What’s happened this week?
Pasco waterpark plans move forward
Historic WW1 locomotive exhibit at Vale of Rheidol Railway’s museum
Heritage theme park Dreamland to have license reviewed following drugs overdose at event
Bird’s eye poo: London Museum unveils pigeon logo alongside new brand identity
Taylor Swift lends objects to V&A for explorative exhibition
British waterpark reopens nine months after closing forever
Shaun of the Dead immersive pop-up experience comes to San Diego Comic-Con
Deadpool becomes first Rated-R character to ever appear at a Disney Park
TAAPE 2024: Thailand’s premier attractions expo returns to Bangkok in September
Saudi Arabia on the path to global entertainment leadership with Vision 2030
Efteling water show to undergo major redevelopment
Former Marvel chair sells entire Disney stock
‘Difficult comparisons’ as Universal theme park revenue drops by a tenth in Q2
Major new theme park to open on Polish coast in 2025
Artistic heist sees man swap ancient coin for fake at British Museum
Warwick Castle launches medieval-themed hotel
Calgary Zoo’s Wild Canada exhibit closed following polar bear death
Public voting opens for UK Theme Park Awards 2024
Fantawild’s Glorious Orient theme park opens in China
WATCH: Universal Creative shares story behind Epic Universe Preview Center
What’s the latest?
Mobile aquarium uses wild-caught fish to teach people about Ohio River’s biodiversity
DOF Robotics launches Flying Theater in Guadalajara
British Museum director ‘hopeful’ over finding Parthenon Marbles solution
What’s happened this week?
Former British Museum director Hartwig Fischer gets new role in Saudi Arabia
Canary Islands in panic at tourist boycott and calls for 'national pact' against protests
Council leaders write to Prime Minister to endorse Universal's UK project
Record-breaking stegosaurus could be making its way to US institution following US$44.6m purchase
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Here are some of the big headlines from the last week:
• Comcast’s Brian Roberts has blamed ‘difficult comparisons’ for a decline in Universal’s theme park revenue, with the latest financial results showing a 10.6% decline for the operator during the quarter
• Another item has gone missing from the British Museum, except this time the object in question was taken by a Brazilian conceptual artist
• The merc with a mouth has made his way to Disney’s parks, with Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool coming to both Disney California Adventure and Disneyland Paris for a set of special appearances
• An upcoming theme park development in Poland is looking to provide competition to the likes of Energylandia, with the expansive Hossoland set to become one of the country’s largest attractions when it opens to the public next year
• The Thailand Amusement and Attraction Parks Expo is coming back to Bangkok’s Impact Exhibition Center later this year, with the event acting as a key meeting point for Southeast Asia’s growing attractions sector
• A new theme park has opened to the public in Jining China, with Glorious Orient the fourth such branded attraction to open from operator Fantawild
• Brian Robinson, chief creative officer at Universal Creative, has shared his insight on the creative story behind the Epic Universe Preview Center at Universal Orlando’s CityWalk
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After more than two years of anticipation, the Pasco Aquatic Center is one step closer to becoming a reality. Pictures shown at a recent Public Facilities Board Meeting, give a glimpse of what the completed facility would look like. The idea has been on the Tri-Cities' mind since the 1980's.
The building itself is set to be massive, coming in at around 33,000 square feet. The space will include a three-lane lap pool, two water slides, and a hot tub-style pool that opens to the outdoor area, as well as a lazy river, a water vortex, a children's area, and even a social space just off the lazy river. The location is set to be a community staple with both indoor and outdoor concessions also offered and even food truck parking.
Leaders say their plan is to have 60% of activities available year-round inside the building, with 40% of activities outside. Project leaders tell us on the outside, you'll see 4,700 square feet of fun. For families and events, there will be picnic areas, another children's area, a wave-ball court, a basketball pool, a climbing wall, and even a ninja course.
Matt Watkins, Executive Director for the Pasco Public Facilities District, says... More from KEPR
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A new historic locomotive exhibit has been placed on display in The Vale of Rheidol Railway’s Aberystwyth museum, just in time for the summer holidays.
