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Thelma & Boom and ITPS announce collaboration in innovative planning solutions for the changing leisure industry
Thelma & Boom, Inc. (TB), a theme park and entertainment design team based in California, USA, and International Theme Park Services, Inc. (ITPS), a leading leisure and attractions consultant based in Ohio, USA, announced today a collaborative effort on an exciting new design approach and innovative process that meets the new restrictions of remote collaborative efforts between clients, creative and technical teams.
TB and ITPS have worked extensively for many years with international clients, design firms and local A/E groups which, until recently, have followed the traditional AIA or REBA design guidelines and phasing for the design development of theme parks and entertainment venues. However, as the culture of Theme Park Design evolves, the needs of international clients are no longer met by these traditional guidelines developed by the Architecture and Engineering Industries. Theme Park and Amusement Design is a unique world that needs new ways to achieve the most efficient collaboration efforts between the creative and technical development within different cultures, often separated by oceans and long distances.
Click here to read more about Concept+ and Feasibility+
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Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Outbreak
Daily Update
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Today's Update to Parks and Attractions Reopening Dates
As the list keeps growing, we've dedicated a page to the reopening dates for parks and attractions. Find the complete list here.
Parks
Cedar Point - July 9
FORT FUN Adventure Land – May 21
Hansa Park – June 30
Kings Island - July 2
Legoland Windsor - July 4
Tayto Park - June 18
Universal Studios Japan - June 15
Wild Adventures – June 22
Worlds of Fun - June 22
Waterparks
Great Wolf Lodge Mason – June 26
Schlitterbahn New Braunfels and Galveston – June 13
Zoos / Aquariums
Cleveland Botanical Garden – June 10
Cleveland Metroparks Zoo – June 17
Denver Zoo – June 10
Downtown Aquarium Denver (VIP Tours) – June 6
Georgia Aquarium – June 13
Louisville Zoo – June 12
Mesker Park Zoo- June 14
Milwaukee County Zoo – June 13
Paris Zoo – June 8
Virginia Zoo – June 25
Museum / Attractions
Altitude Trampoline Park Hermitage (Nashville) – June 8
Cleveland Museum of Art – June 30
Cleveland Museum of Natural History – July 1
City Museum (St. Louis) – June 17
Great Lakes Museum – June 17
Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory – June 12
Pro Football Hall of Fame – June 10
Saint Louis Art Museum – June 16
Topgolf Baton Rouge – June 9
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What You Need to Know - Worlds of Fun Opening 2020
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Let me start by apologizing for not writing sooner. I wanted to give your individual business leaders a chance to reach out first in their own way as many have, and to give our CEO Brian Roberts a chance to communicate with you and share the variety of important actions our parent company is announcing today.
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SANDUSKY, Ohio--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cedar Fair Entertainment Company (NYSE: FUN), a leader in regional amusement parks, water parks and immersive entertainment, has implemented new health, safety and hygiene protocols that will allow the phased opening of several popular properties for the 2020 season:
Related: Kings Island sets reopening date
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This annual competition celebrates the talent of upcoming young professionals in the industry, and CAVU has a special connection with the competition with two Cornell alumni on its team: Mark Stepanian, VP of Innovation and Engineering and Nathan Jones, COO.
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Disney is transforming the theme park experience with smartphones, wearable technology such as MagicBands, and the Internet of Things (IoT). In an interview with Forbes, Kelly White, VP of digital strategy at Walt Disney World Resort, opened up about personalisation and technology at Disney parks.
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Dennis Speigel to be Featured Speaker in “Morale & Motivation in Tourism Panel” for Major Turkey Tourism Group
On Wednesday, June 10, 2020, Dennis Speigel, Founder & CEO of International Theme Park Services, Inc. (ITPS), will be a featured speaker and guest panelist for an online meeting coordinated by the Travelshop Turkey & Murti’s Tours. This major Turkish tourism and tour group has been the flagship operator in the travel industry since 2005. They offer over 1,000 different tours, 2,000 hotels, 500 villas, and 200 yacht cruises to different destinations in Turkey and beyond.
Along with tours to Turkey, Travelshop Turkey holds highly successful online events that speak to overall tourism globally. Dennis Speigel will be the key panel speaker in their upcoming Morale & Motivation in Tourism Panel to be held on Wednesday, June 10, 2020 at 17:00 Turkey time, or 10:00 US Eastern time.
