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Antarctica comes to Orlando


SeaWorld Orlando has revealed the vehicle that will take guests at the Florida park on a South Pole-themed adventure next season. Talking about the new attraction Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment creative director Brain Morrow boasts: “There’s nothing else like this in the world. It will take families on an epic adventure and allow them to experience and interact with the thrills, wonders and dangers of Antarctica.” The eight-seater trackless ride vehicle was displayed at the recent IAAPA Attractions Expo on the booth


Park Bloggin’ with Dennis Speigel


Food For Thought


Food, glorious food is as much a part of the amusement/theme park experience as riding a rollercoaster or playing a midway game. However, since the birth of American theme parks, food service has been by and large ghastly! This is not just my belief; it is the belief of millions of park-goers around the world.


SeaWorld’s Brian Morrow unveils the new ride vehicle at IAAPA


of Oceaneering Entertainment Systems, the same company responsible for the transport system on Universal’s Spider-Man and Transformers 3D dark rides. Each car on Antarctica is actually a mobile simulator, with movements that allow the riders to become at one with the storyline as they follow and mimic a young penguin’s adventures.


Opening in 2013 and already under construction, Antarctica: Empire of the


Penguin is the biggest new attraction in SeaWorld history and promises a state-of- the-art family adventure combined with a real life penguin encounter. Guests will be able to choose from two levels of adventure to guide their experience. Although Antarctica will not be the first theme park ride combining penguins – Merlin has already done it at Legoland Billund and will launch another attraction this season at Oberhausen in Germany – SeaWorld’s big budget approach is likely to result in an experience that lives up to its billing as, “Orlando’s must-see 2013 new attraction.”


Do you speak Beluga?


Set to open this January at Lotte World un South Korea, Do You Speak Beluga? Is an interactive theatre within the Aqua Plaza section of the indoor park in Seoul. The experience will immerse guests in an animated undersea environment in which they’ll be able to interact one-on-one with a digitally-created Beluga Whale.


The new project, inspired just a little bit by Disney’s Turtle Talk with Crush, is the second recent attraction to be realised as part of a multi- project collaboration between Lotte World and Hollywood-based design firm the Goddard Group. Korean company Rayglyph is providing the show’s technology and media content. “'Do You Speak Beluga?' will not only be among the most technologically-advanced attractions in the park, but in all of Korea,” says WG Choi, the attraction’s producer.


There are some exceptions with which I am familiar in the United States, such as Silver Dollar City, Knoebels Grove and Dollywood. Nevertheless, for too many years, parks have got it wrong. But why should they bother improving when food and beverage remain the best generator of a park’s revenue after ticket sales? This fact is accounted for probably only because guests are a captive audience and have to eat, not because they like what they are being offered. Recently, it appears some parks have seen the light. Incidentally, European parks have in my opinion always offered better food. I remember a meal 30 years ago at Phantasialand in Germany that would rival any New York restaurant! For Europeans, meals in parks can be a different prospect than for Americans, who are more inclined to “grab and go.” But things are changing. Meal times are now becoming an integral, part of a guest’s visit. They want it and demand it as part of a group visit with their friends and loved ones.


As parks introduce new themed lands, a little bit more thought it being given to both the quality of food and beverage offered, and the environment in which it is served. Recent examples include the restaurants at Universal’sWizarding World of Harry Potter, including the Three Broomsticks and Hog’s Head Pub. Food is getting better. It’s actually tasty and people like it! And who can forget those Butterbeer sales, which exceeded $5 million the first season alone? At Walt Disney World’s newly expanded Fantasyland, which opened last month, the Be Our Guest Restaurant is not only extraordinarily beautiful, but it has a great menu too. It offers French cuisine, as well as sandwiches, salads and other healthy fare. The food is not cheap – with prices ranging from $15 to $36 – but the difference now from a few years ago is that the food is high quality and worth the price. It has not always been like this, I can assure you.


One of the dishes on offer at Disney’s new Be Our Guest Restaurant


Disney even sells alcohol at its new restaurants – something only 20 years ago it vowed it would never do. Champagne, red or white wines of very good quality, and a variety of beers from around the world are all on the menu for Be Our Guest diners. And why not? Park visitors have demanded higher quality food and beverage for years, Plus, alcohol sales deliver a great profit margin. Park food has come a long way from the cheeseburger served in a Styrofoam box, sweaty and stale. But it has taken far too long to get here. During the next five years, we are going to see more progress than we have in the last 40 years. It’s a win-win. The guest gets a better food experience – and so is more likely stay longer or come back on a repeat visit – and the parks see higher revenues as a result. Bon appetit!


Dennis Speigel is president of International Theme Park Services (interthemepark.com), a leading US-based attraction management/consulting firm based. A past IAAPA president, Dennis boasts over five decades of industry experience after beginning his career as a seasonal employee at local Cincinnati amusement parks Coney Island and Kings Island.


DECEMBER 2012/JANUARY 2013 7


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