Very interesting trip report as usual!
Towards Madagascar: Mad Pursuit, I'm disappointed to hear it gets rough later on. I've generally heard positive things about the Infinity IIs like Karacho, Junker and Monster, and that they are smooth: but Smiler is an infinity which can get quite rough at times so I'm not surprised.
The How To Train Your Dragon area looks cool too, I love the film and it's music :P Heide Park's HTTYD area turned out nicely, so Motiongate's should be great.
theparklifekid's Middle East Adventures!
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Yeah, I was a little disappointed with the ride later on in the day. But at the start, it was quite fun! It might have been one of the trains I was on, as it was on a 4 train service. Also it was still in its "technical rehearsal" so it hopefully will be better next time I visit.NemesisRider wrote:Very interesting trip report as usual!
Towards Madagascar: Mad Pursuit, I'm disappointed to hear it gets rough later on. I've generally heard positive things about the Infinity IIs like Karacho, Junker and Monster, and that they are smooth: but Smiler is an infinity which can get quite rough at times so I'm not surprised.
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बॉलीवुड पार्क दुबई!
Get your dancing shoes on, because its time to go Bollywood!
Bollywood Parks Dubai is the world's first theme park dedicated to all things Bollywood and its a park with a lot of charm. Admittedly this was the park in DPR that I had the least amount of interest in visiting, mostly because I had never seen a Bollywood film in my life and because there aren't as many rides here compared to the other parks. Most people think that a Bollywood theme is a weird one to pick for a theme park, especially here, but there is quite the number of people from India and Sri Lanka in Dubai, so there is a good sized audience.
Anyway, the park is located between Legoland and MotionGate, it has these funky hand statues outside the entrance.
A good piece of advice for anyone visiting is to come on a weekday, I went on Wednesday and it was pretty dead all around DPR.
Probably the prettiest gate I've ever seen!
Its an incredibly pretty park!
Jaw dropping in fact.
This here is the cross-roads fountain, it links to the different areas of the park.
One of these areas is Bollywood Film Studios.
Which is home to the "Hall of Heroes", which houses 2 rides.
One of these is "Krrish: Hero's Flight"
Krrish is an Indian superhero and is one of the most popular Bollywood franchises.
A cool statue of Krrish in the queue.
Wise words indeed Krrish....
Before the ride starts a pre-show plays. This guy (I think he was called Raj) is a designer who is working on the "Krrish Museum" and a skyride to get to the attraction called "The Krrish Express", the guests will be the first riders on this and he will pilot it.
The ride itself is a Flying Theatre and its incredibly silly. It goes from "Welcome on-board the Krrish Express!" to "On no, aliens!" in literally 15 seconds. But in a sort of way thats what made it fun, also smell pods are on the ride (freshly cut grass is the smell that stood out for me). 8/10 from me
The second ride in the building is "Ra.One: Unleashed" and HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
I'm guessing that's Ra.One.... The ride is based off the movie of the same name and is a 4D AHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA theatre, where you are AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA and then AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA nothing makes sense AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA worst ride ever AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA -5/10 AHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHHAHA
Anyway, the Rajmahal theatre is another section of the park and is easily the parks iconic image. In here is the Bollywood musical "Jaan-e-Jigar", unfortunately this is an additional charge and the only times the show is on at 8:00pm, so I had to skip this.
Mumbai Chowk is another area of the park
Nice theming all over the place.
"Don: The Chase" was a ride that was unavailable when I visited.
Rustic Ravine is the final area of the park
Where there is an indoor area with lots of family rides.
Which is home to the simulator "Lagaan: Thrill of Victory". The ride is actually quite decent, the film is about a cricket match and riders take the perspective of a cricket ball during a festival. I rode it twice and on the second time I actually got an e-vac! Halfway through the ride, it just stopped, lights came on, I looked at the ride op, she looked confused, tried pressing a few buttons, then looked at me and went "Ahhhh, we have a problem, one sec", a minute later some people came in released my restraint and I had to jump the unthinkable height of 3 ft! Good ride though.
Sholay is another ride at the park.
This guy, is apparently a police officer and you are the recruits and you have to help him catch the outlaws of India, the ride itself is a 3D Interactive dark ride where you shoot targets and get points.
Some nice theming.
Dabangg was a live action Bollywood stunt show.
This is the stage.
It starts off with a Bollywood musical.....
Then goes to some weird and funny action....
And ends with both heroes and villains singing and dancing. Its actually quite good.
When I came out of the stunt show, I found another colourful musical going on!
All and all, Bollywood Parks Dubai is a surprise hit from the selection of parks from DPR, its not as big as the others but its a park with a lot of charm, a must do!
Now I was in a bit of a surprise to find out that currently if you have a ticket to just one park, you can get into all three.........
Get your dancing shoes on, because its time to go Bollywood!
Bollywood Parks Dubai is the world's first theme park dedicated to all things Bollywood and its a park with a lot of charm. Admittedly this was the park in DPR that I had the least amount of interest in visiting, mostly because I had never seen a Bollywood film in my life and because there aren't as many rides here compared to the other parks. Most people think that a Bollywood theme is a weird one to pick for a theme park, especially here, but there is quite the number of people from India and Sri Lanka in Dubai, so there is a good sized audience.
Anyway, the park is located between Legoland and MotionGate, it has these funky hand statues outside the entrance.
A good piece of advice for anyone visiting is to come on a weekday, I went on Wednesday and it was pretty dead all around DPR.
Probably the prettiest gate I've ever seen!
Its an incredibly pretty park!
Jaw dropping in fact.
This here is the cross-roads fountain, it links to the different areas of the park.
One of these areas is Bollywood Film Studios.
Which is home to the "Hall of Heroes", which houses 2 rides.
