Attractions Management Issue 1 2011 - TourismInsights

ADMISSION PRICES
Attendance to Islands of Adventure
went up 36 per cent in the quarter after
The Wizarding World opened in June
Admission to The Wizarding World of
Harry Potter is included in the price
of admission for Universal’s Islands
of Adventure, Orlando, US. Tickets
can be purchased via the Islands of
Adventure website or at the gate.
Ticket prices range from $74 (£47,
56) for a one-day, one-park child’s
ticket to $175 (£111, 132) for a sevenday,
two-park adult ticket. For Florida
residents, tickets start at $61 (£39,
46) for a one-day, one-park child’s
ticket to $105 (£67, 79) for a threeday,
two-park adult’s ticket.
The Hogwarts Castle hangs over the rest
of the park, on the far side of the lake, and
the area is easy to find via signage throughout
the park. Once inside Hogsmeade, the
signage is subtle and cohesive with the
overall design – something that’s not very
typical in a theme park environment.
Although I didn’t get to experience disabled
access through much of the area,
it appeared that it was more than adequate
and met all ADA [Americans with
Disabilities Act] standards. In Harry Potter
and the Forbidden Journey, disabled
access requires guests to miss a large portion
of the queuing area. This is usually a
positive, but in this case, it means that disabled
guests lose a great deal of interactivity
with the characters and props from the
Harry Potter series in the queuing area.
As a frequent visitor to theme parks around
the world, I’ve become pretty jaded about
theme park design. The Wizarding World
of Harry Potter pierced through that from
the moment I entered. Rather than feeling
like a half-hearted attempt at immersion,
the experience makes guests feel as
though they’re actually walking through
Hogsmeade, actually buying wands
in Ollivander’s, and actually traversing
Hogwarts. The attention to detail is unlike
anything I’ve seen in a theme park before.
It feels real and is designed to reward
attentive guests with little extras in third
floor windows and in signage that go well
beyond anything I’ve seen anywhere. It has
raised the bar, and expectations, for worldclass
theme park design.
From the opening view of Hogsmeade,
with the Hogwarts Express framed by
steep, snow-covered rooftops, crooked
chimneys, and Hogwarts Castle looming
behind, the design and its layout immerse
guests in the world of Harry Potter in a way
no other theme park that I’m aware of has
AM 1 2011 ©cybertrek 2011
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