When something goes wrong at your park, due to a slip and fall, ride malfunction or any other accident, you want to be sure that it is dealt with in the proper way, and justice is done. Yet should it ever reach court, the way an operator prepares to give testimony can often be crucial to the outcome of their case. Here US attorney and Park World columnist Heather M Eichenbaum Esq (pictured) offers some valuable advice. While the information is intended primarily for an American court of law, we feel sure many of Heather’s tips will prove useful to operators worldwide.

Emerging opportunities and issues for suppliers to leisure developments in Central/Eastern Europe, France and the Middle East will be discussed at a one-day conference in London on Tuesday, March 13.

The Spanish-based animal, waterpark and amusement park operator Parques Reunidos changed hands back in January in a deal believed to be worth more than €900 million. The buyer was, you’ve guessed it, a private equity house: Candover in London.

TEA - a leading international trade association for the creators and producers of experience design and themed attractions, and ERA – a top international consulting firm focused on economic analysis for the entertainment and leisure industry – has announced the imminent publication of the first annual Amusement Park Attendance in 2006: The TEA/ERA Report.

Amanda Thompson is arguably one of the most high profile women in the business. Managing director of Britain’s Blackpool Pleasure Beach, she’s inherited the role from her late and much respected father Geoffrey Thompson OBE when he passed away suddenly in 2004, and now looks after around 6-million fun-seekers a year. Born in London in 1962, Amanda is also the great-granddaughter of Pleasure Beach founder, William George Bean, and has served as a director of the park for over 15 years. For more than two decades she produced and directed acclaimed shows at the Pleasure Beach and beyond and still retains an interest in this side of the business as director of Stageworks Worldwide Productions. A former Director of the Year, Entrepreneur of the Year and board member of IAAPA, she now sits on the board of Blackpool’s Grand Theatre and is a member of BALPPA, the British Association of Amusement Parks, Piers and Attractions. Here Amanda talks to Park World editor Owen Ralph about future plans for the Pleasure Beach.

Responsible for the day-to-day running and continued maintenance of Blackpool Pleasure Beach’s 145 rides and attractions, Jim Rowland retired at the end of December following 34 years with the company. Considered by many to be the “heart and soul” of the park, the former travelling showman even enjoyed a spell as a TV star as part of one of the UK’s first ever ‘fly on the wall’ documentary series. Here ‘JR’ reflects on his 34 years with Britain’s favourite, free tourist attraction.

Since 1980, the Landmark Entertainment Group has developed and produced a wide range of theme park and leisure attractions, live entertainment, film and television productions. Its 100-plus worldwide projects represent a construction value of well over four billion dollars. Landmark success stories include shows and attractions for Six Flags, Universal Studios and Caesars Palace and the Venetian Resort Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Spider-Man 3D at Universal’s Islands of Adventure is still recognised by many as “the world’s best ride.”

All of us in the amusement industry know we're not in it for the fame or the fast buck. We're in it because it's something we need to do, something we have to do and something we have a passion for. We're in the amusement industry because we're ...well, crazy. Gary Kyriazi meets a family with the perfect credentials.

In 2000, Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari in Santa Claus, Indiana, made a big leap of faith. It started a programme that it knew we could never end without really upsetting its guests. But was giving away free unlimited soft drinks too much for Holiday World to swallow? Here the park’s president and general manager Will Koch explains why it was one of the best decisions he ever made

An attractive alternative to bumper boats, Memo Ferries by the Italian kiddie ride specialist Memo Park are battery-operated vessels available in six varieties: Passenger ferry, freight ferry, life boat, fire boat, trawler and paddle steamer.

Evolved from the same company’s jet ride, this new children’s attraction from Sartori replaces the planes with jeeps and can be ridden by adults as well as kids. Unveiled at the recent IAAPA Attractions Expo in Atlanta, the 24-seater ride created a reasonable amount of interest

Playworld Systems’ has developed this fun, new addition to its portfolio of playground equipment.

Primera Technology is offering its LX400 Color Label Printer to print full-colour, high-resolution admission tickets. The inkjet machine prints on semi-gloss and high-gloss materials in both paper and polyester. Printed labels are virtually waterproof and scratchproof. The LX400 is both Mac and Windows compatible. Amusement parks and attractions can use the printer personalised admission tickets and wristbands on demand, which can be printed with photos of entrants, barcodes, text, logos, graphics and more.