One of these is "Krrish: Hero's Flight"
Krrish is an Indian superhero and is one of the most popular Bollywood franchises.
A cool statue of Krrish in the queue.
Wise words indeed Krrish....
Before the ride starts a pre-show plays. This guy (I think he was called Raj) is a designer who is working on the "Krrish Museum" and a skyride to get to the attraction called "The Krrish Express", the guests will be the first riders on this and he will pilot it.
The ride itself is a Flying Theatre and its incredibly silly. It goes from "Welcome on-board the Krrish Express!" to "On no, aliens!" in literally 15 seconds. But in a sort of way thats what made it fun, also smell pods are on the ride (freshly cut grass is the smell that stood out for me). 8/10 from me
The second ride in the building is "Ra.One: Unleashed" and HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
I'm guessing that's Ra.One.... The ride is based off the movie of the same name and is a 4D AHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA theatre, where you are AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA and then AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA nothing makes sense AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA worst ride ever AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA -5/10 AHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHHAHA
Anyway, the Rajmahal theatre is another section of the park and is easily the parks iconic image. In here is the Bollywood musical "Jaan-e-Jigar", unfortunately this is an additional charge and the only times the show is on at 8:00pm, so I had to skip this.
Mumbai Chowk is another area of the park
Nice theming all over the place.
"Don: The Chase" was a ride that was unavailable when I visited.
Rustic Ravine is the final area of the park
Where there is an indoor area with lots of family rides.
Which is home to the simulator "Lagaan: Thrill of Victory". The ride is actually quite decent, the film is about a cricket match and riders take the perspective of a cricket ball during a festival. I rode it twice and on the second time I actually got an e-vac! Halfway through the ride, it just stopped, lights came on, I looked at the ride op, she looked confused, tried pressing a few buttons, then looked at me and went "Ahhhh, we have a problem, one sec", a minute later some people came in released my restraint and I had to jump the unthinkable height of 3 ft! Good ride though.
Sholay is another ride at the park.
This guy, is apparently a police officer and you are the recruits and you have to help him catch the outlaws of India, the ride itself is a 3D Interactive dark ride where you shoot targets and get points.
Some nice theming.
Dabangg was a live action Bollywood stunt show.
This is the stage.
It starts off with a Bollywood musical.....
Then goes to some weird and funny action....
And ends with both heroes and villains singing and dancing. Its actually quite good.
When I came out of the stunt show, I found another colourful musical going on!
All and all, Bollywood Parks Dubai is a surprise hit from the selection of parks from DPR, its not as big as the others but its a park with a lot of charm, a must do!
Now I was in a bit of a surprise to find out that currently if you have a ticket to just one park, you can get into all three.........
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- theparklifekid
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Mini Update from MotionGate!
Well this is long overdue....
So yeah, after I did the Bollywood park I was told that anyone that bought a ticket online could access all 3 of the parks on the same day! So I was like "Yeah Boiiiiiiiiiiiii" and headed over to MotionGate.
Now as I only visited the park a few weeks prior, this is only a mini update on various new improvements, openings and updates. Anyway, on with the trip report!
*Epic Dramatic Music* Welcome to MotionGate Dubai! Formally known as "Motion Gate Studios" and "Dubai Adventure Studios"!
Lionsgate and the Hunger Games area was coming along nicely, with the LIMs being installed on the Capitol Bullet Train coaster and theming being added to the buildings.
The Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs rapids were finally open.
Weird theming in the queue.
Fairly good rapids ride with some decent splashes and theming along the way.
Smurfs Village Express is now open.
Quite a smooth fun, family coaster. Great first coaster for kids (also better on the back row).
Still closed... (Now open )
As was the Shrek dark ride...
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C60IYqCWsAEfC7s.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Annnddd the How to Train Your Dragon area, but I stuck my camera behind the door and you can see the track and sign for Dragon Gliders (Mack Family Suspended Coaster, a bit like Arthur)
This however, was open.
I call this: "When you trying to have fun, but realise how expensive the park tickets are."
All I can say about this ride is WOW, they have improved it massively. Last time I visited, the ride got rough later on in the day, but luckily the ride was incredibly smooth and I only had one bumpy moment straight after the launch, I had 16 rides in total on a single day! Some of the rides I didn't even leave the station thanks to the awesome ride ops. They had also added great lighting effects and near misses thanks to scenery, if they just added on-ride audio, it would be perfect. Still, Its now a TOP 5 coaster! Well done Gerstlauer and MotionGate!
Due to there not being any type of POV available yet for the ride and me riding this quite a bit, I present you the incredibly poorly replicated layout of Madagascar: Mad Pursuit, made on Planet Coaster. After the ride leaves the station it turns left and you see a projection of the main characters hiding, it then stops as you see some replicas of the main cast, saying stuff like "Quick hide" and "Do you think she sees us?" Suddenly a spotlight lights up and reveals the villain from the third movie and she says "Yes, Yes she does!" A tunnel lights up in multiple colours and launches quickly, then a quick jolt to the left, go through some lit up stars, bank right, up steeply, airtime, biggest drop on the ride while twisting down going past a target, up again, airtime and under a tightrope with a figure on it, go outside the main ride building, turn back inside, airtime hill going under a plane, twist into a trim run and see a figure in a canon, long helix going through lit up rings of fire, twist into some airtime filled turns, burst through a poster and turn into the brake run where you see the villain locked up. Love it.
Zombieland was running well, even though I had a scary moment where my restraint clicked down straight after the launch, which isn't really want you want to hear and feel while over 120ft high.
Anyway thats a quick update from MotionGate, next time however, I revisit the biggest disappointment ever.
Well this is long overdue....
So yeah, after I did the Bollywood park I was told that anyone that bought a ticket online could access all 3 of the parks on the same day! So I was like "Yeah Boiiiiiiiiiiiii" and headed over to MotionGate.
