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Small News From The Theme Park Industry

Hixee said:
Dammit - I was going to head there at the weekend and finally get the cred.

Sorry - I mean, "thoughts and prayers".
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Visited yesterday and the rest of the park is open, and just some heras fencing round the cred with it still in it's crashed state. Looks like the brake on the drop snagged something on the rear car and ripped it off the rails. Bet it was extremely unpleasant to be on ride.

Cgl1UnB.jpeg
 
Workers at Walibi Holland begun a digital signature campaign earlier this year to put pressure on management to improve working conditions at the park, with the main sticking point being the segregation in treatment between permanent and seasonal employees. Permanent employees, of which Walibi has few, are covered by a collective bargaining agreement of which seasonal employees are not, allowing the park to get away with lower pay and stripped benefits (such as pension and travel allowance) for most of their staff. The Dutch trade union De Horecabond is closely following these activities, and agrees that Walibi’s working conditions are below standard for theme parks in the country, suggesting either strike or court action should be taken if the conflict continues to escalate.

www.looopings.nl

Ontevreden Walibi-personeel wil betere arbeidsvoorwaarden: vakbond suggereert staking of gang naar rechter

Het conflict tussen medewerkers en directie van Walibi Holland blijft voorlopig doorsudderen. Looopings kon donderdag melden dat personeelsleden...
www.looopings.nl www.looopings.nl
 
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On their social medias Gröna Lund has announced that their Zierer Flying Carpet "Flygande Mattan" will close after this summer season.
Earlier this year the nearby Reverchon Music express "Rock Jet" was also closed meaning two classic flat rides have left Gröna Lund in short time.

Instagram link
 
And Walibi Holland is under fire again. This time for a promotional video for their Fright Nights.

In this video, which is offline now, a young terrified woman in a glass cage is auctioned by Eddy The Clown in front of some freaks. After the highest bid, she is dropped in some kind of blender and killed.

This video was released on the same day a 17 year old girl was killed by her boyfriend in Amsterdam. Many Dutch people now say they are disgusted by the kind of video and the time it has been released.
 
Disneyland Resort hotels will discontinue the Early Theme Park Entry program on January 5th, 2026, replacing it with a complimentary Lightning Lane entry for hotel guests. The early entry program, which allowed guests 30-minute access before park opening, was not widely used, according to Disneyland officials. The new benefit will allow guests to bypass standby lines for one attraction per day, excluding popular rides such as Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance.
 
I've been wondering for decades when Kings Dominion was going to expand, considering all the vacant land the park owns. However, it now appears that Six Flags is set to sell the vacant land around the park. Since the source is behind a paywall, here's what the article says:
Six Flags Entertainment Corp. intends to sell the vacant land around Kings Dominion, a company spokesperson said, as it looks for ways to generate revenue. Kings Dominion uses less than half of the roughly 870 acres it owns in northern Hanover County.
Earlier this month, Richard Zimmerman, the company’s CEO, said Six Flags has opportunities to “further optimize” its portfolio of assets.
Six Flags took ownership of the amusement park and its property last year when Kings Dominion’s former parent company, Cedar Fair LP, joined forces with Six Flags in a $2 billion merger. The Wall Street Journal first reported the company’s plan to sell the property.
When Ohio-based Top Value Enterprises and Taft Broadcasting Co. first envisioned Kings Dominion around 1971, planners considered building an amusement park, resort hotel, golf course and shopping center, according to Richmond Magazine. Eventually, they scrapped plans for everything except the amusement park, and the extra land has sat mostly empty ever since.
In addition to the 400 acres Kings Dominion occupies, Six Flags owns roughly 470 more acres east and south of the park. Six Flags controls all the land east of Doswell Road, extending all the way to the North Anna River, which serves as the border between Hanover and Caroline counties, and the property that hosts the State Fair of Virginia.
Except for a campground operated by Kampgrounds of America, most of that land is undeveloped. The park also owns about 150 acres directly south of the Kings Dominion water park, and earlier this year it leased 10 acres to Dominion Energy for a new substation.
Altogether, Hanover County assessed Kings Dominion’s land for about $75 million this year. Selling the land could require redrawing the property lines — the largest parcel contains 600 acres, including amusement park space and open land. The properties are zoned for general business and light industrial.
It is unclear if Kings Dominion plans to keep any available land and what specific properties it wants to offer. The spokesperson for Six Flags did not provide any details about the company’s intentions.
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It closed the afternoon of 27 July, about 4 weeks, and I've been very hopeful and glad the park/maintenance still tries. Of course anything could happen in the next 4 weeks one way or another when I finally squeeze in a visit to this infamous park. Come on Batwing, you can do it.
 
