GoGoBoy

Well you all seem quite convinced that The Beach is getting new slides. I however, am not so sure, being the doubtful person that I am. They're going to have to start building quickly as they have under 3 weeks to get 3 new slides up. While I can see that The Beach is certainly getting a detailed refurb I'm not convinced about these slides... not in time for this season anyway.

Oh no... of all things why a kids theme park? What about us big kids? I'll never recover from my sadness over the fact that the Melbourne Studio City theme park never went ahead. They were apparantley going to inject $500 million into just the theme park itself. Such a pity.

Apparantley wonderlands staff have been officially told by management that The Beach is getting a full refurb but nothing has been mentioned about a new slide. I find it difficult to believe then that the receptionist would be privy to info regarding the new slide if no one else is. I am guessing she is perhaps a little confused. As much as I'd like to see a new slide in time for The Beach opening... I won't be holding my breath.

Yes I agree completely. It WAS very well done. Often when theme parks are featured on holiday shows the segments are very average. Some of the visuals were fantastic. I wanted to send an email to The Great Outdoors to congratulate them but can't find an address on their website.

Thunder, I definitely agree with you on this one. I think your contact in management was probably just referring to the refurb of the speed and free fall slides when they mentioned 'new slide'. It would be nice if they were a little clearer though wouldnt it? So misleading! I'm looking forward to seeing what response you can get from them now. Oh and by the way I think you originally mentioned a competition was being held to launch this years season of The Beach. This is correct. The competition is going to be called something along the lines of 'Message in a Bottle'.

I have received some official news from contacts within Wonderland regarding plans for the waterpark. At this stage The Beach will not be getting a new attraction, just a basic overhaul. The following work is being carried out prior to this seasons opening (most of this we have already discussed) - 1. Tower supports are being repainted and some of the stairs are being repaired. 2. The free fall and speed slides are being refurbished. 3. The pools will be repainted. 4. New beach huts and seating areas will be added. 5. Overall colourful paint job to liven the place up a bit. It does not sound like there are any plans for the rumoured 'slide'. You never know what's going to happen in the future but at this stage there definitely hasn't been any info released.

Nightshifter that is all OLD news which we have already discussed. Except at this stage they are not repainting the slides, just refurbishing the tower and supports. Also, the slides ARE still connected to the tower.

Shaun, I agree with your above post. I can definitely imagine it re-themed as The Hulk. I think it would be crazy for Wonderland to buy the Bolt for obvious reasons. DW is surely getting rid of it because of all the complaints. I certainly hope a representative from Wonderland had a ride on the coaster in its recent state before making any decision. My question is what would Wonderland have to do to turn it into a relatively enjoyable ride? What is it specifically about the Bolt that makes it so painful? Would it be a matter of designing a whole new train? Or would it be possible to just change the wheels on the train to make it smoother? Also, is there anything that would need to be done to the track? Being a tall person I can remember having my legs squashed each time we'd hit a corner. It was horrible.

Oh no... I truly hope Wonderland has not bought it! Imagine waiting 10 years for a new ride only to end up with a refurbished Thunderbolt. That would be too sad.

Hmm I just had a look at the Sally website and I don't know if I'm very impressed with the standard of their rides. Has anyone here actually been on a Sally dark ride? Any comments? Perhaps Wonderland is planning to install a 'Jocco's Mardi Gras Madness' ride, as described on the site at http://www.sallycorp.com ... that would explain the new Mardi Gras colours in Transylvania as discussed in another forum

I sure hope that doesn't happen! However, if they did end up re-theming the land I'm sure they could come up with some better choices than the names above Does anyone else have an idea why they have chosen these colours for the shops? Also, has anyone been able to peak over into HB Land lately? Is the Beastie still standing? I have heard that it has been semi pulled apart.

The first thing I thought too was that this could have something to do with Marvel. Perhaps they are recreating the area and turning it into a new super-hero themed land? It would be so much better though if they would keep transylvania as it is and add a NEW separate Marvel themed area. Come on all you investigative types... do your best to find out and let us know!

I completely agree with Dianna. Posts which provide as much detail as possible about rumoured new attractions are great but otherwise they are a waste of time. I will not start being grateful until there is some genuine info coming out. The info also then needs to be proven eventually for the poster to gain any real respect.