Now as I only visited the park a few weeks prior, this is only a mini update on various new improvements, openings and updates. Anyway, on with the trip report!
*Epic Dramatic Music* Welcome to MotionGate Dubai! Formally known as "Motion Gate Studios" and "Dubai Adventure Studios"!
Lionsgate and the Hunger Games area was coming along nicely, with the LIMs being installed on the Capitol Bullet Train coaster and theming being added to the buildings.
The Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs rapids were finally open.
Weird theming in the queue.
Fairly good rapids ride with some decent splashes and theming along the way.
Smurfs Village Express is now open.
Quite a smooth fun, family coaster. Great first coaster for kids (also better on the back row).
Still closed... (Now open )
As was the Shrek dark ride...
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C60IYqCWsAEfC7s.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Annnddd the How to Train Your Dragon area, but I stuck my camera behind the door and you can see the track and sign for Dragon Gliders (Mack Family Suspended Coaster, a bit like Arthur)
This however, was open.
I call this: "When you trying to have fun, but realise how expensive the park tickets are."
All I can say about this ride is WOW, they have improved it massively. Last time I visited, the ride got rough later on in the day, but luckily the ride was incredibly smooth and I only had one bumpy moment straight after the launch, I had 16 rides in total on a single day! Some of the rides I didn't even leave the station thanks to the awesome ride ops. They had also added great lighting effects and near misses thanks to scenery, if they just added on-ride audio, it would be perfect. Still, Its now a TOP 5 coaster! Well done Gerstlauer and MotionGate!
Due to there not being any type of POV available yet for the ride and me riding this quite a bit, I present you the incredibly poorly replicated layout of Madagascar: Mad Pursuit, made on Planet Coaster. After the ride leaves the station it turns left and you see a projection of the main characters hiding, it then stops as you see some replicas of the main cast, saying stuff like "Quick hide" and "Do you think she sees us?" Suddenly a spotlight lights up and reveals the villain from the third movie and she says "Yes, Yes she does!" A tunnel lights up in multiple colours and launches quickly, then a quick jolt to the left, go through some lit up stars, bank right, up steeply, airtime, biggest drop on the ride while twisting down going past a target, up again, airtime and under a tightrope with a figure on it, go outside the main ride building, turn back inside, airtime hill going under a plane, twist into a trim run and see a figure in a canon, long helix going through lit up rings of fire, twist into some airtime filled turns, burst through a poster and turn into the brake run where you see the villain locked up. Love it.
Zombieland was running well, even though I had a scary moment where my restraint clicked down straight after the launch, which isn't really want you want to hear and feel while over 120ft high.
Anyway thats a quick update from MotionGate, next time however, I revisit the biggest disappointment ever.
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- theparklifekid
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Everything is open!
So after my time at MotionGate I headed over to Legoland Dubai, or as I liked to call it "Disappointment Land". As I'm sure you all know, I visited this park on its opening day last october and WOW did it suck, about 80% of the park was incomplete, buildings weren't finished and it was just boring. So, having found out about the multi-ticket thing, I headed back...
I'm back.....
Nice looking model out front.
Legoland Water Park is also now ready, not sure if this is a future park for me though.
Here's a sneak peak.
Pro tip: visit on a weekday for 0 queues.
Miniland looking even better than last time, it seemed cleaner and the effects actually worked this time!
Lego Burj Khalifa, the tallest lego tower at a park.
I rushed over to Kingdoms, as I really wanted to do Dragon. So I passed The Dragon's Apprentice (which I graced the first public train)
*gasps*
It's open!
Unlike windsor, 0 minute queues!
The ride train. Its a fairly decent coaster, starts off like the one at windsor, with a dark ride section, most of the models are the same as ones in windsor and florida, however there's quite a cool pre-drop going underneath the model dragon. Neat layout, better on backrow.
Lost Kingdom Adventure was an incredibly lazily designed dark ride last time I visited, however this time more effects had been added and effects actually work! Just wish it was longer.
Wave Racers was only running one side, but still quite fun.
Lego Movie 4D is actually quite funny.
Its great having Legoland to yourself!
Rope Burn: The Ride
Submarine Adventure was finally open (they actually had a new door on the building!)
I had an entire sub to myself!
Quite a fun and relaxing dark ride, I haven't done the windsor one but I imagine its quite similar.
After the ride you go through a nice little aquarium!
Fire Rescue is as fun as always
Boating School is very relaxing when nobodies here.
Gotta love Lego models.
Overall, Legoland Dubai is much better than it was on its opening day, I'd still say its not the best park in DPR, but its probably the best place for families. Not sure if I'd visit again though.
Next time: A film in Italy.....
So after my time at MotionGate I headed over to Legoland Dubai, or as I liked to call it "Disappointment Land". As I'm sure you all know, I visited this park on its opening day last october and WOW did it suck, about 80% of the park was incomplete, buildings weren't finished and it was just boring. So, having found out about the multi-ticket thing, I headed back...
I'm back.....
Nice looking model out front.
Legoland Water Park is also now ready, not sure if this is a future park for me though.
Here's a sneak peak.
Pro tip: visit on a weekday for 0 queues.
Miniland looking even better than last time, it seemed cleaner and the effects actually worked this time!
Lego Burj Khalifa, the tallest lego tower at a park.
I rushed over to Kingdoms, as I really wanted to do Dragon. So I passed The Dragon's Apprentice (which I graced the first public train)
*gasps*
It's open!
Unlike windsor, 0 minute queues!
The ride train. Its a fairly decent coaster, starts off like the one at windsor, with a dark ride section, most of the models are the same as ones in windsor and florida, however there's quite a cool pre-drop going underneath the model dragon. Neat layout, better on backrow.
