DaptoFunlandGuy

Depending on your view - I'd say running only one side of Giant drop... or alternating attractions operating hours, or opening them later, or closing them earlier is closing big thrill rides to save costs, so you can, and it isn't absolute groundless rubbish.

Quite right - proof one cannot multitask at work. I stand corrected and of course meant Dolphin Cove.

You're at odds with each other - one saying towing is natural, the other saying surfingriding is an unnatural cheesy circus trick. Let me take on a couple of points from my point of view - which is to say my info comes from a family friend (and guest at my wedding) and is a person who was (and still is) very closely associated with Discovery Cove. I'll not discuss their association in greater detail simply to prevent anyone identifying them, but suffice to say they are in a position of knowledge. Jjutp - although "waving" or "splashing" may not be seen as natural behaviour, floating on their backs is a necessary behaviour for medical reasons - such as ultrasounds on pregnant mothers etc. Movement of the pectoral fins IS a natural behaviour - and is simply one exhibited while displaying the very necessary 'upside down' behaviour. When you say 'Splashing' i'm not sure if you're referring to the water-slapping done with their fluke, or whether you mean them scooping water intheir mouths and squirting it. Dolphins have been observed in the wild 'fluke-slapping' which is used working as a group to corral or herd school-fish, and they've even been observed to do this to work in conjunction with fisherman - although this is a behaviour exhibited working with humans, the animals WERE wild, and weren't trained specifically to do it - it was simply a natural behaviour that resulted in them being rewarded by the fisherman who benefited from their assistance. Mouth-squirting - i don't have an answer for - i don't know either way. Richard - the surfing riding 'stunts' have also been observed out of captivity, and as Jjutp refers, Dolphins have anecdotally been referred to as rescuers who (on occasion have been talked about) save people lost at sea. I can't explain other similar behaviours, but the breaching jumping is a natural behaviour, albeit with a foot on their nose. Either way - humandolphin interaction in the water (in my opinion) is good for them, socially, and to bond with their trainers. (I recall when the dolphins used to perform in the Sea Lion Stadium, one song they used to play during the show was something like 'swim with me'. ) Dolphins frequently cavort and play around watercraft, and other places where people and the ocean interact - they're social creatures - so swimming towing surfing with them, whilst not strictly 'natural' (because they need a human in order to exhibit it) isn't restricted to animals in captivity. Furthermore - on my last visit to Sea World, one dolphin, completely at leisure was within the main arena, leisurely flipping a basketball around the pool without direction or instruction from trainers... at one point flipping the ball out of the pool in front of a guest entering the arena, who tossed it back into the water, only to have it immediately tossed back out at them. As social creatures, they crave interation - and I would argue a similar scene would have occurred in open water had the dolphin, ball, and person been in the vicinity. In summary, my point is that I do not believe any of the behaviours or interactions displayed at our Sea World are done purely for entertainment value. I submit that all of these behaviours are either natural, necessary for the animal's physical wellbeing, or otherwise are intended to stimulate them mentally to prevent them from resorting to destructive behaviours out of boredom. If you hang around discovery cove after the show, (or if you're one of the first into the stadium) you may catch a glimpse of a trainer handling a small aluminium fence-type structure onto (or off of) some of the 'wet area' on the imagine stage (orangey painted part). This is to prevent a situation that occurred a while back where a bored dolphin beached itself onto the platform and received a nasty sunburn when it became stuck and unable to retreat back into the water. (this is the kind of destructive behaviour i'm referring to)

I agree that the whales should have much more than plain concrete pools. Discovery Cove is amazing and as pointed out by the germans in the trip report Gazza posted elsewhere a while back - is wonderful, but I think one of the big attractions for the Orca is the underwater viewing areas - this can certainly be implemented in a 'natural' environment (one only has to look at Shark Bay), however this would involve housing the Orcas temporarily in another tank elsewhere, or constructing a temporary one... i'm not sure either is viable for the entire Pod... one perhaps, but I don't think moving all of them is good for their health. I would like to see them build more natural environments - even if they perhaps used it in a paddock system - letting them 'out to pasture' to play when they are at leisure. That said, I think Sea World would take a massive hit if they lost them as an element of the park - it's still the number one attraction across their target market - evidenced clearly by the size of the stadium seating and the fact that it is filled - even in drizzling rain - to capacity. I do want to take to task the 'dorsal fin' debate and point out that wild Orcas have been observed with a collapsed dorsal, and I believe it is not just related to captivity, but sometimes to the length size of the fin being too much to hold erect. I don't want to belabour the point, but i've heard evidence both ways. On the GC park and our SW Dolphin show - i'm not sure I understand what you mean? Are you suggesting the dolphins at our Sea World do behaviours purely for entertainment rather than their natural actions or those to keep them mentally stimulated?

