Asia-Pacific
www.parkworld-online.com
Pathways and plazas have been designed to allow non-
riders to enjoy Draken as spectators. Guests can walk through the middle of the coaster and enjoy impressive views of the drops and the splendid four-story tall watersplash. The general post-ride consensus thus far is that the variety and combination of elements make for maximum excitement and thrills, and a very addictive ride.
Intricate theming “The theming of the Draken’s station is beautiful and adds another dimension to the guests’ experience,” reveals Sophie. The thematic narrative of new park land Draken Valley is based on a Northern European myth. According to the story, humans started their lives after the last war of Gods. However, due to the humans' wars and greed, some of the Gods who had disappeared revived, and decided to punish them by freezing the humans’ world. In order to break the magic spell keeping the world frozen, our hero (Peter) sets off on an adventure to look for the four elements, water, fire, earth and wind, in order to complete his quest. The final treasure is the ‘One Ring’ which symbolizes love, and Peter must go through the harsh tests of the Draken if he is to succeed. In addition to Draken, Draken Valley is composed of four
themed attractions, each representing a different element. Clark, which represents the fire element, rotates 360 degrees, swinging guests upside down up to 30 meters. When the ride reaches the top, the riders stay upside down for a brief moment before plunging down. Dragon Race, representing the wind element, is an aeroplane-shaped ride which rotates 360 degrees, themed as baby dragons practicing their flying and blowing wind. Snow Park, which is the water element, is a snow sled hill with a length of 250 metres and a width of 100 metres, that opened in 2016. Finally, Fenrir, the earth element, is a structure of a stone wolf opening its mouth - Fenrir, the mythical wolf, defeated and then turned into a rock mountain. B&M specifically designed the Draken dive coaster, which
forms the central focal point of Draken Valley, in order to fit the available area. It incorporates all the classic elements which ensure the lasting popularity of the Dive Coaster model, including a vertical, face-down drop; eight-passenger wide vehicles and a waterbrake.
Boosting the numbers South Korea has seen a drop in amusement theme park attendance in the past year. The 2017 Theme Index shows that at Lotte World in Seoul, attendance dropped from 8,150,000 to 6,714,000 – a decrease of 17.6%. Everland, meanwhile, in Yongin, saw a 9.5% drop to 6,310,000. The report attributes the drop off to geopolitical events that discouraged tourism from Mainland Chinese, a key tourist demographic. “What those countries and cities currently dominating our Top 20 (Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and China) have in common is sufficient cultural infrastructure, supported by the public, government and society in general. In other Asian countries this infrastructure is generally lacking; however, we expect this to change as these economies mature over time.” Investing in their park and installing high-profile, high-thrill rides manufactured by a giant of the coaster world such as B&M seems calculated to inspire confidence in Gyeongju World’s key visitor demographics, and the ongoing updates and development planned can only mean further success for the Korean park.
Draken counts two thrilling vertical face-down drops (63 meters and 41 meters), two imposing Immelmans, a waterbrake, a banked curve and a high-speed spiral. These elements bring a great variety of experiences to the guests: height, speed, weightlessness and changes of directions are combined in a thrilling and balanced sequence.
AUGUST 2018
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