Delirium_Guy

I'm not really thinking comical will be the case. Read the section below from the press release: "Europe in the Air" swoops guests across gorgeous terrain and past the continent's most beloved landmarks. Dive low over Stonehenge. Soar past Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany. Float over the Coliseum in Rome. With amazingly sharp video quality and incredible surround sound, this high-tech simulator ride puts our guests in the midst of all the action. Europe in the Air will replace Corkscrew Hill. It really is going to be their version of Soarin', though it just won't be the same without the hang gliders :-) - Todd

It would seem that they now have the conveyor floor functioning.... http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/features_orlando/2010/01/eye-on-hollywood-rip-ride-rocket-floor-moves-concerts-groove.html I was at the Park about a week ago and they still weren't using it. Its obvious how far back they beginning the load process now, as before they would stop the train and load you right about where the car in this video dispatched quickly to the lift hill. Definitely going to have to go have a look at it. I will say, the ride is starting to finally break in....its getting a tad better. I had a pretty enjoyable ride on it last week, it may have helped that the ride was a walk on but still! ;-) - Todd

It is going around that Hogsmeade Village and such will open as early as March 1.....though its starting to also go around now that the actual ride may NOT be ready to open until June 1. Remember, Spring is a very vague time frame so they do have all the way up through June :-) - Todd

Corkscrew Hill's seats were very similiar to Dollywood's simluator and Jimmy Neutron at Universal. Its basically 4 seats in an individual car. There are several rows, each with several cars in each of the rows. I actually enjoyed Corkscrew Hill, but I am a HUGE Soarin' fan. While I certainly don't expect this to be in the same league as Soarin', its great to see them update the attraction with a film that keeps with the theme of the park. I'm in particular interested to see how IllumiNights plays out. No doubt, they are playing off the very popular After Dark event at SeaWorld Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa's Summer Nights event, both of which are a lot of fun and create completely different experiences versus what guests get to do during the day.

Well I agree on the wait and see thing and I also agree that there really wasn't much of a draw to the Park before, it really was mostly locals. As Cory pointed out, the Park will now have an identity and one that people (no matter what age) are going to recognize. Like I said, its going to come down to the right marketing for the park and offering the right services to guests. I think they'll make it work. As for the roads, I still think its going to be an issue at some point. Yeah, I found it frustrating to get to Cypress.....and thats with hardly ANY traffic. If this park turns out to be a big success and ends up pulling 2-3 million guests a year (or more) then those local roads are going to end up being quite packed and make it even more of a chore to get into and out of the Park. Obviously the investment that Merlin is dropping into the place is going to make it *worth* the trip out there and I think that will help make it easier for them to convince people to leave the Disney/Universal/SeaWorld mecca ;-) - Todd

Honestly, I found it incredibly frustrating to drive out to Cypress (and I'm local). I know that construction is finished on 27, its a 6 lane highway in most places now....but you still deal with traffic lights. The location is about 22 miles off of I-4. To be honest, it really reminds me of driving from KI to Americana. Not all that far, really, but no convenient way to get there. I'm sure the park will be a big hit with locals, especially those that may not want to shell out for Disney, but obviously Merlin is after a much bigger piece of the pie than that. I realize Busch Gardens is even further, but its far easier and sometime FASTER for me to get to Busch than Cypress. Busch is partnered with SeaWorld / Universal on the Orlando Flex Ticket and has an inexpensive shuttle from several different locations in the attractions area that helps make it an enticing break away from Orlando. With the right marketing and services in place, I'm sure the Park is going to be successful in the long run. They've obviously done their homework and feel confident. - Todd

How do you figure? When was your last visit? Rest assured, gardens excluded, the park lost its charm long ago. Merlin intends to keep the gardens, which many were initially concerned with, and even plan to keep the park's popular water ski show. They are a class act and don't half ass their investments. If the location obstacle can be overcome, this is will give Cypress a bright new future and will be a great addition to Central Florida's portfolio of theme parks. So just relax :-) - Todd