Now in its seventh year, more than 1,000 amusement industry professionals are expected at the IAAPI Trade Show in Mumbai, India, this February.

Chris Maier, Land of Make Believe, USA:

The weather. Family units with children aged two to 12 plan their leisure time activities well in advance. Forecasted weather has a negative effect on attendance. The Weather Channel is wrong more times than it’s right and families have learned to have back-up plans. The season of 2003 was the only exception in which a park attraction could make up for bad weather.

Lotteworld near Seoul, South Korea, recently announced it was due to be closed for around four months beginning January as the park undertakes major repair and renovation work following a warning about safety. Last March a man was killed in on one of its rollercoasters. Several other accidents have also occurred at the park. “We promise that we will make Lotteworld much safer and more exciting,” says a statement on the park’s official website.

After successful negotiations, the Vitala Group has agreed to finance a resort project in Mindanao, the Philippines, comprising a 150 room 4-star hotel, 22 tourist cottages, an open-air leisure/play park, min I children’s play centre, sports complex and swimming pools. The available land, which faces the Philippines Sea and the Indian Ocean, is 380 acres. Estimated project costs are PhP 48.3 million (US$28.3m) and the project is predicted to get under way in July 2007 for completion at the end of 2008. Meanwhile, the Vitala Group continues to expand its project finance and leisure development activities in North Africa, with the appointment of Mr Mabruk Dabbaa, based in Tripoli, as its representative in Libya.

Last summer, newly installed Six Flags CEO Mark Shapiro told Park World readers: “We’re going to stop buying $20 million rollercoasters.” A few months later Serge Naim, executive vice-president of leisure parks for Compagnie des Alpes (CDA), told us: “The traditional model of building a big new attraction every three to five years does not work. Financially there is no payback.” Now Blackpool Pleasure Beach managing director Amanda Thompson reveals: “I don’t think we will be building rides like the Big One for a while.”

Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari, Santa Claus, Indiana, was the only major theme park in America that I hadn’t experienced until recently. As the season was coming to an end, I finally visited and met the town’s namesake, pictured here (he’s the one with the beard).

Park World has introduced a new blogging facility where we will publish comment pieces by industry members and regular contributors to the magazine. Gerry Robinson gets the ball rolling this month with his observations on trade shows. Here’s the full – online only – text.

Park World has introduced a new blogging facility where we will publish comment pieces by industry members and regular contributors to the magazine. Gerry Robinson gets the ball rolling this month with his observations on trade shows. Here’s the full – online only – text.

In a surprising turn-around, Trump Entertainment Resorts, owner of Atlantic City’s Steel Pier, has invited Atlantic Pier Amusements to operate the family amusement park there for another year. This, however, could well be the last throw of the dice for the New Jersey entertainment facility.

Following the sudden closure in September of Pleasureland in Southport, more UK parks look unlikely to return in 2007.

The vintage Astroland amusement park, one of the anchors of Coney Island in New York since its 1962 opening, has been purchased by Thor Equities, a real estate developer intent on restoring the Brooklyn beachfront as a $1.5 billion year-round resort.

It was critisced when it opened last year for lacking some of the attractions that are essential components of all other Disneyland theme parks, but next year Hong Kong’s own tribute to The Mouse will finally add It’s A Small World, along with several other fresh additions.

Four US amusement parks and three waterparks formerly operated by Six Flags Inc are to be sold to the company PARC Management LLC for US$312 million.

In conjunction with 3DBA, Alterface of Belgium has secured six orders for its Desperados interactive shooting game, including customers in China and Korea. And according to the company’s Jean Paul Chatelain, it could be poised to supply as many as a dozen units by the spring/summer.

Utah’s Lagoon amusement park will introduce a new Tower Launch Coaster from German manufacturer Zierer for 2007.

Great Wolf Lodge, located adjacent to Paramount’s Kings Island in Mason, Ohio, opened in December. The associated 79,000-sq-ft Bear Track Landing indoor waterpark features six pools, 12 waterslides and the Fort Mackenzie treehouse from SCS Interactive. The waterpark’s cornerstone attraction, Fort McKenzie and its 1,000 gallon tipping bucket and 12 interactive levels features two body slides, bridges and various spraypool elements.