But just as smoking was seen as something to aspire to, and burning fossil fuels is bad for the environment - we got here by what our ancestors did. The captivity of the Orca was done well before the psychological or physical harms were known or even thought about. These parks have built their image on 'Shamu', and to take it away from them now would (IMHO) destroy them. Our park survives without Orcas but I would suggest that is only because we've never had them anywhere in this country, and what you never had, you never miss. I'm reminded of the noise heard back in the 80's over Lions and Elephants in captivity in circuses - and we've just reached a point now where the elephants are no longer in circuses, but only because they were prohibited from BUYING more, and they cannot live without a mate, so as the first died, the second had to be given up too... and that still took 20 years. So long as they still have a viable breeding program, i'm sure they'll continue to breed them and keep them. It would be unconscionable to capture one from the wild now, so as things progress, it is only those bred in captivity who will be in the park - little consolation, but they're not raping the natural ocean any longer. And despite what many feel about how the Orcas are housed, kept or treated - the money earned from these creatures and their upsell products, experiences and merchandising is a large chunk of the fundraising needed to support education and rescue programs, ultimately ensuring that what happened to their ancestors will never happen again. It's not great how they came to be in the park in the first place, but Keiko's story shows why they cannot just release these animals into the wild, so, so long as they have them - they might as well make use of them to further their overall cause.

THanks Rean. So Alton don't do a 'full park' fastpass, but thorpe do. At 70 pounds, paying the additional 46 to get the pass makes the pass worth it all on it's own. Presumably it also includes some form of fastpass at Alton as well - which is all just gravy at that point anyway - the pass is certainly the better deal - even without visiting the 'other' attractions.

Reading the description on Micechat, it sounded a lot like the dinosaur type attraction shown in the finale of Beverly Hills Cop III, however after watching the video Liz posted - the train looks nothing like the gondolas... so as if this topic hasn't drifted far enough off course - does anyone know whether the dinosaur attraction at the end of BHC3 was real?

Coney Island and the Crystal Ballroom are both heritage listed and won't be going anywhere. Both of them - as buildings - will always be able to be repaired and restored - it's whats inside them that makes a difference - and that is changeable. The individual attractions inside Coney Island (afaik) are covered by heritage also, but when you look at the specifics, there isn't much that an ordinary handyman couldn't repair. The Wild Mouse is interesting as I wouldn't have thought the mouse would have met the criteria for heritage listing. That said there are heritage listed wooden coasters elsewhere in the world (including Cyclone and Scenic Railway) that have stood far longer, so I don't see any reason why they wouldn't be able to repair it - the mechanics of it are simplistic. On attendance, i'd say they would have to go by wristband and pass sales alone - and this doesn't take into account the parents who bring their children to the park to ride and don't actually ride themselves. I'll be interested to see what they bring forward as they remove the old ones.

Problem is that wouldn't be sensational enough. It'd be seen as just a propaganda film or advertisement and be quickly discarded. THis is (rightly or wrongly) given legitimacy of the independent nature of the production. I guess the only thing to say is - look at McDonald's after Supersize Me. I doubt it's going to hurt them in any lasting way. The only people who can hurt them (government regulators) would know or easily discover the truth.

My limited googling at work didn't immediately return a result - but how much is the fast track if not included for free with the pass? that would add to the value and potentially negate the need to 'do one or two other attractions' depending on the cost...

My first visit to Knotts was in 1996... and i'm struggling to remember an animatronic dinosaur ride... any more info on this?

I'm with Gazza.. for the money you've spent crossing to the other side of the world... one extra day to do both parks would be well worth it.

^Now THAT I could see happening. The name escapes me right now, but wasn't there an island somewhere off the coast of queensland that had a failed resort, that recently got sold off? Not sure that it's big enough - but Disney has been looking at Australia for ages and i'm sure they'd love to offer guests an 'australian' experience with a truly 'Disney' feel to it. We may not be big enough for a theme park just yet, but a resort is most definitely something they could do. Good call Aaron.

Good, articulate and to the point. Thanks for the good reviews.

Sea Viper has been doing ok. I'd recommend doing WnW a second time after holidays are over if you're into slides as you likely won't get on everything during the hols - especially the last weekend which is also australia day weekend. I would expect the days you're planning to visit MW and SW you're likely to get through pretty quickly and multiple rides at MW are likely with short (<5min) queues. Sea World is fairly steady also, and if you like the shows then I recommend either checking the website or alternatively downloading the Themeparks.com.au app for iPhone or Android so that you can check out showtimes before arrival. (the app also has special offers for food and merch occasionally as well). Pick the shows you want to see, try and get them all in a block instead of spaced throughout the day - you'll rush a little bit between some shows, but it will leave you with the other half of the day clear to enjoy the rest of the park. As with previous advice, if Movie World or Sea World are busy, try to ride the more popular longer wait time attractions such as superman and scooby, and Vikings and Storm when the major shows - hollywood stunt driver and Imagine are on (respectively).