KristofWB said:
And Walibi Holland is under fire again. This time for a promotional video for their Fright Nights.

In this video, which is offline now, a young terrified woman in a glass cage is auctioned by Eddy The Clown in front of some freaks. After the highest bid, she is dropped in some kind of blender and killed.

This video was released on the same day a 17 year old girl was killed by her boyfriend in Amsterdam. Many Dutch people now say they are disgusted by the kind of video and the time it has been released.
Click to expand...

The park said they were temporarily removing the ride until Sunday. Today they released a new statement, saying the video will not be put back up: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1DTBs5Wxoe/

They've re-emphasised their standpoint that it was a work of fiction, highly exaggerated, within context of promoting a Halloween event.

These sort of issues are always tricky to deal with, and can be a marketing nightmare to deal with. I'm sure there's members on here who remember when Thorpe Park came under criticism for their Asylum maze (9 years after it opened), saying it stigmatised mental health patients.

Walibi's decision to not reupload the video is probably the best from a marketing / damaged limitations perspective. But either way, these things tend to blow over pretty quickly.
 
Disneyland Paris’s Ratatouille will close this October and re-open fully refurbished in 2026 with numerous technical enhancements including updated projections, sets, props, ride programming, and a brand new show scene in the ride’s queue line. It’s unknown if any similar upgrades are in the works for the Florida version.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1960313000243384550
 
Tivoli Friheden in Aarhus, Denmark has been sold to new owners. A four-person investor group founded the company Rutschebanen ApS with the intent to purchase the park for an undisclosed sum, acquiring the stake held by the current management since the early 2000s. The current management is going to stay on and run the park for the foreseeable future, and guests aren’t expected to notice much change in the short term, but the new owners are said to be drafting a master plan behind the scenes that includes new rides, entertainment, increased focus on seasonal events, and bringing more international artists to the park’s concert stage.

www.tv2ostjylland.dk

Her er de nye ejere af Tivoli Friheden

Torsdag kan Tivoli Friheden afsløre de nye ejere af forlystelsesparken.
www.tv2ostjylland.dk
(in Danish)
 
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The day after ZDT’s Amusement Park permanently closed, the park shared on social media that they're “so excited to share that a piece of ZDT’s will live on thanks to our new friends, the Guenthers!” Jungle Jam Xtreme was tagged in the post.
Jungle Jam Xtreme will feature a jungle playground, an arcade, a climbing wall, an inflatable obstacle course, and more activities.
An opening date for Jungle Jam Xtreme has not been announced. However, it will be located in the former ZDT's arcade building.
 
Six Flags Magic Mountain shipped one of X2's three trains to S&S in Utah for refurbishment. Source
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On an unrelated note, Knoebels was forced to shut down all park operations about an hour after opening on Monday when a tree fell on several power lines. Source
 
Jenkinson’s Boardwalk announced a new coaster for 2026. Replacing the SBF spinner Tidal Wave. Will be down that way to clean up some creds in a couple days so glad I can sneak in another spinner, will probably end up at a Malibu Jacks lol.

jenkinsons.com

New Family Roller Coaster, Patriot’s Run, Coming to Jenkinson’s in 2026 | Boardwalk

Jenkinson’s Boardwalk Announces New Roller Coaster, Patriot’s Run, Opening in 2026 Point Pleasant Beach, NJ — August, 28, 2025 — Jenkinson’s Boardwalk is thrilled to announce the addition of a brand…
jenkinsons.com jenkinsons.com
 
Figures, i visited Jenkinson’s this summer for the first time in *20* years...and now they get a new* coaster. 🤦‍♂️


....I'd already ridden the SBF when it was on the IAAPA show floor 😅
 
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