doha, Qatar that has been under construction for some time, notable for having such a large number of attractions all attached to a single massive structure. There is more to the park than this however, and a video from Coaster Studios was posted giving us a look at a soon to open new Spinning Coaster from Intamin that will be part of the park experience.
(12/1/2023) According to a post online the Meryal Waterpark in Qatar has soft opened this week, though the entire park and every attraction is apparently not open yet. But as you can see in the photo, this park includes the Icon Tower, one of the most unique looking waterpark structures ever built, standing 278 feet tall and offering 12 different slides. Previously I believe the park was marketed under the name Aquatar.
Saudi Arabia - (9/20/2024) TopGolf is going to Saudi Arabia it seems. According to Blooloop, as part of an agreement with Saudi Golf, three TopGolf locations will be up and running within the Saudi kingdom by 2028, with an option to open two more locations in the future. The TopGolf centers were purchased by mega golf equipment supplier., Callaway, during the pandemic in 2021. So another interesting note within the deal is that Golf Saudi will also become the exclusive distributor of Callaway Golf, Odyssey, and Ogio products in Saudi Arabia going forward.
(2/16/2024) Congratulations to Thinkwell and WWE for the grand opening of the new WWE Experience attraction in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. A number of clips showing off the new attraction can be found around social media, so I’m including a few below. From what I’ve been hearing, this attraction was created from scratch in just 4 to 5 months.
(2/14/2024) WWE’s social media teams have posted an great looking preview of the ‘Undertaker’s Graveyard Escape” that will be part of the WWE Experience attraction when it opens in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Feb. 16th. A second video below that shows off more of a preview of the entire WWE Experience.
While nothing has been confirmed yet, we have heard a rumor that provided that this version performs well, a version of the WWE Experience is said to be in the planning stages for a domestic location within the USA.
(1/27/2024) The new project announcements from Saudi Arabia just keep coming, this time NEOM has announced a new and crazy looking Eco-Tourism resort concept named Zardun. Zardun is described as having a series of three different themed boutique hotels that will feature only 100-rooms in total. The resort experience is focused on the beauty of nature surrounding the resort, outdoor activities like hiking, mountain biking and rock climbing, as well as inner-focus experiences such as Yoga, Stargazing and Meditation.
Zardun itself will focus on stimulating natural habitats throughout the resort area, including the creation of a series of “oases” offering “life giving water sources” to support the re-introduction of native animals and plant species, and along the Gulf of Aqaba, “Zardun will support a vibrant ecosystem, including the conservation of coral reefs and other marine life“.
Zardun is the latest in a series of really wild and unique new resort projects NEOM has announced as they imagine and create the future of tourism and lifestyle communities in Saudi Arabia. The list includes the amazing looking Leyja (built into a winding rocky canyon), Aquellum (a hidden community accessed by water through a hidden underground tunnel), Utamo (a destination for arts and entertainment experiences), and Oxagon (a floating industrial city) just to name a few. Of course none of these are quite as mind-blowing as NEOM’s $500 billion city of the future project, known as “THE LINE”. The vision for THE LINE is to replace the urban sprawl concept of yesterday with an almost sci-fi style planned vertically stacked city concept that would stretch to be 170km in length, 500 meters tall, and just 200 meters wide. Designed so all you basic needs should be within a 5-minute walk, and built with automated underground rail transportation systems known as “The Spine” able to move you from one end of The Line to the other in just 20 minutes. So in other words… no cars, no roads, no traffic or emissions in the air. The amazing thing is that excavation work to clear some of the site for the start of the foundations for THE LINE has already begun, along with the creation of mini support cities for the construction work.
Projects like these just don’t get built and come online in a short period of time, and obviously some epic projects like THE LINE would take a lifetime of work to see fully realized, so with that in mind, it seems inevitable that some of these visions will fail to become a reality.
(12/23/2023) Considering all the surprising tourism news coming from Saudi Arabia lately, would you believe that yet another theme park is in the works? According to Blooloop, Saudi Arabia’s Tourism Development Fund has signed a non-binding agreement with China’s Haichang Ocean Park to create a marine-themed park.
