Photo TR: Gold Coast, Australia

Last week I headed north and spent a week on the Gold Coast. Plenty of sun and beach time was intertwined with trips to the three Village Roadshow parks - Sea World, Wet 'n' Wild and Movie World.

 

First up was Sea World, a park I hadn't visited before. Like other marine-themed parks it's more about animals/shows than rides, and most of the attractions were great!

 

Of their two coasters, Sea Viper (Arrow Looping Corkscrew) was just OK, but Jet Rescue is one of the best family coasters I've ridden. These Intamin Motocoasters are great fun but I always want them to go for a bit longer, so I can't wait to try out Juvelen once it's open.

 

Anyway, enough writing. Here goes my first TR for TPR!

 

We are at Sea World today!

Bikini Bottom is the centrepiece of Sea World's lagoon.

Penguins always look like they're in the middle of an important meeting.

This guy was swimming all on his own.

"Guys? Has anyone seen my contact lens? Guys?"

"Bro. I think I just stepped in some... ugh."

Rays are the villains of the aquatic world.

Pure evil.

For you can feed the rays so Sea World doesn't have to.

Dolphins! This show was very cool. I still can't get my head around how they can train fish. Impressive!

Seal Harbour is Sea World's new hotness this summer.

They are still in the process of adding all the seals, and the ones that are there are a bit shy. The seagulls, however, were quite happy to have their photos taken.

This guy got out of the pool for a few glamour shots. His seagull friend was there for moral support.

At lunch time there is a Spongebob parade.

Fish driving boats. What will they think of next?

The parade is held in their stadium area. The floats parade past, turn around and come back again. I like this system way better than having to stake out a spot on some parade route.

This cannot be an easy costume to dance in.

The park was fairly quiet for a Sunday.

This guy spent the afternoon resting as far away from the viewing area as possible.

These birds are considered an exhibit.

These birds are just some birds.

Viking's Revenge is pretty tame, no soaking water cannons here.

The lady at the front has assumed the brace position for impact. Sploosh!

OMG! Peeling paint! Oh wait... it's theming.

"Hey nice lady! Check out my floaties!"

Truck ride = not a credit.

From the RCT3 school of theming. This building houses the Spongebob cinema and the upper portion of the flume ride.

The Spongebob movie was, at five minutes' duration, mercifully short. New hotness incoming - a water coaster later this year and something with gorillas for 2014.

OK, time for some construction pics. There are a LOT of footers for this new ride, so I guess it's going to be a decent length.

More footers. I'm told the wrap makes them blend in.

The old Bermuda Triangle building has been gutted but is still largely intact, so there might be a dark ride portion to the new coaster. Either that or they're just going to use it as the station/queue building.

CONFIRMED: there are NO track pieces on site yet!

Back to attractions that actually exist, like Dinosaur Island!

This guy was not invited to be part of Spongebob's parade. Revenge is imminent.

Animatronic dinosaurs eat less food than real animals, so theme parks love them!

"Check out these teeth. I just got them whitened."

"The gift shop is that way."

"What do you mean dinosaurs aren't supposed to have fur?"

Fish Detectives was probably my favourite show of the day. Sea Lions can make even the most tedious of plots hilarious.

The story is that the sea lion is a detective investigating overfishing. Hijinks and laughter ensue.

Time for some sharks!

As promised, a shark.

For some money you can ride this glass-bottomed boat and see the sharks that way. If you don't tip the guide they make you swim back to the dock.

Well said.

Evil ray in the shark pool.

Two sharks!

For even more money you can climb into this rusty box and see a shark up close. No thankyou!

Good advice.

This fish doesn't realise he's shark food.

The ray is plotting revenge against the shark, who killed his twin brother.

Now that you've seen plenty of fish, why not eat one? It's fresh!

The train ride is gone, but some tracks remain.

The last show of the day was a jet stunt thing. It opened with some dancers whipping their hair around a lot.

Airtime!

I want one of these.

In Australia, Sea World is two words. Just sayin'.

OK, let's finish up with the coasters. First up, Sea Viper. This wins the prize for most fish saliva in a ride logo.

One for the lift hill enthusiasts.

Loop!

For a 30-year old corkscrew this thing isn't bad. The new trains bring you closer to the track for a more forceful ride.

Artsy...?

These people are loving the brake run.

A train from the aforementioned train ride. It's not going anywhere soon.

Jet Rescue is a great ride, even if the restraints did dig into my (ahem) muscular thighs a bit.

My brother and sister are in this picture. They refused to give me for the on-ride photo. Cheapskates.

Wheee! Apparently every time you ride this a seal is saved. We rescued seven.

These people are having the time of their lives.

 

And that's it for this update. Hope you enjoyed it! Next up - Movie World!

Edited March 23, 2013 by azza29

Nice report, have not been to Sea World in a while.

 

I'm looking forward to the new ride 'STORM', as this park needs more attractions and a new thrill ride would be perfect for the park. And it will get me to go back to the park.

"Hey lady, check out my floaties!" That killed me

 

Great TR! I look forward to seeing more!

Jet Rescue was definitely a pleasant surprise--it's a perfect family coaster.