From Orlando Sentinel.....a few construction pictures of Omaka Rocka. Anticipating an early March opening. http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/features_orlando/2010/01/aquatica-pictures-of-new-omaka-rocka-water-slide-under-construction.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+features%2Fthemeparkblog+(Theme+Park+Rangers) - Todd

I agree, I am actually quite excited about I305. As a huge fan of Maverick and its quick transitions and abrupt moments of ejector air, I'm looking forward to seeing how this one turns out. One note though, that trim is actually quite close to the END of the ride. After that hill, its two quick turns and up into the brake run.....so the twisty goodness, as you referred to it, seems as though it will be taken at high speed :-) - Todd

As of yesterday, the ride is open, yes! The entire area is a flippin' mess though. The entrances to both sides go through the ride's exit....you do NOT enter the castle at ANY point right now. It was god awful during slow season in November.....no way was I venturing over during Christmas :-) I haven't seen where Universal has said so, but its rumored that the ride may go down soon to finish its transformation into Dragon's Challenge. I guess my advice is be prepared that it is a possibility. - Todd

http://www2.tbo.com/.../news-breaking/ I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this. Rumors have been around for sometime that Merlin was interested in bringing in the Legoland brand to the Orlando market. No doubt, it would do well here. They apparently had looked at 3 sites: a site near Old Town on the 192 strip (I believe that would have been a park built from scratch), the former Splendid China site (which has some existing infrastructure in place) and Cypress Gardens. To me, the Cypress Gardens location is the worse. I only went to Cypress Gardens once and I'm a local. Its location is a 30 minute drive off of I-4, give or take depending on traffic. Its pretty far out there and I felt a tremendous hassle to get to. The Park itself needs a lot of rennovation and upgrading to bring it to Merlin's standards, too. Not saying that it couldn't be done, but definitely some work to be done. From a business standpoint, this was probably a steal for them and the best way to expand into the market here....they just have their work cut out for them. I could see it being more successful than Cypress' previous attempts as a "thrill" park. For starters, the brand is well known. Secondly, there are a lot of cross marketing opportunities for them....in particular the Orlando Flex Ticket. For those who aren't familiar, its basically a multi-park ticket that covers Universal's parks, Wet 'n' Wild, SeaWorld, Aquatica, Busch Gardens. As someone else also pointed out, offering shuttle service like SeaWorld does to and from Busch Gardens would be nice also. Given that we would all be operating under the same Blackstone umbrella (granted, still seperate companies) there are certainly a number of avenues that they could explore. Merlin has been very successful, no doubt they have done their homework. It will be interesting to watch this one development. - Todd

Poseidon isn't visible in front of the attraction, no, but to me its a huge eye sore when you walk through Seuss Landing. I used to really enjoy Poseidon, its sad what its been watered down to. I am not sure I really *expected* more than one new attraction for Potter, but Universal's marketing machine is certainly hyping it to be so much more (no surprise, of course). Then of course, they have been extremely secretive of the entire project which has only helped build the hype. In reality its a retheme of Lost Continent for the most part and people will pick up on that to an extent. At least IoA is getting its first major attraction though since opening! What I think may possibly be the highlight of the entire project is not the ride, but the Hogsmeade / streetmosphere aspect behind it. How well they immerse the guests and have them interact with the surroundings is what I think will make it stand out. While I'm sure the ride is going to be fun, I think I'll be surprised if it shocks and blows people away like Spiderman did. I disagree that Islands had too much, too soon. The crowds Universal *used* to pull in ended up making Islands of Adventure seem to have a lot more than it actually does. Universal's attendance has taken a nose dive in the last 10 years, thats no secret. Islands is no different than when Animal Kingdom opened. Underneath all the incredible theming and such, its truly a half day park at best. Luckily, Disney realized the issue with Animal Kingdom and have definitely been filling in that park quite nicely. Its taken far too long for Universal to do the same with Islands, IMHO. But.....least the process seems to have finally began! :-) - Todd

