This week: April 12th, 2023

From The Editor:

You may have noticed that this newsletter looks different than the previous ones. We just recently changed who is hosting our newsletters in an effort to reduce cost as well as allow us to reach even more people with our newsletter. This newsletter isn’t formatted properly so the next few editions of this newsletter may look different. Various logos, colors, text boxes, and other items will be added to the newsletter to make it more visually appealing. For the time being, this current issue is being sent a little bare bones.

There are various features we are still working out with this new provider but one of the coolest is the ability for you to get cool stuff by referring friends to join this newsletter! There is currently just 1 referral tier at the moment but by the next issue we’ll be adding stickers/magnets/pins and something that was so hard to acquire we’ll only have one to giveaway to whomever reaches that tier first! You’ll have to check out the next newsletter to see what these cool rewards are.

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Busch Gardens Williamsburg Announces DarKoaster Opening Time Frame

The all new DarKoaster will officially launch sometime in May. This brand new indoor rollercoaster was first announced in 2021. It will be the 10th coaster at the park and will be made by Intamin.

Disneyland and Disney World Passes Go On Sale Again

Disneyland and Disney World announced that passes for both parks will go on sale again. Is this an effort to drum up additional park revenue as Disney+ appears to be slacking in terms of revenue? This question won’t matter to many that have been waiting months or even a year to buy a pass once again to the parks. Starting at 9am today(Tuesday the 11th) guests can buy Disneyland passes. Disney World passes go on sale starting April 20th.

Theme Park Stock Watch

These are the gains over the last 5 days for each of the following theme park stocks:

Sea World: Down -5.2%

Six Flags: Down -0.9%

Disney: Up 0.49%

Universal Studios: Up 0.76%

Fights At Worlds Of Fun

Several fights broke out during the opening weekend of Worlds of Fun. Multiple police offers responded to the fights. According to our World’s of Fun group we run, multiple groups of teens were causing fights around the park until they were finally kicked out of the park. One officer was punched in the faze by a teen who was then arrested.

Could HHN Be Getting A 5 Nights At Freddy’s Maze?

This year we’ll be getting a movie about 5 Nights at Freddy’s. In case you weren’t aware, its a horror video game where you’re a security guard trapped in a building and must survive the night. The animatronics have come alive and are trying to kill you. However, they can’t move if you’re looking at them unless they manage to successfully sneak up to you. The movie is being made by Blumhouse who seemingly has gotten a dedicated HHN house every year. A 5 Nights at Freddy’s house has been one of the most requested houses at the event each year. Could this year finally be the one where they make the maze to help promote the movie which comes out October 27th?

Roger’s The Musical

In this limited-time show, you’ll be able to see your favorite avengers on stage. Rogers: The Musical will debut at Disney’s California Adventure on their Hyperion Stage on June 30th. It will be a one-act show that will last 30 minutes. The show will tell the story of Steve Rogers life. From him becoming Captain America during World War II, to leading the Avengers, and then beyond!

New Uncharted Ride To Be Classified As A Dark Ride

In a LinkedIn post, Sally Dark Rides said that their new Uncharted ride at PortAventura World will be classified as a dark ride. What does this mean for guests? It’s still technically an indoor rollercoaster made by Intamin however, being classified as a dark ride makes it seem like this will be a massively story driven ride versus a traditional roller coaster. This ride should be a blast! It will have tons of theming, animatronics, and an array of visual effects.

Explore New Planets On Star Tours

Star Tours is once again getting an upgrade of new planets to visit. Walt Disney World, Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris are all getting the new planets added to their rides. The new planets were announced at the Star Wars Celebration event. However, Disney has yet to announce what planets guests will soon be able to visit because they are from future shows/movies that havn’t come out yet.

Most of Zambezi Zinger Finished

]According to the World’s of Fun blog, all of the Titan Track for the ride has been installed. This means that the ride has almost been fully completed. There’s probably just a few more elements to it they still need to build. We’re still unsure when this ride will open this year.

Magic Bands Coming To Disney Cruises

Disney is bringing their wearable technology from the parks to the high seas! The same band you can use at both U.S. parks will soon be available to use on the Disney Cruise Lines. However, the name of the bands will be changing from Magic Bands to instead DisneyBand+. Some of the benefits of this band aboard a cruise is that it can be used to unlock your stateroom door, charging food or gifts to a room, and be used in select activities including the kid’s clubs onboard. There may even be extra moments of magic from what Disney alluded to!

Concept Art For California State Fairgrounds Waterpark Refresh

Raging Waters Sacramento closed after 15 years of operation but luckily it was taken over by Silverwood Entertainment LLC which has big plans for it! On the left is newly released concept art for what they want the park to look like when they are done with it. On the right you can see an image from google earth of what the park currently looks like. From what I can see, they are not keeping too much in place. In fact one of the only things staying is the lazy river(there was a comment on the LinkedIn post confirming this as well).

Coaster Operators Being Sought For Las Vegas And Sacramento

A park operation company, Silverwood Entertainment LLC, made a LinkedIn post 2 weeks ago. ‘We are seeking a partner(s) for major coaster operations in Las Vegas, NV area, and another project in Sacramento area.’ This same company recently took over operating the waterpark at the California State Fairgrounds that we covered above. It seems like this new company has some big plans. Sacramento doesn’t really have a major theme park. It has a small park called Funderland Amusement Park with what looks like a small dragon coaster. If a new theme park were to open in the area, it wouldn’t have much competition.

As for Las Vegas, it appears that the area has been getting a ton of new entertainment options over the last few years and for the next few as well. With a new stadium, a Meow Wolf location, and an upcoming Universal Studios expansion. The only theme park in the area is AdventureDome and that park doesn’t have a ton of options to ride. Las Vegas has been a greatly expanding metropolitan area so it only makes sense for operators to seek to open a new theme park in the area.

Battery Catches Fires At Futuroscope Roller Coaster

A battery on a roller coaster train erupted in fire while guests were still on Objectif Mars (Destination Mars). You can see park employees rush to put out the fire in this video on Le Parisien. Two women were injured in the fire. One of which was transported to a local hospital for burns around her neck/ears. The ride has been closed until further notice.

Track Being Installed At Six Flags Qiddiya

Track is being installed at Six Flags Qiddiya. What many thought was just cool concept art appears to actually be happening! This new park will host the world’s tallest, fastest, and longest roller coaster in the world. With track being installed, it means that this park is very serious about bringing this park to life as no ‘concept’ park would have actually purchased the track. I’ll be making a full video of what we know of this park and can expect from it in the future.

Slow Days at Resort Pools Feel Like

When you’re the only one in a pool, it feels like all the lifeguards are only watching you!