For numerous reasons, I can't see them ever building on the gold coast.

It doesn't matter either way - but it is clearly 'No Climbing' It is.

1. I believe the reason they wave you past the first right turn is that is where the majority of their mobility impaired disabled parking is. I'm pretty sure the attendant is scanning your windshield to see if you have a permit, and if not, waves you past. After that its a free for all... so I don't think 'half assed' I just think they're spending money there wisely to accommodate differently abled guests. 2. Last time I got a Q4u the 'first' person was more expensive (can't remember but maybe $45 or something like that), and then $15 per person thereafter... so if it's just a straight $15 per person, i'd say the interest in it has waned - but it would be a good way of milking extra revenue out of world pass holders who otherwise wouldn't spend money each visit 3. Log rides not themed to mines? This one is themed around a cute little story involving forest animals... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BCIfYc9r8s This one to an enchanted forest: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtGxaGbVwko And this one - well... who knows what this one is? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFjvi1cGs18 4. The name of the park is 'dream world' and their slogan is 'so many worlds in one'. If it were just something simple like 'ride some thrilling (and not so thrilling) rides then I could wear that, but they are trying so very hard (and failing) at being a theme park. They ARE as bad as we say because they claim to be themed, and they fail miserably at it... for the same reason they keep getting slammed over MDMC - because they claim it as a thrill ride, when it clearly isn't.

Tender processes for private entities aren't always the best approach... In many cases, friends of the panel, or the lowest bidder gets the gig - and it isn't always best to go with the lowest bidder... i've seen many events fail because of inexperienced and poorly resourced organisations that were punching well above their weight. What everyone in Sydney needs to realise right now is that many park operators are watching with interest at what goes on down there in prospect, and the more they critique the park, and pour shit on it, the less likely they are to get another. If Sydney starts rolling downhill fast, I could see VRTP going up-stumps and moving all their world class attractions to the gold coast and abandoning the property... its extremely unlikely, and they'd take a terrible loss - but it could happen.

The Glebe Island White Bay proposal was talked about on this very forum a while back, i'm almost certain of it - few details were known, but the fact that they were thinking about it certainly was. It is weird to see fairfax pulling the story out 5 years after it happened though...

I just returned from the future where I can assure you all - it does come down - here's footage: http://youtu.be/wnYXbJ_bcLc?t=1m21s

...Yet

Well it won't be nothing - if they're doing high falls, there isn't much to fall from except the main facade - and you need a landing zone... maybe a dumpster in front of one of the buildings filled with foam the way PASS did it?

There's always the possibility that Dreamworld will actually do something without expectation of profit too.... shahh... and monkeys might fly outta my butt. As DjRappa said, he asked a question on an unofficial website, and he got several unofficial answers. Sure - the park may in their discretion do something against their own T&Cs, but that becomes dangerous... the minute you do something against your own rules, you show people that the rules don't have to be followed in each and every case - that enlivens the expectation that if they want the rules changed for them, it will happen too. All they have to do is complain loudly enough - again - entitlement complexes. It's a refund on change of circumstance. Sure - he's moving, and i'm very sorry that he seems to have wasted his money on the pass, but he committed to purchasing a season pass on the basis he wasn't moving, and given he has his MyBand, he has most likely visited the park at least once. His circumstances changed - why should the park lose revenue that they've already 'booked' just because he won't be able to use the pass again? He has used it, and benefited from it - does that just become a 'free entry'? No - he's used it. Charge him a single day admission and give him the difference back? That's possible I suppose, but not really worth pursuing, is it? If the park changes their policy on such matters - sure - but so far, they haven't suggested anything different to normal operations with normal entry terms and conditions - and that is the answer we gave him.

Disney does fire well in dark rides without gas or flame - just lights, fans and fabric. It may be that the features were installed, but the certifiers wouldn't sign off because of a risk of (uncontrolled) fire because the effect was too close to something... and that's put them back to the drawing board? That may explain the response you got from guest services. Many dark-rideattractions use fire. It's safe where it's done properly. Bermuda did it for many years - Wild West Falls had sparkers before the fire. Backdraft at universal studios (and then the Mummy). It can be done... and with the heat elements etc present in the ride already, they've definitely tried to do so... but who knows what will come of it if there is a problem.