Awesome trip report! Islands is actually pretty sad for me these days. No mistake about it, when the place opened it was *the* park to beat IMHO. Universal really did an oustanding job with it. Unfortunately, 10 years later, it has lost a lot of its luster. The park is showing its age, many areas are in need of touch up and TLC. You touched on Jurassic Park and its need for attention, Ripsaw Falls looks absolutely awful particularly when you are on the ride. Its sad that the Park has ended up as it currently is. I also find the lack of investment in the Park extremely sad. In 10 years, no major new attraction? Storm Force? Don't think so. Flying Unicorn? Try again. High In The Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride? Well at least they FINALLY did something with the failed Sylvester McMonkey McBean's Unusual Driving Machines. With that said, Potter looks fantastic, though not too many of us are surprised by the clear visibility of the show building....take a good look at Poseidon....the show building is very visible from a lot of the Universal property. I hope that Potter is a new beginning for IOA, so to speak, and that each area of the park gets the attention that is needed. Oh, word on the street is that Harry Potter & The Forbidden Journey may soft open around early March !! :-) So 3 years after the original announcement, its almost time! - Todd

In what has became an annual tradition now, my New Year's Eve was spent once again at Epcot. As usual, beyond AMAZING. Park was insanely busy, as should be expected...a friend who works there told me that they set an attendance record again this New Year's.....89,000 guests. In park at midnight was 72,000 reportedly. The entire park is really transformed into one giant party. Every guest can swing by for their party hat and noise maker. In front of the fountain in Future World, the plaza becomes one gigantic dancefloor. Spaceship Earth has a varying pattern of light and laser effects on it. There are 2 other great dancefloors and DJ's set up in the China Pavilion as well as Italy. This is the first year that I never even made it out of China...too much fun! :-) Come on, how can you not dig the fire on top of the dance floor?! There are two performances of Illuminations. The first takes place earlier than usual, around 730....that showing concludes with the final viewing of Holiday Illuminations extension. At 11:40, the second performance takes place. After it ends, the Park celebrates New Years with each of the countries around World Showcase Lagoon. Each country has its own set of fireworks and such. At last its our turn and begins one amazing display of fireworks that fill the sky. Disney is something else at midnight as Hollywood Studios has its own display in addition to Magic Kingdom's phenominal display going on as well! While the crowds are certainly out of control, I can't think of a better way of spending my New Year. I shot a few videos with my iPhone. Not the greatest quality, but for those that may want a glimpse (are you reading, Ryan??) of what New Years at Disney is like....here's a small taste - Todd, 363 days until the next Epcot New Years :-) .

SeaWorld officially announced the details about the new attraction for Aquatica. Opens in March 2010. Great addition to the Park.... http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/features_orlando/2009/12/aquatica-new-omaka-rocka-ride-set-to-debut-by-march.html - Todd

Your son and non riding grandparents will very much enjoy their visit to Busch Gardens. There are plenty of things for them to do. Jungala is absolutely a fantastic area for the entire family with many up close animal interaction opportunities.....there is also a great little water play area for kids that would be perfect for your son. In addition to Jungala, they'd definitely enjoy Rhino Rally which is the safari attraction. The train and sky ride also provide great views of the animals. Myombe Reserve is a nice area in the park also which is home to gorillas and chimps. Land of the Dragons is the kids ride area, it is still in operation though certain parts are blocked due to construction of Sesame Street Safari of Fun. Safari of Fun will not be complete by your visit in February, just an FYI. On a sad note, in case you have visited any of the Busch or SeaWorld parks before, the famous Clydesdale horses will be gone by the time of your visit. Their last day for guest viewing at SeaWorld Orlando is tomorrow and by January 4th they will also have been removed from Tampa as well. - Todd