Lost Kingdom Adventure was an incredibly lazily designed dark ride last time I visited, however this time more effects had been added and effects actually work! Just wish it was longer.
Wave Racers was only running one side, but still quite fun.
Lego Movie 4D is actually quite funny.
Its great having Legoland to yourself!
Rope Burn: The Ride
Submarine Adventure was finally open (they actually had a new door on the building!)
I had an entire sub to myself!
Quite a fun and relaxing dark ride, I haven't done the windsor one but I imagine its quite similar.
After the ride you go through a nice little aquarium!
Fire Rescue is as fun as always
Boating School is very relaxing when nobodies here.
Gotta love Lego models.
Overall, Legoland Dubai is much better than it was on its opening day, I'd still say its not the best park in DPR, but its probably the best place for families. Not sure if I'd visit again though.
Next time: A film in Italy.....
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- theparklifekid
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So I just got back from my time in Italy and I had a great time! During my visit, I wanted to go to Gardaland originally, however due to us messing up dates, we couldn't visit. So I looked into Mirabilandia anddddd we weren't close enough, Rainbow Magicland was close by however, it didn't open for another week. So Cinecitta World was the only one I could do.
Welcome to Cinecitta World!
This cool looking thing is like a second entrance.
This here is the parks "Main Street", it kinda reminds me of MotionGates entrance.
A cool musical number was going on at the end of the street.
"Spaceland" was one of the parks areas.
Home to this....
Altair!
Altair is a clone of our own Colossus at Thorpe Park.
However this has new trains, with a lapbar!
The heartline roll x4 section is insane with the lapbars!
The station is pretty cool also.
Overall, its really fun, smooth (except the cobra roll) and WAY better than Colossus.
They had an "Old West" section of the park that was well themed, it was home to 2 bumper cars, a okish horror house and "Labyrinth" which was probably one of the best VR experiences I've ever done. You wear an HTC Vive (the ones on DBGT) and work your way around a platform which vibrates at certain times and you shoot targets, very cool.
The park has a few "studios" which apparently can be used to film stuff.
Inferno (previously known as Darkmare) is another coaster.
Inferno is a family free-fall coaster similar to Th13teen (same mold on the car) and wow is it incredible.
The ride layout. The ride is themed to Dante's Inferno and its awesome! The ride is full of projection mapping of roman style mythology. Its fast, with lots of twists, airtime in places and the free-fall is better than Th13teens. Probably one of my favourite coasters now.
How Italians ride rollercoasters.
Interestingly enough, even though its not called Darkmare anymore, they were still selling merch for it...
There was also an Inferno show. I didn't watch it.
Another ride that had a rename was Indiana Adventure (formally Erawan) and like Inferno, old merch was still being sold.
Its an Intamin Drop Tower inside an elephant and its incredibly forceful.
2 sides were open, sit-down and stand-up floorless. I did both and after the ride on stand-up floorless, I think I am incapable of having kids now...
I did U-571, which is a tour of a submarine replica, apparently used in the film of the same name.
Now when I was heading to the next attraction, there were some romans.... Nuff said.
So yeah, the next attraction was a water coaster, Aktium.
Its a Mack Super Splash, probably the weakest ride in the park. But still quite fun.
This was an exhibit of various sculptures from movies and of actors, a good look if your a movie fan.
Now, an issue with the park I found was that this year, the park decided to do a 'forced route' meaning the layout of the park changed. You need to do a complete circuit of the park if you want to get to a ride of your choice, meaning no shortcuts.
This sums it up....
Anyway, after a few re-rides on the attractions, it was time to say goodbye to Cinecitta World. I wouldn't call this a full day park as I managed to get everything done in only 2 hours, but its still worth a visit if your in the area.
Welcome to Cinecitta World!
This cool looking thing is like a second entrance.
This here is the parks "Main Street", it kinda reminds me of MotionGates entrance.
A cool musical number was going on at the end of the street.
"Spaceland" was one of the parks areas.
Home to this....
Altair!
Altair is a clone of our own Colossus at Thorpe Park.
However this has new trains, with a lapbar!
The heartline roll x4 section is insane with the lapbars!
The station is pretty cool also.
Overall, its really fun, smooth (except the cobra roll) and WAY better than Colossus.
They had an "Old West" section of the park that was well themed, it was home to 2 bumper cars, a okish horror house and "Labyrinth" which was probably one of the best VR experiences I've ever done. You wear an HTC Vive (the ones on DBGT) and work your way around a platform which vibrates at certain times and you shoot targets, very cool.
The park has a few "studios" which apparently can be used to film stuff.
Inferno (previously known as Darkmare) is another coaster.
Inferno is a family free-fall coaster similar to Th13teen (same mold on the car) and wow is it incredible.
The ride layout. The ride is themed to Dante's Inferno and its awesome! The ride is full of projection mapping of roman style mythology. Its fast, with lots of twists, airtime in places and the free-fall is better than Th13teens. Probably one of my favourite coasters now.
How Italians ride rollercoasters.
Interestingly enough, even though its not called Darkmare anymore, they were still selling merch for it...
There was also an Inferno show. I didn't watch it.
Another ride that had a rename was Indiana Adventure (formally Erawan) and like Inferno, old merch was still being sold.
Its an Intamin Drop Tower inside an elephant and its incredibly forceful.
2 sides were open, sit-down and stand-up floorless. I did both and after the ride on stand-up floorless, I think I am incapable of having kids now...
I did U-571, which is a tour of a submarine replica, apparently used in the film of the same name.
Now when I was heading to the next attraction, there were some romans.... Nuff said.
So yeah, the next attraction was a water coaster, Aktium.
Its a Mack Super Splash, probably the weakest ride in the park. But still quite fun.
