Thursday, September 01, 2016
World's largest indoor theme park opens in Dubai
www.themeparkinsider.com: The park's management has ambitious goals for the development. "We are excited to have launched the world’s largest indoor theme park today, which will be a major tourism attraction for Dubai, the surrounding regions and the rest of the world," Lennard Otto, Chief Executive Officer of IMG Worlds of Adventure, said in an opening statement. "As the first international theme park to open in Dubai, we expect to host over 4.5 million people in our first year of operation, transforming the entertainment and leisure industry forever."
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4 comments:
I think it is actually somewhat difficult to process just how large this amusement park must be. 1.5 million square feet is roughly if I did the math right 1/3 of the size of Kennywood, which is what my reference to theme parks is. To think of all that they are able to fit into Kennywood, which is a fairly small amusement park to begin with, this new theme park seems rather in impressive. When I was watching the video, I actually initially thought when I saw the large red roller coaster that started inside and went outside, that is was Ferrari World because I know that they have a coaster that looks similar. I guess it makes sense that they are developing new types of theme parks in Dubai and similar areas because of the amount of land that is available and that maybe is not available in other popular destination areas in other countries.
This seems to be a really awesome new development for the UAE. My initial reaction to a few of the images displayed in the video was, "Uh wait is that finished?" and after looking at several more photos scattered throughout the internet, I think the thing making the biggest difference for me is the lighting and the lack of foliage. There's something about an outdoor theme park that just is able to fill in the empty space better than this seems to. I wonder if they could have gone to any kind of effort to make it feel like the outdoors, or if they felt it was better just to embrace the indoor space as it is and leave the ceilings and floor fairly bare. To me, it feels a bit like a trade show with many exhibits. But perhaps it is more immersive in person.
I'm also curious to see how the continuous expansion of themed entertainment in the Middle East affects business in Orlando. It seems the two regions are pretty consistently fighting for the European guests, and now Dubai is offering something entirely different from what one can find in Orlando. Should be fun to watch the numbers, either way.
Another interesting question is how does an indoor theme park change the way an Operations team thinks? There will not be nearly as many weather-related obstacles, obviously, but I imagine being an indoor park of such scale brings different challenges with it as well. I would love to follow an Ops manager for a day in this park. Also, no sun=no business casual tan lines. Score 1 for management.
And while I'm still wondering and typing at the same time, I am interested to see if we ever deviate from the IP-driven theme park attractions again in my lifetime. I obviously see the merit in creating something that people already have a connection to and allowing them to experience it in "real life," but I would personally love to see more original attractions that maybe hinge on the culture of the city, or develop an old story into something new, or is simply included because it is a great and fun idea. I can't help but look at IP attractions and think, "Oh, so that's the IP that won the numbers game last year and hasn't already been done." I would love if we could just hold onto some originality for the time when (within the next 20 years, I am sure), each theme park in the world has gobbled up all potential IPs. That's not to say that I don't enjoy these attractions! I just want to make sure we don't lose our creativity in a world of smart business decisions.
All in all, looks like a really great and fun place to visit. The guests seem quite pleased, at least. And hey, free parking!
Once the words, "theme park" are mentioned, I'm excited! Congrats to Dubai on such an accomplishment! As an avid lover of theme parks, reading about this makes me want to schedule a trip! The rides look extremely thrilling, some of the loops gave me chills just watching! The attraction design is also brilliant, and unlike any I've seen before in the USA parks. Everything is extremely thought out and put together with the park as well as events outside of the rides. I'm most intrigued by the marvel and cartoon network sections as I've grown up with them! This is also a great tourist destination, brilliant for Dubai's economy!
Looking at the tittle of this article was excited, but not surprised that Dubai would have the largest indoor theme park in the world. There seems to be a zeitgeist in Dubai of wanting the newest, biggest, and grandest things in the world. So the addition of the world’s largest indoor theme park seems to fit. What did surprise me however was the relatively reasonable cost of attendance when compared to other recreation parks in Dubai at $82.69 USD. The fact that the park is indoors would most likely help its attendance during the summers. The branding with Marvel and Cartoon Network adds a high amount of marketability to the park that will allow the park to be a large draw to the European and Middle East theme park market. In all it is a interesting new addition to the tourist destination that is Dubai that will make it even more of a destination, even in the global market.
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