Previously this year, the group has also signed a “memorandum of understanding’ with Saudi Arabia to developer a number of smaller Location Based Experiences that would be build across the kingdom as well. Currently the group runs a number of marine themed parks in China.
(12/2/2023) Looking very much like a royal palace on some other planet from a Sci-Fi movie, Neom has announced a unique new $500 billion resort concept for Saudi Arabia’s Gulf of Aqaba coastline called Siranna. Access for guests to arrive at the resort will be exclusively by water transportation into the secluded rocky cove, where each room will feature “uninterrupted views” of the Red Sea.
(12/1/2023) Saudi Arabia has been headlining in the news a lot lately for their various new tourist attractions that are under construction, ranging from the world’s largest roller coaster coming to Six Flags Qiddiya to the WWE Experience attraction opening in January to the Transformer’s themed roller coasters coming to the “Seven” branded entertainment attractions across the nation. Now you can add another major attraction to the list of things coming to Saudi Arabia as it was announced this week as the city of Riyadh was selected as the host of Expo 2030.
Riyadh was in the running against Busan, South Korea and Rome, Italy to host the global Expo event. Before Expo 2030 however, the world will get to enjoy Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan, that will open on April 13, 2025 and last for approximately 6-months.
(11/27/2023) According to a post on the IAAPA news site, they confirm that the three new SEVEN attraction locations that will be receiving the new Transformers themed S&S Axis Coasters will be Riyadh, Dammam, and Jeddah.
(11/21/2023) As rumored the new Transformers roller coaster from S&S going to select “Seven” locations in Saudi Arabia will indeed be the world’s first S&S AXIS roller coasters! The official name of the ride is “Transformers: Prepare for Battle”, which will feature a small LSM launch (35mph) into an all indoor compact course. Due to the limited size of the ride, the riders will actually be launched through the course twice before coming to a stop.
Right now they’re just confirming the first one, but Screamscape sources tell us that they are actually contracted to build at least three of these for Seven.
(11/6/2023) I didn’t catch it myself, but if you happened to watch the WWE’s Premium Live Event, “Crown Jewel” broadcast live on Saturday from Saudi Arabia they aired a brief teaser for an official “WWE Experience” attraction that is actually already under construction in Riyadh.
Screamscape sources tell us that this has been a top secret project under construction for some time as part of a partnership between WWE and Thinkwell, who is serving as the designer, for what will become the first permanent WWE branded attraction in the world. The Saudi Arabia market has become very important to WWE over the last few years, as they’ve begun broadcasting two major PLE’s from Riyadh annually as part of a deal with the nation.
The actual attraction itself will feature a number of immersive experiences, allowing the participants the chance to see what it is like to BE a WWE Superstar, and to feel what it is like to stand in the ring, to go through some of the training and moves they learn, and even see some historic WWE moment recreated in person through special immersive technology. In fact, while it won't be ready with the rest of the attraction when it first opens in January 2024, Screamscape has been told that there will actually be an official WWE themed interactive dark ride that is expected to open later on in the year. The site will also be used as a hub for all major WWE appearances and special promotional events throughout the year.
Stay tuned for more details as we get closer to opening day!
South Korea - (10/12/2024) According to a new report from Blooloop, Paramount Global is working with South Korea’s mainly retail focused Shinsegae Group to build a new theme park in Hwaseong. Shinsegae will oversee the project that will include a 4.2 million square-meter entertainment complex that will feature the nearly 1.2 million square-meter theme park called Star Bay City, as well as on-site hotels, a retail/entertainment complex and a water park.
Paramount is supposed to be involved in the creation of the theme park attractions that will involve tapping into their library of popular IP such as SpongeBob SquarePants, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Mission: Impossible and Star Trek.
Interesting Note: Paramount’s control or ownership of the various IPs associated with them is, in a word, complicated, as they don’t always have final say or control over all of those IPs, as many often fall to other companies who also have a say in the matter. For example, I believe all things Star Trek actually fall under the control of CBS Corporation. And the rights to the IPs involved in many popular movies Paramount is known for actually below elsewhere, such as Transformers is owned by Hasbro, Indiana Jones is now owned by Disney through the purchase of LucasFilm, and so on. Back when the a Paramount Park was proposed for London, a number of these issues did complicate matters to the point that eventually that park’s development stopped being focused exclusive to Paramount IP and was looking to make deals with other IP owners as well.