Slick, Sega World was actually quite large for an indoor theme park. Perhaps you were looking at the wrong spot? It used to take up the whole upper level of the Darling Walk retail complex. The entry was on the mezzanine level, under the blue cone. Actually that water playground thingy that I was talking about earlier is still there even today. It is called 'Pondamonium' and it's right outside mcdonalds. The whole complex has failed though and will undergo a total redevelopment over the next few years. The entire upstairs space (once Sega World) is now empty and they have been unable to do anything else with it.

Yeah the photo you are talking about was not actually from inside Sega World. It is a little water feature playground which is in on the lake in Darling Walk; the retail complex which used to house Sega World. The park never really made any money from what I can gather. The management were hoping the olympics would boost the trade but it never happened. They also tried upgrading the park over the last few months... spending millions on new attractions. This didn't work either. Eventually the owners decided it was time to pull the plug. The former owner of Sega World is now running a business called Brilliant Digital at http://www.brilliantdigital.com and is closely associated with Kazaa, a popular file swapping program which is run by the old CEO from Sega World - Nikki Hemming.

You can go on a speed slide or free fall slide at just about any water park... they are a very standard attraction with the same configuration everywhere. An old concept really. I like Wet n Wild's new upgraded version of the old speed slide - speed coaster. I personally love the Aqua Tube. Lots of fun. The only problem is the queue to get on it is soo long during peak periods because there are just not enough attractions in The Beach to keep people busy.

Apparantley it's The Beach's 10th bday. I would have thought the new slide/s would be built in time for this years season opening sometime in September. I doubt that's going to happen though. So maybe you're right... IF it's going to happen it's more likely to be xmas. I can't believe The Beach has been there for 10 years without a single addition or change. There really is not much to it in its present state - 2 basic pools, one enclosed flume and a standard speed and free fall slide.

If you haven't already, make sure you visit the following site - http://worldwidejeb.org/words/2001/12/13/ Although it's slightly out of date, it's a very funny review of amusement parks around Australia. It includes all the main parks and also a lot of lesser known parks... some I didn't even realise existed!

I am now sure that the work being done on the slide tower is soley for refurbishing purposes and has nothing to do with any new addition. Also, the large area next to The Beach which is being cleared has recently had an Australand banner placed on the outer fence. I assume this means the area is being cleared for a business park related addition and again nothing to do with The Beach. So my question is... where and when is this rumoured new slide happening?

If you had read my post properly Former, you would understand that I was saying that upper management are NOT always reliable (refer to the example I give in the post). However, upper management are far more aware of future park developments than operational supervisors/staff. It's as simple as that.

The funny thing is that any of you could be right. The fact is that Wonderland's upper management have also said in the past that Wonderland would be getting a wave pool, a hotel, a golf course and a new bungee style ride. None of this happened at the time (several years ago). So it just shows that even when management tells you something, it may not neccesarily actually end up happening, as history shows. I think that is also one of the main reasons why they don't like info leaking out, because often stuff does not end up going ahead for various reasons. I do believe Thunder has a good contact in upper management and that is about as reliable as it gets. Operational staff (including supervisors) usually don't find out 'till the last second. Still, in saying this, nobody knows for sure but I have my fingers crossed once again.

I think the last post is correct UNFORTUNATELY! Upon closer observation it looks as if they are simply reinforcing the structure. IF the beach is getting a new slide I don't think it will have anything to do with the work they are currently doing on the tower. Very dissapointing but certainly not surprising.

There was also a serious stabbing at Wonderland... I thought this resulted in a fatality but I'm not totally sure. I believe it happened in the car park. The toddler drowning at The Beach was fairly well publicised at the time. I know of plenty of other incidents too... not sure about fatalities though.

The construction on the tower seems to be getting more intense with a big plastic lining down one side and levels of scaffolding branching out on the other side. I have heard from a few different sources that they are just re-flooring each level to make it safer. It seems like a lot of work just for a bit of refurbishing though. I certainly hope something bigger is happening!

Flea you should pass those comments along to the park. I'm sure they would want to know about it so they can perhaps attempt to fix it.