The locomotive, known as ‘the Brigadelok’, was built in Germany in 1916 for use in the First World War. Small steam locomotives such as this one worked on lightly laid narrow gauge railways, helping to carry munitions and supplies to the forces on the military front line.
The locomotive has an unusual chimney, containing a spark arrestor which avoided sparks giving away the location to British forces when working at night, as well as preventing accidents when pulling train-loads of munitions.
The ‘Brigadelok’ will be on display in Aberystwyth throughout the summer. This is the first time the engine, which has been in the railway’s collection since 2002, has been formally put on public display.
The museum also houses a very early Dick Kerr petrol-electric locomotive, built in 1918, which was... More from Nation.Cymru
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Dreamland in Margate will have to meet a series of safety conditions after concerns were raised following the death of a teenager during a drum and bass event.
Thanet District Council’s licensing sub-committee agreed the venue could continue to hold events, with amended conditions, after Kent Police requested a review of its licence.
It follows the death of 17-year-old Emily Stokes during a Worried About Henry gig, which also saw a further 21 people fall ill from suspected drugs overdoses, on 29 June.
Dreamland said it remained committed to ensuring the safety and wellbeing of all its visitors and was continuing to assist police with their investigation.
An application by Kent Police for the licence review revealed how the force declared a major incident after a... More from BBC News
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The pigeon and splat is the new mascot of the London Museum Credit: London Museum
The former Museum of London has officially taken up its new name of the London Museum, with the soon-to-be relocated attraction debuting a new logo featuring a white clay pigeon and a golden poo splat.
The museum in the British capital is currently at the halfway point two years from the start of its relocation to its new home in Smithfield, with the £437m (US$562m, €517.8m) plans aiming to draw up to two million visitors a year.
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Outfits, musical instruments and other objects on loan from US musician Taylor Swift are going on display at London's V&A in a temporary summer exhibition.
Titled Taylor Swift | Songbook Trail the exhibition is made up of 13 installations across the museum's galleries.
“It's a journey around the museum,” curator Kate Bailey said. “It follows chapters in Taylor Swift's career and we highlight the eras and showcase objects and looks worn by Taylor across the different spaces in the museum.”
The exhibition will be on display until September 8. According to the museum, the trail takes 60-90 minutes to complete.
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Scarborough’s Alpamare water park has re-opened to the public after being taken over by new operator Flamingo Land.
Working with North Yorkshire Council, Flamingo Land has successfully reopened the British waterpark nine months after the attraction seemingly closed its doors forever.
The attraction, which opened in 2016, boasts a wave pool, a splash and play pool, four waterslides, two outdoor pools and a café and terrace bar.
“I am delighted that we have managed to get this attraction back open in time for the busy school holidays,” said North Yorkshire Council’s deputy leader, Gareth Dadd.
“It is a massive asset for the town and securing Flamingo Land as the operator is key to its success. It is great to be working with a well-established, local and trusted company.”
More from This is the Coast
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In honour of 20 years of Shaun of the Dead an immersive pop-up experience celebrating the British cult classic has made its way to the San Diego Comic-Con.
Transporting visitors directly into the Winchester Tavern, the pop-up recreates the British pub, which serves as the primary location in the zombie movie.
Featuring interactive photo ops, the experience also includes cans of themed beer for adults 21 years old and over, while exclusive merch and giveaways will also be on offer. Fans can also enjoy an early playthrough of a Shaun of the Dead inspired level of the upcoming game, Funko Fusion.
San Diego Comic-Con takes place July 25-28.
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Deadpool is coming to Disney theme parks Credit: Disney
Marvel’s foul-mouthed fourth-wall-breaking superhero merc, Deadpool, has become the first Rated-R character in the entire history of Disney to appear at one of the operator’s theme parks.
Coinciding with the release of Deadpool and Wolverine Ryan Reynolds’ version of the character is appearing at the Avengers Campus at both Disney California Adventure and Disneyland Paris.
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The Thailand Amusement and Attraction Parks Expo takes place inside the Impact Exhibition Center in Bangkok
The Thailand Amusement and Attraction Parks Expo (TAAPE) is set to return to Bangkok later this year, with the event promising to act as a key meeting point as the country aims to become a developed nation by 2037.