Nice report, good to see you caught a brief break in the Queensland weather.

Finally got some time to write up part two: Warner Bros. Movie World!

 

It hasn't been all that long since I've been but they've added a LOT in the last year and a bit. One brand new coaster, one redone coaster and a brand new dark ride. These additions have made a huge difference and it's encouraging to see the local parks getting some regular investment. I read recently that Warner Village Theme Parks (owners of Movie World, Wet n Wild and Sea World) are planning to spend $10-15m annually on major additions to their parks. If this happens I'll definitely be planning more regular trips up north.

 

Movie World is extensively themed, perhaps not to a Disney standard but it's clear the park puts a lot of effort into getting the atmosphere right - to the point where it overshadows the rides in some areas! More to come on that...

 

We visited on what I thought was going to be a slow off-peak weekday. Turns out it coincided with Chinese New Year so the park was quite busy in spots, especially the more family-oriented attractions. This made for some interesting experiences, especially in one particular show.

 

The park has four coasters of note, along with a kiddie one I didn't ride. Superman Escape was down for maintenance, but based on my previous rides it definitely deserves it's high ranking in Mitch Hawker's poll this year (Intamin launcher with dark ride portion? Yes please!).

 

Green Lantern is a brightly coloured El Loco themed to everybody's least favourite superhero. This thing is awesome. It's not particularly fast but I found the slow-ish inversions fairly intense, especially on the outside seats. I reckon we will start to see El Locos popping up all over the place in the next few years. They pack a great punch and have a small footprint, and the four-across seating makes for a very wild ride.

 

The rethemed Vekoma SLC - Arkham Asylum - is a shining example of how to turn a terrible ride into something pretty good. As a fan of the video game I was impressed with how well they've themed this coaster and the surrounding area, and there are parks which would promote the new queue as a walk-through attraction in itself. The new KumbaK trains are a thousand times better than what was there before. When your head isn't being bashed repeatedly against the restraints it's amazing how enjoyable an SLC can become!

 

Proving how much good theming can improve a (mostly) stock-standard ride is Scooby Doo's Spooky Coaster. It starts off with a haunted house-style dark ride portion, then a vertical lift takes you to the top of the coaster part of the ride. The coaster in itself is just a wild mouse, but there's a surprise drop that wouldn't work outdoors and remains quite popular with families.

 

Sorry Disneyland, Justice League: Alien Invasion 3D is better than either of your shooting dark rides. Sally Corp have done a great job with this, combining physical and on-screen targets seamlessly into the same environment. So perhaps Starro isn't the most well-known villain but hey, he gives us plenty of starfish to shoot at, so I'm not complaining.

 

Alright, onto the photos!

 

Good morning Movie World! Those who can tear their gaze away from Superman's stunning track will notice Arkham Asylum in the distance.

Central plaza was empty at park opening but it didn't stay this way for long. As much as I appreciate the rain protection the canopy offers it's not at all photogenic.

All those bullet holes and the windows are still intact? Impressive.

Christmas lights are still up. In February! I guess everyone has been too polite to say anything...

Entry to Superhero plaza. No, I don't know why the exclamation mark is so far from the end of the word 'ride'.

Green Lantern coaster! To the left is the viewing area, which is positioned to maximise your view of loved ones waiting in the queue and station.

One for the park index.

The first part of the queue tells the story of our hero. Apologies for dodgy photos, the vigilant-yet-mildly-despotic queue guard wouldn't allow a camera through. But an iPhone was OK apparently.

Here is my list of superheroes that are less cool than Green Lantern:

 

 

 

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The on-ride audio will drill this into your brain.

Good day to you sir.

My sister was oblivious to her impending doom.

Power ringy dingy ding-a-ling ding.

This is no kiddie ride.

There is a fantastic out-of-control feeling on the turns and twists.

Looks like a big Meccano set.

After extensive testing I discovered that the far right-hand seat in the front gives the best ride. That guy probably agrees.

Overbank!

The world's second steepest drop by half a degree.

No OTSRs. I was engaging my "death grip" on this turn.

21st best steel coaster in the world is a bit of a mouthful. Let's go with 'best in the Southern hemisphere'.

Sadly it was closed all week.

Must be a serious refurb. They got the sign out and everything. Maybe the mechanics will fix the dark ride effects while they're at it.

This view makes me all tingly.

Our heroes, each giving his best 'O' face.

Still to come: Arkham Asylum.

The other heroes have roller coasters, but Batman only gets a Spaceshot tower.

Yep. The one from Batman Forever. What happened to Val Kilmer anyway?

The Batboat, mounted on the rarely seen Bat-Trailer.

Justice League logo. So there that is.

They kicked dodgy animatronic Batman and his equally questionable motion simulator ride out of Wayne Manor, and built this!

Found outside the Hall of Justice, this sign can display messages using multiple fonts in varying sizes. Amazing what technology is capable of these days!

The hall is very pretty, but according to the TV disaster is imminent, so there's no time to dawdle and admire the theming!

Just in case you forgot where you were, this is on the floor.

Batman, Superman, and a busty Wonder Woman.