The budget for the South Korea project is said to be 1.4 trillion won ($1.3 billion) and once they get approval from the local government, the goal is to have it open by 2029.
(12/13/2023) While previously we reported that MSG Entertainment was struggling to find a way to bring a second Sphere venue to life in London, it seems another international location is stepping forward to possibly host the next Sphere. According to Blooloop, MSG Entertainment is in talks to possibly build a second Sphere venue in South Korea where it would serve as a home to numerous K-Pop concert events. The reports believe that a Sphere could become back of a planned K-Star World project coming to Hanam.
(5/6/21) While work was last slated to begin on the planned Paramount Theme Park project as part of the Inspire Korea resort project in 2022 with a planned 2025 opening, this timeline is now looking to be delayed due to COVID. According to this update, Mohegan is reviewing their plans and timelines with South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, who have already approved a small extension to the plans to open the first phase of Inspire Korea to 2023. This will now push back the later phases and developments, as the Paramount theme park was part of Phase 2. How long of a delay has yet to be determined, so when we find out more, we’ll let you know.
(11/6/19) According to a new article the Paramount theme park in Korea is still in development as part of the Inspire IR complex. They claim that attention to the storytelling being done in the park will set it apart from the competition. The first phase of Insprie IR is set to open in 2022 and will feature a five-star hotel, arena, convention center and casino. The Paramount Korea theme park is expected to follow this and be ready to open in 2025 and be followed by other new attractions, developments and evn a waterpark by 2031.
They promise new attractions will be in the park themed to popular Paramount properties: Mission Impossible, The Italian Job, Tomb Raider, Star Trek along with a Korean themed K-Pop themed area that will feature a “water roller-coaster” with on-board audio to be called Idol.
Spain - (10/14/2024) Michael Mack has confirmed that their Mack One and VRCoaster divisions have created their largest Yullbe Go VR experience to date as part of The Legend of the Titanic exhibit in Madrid, allowing up to 45 at a time to take a VR journey in to explore the Titanic as it was before the disaster.
The exhibit places the visitors on the dock to be greeted by the Captain before coming aboard, passing by passenger cabins before coming to the VR experience, along with various other spaces, both real, projected and immersive, to show off the events that led to the disastrous sinking, including a space where the guests find themselves standing on the floor of the ocean, viewing the Titanic as it rests today in the dark depths.
(9/3/2024) Harry Potter: The Exhibition will be returning to Spain on October 4th, this time in Madrid. The touring exhibit opened in Barcelona last November before moving north to reopen in Munich, Germany. However the Munch run is coming to a close as of September 5th, to allow it to return to Spain once again.
Elsewhere in the world, other version of Harry Potter: The Exhibition will open in Boston on Sept. 13th, another version is in Sao Paulo, Brazil until October 27th, and yet another version has been running in Macao since December 2023 and appears to be staying until at least the end of October 2024. New destinations for the Brazil and China versions have yet to be revealed.
(10/21/2023) The run of Harry Potter: The Exhibition touring attraction in Paris came to an end on October 15th. According to an update from Blooloop the attraction is now in the process of being relocated to a new venue in Barcelona, Spain set to open on November 17th. Meanwhile another version of the exhibit will premier in Macao, China at The Londoner on December 15, 2023. As previously mentioned, the US touring edition is currently set up in New York City where the run was expected through to January 7th.
UAE - (10/21/2024) Planning is now underway to build a copy of the famous Las Vegas Sphere performance venue, but this one will be in Abu Dhabi! Sphere Entertainment has signed a deal with Abu Dhabi’s culture and tourism department to build the world’s second Sphere.
This comes on the heels of the collapse of a potential deal to build a second Sphere in London after the city’s mayor rejected the proposal nearly one year ago. The final budget for the Abu Dhabi Sphere has not been revealed, but the original Sphere in Las Vegas was reported as having cost $2.3 billion by the time it opened last year with a series of performances by U2.