This was an exhibit of various sculptures from movies and of actors, a good look if your a movie fan.
Now, an issue with the park I found was that this year, the park decided to do a 'forced route' meaning the layout of the park changed. You need to do a complete circuit of the park if you want to get to a ride of your choice, meaning no shortcuts.
This sums it up....
Anyway, after a few re-rides on the attractions, it was time to say goodbye to Cinecitta World. I wouldn't call this a full day park as I managed to get everything done in only 2 hours, but its still worth a visit if your in the area.
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- ponder
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Great reports!
I did the stand-up side on Hurakan Kondor, and yes, I certainly feel there are now question marks around my fertility.
I did the stand-up side on Hurakan Kondor, and yes, I certainly feel there are now question marks around my fertility.
- theparklifekid
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Ferrari World Abu Dhabi is expanding, most likely due to the deadly presence of IMG Worlds of Adventure (which took away their record for largest indoor theme park) and Dubai Parks and Resorts (which boasts 3 parks and a water park, with Six Flags rising from the ground). So the park was given a massive budget of AED 700 Million (£148,934,143) to make new attractions to offer, the park currently has 36 rides and attractions, will have 39 by the end of this year and 43 in 2018.
Last year a chunk of the budget went into making Flying Aces, the Intamin Wing Coaster and Benno's Great Race, a family interactive dark ride. This year, one of the main attractions they have to offer, is a new Intamin Shuttle Coaster: Turbo Track. So I was invited down to the park by my friend who works as a marketing head for the park, to come and experience the ride for myself and give a review of it.
So thus, I arrived at the park.
And the first ride you see, is the centre point of the park.
Signs like this were all over the park reminding people that the ride is now open.
This here is the rides entrance sign.
Inside the queue for the ride there this lots of sci-fi style lighting as well as car parts and various testing equipment like these crash test dummies.
You go inside a pre show room where you get greeted by this guy and his computer assistant (the plasma ball), who tell you that you are going to be the test drivers of a brand new Ferrari, but you need to test your skills in order to prove your worthy.
So some people are pricked out from the crowd and you are placed in front of 2 trials. "The Accuracy Test" where you need to take a hoop from one end of a wire to the other, with out touching the wire. "The Reaction Test" is where you need to press buttons on a wall that light up as quick as you can. Both are quite fun, however it goes on for a extremely long time (8 minutes) and I was in a room with only a few other people, so we were just like "Hurry up please". I can see this being nice on a busy day, however on a quite day like this, Not really.
You then walk up a set of stairs and are greeted with two loading platforms, you are given a side and you see the ride car. You choose wether you want to sit forwards or backwards and then you load onto the ride and get ready!
The switch track moves the car onto the main track and shoots you to 63mph, over a small airtime hill, down blasting through the tube while being hit with the sudden desert heat, up a twisting 210ft vertical spike, slows down and rolls you straight back down (quite intense at this moment), back into the building and slows down back into the station. Short but sweet.
#Selfie I rode it on both going forwards and backwards, its much better backwards as its more intense and the glass on the tube gives cool reflections as you go through it. Also backwards airtime.
The ride has screens located on ether side of the track and as each train is launched, a cool arrow follows it along the track.
Here it is in action
Overall Turbo Track is a good filler attraction for the park, it makes the place feel more 'complete' and I can see people of all ages really enjoying this and maybe kids will do it as their first 'big' coaster if they're afraid of Flying Aces and Formula Rossa.
In terms of the other rides at the park, not much to report on.
Formula Rossa was going its thing and I had a cracking ride on it, the launch gets me every time.
Me on the ride (7th row, green shirt)
Flying Aces, I still love. Probably because it makes a love heart :love:
Also, a few months ago a rumour came about saying that Flying Aces restraints were being replaced due to intense turns. I'm happy to say that its not true and it still has lap bars!
Thats all for the park! Definitely worth a visit if your in the area!
Edit: So I got an email back from the people who work at the park who had something like this to say....
"Glad You enjoyed the ride! We are working on the Turbo Track experience by having a revised pre-show of only 3 minutes and also working on a solution that would allow riders to ride twice, with a seat change."
I also asked on the possibility of a B&M somewhere in Yas Island (Seaworld especially) , heres a response:
"Agreed on the B&M, and I’m sure _______ would say the same. They are the Rolls Royce of roller coaster manufacturers – smooth, dynamic attractions of the highest quality. A lot of us want one in the area."
Last year a chunk of the budget went into making Flying Aces, the Intamin Wing Coaster and Benno's Great Race, a family interactive dark ride. This year, one of the main attractions they have to offer, is a new Intamin Shuttle Coaster: Turbo Track. So I was invited down to the park by my friend who works as a marketing head for the park, to come and experience the ride for myself and give a review of it.
So thus, I arrived at the park.
And the first ride you see, is the centre point of the park.
Signs like this were all over the park reminding people that the ride is now open.
This here is the rides entrance sign.
Inside the queue for the ride there this lots of sci-fi style lighting as well as car parts and various testing equipment like these crash test dummies.
You go inside a pre show room where you get greeted by this guy and his computer assistant (the plasma ball), who tell you that you are going to be the test drivers of a brand new Ferrari, but you need to test your skills in order to prove your worthy.
So some people are pricked out from the crowd and you are placed in front of 2 trials. "The Accuracy Test" where you need to take a hoop from one end of a wire to the other, with out touching the wire. "The Reaction Test" is where you need to press buttons on a wall that light up as quick as you can. Both are quite fun, however it goes on for a extremely long time (8 minutes) and I was in a room with only a few other people, so we were just like "Hurry up please". I can see this being nice on a busy day, however on a quite day like this, Not really.
You then walk up a set of stairs and are greeted with two loading platforms, you are given a side and you see the ride car. You choose wether you want to sit forwards or backwards and then you load onto the ride and get ready!