Everyone in the leisure and amusement industry is welcome to attend at no charge. Dennis will be providing a wealth of insight into the impact that COVID-19 has had, and will continue to have, on the amusement and travel industry. This will include discussion on when theme parks and leisure facilities closed, how this has impacted their planned capital spend, and how they are planning to re-open. Dennis will also share insights on how the amusement industry will change in the post-pandemic period, and will opine on how the industry will adapt its growth strategies moving forward.
The session will be available by Zoom, but requires registration at the following: www.travelshopturkey.com/OnlineMeeting.html
Date: 10th of June, 2020
Time: 17:00 Turkish Time (10:00 a.m. EST)
Platform: Zoom online
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BALTIMORE, Md. — Typically focused on creating innovative attractions that scare and thrill for theme park guests across the globe, this week Baltimore-based Premier Rides instead shifted gears to promote community well-being and assurance by donating thousands of face masks to the Baltimore-based Living Classrooms Foundation whose mission is to disrupt the cycle of poverty and help communities become safer, stronger, and healthier by meeting individuals, especially children, where they are and building skills for life.
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Boomers! confirmed the closures of its El Cajon location on Graves Avenue and its Kearny Mesa location on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard via short, simple posts on Facebook that read: “Boomers! El Cajon is permanently closed” and “Boomers! San Diego is permanently closed.”
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The aquatic theme park is slated to reopen Thursday after the coronavirus pandemic forced theme park executives to shut down in mid-March. The company also furloughed 90% of its workers, after taking an economic blow.
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Blackpool Pleasure Beach has announced it has been preparing to reopen next month since closing two and a half months ago on March 21. Officials reassured guests that they would "always act in accordance with government and health authority guidelines" after announcing the parks initial intention to stay open during the coronavirus pandemic on Thursday, March 19.
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Just last week, we shared some intriguing aerial photographs of Super Nintendo World, the new theme park currently in the works at Universal Studios Japan. The images gave us a good look at the general layout of the park and its components, but now we have several more images taken from the ground.
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Indiana Beach has posted 2020 season ticket prices on its website at www.indianabeach.com/daily-tickets. It includes lower prices for White County residents who buy at the gate with proof of residency.
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As reported, the senior manager of the fairground business of the same name died at the age of 80 on Tuesday last week. Since only the closest relatives found space in the mourning hall of the cemetery on Platanenweg, the celebration was shown on a screen outside. Numerous wreaths and flags of delegations from various showmen's associations as well as colleagues from all over Germany paid the last respects to the deceased. Pastor Sascha Ellinghaus, head of Catholic circus and fairground pastoral care in Germany, delivered the funeral speech.
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Tayto Park is set to reopen from Thursday, June 18. The theme park and zoo will open with a limited capacity to comply with Covid-19 restrictions.
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MIDDLEBURY, CT (WFSB) - Quassy Amusement & Waterpark in Middlebury released its plan for when it reopens later this month. The park said it is ready to kick off its 2020 season on June 20, when phase 2 of the state's COVID-19 reopening plan is scheduled to get underway.
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VALDOSTA, Ga. – Wild Adventures Theme Park and Splash Island Waterpark in Valdosta, Ga. will reopen to all passholders and guests on June 22 with added health and safety measures, a new reservation system and a year-long extension for current passholders.
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Amusement parks in Georgia are slowly opening up just in time for the summer. Six Flags Over Georgia still doesn't have an exact date for opening, but another amusement park in South Georgia is on its two-week countdown to welcome guests again. While there will be new rules and regulations, guests can still have fun and have a few screams.
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From today you can also buy a souvenir in the Efteling outside the souvenir shops. The amusement park allows visitors to order and pay for souvenirs via the official Efteling app. At the moment there are 34 different Efteling articles available.
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Amusement park Slagharen has a new director since last autumn: Dave Storm (40). In an episode of the Looopings Podcast, he explains how he ended up at Slagharen and what he plans to do with the amusement park in Overijssel. The manager talks about possible new attractions, changes in the park and dealing with amusement park fans.
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Legoland has set a date for reopening and laid out what the new rules will be when guests are in the park. The Windsor family resort is set to reopen on July 4 and people will be asked to take their own face covering or masks.