Ted J Kleisner is to become the new president and CEO of Hershey Entertainment & Resorts (HE&R), succeeding the retiring Scott Newkam.

At 62 years of age, Kleisner recently retired as president and CEO of the Greenbrier Resort and Club Management Company, which owns and manages the world-famous 6,500-acre Greenbrier resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. Long active in West Virginia civic organisations, Kleisner and his wife Karen are relocating to Hershey in Pennsylvania.

Six Flags Fiesta Texas, San Antonio, will this season introduce a spinning coaster from Gerstlauer of Germany. The new addition, Tony Hawk’s Big Spin, is themed after the exploits of the skateboarder of the same name.

The Sally Corporation has introduced a new dark ride proposal: Forbidden Island. This spectacular new interactive experience takes visitors on a journey to a mysterious, uncharted volcanic island, the domain of Volcanikus, the legendary and feared Lord of Fire.

Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson, New Jersey and Six Flags New England, Agawam, Massachusetts, will each introduce a range of family-friendly attractions in 2007 based around the The Wiggles TV franchise.

Another park in the US Cedar Fair chain is to lower its admission charges in 2007. Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia, formerly a Paramount park, will reduce the price of its regular one-day admission ticket at the same time as debuting a multi-million dollar waterpark expansion. The price of a regular one-day admission ticket will be reduced by $5, the first time the park has decreased the price of admission since opening in 1975. Formerly Cedar Point in Ohio announced plans to drop its admission prices.

Ocean Park’s HK$5.5 billion redevelopment project gained momentum recently with a groundbreaking ceremony to symbolise the first phase of construction.

A fantastic new Batman-themed thrill ride has opened at Warner Bros. Movie World, Gold Coast, Australia.

The world's first Ferrari theme park is due to built in Abu Dhabi, reports DubaiCityGuide.com. Advertising InfoAbu Dhabi, a Persian Gulf emirate plans to build the attraction, just like in Dubai, to lessen its dependence on oil reserves.

The largest new coaster in the UK this coming season will be the new Euro-Fighter ride from Gerstlauer at Adventure Island in Southend-on-Sea. Opening February 10, it will be the sixth such ride from the German manufacturer.

The largest new coaster in the UK this coming season will be the new Euro-Fighter ride from Gerstlauer at Adventure Island in Southend-on-Sea. Opening February 10, it will be the sixth such ride from the German manufacturer.

Starting this issue, Park World has committed to a series of bi-monthly articles about one of the least glamorous parts of an amusement or recreational facility: Food & beverage (f&b). But read on, because I’m going to help you make the most of it and drive up your per capita spending.

Starting this issue, Park World has committed to a series of bi-monthly articles about one of the least glamorous parts of an amusement or recreational facility: Food & beverage (f&b). But read on, because I’m going to help you make the most of it and drive up your per capita spending.

One of the first Robosoccer games by Robots R Us has been installed at Soccer Circus in Glasgow, Scotland.

Wilderness Hotel & Golf Resort, Wisconsin Dells, has opened

a three-acre outdoor waterpark called Lost World.

Dutch manufacturer KMG is currently putting the finishing touches to what is believed to be the industry’s first wireless-operated amusement ride.

Six Flags Marine World, Vallejo, California, has changed its name. America’s original combination of wildlife park, oceanarium and theme park, has been rebranded as Six Flags Discovery Kingdom.

Guests will have the opportunity to explore the newly named attraction when it reopens in March. The park classified into three fun-filled areas: Land, sea and sky. Attractions including shows, strolling performers and animal interactions will all be updated to reflect the new name and identity.

When the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Ohio reopens what used to be Wyandot Lake in spring 2008, the park will be distinctly different, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

Blue Man Group, the wildly successful live entertainment experience is coming to Universal Orlando Resort, starting June 2007.

The dialogue-free show will occupy a new live performance venue accessible from both Universal CityWalk and Universal Studios.

The Blue Man Group has performed to more than 10 million people worldwide and combines music, comedy and multimedia theatrics.