We have strict customs laws in this country, so this machine checks to see whether you are carrying any starfish.

Loading area. Cyborg is a neat animatronic. No cameras allowed on the ride, but Sally Corp have a good POV on Youtube.

Another Batmobile. This time the good one from the Tim Burton films.

It's been a while since this went through the Bat-wash.

This tiny sign was the only indication of how to get to Arkham Asylum.

No coaster here. Maybe if we keep going.

Not here. Further perhaps?

Found it! They've turned a dead-end, empty part of the park into a run-down section of Arkham City. Awesome theming! There is a lot of unused space in this area, perhaps that blocked-off entry ramp will be removed to make room for a flat ride in the future?

Joker = best villain ever.

Noted.

This used to be a funhouse, but now it's full of evil clowns!

So the story of this ride (according to what I could gather from the onboard audio) is that you, an inmate of Arkham Asylum, are one of the Joker's "patients".

Your "treatment" involves a form of shock therapy that for all intents and purposes is very similar to riding a rollercoaster.

If the treatment isn't successful, you just have to go around again!

Even the rubbish bins are themed! One inmate has not realised that rubbish goes under the lid, not on top of it.

Some of Superman's track supports have been repainted as well! Seriously, for a redo of an existing ride this is quite impressive!

The entrance to the Asylum. Wheelchair accessible ramp on the right.

Park index? Check.

That guard had it coming.

Some queue theming. I didn't get a pic of them, but the ride ops were dressed up as Arkham guards or Joker goons, depending on their station. Nice touch.

There are patient bios in the queue to read while you line up. Although if the line was going all the way back here you would be looking at a 3 hr wait. The new trains are good but it's still not worth waiting that long for.

A neat reference back to the game. Ride operations were quite slow. The park had just one ride op checking restraints, and another alternating between allowing riders into the loading area and controlling the air gates. Trains were going out every 7-8 minutes at best.

Just a few pics of the track. I'm sure everyone has (or had) one of these coasters at their home park, right?

I used to refer to this as "the part where I remember why I don't like Vekoma SLCs". No longer.

New train and brake run. If you missed it here is a summary of my thoughts on Arkham Asylum: they took an awful ride and made it good. Great theming too.

Rick's Cafe Americain offers flavours of Italy, Asia and Morocco. But, oddly enough, not America. Because that would be silly.

Hollywood Stunt Driver is a somewhat generic show that hasn't changed since it's inception. It used to be the hilarious, more spectacular Police Academy Stunt Show. Unfortunately since Gen Y doesn't know what Police Academy is they had to change it.

Ice Age 4D was the biggest disappointment of our visit. This used to be Shrek 4D but since Dreamworld now have the Dreamworks license it had to be changed. So I was expecting something like that.

 

But it was terrible. The line was huge and we were kept waiting in the pre-show area for a while, and then made to watch the first ten minutes of Ice Age 3. Then we were herded into the theatre and some panicky guests started shoving because they were (needlessly) worried about getting seats. Some dude was actually pushing me in the back until I turned around and gave him my angry face. So the clip starts, and it's just a very condensed version of Ice Age 3 with some 4D effects added. Lame. Shrek has a cool pre-show and the film is unique to the attraction, this was none of that.

Hogwarts won't be coming to Australia anytime soon. For now we will just have to make do with a Harry Potter shop.

Spooky Coaster! Too dark inside to get any pics of the queue area but it's very well done, kind of a haunted mansion vibe.

Families love this ride, which means there's a long wait.

And onto the home stretch. The Wild West village takes up a huge part of the park, which is impressive given that it's home to just one ride.

A family woodie would really suit this part of the park, and they have the space for it. GCI Big Fun maybe?

Remember this film? Me neither.

This amused me.

And another.

Wild West Falls is one of the better flume rides I've been on. Once again Movie World have put a lot into the theming, there is a backwards portion, a lengthy journey through a ghost town, and back up into the mountain for an explosive finish.

Sploosh!

You will get wet. Really, really wet.

Here go another bunch of suckers.

The water cannons are brutal.

There is no escape from the soaking.

More? OK.

The water cannons are brutal.

Another? Alright, last one. Down they go...

The phrase "we're already wet, we may as well go again" was uttered a number of times during our visit.

But our dryness decreased significantly with each additional deluge.

Which was fortunate because I think my brother had forgotten to wear deodorant that day... :O

I will end with my favourite "people soaking wet on a water ride" picture ever. A wonderful blend of cultures, ages and genders demonstrating that Wild West Falls does not discriminate. It just gets EVERYONE really, really, ridiculously wet.

 

And that's the end of this update. Final part is to come, with pics from Wet 'n' Wild as well as some other random stuff from around the Gold Coast.

Somewhere under that water is a boat.

Movie World is a very good park, and I like what they've done with the SLC (we had trouble finding the entrance back during its "Lethal Weapon" days, too). The Justice League ride looks particularly good, and Superman Escape is a great ride, too.

 

I'm glad that S&S has started going with lap bars on the El Loco rides. I think the layout of this coaster is great (a cool variation on a Wild Mouse), but the restraints on the trains on Indiana Beach's Steel Hawg were rather uncomfortable.