ATTRACTIONS UPDATE
AQUATICA - Since the much-awaited opening of Aquatica, Sea World’s new
water park, we have been receiving a bit of a mixed bag in terms of
reviews from guests.
Many guests have experienced disappointment in that they have turned up
not long after the gates opened, joined a long line and then been turned
away as the park’s capacity had been reached. This suggests that guest
capacity is quite modest and that, certainly during peak season, people
will need to arrive well before the gates open to be assured of entry.
Once inside, most people have praised the park for its general design,
cleanliness, overall style and not unreasonable wait times for the
rides. Equally however, most have expressed a feeling of being slightly
under whelmed by the overall experience and considered the “star” rides
to be a little disappointing.
Maybe the expectation levels here are now too high when a new attraction
opens. Maybe Aquatica is a little missing in certain areas. Maybe there
is a lot of individual subjectivity in the views that have been
expressed. Whatever it may be, it seems clear that Aquatica is not going
to overnight going assume the mantle of being THE water park to visit,
more it is just another alternative to the well-established Typhoon
Lagoon, Blizzard Beach and Wet ‘n’ Wild.
BUSCH GARDENS – A large (4-acre) area to the rear of the park has been
redeveloped over the past 2 years and now goes under the name of Jungala.
Jungala is probably best described as an adventure playground – with a
difference. Here your playmates are the animals and your playground is
their playground.
On a more sedate level you can observe orang-utans in their natural
habitat from tree-top observation platforms, mingle with gibbons and
flying foxes up in the Kula Canopy, learn all about the tiger’s fight
for survival in Tiger Lodge and also get close-up with the tigers
themselves on Tiger Trail, including watching them play in the water
from an underwater viewing gallery.
For the more adventurous and the thrill-seeker, Jungle Flyers is a
zip-wire line with three different flight patterns above the tree tops
and Wild Surge shoots you up four storeys high out of the top of a
waterfall and then straight back down into the crater below.
If the kids have got too much energy left over, there is also Tree Top
Trails, a three-storey high climbing area that takes you up and through
the tree-tops on rope bridges, climbing nets, crawl-tubes, slides and a
multi-level maze – oh and there is also the ubiquitous chance to get wet
with bursts of water that shoot up from the ground.
DISNEY HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS – After what many would consider a period of
relative non-activity, other than the recent name change, there are a
few new things here.
Toy Story Mania is another of the imaginative and high-tech genre of 4-D
shows that most of the parks now have. It features all the principle
characters from the hit movies in an interactive adventure that is sure
to go down well with all ages.
Opening right at the end of June is Journey into Narnia – Prince
Caspian. More special effects and Disney imagineering than a thrill
ride, here you go on a guided walking tour through Aslan’s Stone Table
Chamber, meet Prince Caspian and get an insight into the marvels of
special effects movie-making.
On the entertainment front, High School Musical 2 – School’s Out is a
live-action stage show based on the smash hit Disney TV series – ask the
kids, and especially the girls, if you are still none the wiser!
UNIVERSAL STUDIOS – The eagerly awaited Simpsons Ride is now open at
Universal Studios and the massive media campaign to promote it seems to
be working well. The ride is right up there at the top of the park’s
most popular rides and, come peak season, I think it is fair to say that
the lines and wait times will be extensive.
This attraction replaces the old Back to the Future simulator ride and
in essence it too is a simulator. However, things move on apace and
particularly so in the area of visual technology. The screen onto which
the movie is projected is an 80ft diameter dome at four times the
resolution found in home theater TV systems and more than twice that
used in digital cinema projections. The results are truly stunning.
The physical aspects of the ride itself are not vastly different to most
other recent simulators – good, but not to the point that they break
much in the way of new ground. However, the visual delights are so
extensive that you could ride here over and over and still be seeing a
raft of new things on the screen.
This ride will certainly go some way towards rejuvenating a Universal
Studios that some were saying was falling a little behind the other
parks. However, best make use of the Express Plus ticket to avoid the
long waits that are bound to be par for the course with any hit new
attraction.
AND FINALLY … AN ALTERNATIVE DAY OUTIn a recent report from an acclaimed figure (dubbed “Doctor Beach”)
noted for his annual grading of America’s beaches, Florida featured
three of the 2008 list of top ten.
For somewhere completely different, and certainly a break from the
whirlwind of activity that underpins the theme park environs, why not
try a day out to Caladesi Island, just north of Clearwater.
Caladesi Island is a State Park which has the most divine pure white
sands and warm, turquoise waters of the Gulf of Mexico lapping its
shores. There are no roads, hence no vehicles, and the only way to reach
its natural beauty is via boat. If you do not have your own salted away
somewhere, the hourly ferry makes the 15-minute crossing for $10 (adult)
and $6 (children 4 to 12) return.
Visitors are only allowed to remain on the island for a maximum of 4
hours. Aside from the gorgeous sandy beaches and warm, calm waters,
there is a nature trail across the centre of the island where you may
see the ospreys nesting in the tree tops or fishing for food, the
protected gopher tortoises and all manner of other sea birds.
The slightly more adventurous can rent a kayak and get really close to
nature, paddling in the crystal clear waters through the mangroves,
creeks and inlets. The fishing is also good if you are that way
inclined.
There are showers and bathroom facilities and also a basic snack bar,
commensurate with the fact that your stay is restricted to just a few
hours – so don’t expect much in the way of haute cuisine!
If you want a chill-out, get-away-from-it-all day on America’s best
beach, in one of Florida’s most beautiful, natural and unspoilt places
then bring a towel, bottled water, a camera and some sunscreen.
For more information visit
www.floridastateparks.org/caladesiisland
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