Never got around to posting this, but in addition to the Polar Express overlay that is given to Wild Arctic, SeaWorld is ramping up its Christmas offerings....expect to see Christmas become a huge focus over the next few years and more and more areas transformed. There are a few pictures included in this topic. Also check out this link to see what fun Santa had on Manta recently :-) - Todd Winter Wonderland on Ice An all-new holiday-themed ice-skating spectacular, Winter Wonderland on Ice, runs on select nights through January 3. Christmas comes to life with towering water fountains, magnificent fireworks and some of the most talented skaters in the world as they dazzle and delight families this holiday season. Clyde and Seamore’s Countdown to Christmas Families can enjoy this all-new Christmas comedy with their favorite loveable sea lions Clyde and Seamore, along with a few mischievous otters and a jolly walrus or two. Clyde and Seamore’s Countdown to Christmas runs on select nights through January 3. A Sesame Street Christmas Celebrate the holidays with friends from Sesame Street at SeaWorld - it's an all-new festive and fun musical celebration, A Sesame Street Christmas. The holidays have arrived, but Abby Cadabby doesn’t understand what all the fuss is about … she’s never heard of Christmas. Elmo, Big Bird and other Sesame Street friends gather together to share with her the true spirit of the holiday. Following the show, families can create wonderful memories with their friends from Sesame Street during character meet-and-greets. Families can also enjoy a unique dining experience for the whole family: Elmo and Friends Christmas Breakfast. Shamu Christmas … Miracles As the winter air cools and the evening stars appear, families can join Shamu for a magnificent holiday show: Shamu Christmas … Miracles. Shamu Stadium comes alive with bright lights and glowing candles as Christmas carols abound and Shamu splashes to celebrate the holiday season. This very special showing runs on select nights through January 3. Makahiki Christmas Luau Igniting the spirit of the season is the Makahiki Christmas Luau, a South Seas-style festive celebration including tasty island cuisine keeping with the ancient holiday traditions of the Pacific Islands. Joyful songs of the season are reinterpreted with Polynesian rhythms, music and dance. Makahiki Christmas Luau continues through January 3 (except December 25). Park admission is not required. New Year’s Eve at SeaWorld Families can ring in the New Year at SeaWorld on December 31 with a musical extravaganza including the best in pop, Latin and swing music. At the stroke of midnight, the evening sky will shine even brighter with a vibrant fireworks show to celebrate the festivities. The best way to enjoy the holidays at SeaWorld is with an annual pass, and it also makes a perfect holiday gift! An annual pass is the gift that keeps on giving because it offers great benefits such as food, beverage and merchandise discounts, plus complimentary parking. For more information about the holidays at SeaWorld, visit SeaWorldOrlando.com. For photos and media inquiries, contact SeaWorld Communications at (407) 363-2280 or via email at swf.pr@seaworld.com.

Received the email at work around noon, it is done. BEC is no more, we are now SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment. SeaWorld continues to be the signature brand in the portfolio, with SeaWorld Orlando being the flagship park in the chain obviously. Emphasis will continue with the Worlds of Discovery marketing as the Parks continue to create new attractions that connect guests with nature. As I left work last night, it was a little sad to see the Anheuser Busch floral displays being ripped from in front of the Discovery Cove Reception Center and the main entrance to the SeaWorld parking lot. Its the end of an era that truly saw these parks elevated to a new level of standards and quality and turned them into world class destinations. I have a lot of respect for August Busch III who, unlike August IV who cared little for the parks, shared a close connection with them. He is very much a big part of why we now have experiences like Discovery Cove, the fantastic Conservation Fund and programs like Here's To The Heroes! So long, InBev, you most certainly will NOT be missed!

Agree totally, Ryan. By no means was HRRR a cheap investment, so to have it no do anything to help the business and at the very least plateau flaggling attendance that Universal has been seeing....no it isn't something I would call a success. Just do a little research on attendance and compare Uni's attendance from the year that IoA opened compared to now. To me, its honestly quite scary how much they've lost. By comparison, Manta has absolutely been a huge success for SeaWorld this season and certainly helped offset any big declines in attendance. While I certainly find the ride hideous, especially all the flippin' massive brake runs that dot the layout, thats irrelevant :-) You can agree that its a fail or not, whatever, I'm just saying from what paying guests are saying and the headaches that have plague the operations team at USF....HRRR is far, far from a favorite.