Thailand’s National Strategy was implemented in October 2018 with a vision of making the country secure, prosperous, sustainable and achieving developed country status. Among its goals, one of its focuses is to preserve the nation’s tourist attractions and increase the proportion of high-quality tourists in multiple tourism sectors.
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When Saudi Arabia launched the General Entertainment Authority in 2016, skeptics were doubtful about its outcome as the Kingdom was just taking its nascent steps in the sector.
Today, Saudi Arabia stands at the forefront of leisure and entertainment in the Middle East and North Africa, driven by ambitious investments and strategic initiatives under Vision 2030.
Under this program, the Kingdom aims to inject US$64bn into the industry by the end of the decade, accompanied by the creation of over 100,000 jobs.
From sprawling entertainment complexes in major cities to a thriving cinema sector, Saudi Arabia... More from Arab News
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At the end of its current high season, Dutch theme park Efteling has announced that its Aquanura water show will undergo a series of developments, including a new musical score and a revamped lighting system.
Four new 8m (26ft) ‘Beacons of Light’ will be placed around the show’s pond, bringing the musical time travel to life through thematic lighting and magical transformations.
By removing the fire effects, created using propane, the theme park says that it is taking another step towards its climate ambitions of being climate-neutral by 2030 and climate-positive by 2032. The park will also be replacing all existing show lighting with LED lights, while the show’s frogs will also “be given a matching metamorphosis”.
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Former Marvel Entertainment chairman Ike Perlmutter has sold the entirety of his Disney stock.
Selling 25.6 million shares in the months after losing a proxy battle with the entertainment giant, Perlmutter told the Wall Street Journal that he sold his stake because he doesn't have confidence in Disney's current management and expects the share price to fall further.
Perlmutter became a larger holder of Disney after the company purchased Marvel in 2009. According to Perlmutter, Disney fired him as chairman of Marvel Entertainment because he pushed the company too aggressively to cut costs and ran afoul of the creative executives. Disney says his dismissal was part of a cost-cutting plan.
More from WSJ
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Universal revenue is down year-on-year Credit: Universal
Comcast’s theme park business has suffered a dip in the last quarter, with revenue for Universal theme parks worldwide dropping by 10.6% .
For the quarter ended June 30, Comcast reported an overall revenue decline of 2.7% year-on-year to US$29.69bn (€27.35bn, £23bn).
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Hossoland will become one of Poland’s largest theme parks when it opens in 2025 Credit: Hosso Group
An upcoming theme park development in Poland is looking to provide competition to the likes of Energylandia, with the expansive Hossoland set to open close to the Baltic coast in the middle of next year.
Scheduled to open in June 2025, the 400,000sq m (4.3 million sq ft) theme park in Kiełpino was originally scheduled to open in the spring of this year, however, delays have seen the date pushed back.
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Artist Ilê Sartuzi stole the coin in a stunt to highlight the number of foreign objects held in the British Museum Credit: Ilê Sartuzi
Less than a year after thousands of items were found to have gone missing from the British Museum, an artist from Brazil has taken a historical coin from a display case and replaced it with a fake.
According to conceptual artist Ilê Sartuzi, the stunt, which he filmed, was part of an art project highlighting the large number of foreign objects the British Museum holds.
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Merlin Entertainments has developed a £16.4m hotel on the grounds of Warwick Castle.
Set in the 64-acre grounds of Warwick Castle, the hotel offers more than 60 medieval-inspired rooms.
Experiential design features include a rearing animatronic horse with a knight on its back at the hotel entrance, as well as talking historic portraits that interact with guests and provide an oral history of the castle.
As part of the development, Merlin Entertainments will also plant 1,000 trees on the castle grounds.
Overnight stays at the hotel includes... More from Botique Hotel News
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The Wild Canada exhibit at the Calgary Zoo was closed last week after one of the zoo’s polar bears died.
The 7-year-old male polar bear, called Baffin, sparred with fellow bear Siku, in the enclosure’s pool. Baffin didn’t resurface. Siku is also being closely monitored by the zoo’s animal care team.
According to the zoo, the death was sudden, with a necropsy to determine the cause of death.
The enclosure was closed on Friday.
