The Mouse announced its latest venture, “Storyliving by Disney,” Disney-branded, master-planned home communities. Residents will be able to live inside the Disney bubble 24/7. The first such community, Cotino, will be in the Coachella Valley…
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New game on at Chuck E. Cheese
It was all started by a mouse. (No, not that mouse.) But 45 years after it began, the pandemic nearly brought the Chuck E. Cheese chain to an end. As I outline in my Funworld…
Read MoreNew Rides and Parks Revealed at Expo
IAAPA, the global association for the attractions industry, staged its humungous Expo in November. Per tradition, many parks used the event to reveal what they have planned for the coming year. Among the announcements were…
Read MoreAudiences want to be active participants says AREA15 CEO
One of the most dynamic speakers at the 2021 IAAPA Expo was Winston Fisher, CEO of AREA15, who described the Las Vegas venue as “200,000 square feet of entertainment awesomeness.” His presentation about immersive entertainment included a…
Read MoreCreating the Spider-Man attraction, one of parkdom’s best
Three of the legends behind “The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man” at Universal Orlando’s Islands of Adventure talked about the development of the groundbreaking attraction at the 2021 IAAPA Expo. Get their inside “scoop” from my IAAPA…
Read MoreDisney exec and Imagineers speak at IAAPA Expo
Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, spoke about the power of connections and more at the 2021 IAAPA Expo, the parks and attractions industry’s preeminent annual gathering. He also revealed that Mickey’s…
Read MoreNew rides and attractions announced at IAAPA Expo
Manufacturers, parks, attractions, and others revealed new rides and other developments at the 2021 IAAPA Expo, the massive, annual gathering of the parks and attractions industry. Read about some of the exciting announcements in my…
Read MoreTheir strong compass guides them through the pandemic
When the husband-and-wife team of Julien Patterson and Terri Wesselman “retired” to rural Virginia, they discovered that the Chesapeake Bay community could use some attractions. So they built a movie theater and family entertainment center complete…
Read MoreThe women of Holiday World make a splash
It’s a family affair at Holiday World and Splashin’ Safari in rural Indiana. A gem of a place, it is one of the few remaining major, independent parks in the U.S. Sisters Leah and Lauren…
Read MoreConfessions of a theme park journalist
If you are like most people, you may shake your head in disbelief when you discover that I cover theme parks and attractions for a living. And you might think it must be a dream…
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