Final Scope

Welcome to "Final Scope", Parkscope Blog's weekly wrap up of the important happenings in the world of theme parks that will be brought to you every Friday (we hope).

Universal Parks and Resorts

Sunny Days Coming to Universal Singapore

(Source: Theme Park insider)

Universal Singapore announced earlier this week that the beloved characters of Sesame Street will be coming to the park in a big way. This summer, the characters will be performing shows in the park's New York section, as well as hosting a breakfast buffet in Louie's New York Pizza. Then, by the end of the year, a brand new dark ride experience will open in Soundstage 29.

Full press release can be found here.

Spongebob Storepants Opens to the Public

(Source: Orlando United)

As we reported in our "Cleansing Wave?" article, Universal Studios Florida has opened their new Spongebob Storepants  gift shop/meet and greet, and from the responses on twitter, it sounds like it's a hit!

Check out Orlando United for more info and pictures!

Universal Orlando Resort Raises Ticket Prices

Universal Orlando also raised ticket prices this week. The one-day-on-park ticket is now $88 dollars, the most expensive theme park ticket in the country save for Discovery Cove's. Read Mike's and Mr X's articles about the price increases of UOR and Disneyland here and here.

Shots Fired at Universal Studios Hollywood

The grand opening of Universal Studios Hollywood latest attraction, Transformers The Ride 3-D, occurred last Friday to a pretty big fanfare. It looks to be a great addition to the park, and the next step in the Spider-man legacy.

Walt Disney World

Big Thunder Mountain Reopens After Lengthy refurbishment

After almost a six month refurbishment, Big Thunder Mountain at the Magic  Kingdom has reopened with a new queue, a refurbished track, and a new coat of paint. The queue now winds past offices and boxes, which currently do nothing. But it's believed that the boxes are merely covering interactive elements that have yet to be turned on.

On the ride, the geysers at the end are once again functional, but sadly the earthquake scene has not returned, and this writer doesn't expect it to.

Art of Animation Resort Officially Opens

(Source: Disney Parks Blog)

Wednesday marked the official opening of Disney's Art of Animation resort. The resort offers family suites themed to classic Disney and Pixar properties, and in the fall will open the Little Mermaid wing which will be more traditional-style rooms. From the pictures it seems to be an upgrade over the All-Star resorts, and will certainly be a hit for the younger crowd.

Snow White's Scary Adventures Closes

(Source: WaltDisneyWorld.com)

In order to make way for a new, highly themed princess meet and greet area, Snow White's Scary Adventures closed its door forever on Thursday. The ride was an opening day original, which now leaves Peter Pan as the only original, "traditional" dark ride left in the park.

Disneyland Resort

Carthay Circle Theater Walls Come Down

(Source: Disney Parks Blog)

Out west, the walls at California Adventure's Carthay Circle Theater have come down, and the building certainly does look fantastic! The details are really astounding, and while we won't have a Parkscope representative out there until Novemeber, we'll keep you up to date on the goings on at DCA.

Mad T Party Begins

In the Hollywoodland section of the park, the brand new Mad T Party has opened, replacing the former elecTRONica, and looks to be every bit as popular.

Cedar Point

Cedar Point Announces Disaster Transport Closure

(Source: Coasterimage.com)

Earlier this week Cedar Point announced Disaster Transport, a ride many assure me is "the best worst ride in the world", will be closing to make way for a brand new B&M wing coaster that will soar over the entrance of the park. Check back soon for an article on this development from one of our staff.

Industry News

TEA Releases 2011 Attendance Report

This week the TEA released their annual attendance report, which can be read here. We also have a report on the report, which goes into a little hypothesizing.

Marriott to Take Over Management of Gaylord Palms

Not necessarily a theme park piece of news, but the news came in Thursday that the Gaylord Palms, one of the biggest convention spaces in Orlando, will now be run by Marriott.


Well, that's all the news and notes for this week. We hope you enjoyed our little rundown, and as always we want to remind you that you can follow @Parkscope on twitter for up to the minute news, notes, and discussion. Enjoy your weekend!