More from CBC
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With attractions across the country vying for the title of UK’s best theme park, the general public now gets its say for 2024, with voting now open for this year’s UK Theme Park Awards.
Featuring parks including Alton Towers, Thorpe Park and Blackpool Pleasure Beach, 38 combined parks are nominated for a variety of awards, with the British public able to now vote for their favourite attractions.
Determined by combining thousands of public votes with scores from an expert judging panel, this year’s awards feature 22 different voting categories. Across these categories, 28,652 nominations were received, with a total of 38 theme parks nominated for awards in 2024.
The 2023 edition of the UK Theme Park Awards proved to be wildly popular, with last year’s edition seeing 229,427 public votes cast.
From July 22 until September 1, nominations for the 2024 awards are open, with the public able to vote at ukthemeparkawards.com
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The Glorious Orient theme park builds on the China’s ‘red tourism’ drive Credit: Fantawild
July 19 marked the opening of another Glorious Orient park from Fantawild. The new park in Jining, China, marks the fourth to open in as many years and contains four new dark rides and a show ride.
The first Glorious Orient park opened in May 2021 in Ganzhou, marking the first step in a new generation of parks and ride technology. The theme of Glorious Orient is far from the average theme park, focusing heavily on the history of the nation throughout the past couple of centuries. Common subjects on rides include events of the Sino-Japanese war and China’s Industrial Revolution.
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Brian Robinson, chief creative officer at Universal Creative, has shared his insight on the creative story behind the Epic Universe Preview Center at Universal Orlando’s CityWalk.
Offering a sneak peek at the upcoming Epic Universe’s five immersive worlds, the Preview Center for Universal Epic Universe was imagined by a team of more than 500 people within Universal Creative.
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There’s been a lot going on in the world of attractions over the last week. Here are some of the headlines:
• With Europe in the midst of a brutal heatwave, Greece’s Culture Ministry last week ordered the closure of the historic Acropolis, while visitors were given bottles of cold water and information on heat illnesses.
• Oracle chief executive Safra Catz will be stepping down from Disney's board after serving as a member for six years. With Catz’s departure, the company’s board size has been trimmed to 11 directors from 12.
• Keith Sanford, the Tennessee Aquarium's fourth president and CEO, has announced his retirement.
• A rare orange lobster discovered in a shipment to a Colorado Red Lobster restaurant has been given a second chance at life after being donated to Denver Downtown Aquarium.
• The panda pair that arrived at the San Diego Zoo from China earlier this summer will make their eagerly awaited public debut on Thursday, August 8, the zoo has announced.
• The University of Iowa Stanley Museum of Art has become the first in the US to restitute its holdings of Benin Bronzes, with a brass plaque and wooden altarpiece formally returned in a ceremony to the Oba of Benin
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A mobile aquarium is being used in Ohio to teach people about the waterway’s biodiversity.
A travelling 2,200 gallon (10,000 litre) tank was set up at the Winton Woods Outdoor Adventure Expo, with the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission raising awareness about the waterway's health.
The tank is filled by fishing in the Ohio River or nearby bodies of water with electrofishing temporarily stunning the animals, which are then netted and put into a live well. The fish stay in the tank for up to three days before being released into the river.
A recent grant from the Duke Energy Foundation allows the aquarium to be free and reach new people, the Commission says.
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DOF Robotics has announced the opening of a new Flying Theater in Guadalajara, Mexico.
Designed to accommodate up to 40 guests, the model features multilevel platforms that gently elevate guests' seats toward a colossal domed screen, creating a sensation of soaring through captivating landscapes and thrilling scenarios. As guests are lifted, they are immersed in a captivating storyline, powered by DOF Robotics' motion simulation and projection system, enhanced by integrated virtual reality.
“Bringing the Flying Theater to Guadalajara marks a significant milestone for DOF Robotics,” said Bakit Baydaliev, CEO of DOF Robotics.
“We are committed to pushing the boundaries of immersive entertainment, and this attraction exemplifies our dedication to innovation and excellence. Visitors can expect an unforgettable experience that will leave them feeling as if they are truly flying.”