The switch track moves the car onto the main track and shoots you to 63mph, over a small airtime hill, down blasting through the tube while being hit with the sudden desert heat, up a twisting 210ft vertical spike, slows down and rolls you straight back down (quite intense at this moment), back into the building and slows down back into the station. Short but sweet.
#Selfie I rode it on both going forwards and backwards, its much better backwards as its more intense and the glass on the tube gives cool reflections as you go through it. Also backwards airtime.
The ride has screens located on ether side of the track and as each train is launched, a cool arrow follows it along the track.
Here it is in action
Overall Turbo Track is a good filler attraction for the park, it makes the place feel more 'complete' and I can see people of all ages really enjoying this and maybe kids will do it as their first 'big' coaster if they're afraid of Flying Aces and Formula Rossa.
In terms of the other rides at the park, not much to report on.
Formula Rossa was going its thing and I had a cracking ride on it, the launch gets me every time.
Me on the ride (7th row, green shirt)
Flying Aces, I still love. Probably because it makes a love heart :love:
Also, a few months ago a rumour came about saying that Flying Aces restraints were being replaced due to intense turns. I'm happy to say that its not true and it still has lap bars!
Thats all for the park! Definitely worth a visit if your in the area!
Edit: So I got an email back from the people who work at the park who had something like this to say....
"Glad You enjoyed the ride! We are working on the Turbo Track experience by having a revised pre-show of only 3 minutes and also working on a solution that would allow riders to ride twice, with a seat change."
I also asked on the possibility of a B&M somewhere in Yas Island (Seaworld especially) , heres a response:
"Agreed on the B&M, and I’m sure _______ would say the same. They are the Rolls Royce of roller coaster manufacturers – smooth, dynamic attractions of the highest quality. A lot of us want one in the area."
A TowersTimes Middle East Reporter!
- theparklifekid
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKuEWFFiETA
Incredibly long overdue (due to school and other things), but when I last visited MotionGate, I decided to do a vlog instead of the usual pictures, as it was my first time doing a vlog It's not the best, however it gives a nice inside look of the park and DPR, also you can see me in all my greatness.
Anyway, next week I'll be heading to Germany (Berlin) to visit a friend for a few days, unfortunately, he's not big on parks so I won't be visiting any. Luckily I am going to be visiting a merlin attraction, being the Berlin Dungeons! So I'll give a review of the place.
After that, I'll be back in the UK for a few days, so I'll hopefully squeeze a trip to Thorpe Park in there somewhere, mostly for DBGT: RotD. So yeah, expect that soon!
Incredibly long overdue (due to school and other things), but when I last visited MotionGate, I decided to do a vlog instead of the usual pictures, as it was my first time doing a vlog It's not the best, however it gives a nice inside look of the park and DPR, also you can see me in all my greatness.
Anyway, next week I'll be heading to Germany (Berlin) to visit a friend for a few days, unfortunately, he's not big on parks so I won't be visiting any. Luckily I am going to be visiting a merlin attraction, being the Berlin Dungeons! So I'll give a review of the place.
After that, I'll be back in the UK for a few days, so I'll hopefully squeeze a trip to Thorpe Park in there somewhere, mostly for DBGT: RotD. So yeah, expect that soon!
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- Chris
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Decent vlog attempt for a first time!
Looking forward to how the Cheesecake Factory will look when it's done. Annoying about the attractions at Motiongate that are still closed - but at least you have the annual pass now!
Looking forward to how the Cheesecake Factory will look when it's done. Annoying about the attractions at Motiongate that are still closed - but at least you have the annual pass now!
- theparklifekid
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Not sure about anyone else on the forum, but I personally LOVE The London Dungeons, so I'm currently in Berlin, Germany and my friend knows I'm a fan of parks and Merlin Entertainments, so seeing how there are no parks near Berlin, he suggested we do the next best thing: The Berlin Dungeons...
Now, cameras aren't allowed inside the attraction, so I'll be using the very few pictures I took on the outside and promotional images for the attractions.
So here is a little brochure for the dungeons and Exitus.
The location of the dungeons is located in Berlin, near Alexander Platz, also a SEALIFE, Legoland Discovery Centre are here.
Now I went inside to get ready for my tour. Tours are usually in German, however certain times of the day they do English ones, check the website for more info. (I'll be using promotional images for the next few posts)
The Decent/Elevator of Doom
This is the start of the experience, a Jester comes out an gives you a brief summery on what your about to go through. Unlike the London one, you actually go in an actual elevator and I think it goes up, not down. (I'll explain why later)
The Twisted Monk
After that you go to see the monk Pater Roderich, who tells a tale of the dark history of Berlin and the Black Death. This show only has a projected face on a statue (which didn't really line up well) and had some audio problems. But a good scare came out of this.
River Spree Escape
This is a water ride in which you supposedly escape the plague, but its an absolute joke. The London version has small drops and gets you wet, this one moves about 10ft forwards in a straight line, no drops or anything, the only good thing was an effect in which a crate nearly falls on you.
Plague Street
Pretty much identical to the London one, good laughs.
Torture Chamber
Likewise with this.
And this...
Lost Catacombs
This mirror maze has projections all around it of a ghost that used to haunt Berlin, it also had sections where you needed to duck, fun and scary.
The White Lady
This is a ghost story where you learn about a Anna Sydow, who was killed and haunts Berlin, its quite scary.
Revolution 1848
This is a revolution story, about a potato famine, I took part in this by firing a cannon (I may have killed someone...)
The Butcher of Berlin
This show is very much like the Sweeney Todd one in London, however this ones about Carl Grossmann, a serial killer who finds you to be his next victim. Quite good, now in order to get to the show, you walk down a few flights of stairs. Thats why I think the lift goes up.