(3/17/2024) For international thrill seekers looking for something wild, Coaster Studios took a ride on the Jais Flight zip line north of Dubai. Listed as the world’s longest zipline, riders are mounted up to fly, Superman style, head-first across a canyon, reaching speeds of 100mph for the nearly 3 minute long experience. Check out the video of the experience which also includes some other smaller zip-lines along the way before you get to the big one.
(3/9/2024) Wanna see something really crazy? Coaster Studios has posted a POV video of the Jais Sledder, an insane and extremely LONG Alpine Coaster attraction that is now open in the UAE. The full length video features what has got to be one of the longest lift-hills of all time for an Alpine Coaster ride before you take the high-speed and somewhat disturbing down the mountain to the bottom. According to RCDB, this beast opened in early 2022.
(8/20/2023) A new Space themed hotel concept called “0G Resort” is being designed for the UAE. The idea is to create a unique immersive resort experience that will include a space themed restaurant experience, a stargazing deck, nightclubs, “space modules” along with luxury hotel rooms and villas. Currently the project has not settled on an exact site and is expected to cost at least $1 billion, but that price could go up, as some of the plans for the project under consideration have also proposed building a theme park as well.
(4/2/23) The first casino in the UAE was announced to be coming as part of the Wynn Resorts project coming to Al Khaimah on Al Marjan Island. The integrated resort project will feature more than 1000 hotel rooms, a retail mall, along with countless restaurants, lounges and more. The current timeline would see the new casino ready to open sometime in 2026.
Though the Wynn Resort was announced in early 2022, it originally was not going to feature a casino, as the usual Islamic laws that dominate the UAE do not normally permit gambling to take place. It is worth noting that Al Marjan Island where the resort will be built is an entirely mad-made island area however, located about an hours drive North from Dubai.
UK - (11/30/2024) According to a report on Blooloop the Brighton i360 observation tower (initially built as the British Airways i360), has filed to enter administration with a crushing £51 million debt owed to the local city council. According to the report the council agreed to take out a government loan in 2016 to help fund the project and the developers were to make the payments back to the council. Unfortunately the last payment they were able to make was back in June 2023. The attraction failed to draw in the numbers that they had hoped when it was designed and then was hit even harder during the pandemic years.
The future of the observation tower attraction isn’t clear at this time, as the city council will weigh their options once Brighton i360 officially enters administration. They may try to keep it open for a time and will most likely attempt to find someone to buy the attraction and take it over the 162 meter tall (531 foot) coastal observation tower attraction.
(11/5/2024) A small amusement park in the extreme South-Western corner tip of England shocked the fans and local community with the unexpected announcement on their website that the park was now closed permanently. According to the statement on the site, “Despite significant and ongoing investment since its rescue from closure in 2012 by the current owners, rising costs and a steady decline in visitor numbers have made the park’s operation and further investment unsustainable.” The park had already suffered this season with the closure of a number of their popular older thrill rides due to rising costs and difficulty in souring needed spare parts. The location will not close entirely however, as the indoor play area, Ferdi’s Funland, will reopen as a stand-alone attraction starting Nov. 17th.
(11/3/2024) While it isn’t officially Star Trek themed… a very Star Trek inspired experience has arrived in London as an interactive experience called Bridge Command. This isn’t just a video game, players are outfitted into themed jumpsuits, given proper job roles to fill, each with their new challengers, as you interact with each other as well as an army of cast / crew members in place to keep the whole experience running.
Apparently your experience record is kept on file, allowing you to return, try new jobs, and build up a sort of career of experience and growing rank for your character over time. You can check out a bunch of photos and a video review over at Eurogamer and find out how you can experience Bridge Command yourself in London at the official website.
(9/15/2024) Good news for Scotland, as the nation’s first Alpine Coaster opened this weekend at the Midlothian Snowsports Center in Hillend. They say it is the longest Alpine Coaster in the UK with an overall length of 980 meters, with guests able to hit a top speed of 28mph. Take a virtual ride on it by watching the POV video below.