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Universal Studios Japan reopened its doors Monday to annual pass holders living in Osaka Prefecture after the popular theme park was shut down for about three months due to the spread of the coronavirus.
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Mayor Demings made the announcement within the last hour, and Disney has moved quickly to extend the hours at Disney Springs from 7pm to 10pm. Although Disney Springs will be operating until 10pm, some individual location hours may vary.
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California counties that have been allowed to accelerate their reopening of their economy, including Los Angeles County, could decide to reopen movie theaters as early as Friday, according to new state guidelines released Monday.
Each local health officer has the authority to decide whether to move forward with relaxing restrictions on reopening theaters. While the state provides guidance on how businesses can reopen, counties decide when they occur.
Related: Movie Theaters, Arcades, Bowling Alleys Among What Can Reopen In California This Friday
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In August, the second edition of ‘Smile Safari’ will take place in the centre of Brussels, as the Instagram & TikTok-museum moves to the Anspach Shopping Centre. In October, Smile Safari opened its doors as the biggest Instagram museum in Europe and the first in Belgium, as a pop-up in the Tour & Taxis exhibition centre. Last year’s edition attracted over 25,000 visitors.
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MENALAC’s Health and Safety Committee is drafting a set of minimum standards and procedures for its members to follow before they reopen. Since COVID-19 forced the leisure and attractions industry to shut down in March, the industry in the Middle East is losing US$6.71 billion per month. Now that it is starting to reopen, Middle East and North Africa Leisure & Attractions Council (MENALAC) is providing its members with procedures to follow.
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Manchester is about to get a new drive-in entertainment centre, including a cinema, live concerts, sing-a-longs and even bingo. The Park n Party project will take over EventCity this summer, intending to entertain people of all ages while maintining social distancing.
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CEC Entertainment, the struggling parent company of the Chuck E. Cheese eatertainment chain, is handing out retention bonuses to its top executives, according to a recent Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The move comes as Irving, Texas-based Chuck E. Cheese is looking to raise money to avoid filing for bankruptcy, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. The chain shut all of its 610 units in 47 states amid the pandemic.
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One of the most popular places for kids and parents in Nashville has reopened after being shut down for 2 and half months. Altitude Trampoline Park in Hermitage is a huge destination spot for kids all over the area. The park has over 45,000 square feet of indoor trampolines and other amenities including a ninja course and reaction wall.
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Topgolf is all set to reopen in the Capital Area after months of being closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The facility will reopen its doors Tuesday, June 9 at noon with several changes to ensure guests can play with confidence, the company announced Monday.
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As museums in the United States released statements last week about their stance on the protests surrounding the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police, few escaped criticism for their words on the tragedy. Detractors called out institutions for not responding fast enough to protests or, when they did, for not having mentioned Floyd’s name or the Black Lives Matter movement in their statements. Now, similar controversy has crossed the Atlantic to impact institutions in England.
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A UK museum has released reimagined versions of some of its most loved masterpieces, with subjects donning face masks amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, eastern England, was forced to close its doors to the public in March following the introduction of lockdown measures to curb the spread of coronavirus.
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When the National Corvette Museum (NCM) reopened its doors today, customers were treated to a renovated space and new exhibits, including "The Vision Realized: 60 Years of Mid-Engine Corvette Design." The exhibit features cars such as the Corvette Indy and the XP-987 GT, among several other historic Chevys.
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St. Louis attractions are beginning to reopen with new safety measures in place as the coronavirus pandemic continues. The latest to announce its reopening is the City Museum. It will reopen at 10 a.m. on June 17 with a new safety plan in place and two three-hour sessions per day.
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The Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory is set to reopen on Thursday. The museum has been closed since March 16 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
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The “hottest, coolest time in Texas" has set a reopening date following coronavirus-forced closures. Schlitterbahn will reopen its New Braunfels and Galveston parks on Saturday to season pass holders. Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, which acquired Schlitterbahn in 2019, said in a news release that the parks will open in phases.
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The Europa Park water park Rulantica , which opened in autumn 2019, and the adjacent hotel “Krønasår” will be expanded in 2020. Europa-Park has now officially presented the relevant plans. In 2020, several new products will be opened in the water park and hotel for children and young people as well as for adults. The main focus is on relaxing the guests.