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Nicholas Cullinan, the director of the British Museum, has said he wants to find a solution to the Parthenon Marbles controversy, working in partnership with the Greek government to resolve the long-standing dispute.
Speaking on Radio 4’s Today programme in the UK, Cullinan discussed the topic in what was his first interview since taking up his position at the head of the institution six weeks ago.
“I would hope a partnership of some form is possible and that is something I think we will definitely want to take forward,” he said. “It's a bit too soon for me to get into the particulars around how that could work, but I'm hopeful.”
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Here are some of the big headlines from the last week:
• Lord Hall has been appointed chairman of the Natural History Museum, his first major appointment since quitting a previous post over his involvement in a BBC scandal
• The London Science Museum has cut controversial ties with oil giant Equinor
• Phoenix Rising has its opening date, with visitors to Busch Gardens Tampa Bay able to ride the B&M coaster starting July 21st
• Boasting 99% positive feedback from its users, the Knoebels Amusement Resort app has expanded its offering with Attractions.io
• A fort-like structure built by the Nazi’s during World War II has undergone a €100m transformation to reopen as a green hotel, bar and events space complete with a rooftop public garden
• The Museum of Ice Cream is teaming up with a number of major ice cream brands to give out thousands of free samples at pop-ups in New York, Chicago, Austin and Singapore
• Disney has spent US$142m on Splash Mountain's Tiana’s Bayou Adventure transformation
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Last summer, Hartwig Fischer resigned as the director of the British Museum, just days after it emerged that the museum had fired a curator who was suspected of looting gems from its storerooms.
Less than a year later, Fischer is back at the top of the museum world.
This week, the Saudi Museums Commission announced in a news release that it had appointed Fischer, a German art historian, as the founding director of its museum of world cultures, scheduled to open in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in 2026.
In the release, the commission said it had chosen Fischer, 61, because of his “global expertise in leading international cultural institutions and museums.” It did not mention Fischer’s time at the British Museum.
Fischer took the top job at the London institution in 2016, having previously run the State Art Collections of Dresden, a major group of German museums.
His tenure at Britain’s most-visited tourist attraction, which houses renowned artifacts including the... More from The New York Times
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The Canary Islands are calling for an urgent national pact across Spain in defence of tourism in the face of escalating demonstrations.
The popular holiday destination, which includes Tenerife, Lanzarote and Gran Canaria, says the brand of the islands and Spain as a whole is being dented by the protests over mass tourism.
Government leaders in the Canaries says Spain has to take a united stance against the escalating situation and reverse the "negative stance."
And they warn scenes in Barcelona last week when tourists were sprayed with water should be regarded as "very worrying".
Calling for united action at national level, Minister of Tourism and Employment of the Government of the Canary Islands, Jessica de Leon said: "We need strategic policies on the tourism sector to be implemented in Spain and tourism activity to be defended and not put at the centre of problems that have nothing to do with the reality of tourism."
The first mass tourism protests were held in the Canary Islands in April when thousands took... More from Express
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The leaders and chief executives of six local authorities have collectively endorsed Universal's potential theme park and resort project in the UK. In a letter sent to the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, the region's leadership emphasised the transformative potential of this initiative.
The project will create 20,000 jobs during construction, with an additional 20,000 jobs generated directly and in the supply chain during the resort’s operation. According to the councils, this significant job creation underscores the tangible economic impact the potential project will have on the region. Additionally, the project’s scale will help set England’s South East Midlands as one of the foremost visitor destinations in Europe and the world.
Laura Church, chief executive of Bedford Borough Council, said: “We know the importance of this Universal project getting the green light. The potential theme park and resort serve as a major draw for tourists, attracting millions of annual visitors, with many projected to come from Europe and overseas. It will also help bolster the UK's profile as a leader in the creative industries, a must-see visitor destination and business investment hub, resulting in growth for the region.”
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The sale price for the 11ft dinosaur fossil has vastly outstripped pre-auction estimates Credit: Sotheby’s
A stegosaurus skeleton that just became the highest paid-for fossil in history could be making its way to an American museum.
Nicknamed ‘Apex’ the 11ft (3.4m) tall and 27ft (8.3m) long specimen is among the most complete dinosaur skeletons ever discovered.
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