It's Wednesday my dudes, the best time of the week
simply because we get to give you all of the best theme park news.
I’m not sure how we missed this one in the last episode, but better late than never.
Disney cooked up quite a storm two weeks ago with their announcement that the free fast pass system
at Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resorts would be replaced by the company’s new ‘Genie’ service.
With this change Disney is trying to remove the hassle of overplanning a visit to a Disney resort,
instead allowing guests to use the Genie service to create a more spontaneous itinerary.
So are free fast tracks gone? Unfortunately yes, the fast pass system has been replaced by Genie+,
a paid service very similar to the fast track it’s replacing. For $15 at Walt Disney World and $20
at Disneyland, guests can have access to the ‘Lightning Lane’ entrance for one major attraction
at a time, all via the app. Or, alternatively, you’ll be able to buy single ‘Lightning Lane’
access for popular high demand rides for a one off fee. So it's confirmed then, we’re living in
the dark multiverse guys, the one where Disney finally decided to sell out, this is so sad.
Moving on to something better - the all new theme park coming to Iowa in the United States
has released a map of what the park will look like. The Lost Island theme park will be split
into various areas, or Realms, each with its own distinct architecture and culture. But what about
the rides Harry, is what I hear you ask. Well, we know they’ve got a Vekoma SLC with the additional
helix, so there’s that, but they also do have the Intamin hydraulic launch coaster, formally known
as Kanonen at Liseberg - swings and roundabouts really. Generally the park looks like it could
be well themed with a decent collection of rides and attractions which all sounds awesome to me.
Last episode the SeaWorld entertainment parks began to reveal when they were opening their new
roller coasters, you know, the ones meant to open in 2020. We didn’t hear what would be happening
to Pantheon, Busch Garden Williamsburg’s new multi-launch coaster, with those other
announcements, but I guessed that it would open at roughly the same time, in early 2022.
Well guess who was right - kinda. The park confirmed on their website that Pantheon will
be opening just two years later in March of 2022. They then removed the statement shortly
afterwards, strange... Perhaps they've decided to keep Pantheon as a big art installation instead?
Other news from SeaWorld parks now. SeaWorld San Diego has revealed that Emperor,
their new B&M dive coaster, will open in March 2022 too, wow! The ride will become
California’s tallest and fastest dive coaster and California’s first floorless dive coaster!
Unlike many of the other dive machines across the States, Emperor will feature 6 passenger
wide trains, leading to a faster and more snappy layout. We also heard that SeaWorld San Antonio
is opening Tidal Surge, the world’s tallest S&S screamin’ swing, in Spring of 2022! The
ride will swing guests at the top speed of 68mph 109kmh, through 230 degrees of rotation, epic.
Who likes Legoland theme parks!? I hope you do, because Merlin are building ‘em.
Merlin Entertainments has recently begun construction on a 1 billion USD theme park
in Shenzhen China. The Legoland Shenzhen Resort will become the company’s newest
Lego-themed attraction, set to debut in 2024. The park will feature 9 themed areas, including more
than 100 interactive rides, shows and attractions. But this isn’t the only Legoland park being built…
in China specifically. The company aims to open Legoland Sichuan in 2023, and Legoland Shanghai in
2024 too. China, I hope you like Legoland, because well, you’re getting Legoland, three of them.
Diggerland Devon, the park that uses heavy machinery to create rides and attractions,
has announced their permanent closure. The park will be closed for the “foreseeable
future” from the 5th September 2021 due to COVID-19. Diggerland Devon is just one of
four Diggerland sites across the UK, the other three of which will remain
open. Diggerland said the decision had “not been an easy one to make”. So,
if you’re located in Devon and want your digger fix, head to Diggerland while you still can.
And finally, Universal Beijing will open for trial operations starting on the 1st September
2021. During this, select guests will be invited to try specific rides, attractions and shows
ahead of the grand opening on the 20th September. During this time, the park will continue to tweak
various aspects of the theme park to ensure things are perfect. The Universal Beijing
Resort began construction in October of 2016 and includes a whole multitude of themed lands,
including Jurassic World, Kung Fu Panda Land, and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
Many have already been stunned by the quality of some of the rides within the brand new park,
including the trackless dark ride “Jurassic World Adventure”.
But, to be fair, that’s what you'd expect from a 3.3 billion USD theme park isn’t it really.
And that's it, we've wrapped up all the news, for now. Join us next week as we announce the opening
of a further 7 Legoland Theme parks across the world, including one in my back garden.