Exitus
Finally we have Exitus, the drop ride. This ride is set in a prison cell and shows you how a prison escape happens. Interestingly enough, You don't board the ride at the top or bottom, but half way up, so you get both a mini drop and a full sequence! Good fun.
Overall The Berlin Dungeons is a fun thing to do if your in the area, I wouldn't say its better than the London one, but still worth a visit to.
Now, cameras aren't allowed inside the attraction, so I'll be using the very few pictures I took on the outside and promotional images for the attractions.
So here is a little brochure for the dungeons and Exitus.
The location of the dungeons is located in Berlin, near Alexander Platz, also a SEALIFE, Legoland Discovery Centre are here.
Now I went inside to get ready for my tour. Tours are usually in German, however certain times of the day they do English ones, check the website for more info. (I'll be using promotional images for the next few posts)
The Decent/Elevator of Doom
This is the start of the experience, a Jester comes out an gives you a brief summery on what your about to go through. Unlike the London one, you actually go in an actual elevator and I think it goes up, not down. (I'll explain why later)
The Twisted Monk
After that you go to see the monk Pater Roderich, who tells a tale of the dark history of Berlin and the Black Death. This show only has a projected face on a statue (which didn't really line up well) and had some audio problems. But a good scare came out of this.
River Spree Escape
This is a water ride in which you supposedly escape the plague, but its an absolute joke. The London version has small drops and gets you wet, this one moves about 10ft forwards in a straight line, no drops or anything, the only good thing was an effect in which a crate nearly falls on you.
Plague Street
Pretty much identical to the London one, good laughs.
Torture Chamber
Likewise with this.
And this...
Lost Catacombs
This mirror maze has projections all around it of a ghost that used to haunt Berlin, it also had sections where you needed to duck, fun and scary.
The White Lady
This is a ghost story where you learn about a Anna Sydow, who was killed and haunts Berlin, its quite scary.
Revolution 1848
This is a revolution story, about a potato famine, I took part in this by firing a cannon (I may have killed someone...)
The Butcher of Berlin
This show is very much like the Sweeney Todd one in London, however this ones about Carl Grossmann, a serial killer who finds you to be his next victim. Quite good, now in order to get to the show, you walk down a few flights of stairs. Thats why I think the lift goes up.
Exitus
Finally we have Exitus, the drop ride. This ride is set in a prison cell and shows you how a prison escape happens. Interestingly enough, You don't board the ride at the top or bottom, but half way up, so you get both a mini drop and a full sequence! Good fun.
Overall The Berlin Dungeons is a fun thing to do if your in the area, I wouldn't say its better than the London one, but still worth a visit to.
A TowersTimes Middle East Reporter!
- theparklifekid
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- Location: Cambridge/Dubai
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Been a while since I last posted here, mostly due to me not going to any parks recently. But I have been to Atlantis Aquaventure with my cousins who are visiting, so I decided to try out my waterproof phone case and do some filming. So check it out!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWevk52eNTw&t=3s
As The Hunger Games area of Motiongate is due to open next week, I'm hoping to go to the park within my school half term. Possibly also a visit to IMG Worlds! So stay tuned!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWevk52eNTw&t=3s
As The Hunger Games area of Motiongate is due to open next week, I'm hoping to go to the park within my school half term. Possibly also a visit to IMG Worlds! So stay tuned!
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- theparklifekid
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Thanks Danny! I'm currently working on a update covering the World of The Hunger Games and How to Train Your Dragon section of motiongate. Also a vlog coming soon!
A big possibility of visiting IMG Worlds and Yas Waterworld next week, so stay tuned!
A big possibility of visiting IMG Worlds and Yas Waterworld next week, so stay tuned!
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- theparklifekid
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So after a couple of delays, 100% of Dubai Parks and Resorts is fully open! This resort includes Legoland Dubai and its waterpark (maybe one day I'll do that), Bollywood Parks Dubai (which opened Don: The Chase since my last visit), a shopping area called Riverland and finally motiongate. Now motiongate has finally opened its Lionsgate area, which holds 'The World of The Hunger Games', over here its been hyped up a lot, with lots of marketing on radio and Youtube, so I had to check it out.
I spy with my little eye....
Good to be back!
Nice to see the park in good condition, the buildings had a good clean!
I headed straight to Lionsgate, as you enter through the gates you are met with these poles.
And BAM! Welcome to The World of The Hunger Games!
Nice little plaque under the mockingjay pin
There was a screen playing footage from the films, there was also entirely new footage featuring some of the cast of the films.
I'm sure you can guess which ride I headed to first. Capitol Bullet Train! This is a Mack Mega/Launch Coaster which is similar in style to Star Trek: Operation Enterprise, as you launch into a half pipe on the ride.
Around the queue there were items from the films to make the geeks happy.
Waiting to catch the train (whist talking to some nice German coaster enthusiasts).
Woosh (also probably one of the best coaster pics I've taken). As for the ride itself, I LOVED it, its a great rush. You start off by moving onto a transfer track which features a countdown, forwards launch to the loop and make it half way up, back down into the launch shooting you backwards up the vertical halfpipe before rolling back into the launch (quite intense on the back), up the loop with some great hangtime, then twisting around with pops of airtime and a corkscrew before entering the brake run. Well done to Mack and motiongate!
After that I checked out Panem Aerial Tour, a 4D flight simulator.
During the pre-show Effie (played by Elizabeth Banks like the movies) tells you all about themessed up wonderful world of Panem and all the districts you'll be visiting. But then your interrupted by the rebellion....
This is the ride vehicle, it moves fowards into some pretty good 3D 360* screens and fly around Panem while various cool things happen around you. The best motion simulator in the park.