(9/14/2024) For fans of the Netflix series, Bridgerton, Netflix has teamed up with Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire to launch a series of Bridgerton theme experiences. The Blenheim Palace location has been used as a location thus far in the third season of Bridgerton as well as serving as the Buckingham House location in Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story.
Currently the location has a self-guided Bridgerton Trail attraction, the run of which has been extended through to late November, but it will soon launch a new “Dutchess Afternoon Tea” experience , as well as concert performances by a string quartet who will play various songs from the series on select dates in September and October.
(4/4/2024) Guests attending a funfar got more than they were expecting this week when a section of the ‘Superstar” ride broke apart in mid-ride, and came crashing to the ground. The incident took place during the “Chestival” fair, held at the University of Chester in the UK. Watch the video below to see what happened.
(3/23/2024) Cadbury World in the UK has announced that they will open their new Cadbury Chocolate Quest dark ride on March 29th. Follow the link to see some new pictures taken inside of the new trackless dark ride posted over at Blooloop this week.
(2/4/2024) Cadbury World in Birmingham, England will open a new dark ride this year called Cadbury Chocolate Quest. The new dark ride will feature trackless vehicles and replace the attractions’ former Cadabra ride. Armed with a laser pointer, riders will be tasked to gather the ingredients needed to create a Cadbury Dairy Milk bar, and at the end of the ride experience, they will even receive a Cadbury chocolate treat for their efforts.
Cadbury World is now being run by Merlin Entertainments who took over operations last year and has been investing around £8 million to upgrade several aspects of the attraction over the past year. Other improvements in the works will also include upgrades to the chocolate-making area, Bourneville Experience and Advertising Avenue.
For those interested, you can see a video of the attractions’ former “Cadabra” dark ride in the video below.
(1/10/2024) As previously expected, due to what one might call a hostile political environment, Madison Square Garden Entertainment has officially withdrawn their proposal to build a second MSG Sphere venue in London near the Olympic Park. According to the official statement from MSG, “After spending millions of pounds acquiring our site in Stratford and collaboratively engaging in a five-year planning process with numerous governmental bodies, including the local planning authority who approved our plans following careful review, we cannot continue to participate in a process that is merely a political football between rival parties.”
Sphere Entertainment also was quoted as saying, “The entire five-year planning process was hijacked by the mayor and his bogus last-minute report”.
(1/6/2024) Last week I wrote about how the band KISS was retiring from live performances, but the band would live on forever in digital form with the creation of digital avatars. While exactly how these digital avatars will be put to use has yet to be determined, a key driving force behind the project was the company who created the ABBA Voyage show in London. Within a custom made theater just for the show, they offer a unique ABBA concert experience through projections and digital avatars of the band, so one might expect that a similar intent may be in the works for KISS.
ABBA Voyage launched in mid 2022 and now we actually have some details about the performance results of the project. According to the numbers released, it was determined that the 3,000 seat venue has been responsible for adding £322 million to London’s economy in the first 12 months. Over the first year the production brought in over 1 million audience members to the London venue, with an impressive 20% of them arriving from international destinations to see the show, which also brought in more business to the local area hotels, restaurants, etc. The unique show was also able to create a large number of jobs for the region as well, and in a weird twist for a “concert” act, the venue doesn’t have to deal with the higher expenses involved with taking care of in-person on-stage talent either. No extra security needed, no need for limos to transport the band to and from the venue each night, no odd demands / backstage “riders” to deal with for performers and dressing rooms. In theory, the concept probably has really changed the financial aspect of hosting a resident concert series to be much more in favor of the venue.
(1/5/2024) KidZania London has officially closed down after eight years. According to an update posted by Blooloop, the location suddenly closed without warning this week, along with a notice on the official website that they will be contacting those with existing bookings affected by the attraction’s shut-down.
(11/25/2023) I think it’s safe to say that the arrival of the Las Vegas Sphere has certainly changed the face of Sin City. The amazing graphics throughout the day and night, as well as the fun loving face that often appears on the Sphere has brought a little joy to both visitors and residents. For those wondering, the graphic display on the outside of the Sphere does not run 24 hours a day. From what I’m told, the Sphere often goes dark around 11pm now and can often run much later on select nights, which is probably on weekends or when concert events are taking place inside, or on select Holidays. In fact, I’d suspect it will run very late during the upcoming New Year’s Eve celebration.