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People hoping to have some fun at the newly-built Great Wolf Lodge in Manteca next month are going to have to continue waiting. It should not be a shocker at this point, but the coronavirus pandemic has pushed back the lodge's grand opening back two months. The 500-room resort, which has a 95,000-square-foot indoor water park, was slated to open July 1, one month ahead of the original August date. However, because of the state's coronavirus reopening roadmap, the Great Wolf Lodge Northern California won't open until Sept. 1.
Related: Great Wolf Lodge Georgia in LaGrange set to reopen June 16
Great Wolf Lodge Mason reopening with new guidelines
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A local judge is mulling over a potentially groundbreaking case: Can Kalahari Resorts reopen before a state-imposed time frame says so? Erie County Common Pleas Court Judge Roger Binette on Monday oversaw a hearing which pitted the Sandusky resort and convention center against defendants representing the state’s and Erie County’s health departments.
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Noah's Ark, which bills itself as America's largest water park, has set a fitting opening date of June 20 — the first day of summer. The Wisconsin Dells water park usually opens for the season over Memorial Day weekend but delayed its opening this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
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Orphaned elephant calves from the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary are being translocated to their new home in Sera Wildlife Conservancy, in Kenya's Samburu County this week. In recent months, although Kenya's conservation efforts have been challenged by the loss of tourism-related funding, dedicated community members continue their efforts to conserve elephants and promote human-elephant coexistence. This week's reintroduction of four young elephants marks a successful milestone in the ongoing efforts of the Northern Rangelands Trust, Save the Elephants and San Diego Zoo Global for African elephants.
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Cincinnati Zoo is sharing its zoo blooms with neighbors after its months-long shut down left the zoo incapable of planting the usual number of flowers around the park The zoo, which has been closed since March 15 and has been working without volunteers and seasonal staff, did not have the workforce necessary to plant the usual number of annuals around the park but did share some beautiful blooms and trees with its neighbors, zoo officials said.
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The ZOOM Erlebniswelt has officially opened its new penguin facility - the "Pinguin Bay" . Twelve penguins have moved into the spacious and natural enclosure and can be observed both on land and from underwater viewing while swimming and diving.
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Beginning June 15, guests will have the opportunity to visit the Georgia Aquarium to explore and enjoy its galleries and more than 10 million gallons of water. Georgia Aquarium members will be able to visit again starting June 13.
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After three months of being closed due to the pandemic, the Virginia Zoo will reopen its gates to the public on June 25, with some modifications and a new schedule! During its first stage, the Zoo has implemented some important changes to its operations:
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Following the city of Milwaukee beginning phase 3 of its reopening plan Friday, the Milwaukee County Zoo announced a phased reopening date of June 13 after its over two months of closure.
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The Denver Zoo will reopen to the public this week and multiple COVID-19 safety measures and practices will be in place, including social distancing and limits on lines and capacity. After being closed since March 17 to help battle the spread of COVID-19, the zoo will reopen Wednesday and Thursday for members only — Member Gratitude Days — and to the general public starting Friday.
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He's one of the newest residents at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium got a name on Monday. It's Hemingway! The new 26-year-old male dolphin was rescued in late July 2019 in the Florida Keys by Dolphin Plus Marine Mammal Responder.
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The Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium is beaming with pride over their three new residents. The zoo has added a 2-year-old male lion and a pair of 2-year-old females lionesses.
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DENVER (CBS4) — The Downtown Aquarium in Denver is still closed for general admission, but it’s now allowing groups of people to book VIP tours. People can get an in-depth look around the entire aquarium with one of the biologists, who will answer any questions along the way. You might even get a chance to feed some animals!
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The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has recognized several marquee destinations around the world with its global safety and hygiene stamp identifying places that are prioritizing traveler safety and hygiene in the time of COVID-19.
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With concern over health and safety at an all-time high, some luxury resorts are implementing robust testing requirements for guests and employees.
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In some heartening news, 50 percent of frequent travelers participating in a Travel Leaders Network survey said they were beginning to make definitive vacation plans for 2020, with 43 percent looking toward 2021 and 8 percent to 2022.
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The move means that the carrier will be offering its touchless solution at a total of approximately 220 airports, said managing director of insights and innovation Maria Walter.
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