As far as it being a fail, yeah, I think it could possibly fall in that category. From guest satisfaction surveys to management at the Park, the ride is not being viewed favorably and by most accounts viewed as unsuccessful....least thats what is circulating. They missed the entire busy summer season with the attraction not being open and still can't get it to run as it should with the extremely busy holiday season fast approaching. Really, all you gotta do is watch the guests that exit the ride....no one is really all that excited or thrilled when then they get back to the station. Compare that to say Diamondback or even Manta for that matter where its clear that people have had an enjoyable experience. Like I said earlier, Rockit is not an attraction that Universal is likely going to have a reputation for as once Potter opens ALL attention will focus on that. The ride definitely sticks out like a sore thumb, if you compare it to Hollywood Dream at USJ and how they integrated that into the exisiting park you'll see what several here are talking about. Oh, for what its worth Jesse, I definitely do agree about the new music amphitheater. Its a nice area and is a vast improvement over the old setup for Mardi Gras and other events. - Todd

Rough is just one problem. I've ridden the ride several times now. I've found the backseat to be violently rough when I've been assigned to that row....felt like hitting a speed bump at 65MPH. It would give short, sudden jolts....not a constant jack hammering effect like Son of Beast would do. Still, those short jolts were enough to give me a headache at the bottom of the first drop. My rides in the front row, however, have all been relatively smooth.....but the trains just seem to really fight the track and curves. The ride has been open since August, however still to this day it never opens with the Park.....it typically opens around noon each day. The ride is very much an eye sore and by all accounts a huge fail for Universal. Even if the ride were smooth and not plagued with the operational issues, as others have said its barely mediocre. The first drop, loop and treblecleff element are great. After that its very blah and doesn't really do much. With the soft opening of Harry Potter coming VERY VERY soon, Rockit will fade into the background without ever receiving much fanfare. Oh, for what its worth, the 7th train is now onsite. So they have now taken possession of all trains. We'll see if they can get that platform functioning, should definitely help with capacity. - Todd

Typhoon is one of my favorite waterparks, outside of Schlitterbahn. Killer wave pool, great theme and atmosphere, unique slides. Blizzard Beach on the other hand, I'm not a huge fan of. The theme is cool, but it just lacks the personality that Typhoon has for me. With that said, I prefer to Aquatica to Blizzard Beach but not to Typhoon. Aquatica is a great park and definitely had a nice selection of attractions for its freshmen year last year. The theme is somewhat whimisical. Dolphin Plunge is a great concept, but unfortunately it is true that the actual result isn't what you would hope. I find ways to purposely slow myself down in hopes of one of the Commerson's zipping by. When it works, its cool though! The lazy river is nice, in particular I enjoy the viewing of the Commerson's you can get. The star of the park, IMHO, is Roa's Rapids which is the rapids lazy river. While Aquatica does have the typical assortment of slides, it also has some unique features with it as well and I'm happy that the new additions are going to be different than what the other Orlando water parks offer. I think the thing that possibly disappointed me in Aquatica, and really it isn't a big disappointment, is what actually transpired through landscaping and such. Let me say, the Park really is a beautiful little park and looks absolutely fantastic. I guess the way it was envisioned with concept art and seeing how absolutely STUNNING Discovery Cove is, I expected a bit more. None the less, as I said, the Park still looks fantastic. Aquatica is a wonderful expansion of SeaWorld and it really has only helped firm SeaWorld's presence in the Orlando market. - Todd

As PKIVortex stated, Aquatica is SeaWorld Orlando's water park and is located across the street. SeaWorld San Diego has no water park, just a rapids ride and a Journey To Atlantis attraction. SeaWorld San Antonio has a water park incorporated into the regular park and is included with park admission.

Have faith in the construction crew, they obviously are well aware of how to remove this support. On another note, here are some awesome pics that were taken last night during the topping off. Even though it was dark, still some amazing views from the top of Intimidator and gives an even better perspective of how high it really is.... http://www.kdfansite.com/gallery/displayim...m=97&pos=32

Finally announced and a piece of concept art included.... http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/features_orlando/2009/12/aquatica-new-omaka-rocka-ride-set-to-debut-by-march.html - Todd