Cover story
parkworld-online.com
As part of a growing trend for upscale offerings at various entertainment venues, the Goddard Group is working with South Korea’s Lotte
World theme park on a new welcome area that it claims will transform the theme park arrival experience
You’re welcome! T
Underland – one the new areas of the park created by Goddard
he last decade has seen a dramatic rise in the introduction of high end offerings at a broad range of destinations, including luxurious movie theatres, boutique bowling alleys and such initiatives as personalised tours and queue-free ride access at amusement parks and theme parks. All this, of course, helps attractions stay competitive, justify their steadily- increasing ticket prices and even generate new, more profitable revenue streams. And now several leading park operators are turning their attention to the guest arrival experience. “You only get one chance to make a first impression” says Taylor Jeffs, director of design for the Goddard Group, one of the world’s leading entertainment design firms. “Furthermore, a theme park’s entrance is the one thing every single guest is sure to experience, so it’s critically important to establish the right tone right from the minute they arrive.”
The new ticketing desks are all geared up for cashless payment
The new entrance area at Lotte World in Seoul will eliminate traditional ticket booths, replacing them with long open desks, similar to the check-in desks now present at some hotels.
Goddard Group upgrades Lotte World arrival experience
“Because of a fundamental shift towards park patrons making cashless payments, money drawers now contain less actual cash than they once did, making traditional ticket booths outdated remnants of a different time,” Jeffs notes. “Premium entertainment venues, such as the Arclight Cinemas complex in Hollywood, for example, have proven that not only is this method functionally safe, but vastly superior from a guest service point of view.”
As ticket prices for parks have risen steadily during the past few years, particular at large destination theme parks (a one-day ticket to Disneyland is now US$89 – more than double the price a decade ago), and park executives seek new ways to transform their venues into increasingly upscale experiences, enhanced entrance areas are becoming a proven model, both enhancing guest satisfaction and increasing ticket sales.
The new arrival experience at Lotte World follows the 2011 debut of Buena Vista Street at Disney California Adventure in Anaheim. Constructed as part of the overall park renovation, the new welcome area reportedly cost ten times that of the original entrance that debuted when the park opened in 2001. At Sea World San Diego, also in California, Sea World Parks & Entertainment has announced it will add an all-new entrance zone in 2014, also doing away with traditional ticket booths. The park plans to replace them with “concierge-style” welcome desks. In October, Lotte World announced a strategic creative partnership with the Goddard Group that has already led to the creation of new themed entertainment and retail offerings (see pictures over the page) including the Jumping Fish ride, Do You Speak Beluga? interactive theatre and Underland precinct. Each of these attractions have quickly become a hit with international audiences, and more are on the way.
garygoddard.com lotteworld.com
A bird’s eye view giving an impression of how the entrance area will look when complete 20 Welcome Center model more images over the page...
MAY 2013
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