Thats pretty much it from Lionsgate, a fantastic edition to the park. Next I headed over to dreamworks, but it had a timed opening, so I went elsewhere.
I had a ride on Zombieland, which has a new pre-show featuring shots of people in the actual queue line being attacked by zombies.
While you are on the otherside of the door waiting, while listening to zombies banging on the locker doors. A really cool addition to my fave flat ride. (Try spot me )
After a few re-rides on things, Dreamworks opened up and I dashed to the now open How to Train Your Dragon section.
Now this is possibly the best themed area of the park, as a big fan of the books and films I was in shock.
This was a nice pirate ship ride with some great theming around it.
But this was the main reason for me coming, Dragon Gliders!
This is one of only 2 Mack family suspended coasters out there, with the other being Arthur at Europa Park. Now I avoided POVs of this ride based off friends telling me to, lets just say I'm glad they told me to as I found it to be one of the coolest rides I've done, it makes use of both screens and physical sets, with several animatronics along the way. My favorite ride in Dubai Parks and it lives up to the 'Experience Amazing' moto of the resort.
After that I had a cool chat with someone who worked for Dubai Parks and Resorts, he told me some interesting facts about Dragon Gliders, the park and Dubai Parks in general. Apparently the ride was planned to be longer and had more effects but they had to cut them due to budget restraints, pretty cool dude.
Anyway that's it from motiongate, its now a complete park and if Dubai isn't on your list to visit in the future, your missing out.
Here's the vlog from the park: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WceHvDqvqpo
I spy with my little eye....
Good to be back!
Nice to see the park in good condition, the buildings had a good clean!
I headed straight to Lionsgate, as you enter through the gates you are met with these poles.
And BAM! Welcome to The World of The Hunger Games!
Nice little plaque under the mockingjay pin
There was a screen playing footage from the films, there was also entirely new footage featuring some of the cast of the films.
I'm sure you can guess which ride I headed to first. Capitol Bullet Train! This is a Mack Mega/Launch Coaster which is similar in style to Star Trek: Operation Enterprise, as you launch into a half pipe on the ride.
Around the queue there were items from the films to make the geeks happy.
Waiting to catch the train (whist talking to some nice German coaster enthusiasts).
Woosh (also probably one of the best coaster pics I've taken). As for the ride itself, I LOVED it, its a great rush. You start off by moving onto a transfer track which features a countdown, forwards launch to the loop and make it half way up, back down into the launch shooting you backwards up the vertical halfpipe before rolling back into the launch (quite intense on the back), up the loop with some great hangtime, then twisting around with pops of airtime and a corkscrew before entering the brake run. Well done to Mack and motiongate!
After that I checked out Panem Aerial Tour, a 4D flight simulator.
During the pre-show Effie (played by Elizabeth Banks like the movies) tells you all about the
This is the ride vehicle, it moves fowards into some pretty good 3D 360* screens and fly around Panem while various cool things happen around you. The best motion simulator in the park.
Thats pretty much it from Lionsgate, a fantastic edition to the park. Next I headed over to dreamworks, but it had a timed opening, so I went elsewhere.
I had a ride on Zombieland, which has a new pre-show featuring shots of people in the actual queue line being attacked by zombies.
While you are on the otherside of the door waiting, while listening to zombies banging on the locker doors. A really cool addition to my fave flat ride. (Try spot me )
After a few re-rides on things, Dreamworks opened up and I dashed to the now open How to Train Your Dragon section.
Now this is possibly the best themed area of the park, as a big fan of the books and films I was in shock.
This was a nice pirate ship ride with some great theming around it.
But this was the main reason for me coming, Dragon Gliders!
This is one of only 2 Mack family suspended coasters out there, with the other being Arthur at Europa Park. Now I avoided POVs of this ride based off friends telling me to, lets just say I'm glad they told me to as I found it to be one of the coolest rides I've done, it makes use of both screens and physical sets, with several animatronics along the way. My favorite ride in Dubai Parks and it lives up to the 'Experience Amazing' moto of the resort.
After that I had a cool chat with someone who worked for Dubai Parks and Resorts, he told me some interesting facts about Dragon Gliders, the park and Dubai Parks in general. Apparently the ride was planned to be longer and had more effects but they had to cut them due to budget restraints, pretty cool dude.
Anyway that's it from motiongate, its now a complete park and if Dubai isn't on your list to visit in the future, your missing out.
Here's the vlog from the park: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WceHvDqvqpo
A TowersTimes Middle East Reporter!
- theparklifekid
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So I went to IMG Worlds of Adventure recently, mostly to do some photography, but I did film a vlog!
Vlog:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k78q0EFazkY
Vlog:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k78q0EFazkY
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- theparklifekid
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So I went to Ferrari World on its 7th anniversary of the parks opening, and sure enough, I did a vlog!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRPIi6xfbl8&t=1s
Coming up next: Global Village (hopefully)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRPIi6xfbl8&t=1s
Coming up next: Global Village (hopefully)
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- Rickrick
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I visited the park in Berlin also, it was great! Me and my wife enjoyed it a lot! Hopefully it wasn't our last time there Trying to find some pictures on her laptop which I'll post later.theparklifekid:
Not sure about anyone else on the forum, but I personally LOVE The London Dungeons, so I'm currently in Berlin, Germany and my friend knows I'm a fan of parks and Merlin Entertainments, so seeing how there are no parks near Berlin, he suggested we do the next best thing: The Berlin Dungeons...
Overall the Berlin Dungeons is a fun thing to do if you're in the area, I wouldn't say it's better than the London one, but still worth a visit to.
My friend lives in Germany and has recently bought an apartment in Berlin, so at least I have a place to stay and spend more money for fun
Last edited by Dan on Sat Dec 23, 2017 12:00 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Reason: Added quote
Reason: Added quote