Leaderboard

I went to Japan for this years Christmas Break, from the 20th of December to the 5th. Many trip reports and photos to come, but I’ll start off with Fuji Q. pics here: https://www.parkz.com.au/search/photos/location/park-130-Fuji-Q_High_Land Basically, I had a tight-ish schedule, and began to fret a bit when I saw snow forecast the night before I visited. Still, I went through with it, and arrived to about 20cm of powdery snow. It was very pretty, but kept the crowds away, but a double edged sword as it meant only indoor rides were open for the first half of the day. The Japanese are very industrious, and right from the early morning, staff were all hands on deck clearing snow and opening attractions. In the end, I managed to ride basically everything I wanted to (Ok I wouldn’t have minded trying Panic Clock, but it ended up that Tondemina was the only major flat to open) But the one notable exception was Eejanaika. I guess it would have been cool riding X2s bigger brother, but I would have been far more shattered if I missed Do-Dodonpa In the end I rode the following: Thomas Treasure Hunt – A surprisingly good kiddie dark ride where you shine a torch on treasures. Fuji Airways – Brogent flying theatre with a hilariously good preshow. The film was okay, focusing on repeated “big reveals” of Mt Fuji. One point had you passing through a storm, and another point had a faux air force fly by, but instead of jets, it was CGI people flying in the winged seats of their Gerstlauer sky roller. Scientific Ninja Dojo Hall – A Naruto themed toy story mania type ride where you shoot ninja stars, fire etc etc, rather well done. Shining Flower – Giant ferris wheel great for photos. There was an option to ride in fully Perspex pods, but they seemed much more faded / grimy than the usual ones, which wouldn’t be good for photos. Nagashimuska – A rapids ride with some scarily steep drops and a cool whirlpool element. A poncho is a must considering it was 8c outside. Rock n Roll Duncan – A kiddie coaster more gentle than a wacky worm. Super Scary Labyrinth of Fear – An upcharge, pre booked horror walkthrough set in a Hospital. You go in groups of 4, but if you are alone, you end up shelling out for a full slot, costing a whopping 4000 JPY. Was very long though, and could be a stand alone attraction outside a park imo. The childrens ward scene is particularly creepy, and you do get chased a couple of times. Evangelion World – I have no idea about this series, it was walk through with several giant robot heads and vehicles from the Anime. Im sure if you were a fan you’d get more out of it. Fujiyama – A very long, not too rough hypercoaster that was quite intense and fast. Felt way ahead of its time. In particular, the wave turns at the end are nuts. I did 2 laps on single rider. Takabisha – A great launched / lift hill Eurofighter. Great pacing, a good pop of airtime on one of the hills. I thought the section after the beyond vertical drop was a bit brief though. I did 3 laps, including one with a fast pass from the vending machine out front of the ride. Do-Dodonpa – A launch so fast your brain doesn’t process it for a second, and one of the few rides I’ve had an oh gawd moment on (prior to the launch) The train does bounce around a bit, so its an experience, but probably wouldn’t want to be much longer. I did 2 laps, including one with a fast pass from the vending machine out front of the ride. The park has Pizza La, so I had some japanse pizza (Including a Teriyaki one with seaweed flakes) Overall, despite the hiccups, the low crowds ensured a great day, and it was quite magical being in a snow filled park. Anywhere else and they’d say “Stuff it, we’re closed today”

Well, 2020 won't be the year for Sea World anymore, so its definitely possible! You're an idiot. Well put Brad. In short, when a kid comes onto the board and starts spouting that they know shit, and their rep count is 18, you're gonna have some doubts. SOme will ask for proof, or sources, others will discount you altogether, some will remain open minded. its human nature to be skeptical. On the other hand, when someone with a 3500 rep count says something, they've earned a little credibility on the boards. It doesn't make what they're saying true, but theres a high chance they're getting it from some sort of well connected source. And, as Brad mentioned - sources stop being sources if you reveal who they are.

I’ve heard through a reliable source that 2020 will be the year for WnW GC. With possible slide refurbishments, relocations and one (maybe even two) new attractions. Multiple locations within the park are being explored (Buggy’s, Mach 5, Behind Block Hole). I would at least hope to see Mach 5 removed, with a replacement attraction and some slide refurbs (River rapids, Aqualoop, Constrictor, Tornado). After WWWs big investments last year, I hope that is a wake up call for VRTP to invest into the park properly.

Japan is a very easy country to travel in, and really quite cheap, just make sure you have a roaming bundle or a sim card so you can use maps and translate. You can relax a bit because things aren't a hassle, and its very safe. Oh and the food is exceptional, doesn't matter if its local or western food. Everything is geared well to access without a car, so public transport to parks is easy, and every station and park has ample coin lockers to leave your luggage in. Parks open year round, winter is mostly like a Melbourne winter, though sunset was quite early, just before 5pm. Operations are slow, but medium and smaller parks never tend to get busy. The bigger ones get rammed with people, but you can always pay to skip lines or use faspass. Your mindset changes and you get into "Japanese park mode", if you are at Disney etc, you will get to ride everything becase the operating hours are long, but you have to accept that for a couple of rides you'll just have to wait 2h. And yes definitely arrive an hour before opening so you can nab a fast pass and get in line for a major early.

It doesnt suck the enjoyment out of it. It would be cool.to hear it in English but the ride and the animatronics etc take your mind off it. Japan is amazing

Most of us know the narratives of many of the rides at Disney or Universal. On the Sinbad ride they even offered us a little book of what the story was about. And if you want to ride Jaws, USJ is the last park in the world that has it.

There is currently a crane on site

Took a couple of snaps as I walked into for Carnivale tonight

Where? on the Gold Coast This source is a friend, that’s all you need to know. I’m not going to share it if I don’t trust it.

But before that, we said they spent way to much on MW for them to invest in SW for some time. And then they dumped $60 million on SW. Never say never

Where is your reliable source @themagician

I don't think so. Village have spent way too much money in Seaworld. They can't afford wet N wild Provide the reliable source @themagician

This is the second time the folks in Queanbeyan have tried to sell these. I can't imagine they're usable, so they'd be no more than a collector's item, and they're quite bulky to move - making the purchase for an individual collector a difficult but not insurmountable one. I guess he's trying his luck again...

A number of rides seem to have lengthy maintenance windows this year. I guess it helps keep costs down in the off season... 😉