Between the fun display on the outside the game changing experience it offers to concert performances on the inside as seen by the residency performances by U2, it would seem to be only a matter of time before other locations around the world look into adding their own Sphere. The group has apparently been in talks to bring a copy of the Sphere to London, but those plans hit the brakes this week when London’s mayor has taken action to block the creation of a second Sphere in London. Mayor Sadiq Khan has banned the project, claiming it would bring an “unacceptable negative impact on the local residents”, cause too much “light pollution”, use up too much power, and has concerns about the potential for it to cause epileptic seizures. Oh, and they’re worried about how London’s current historical sites will appear going into the future with the sphere potentially being visible in the background.
Las Vegas obviously has no such issues, where the city’s architecture essentially lives by the concept of building everything as big, bright and wild as possible. So with that in mind, I’m not surprised at all that the political forces in London would opt to block adding something so modern, crazy and futuristic looking as the Sphere from the local landscape. According to comments from Sphere Entertainment, the company now behind the Sphere, they are obviously disappointed in the decision, but “there are many forward-thinking cities that are eager to bring this technology to their communities. We will concentrace on those.”
With an estimated price tag of $2.4 billion and a construction period that stretched into 5 years of work (though it did experience significant delays as much of the construction was during the COVID pandemic) it would be interesting to see which cities might make the final cut to become home to another Sphere. Of course if you ask Bono from U2 who has been so impressed by the venue, he would probably throw Dublin into the mix of potential candidates now that London has bowed out.
One Sphere is certainly enough for West coast of North America but I’m not sure New York could handle it as the area is so overbuilt that the other infrastructure in most areas would block the view of the Sphere, invalidating the point of it. Obviously locations like Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Saudia Arabia would have no problem funding such a project, but I don’t believe they have the market to pull in resident performers and operate concerts year-round in the way that Las Vegas can. While space would definitely be an issue, perhaps a second Sphere could work somewhere in Japan, perhaps part of the nation’s upcoming first casino area, which will be more of a mixed-use concept that is required to feature other non-gambling related activities like resorts, shopping, museums and more.
Until then, we’ll just have to enjoy basking under the gaze of the Vegas Sphere as his watchful eyes scan the local landscape, and even smile as the occasional jet full of passengers flying overhead before taking the occasional nap as Las Vegas’s new guardian mascott.
(8/20/2023) Great Wolf Lodge is making headway to build their first indoor waterpark resort outside of North America. The project which just received approval to move forward will be located in the UK, “close to Chesterton and Bicester”. Just like the North American counterparts, this new Great Wolf Lodge will include their signature indoor waterpark experience along with climbing walls, a ropes course, bowling, arcades and themed restaurant experiences.
Currently there are just over 20 Great Wolf Lodge locations scattered throughout the entire United States, as well as one in Canada near Niagara Falls.
UZBEKISTAN - (5/30/2024) Plans are being developed to build the largest amusement park in Central Asia somewhere in Uzbekistan. The park will be named Grand Serai and is expected to include a seasonal water park, an amusement park, an on-site hotel, and a large area to be used for retail stopping, entertainment and dining locations. Legacy Entertainment has been working on the design of the property, which will also include some kind of “nightly acrobatic show” involving projection mapping.
Currently the developer is still looking for the right site to build the project on, with the hopes of opening the first phase by 2027. The goal is for the complex to find a 28 hectares site, though they have already confirmed that 20 of those hectares will be taken up by the water park, which confirms that it will be the true focus of the project, and that the much smaller amusement park will be more of a secondary attraction.
VIETNAM - (7/6/2024) ProSlide is celebrating the opening of the new Sam Son Water Park in Vietnam. The brand new attraction features a number of ProSlide attractions, including several notable record holders and regional firsts. The list includes Asia-Pacific’s Tallest Double TornadoWAVE 60 and BehemothBOWL 60, the world’s first PowerRiver Generation 2, KIDZ TornadoWAVE and KIDZ Adventure Tower. All together, the new Sam Son Water Park features over 30 new thrilling water experiences!
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