As a frequent visitor to the US I should be used to their propensity to supersize everything but each time I visit I am always shocked at the contrasts with the UK. I thought that with all the publicity about obesity and the cost of fuel, the food portions may have shrunk a little and people would be driving smaller cars but last year when I visited Cedar Point and Six Flags Magic Mountain nothing seemed to have changed. Continue reading
Valhalla represented a huge investment for Blackpool Pleasure Beach and was a commendably ambitious foray into new territory. The ride is a combination of water ride and dark ride which mixes drops, water effects and lighting and temperature changes to provide an intense all round sensory experience which has made the ride an absolute triumph. The Viking theming is the perfect complement to a dramatic water ride. Valhalla look enticing before you even enter the station. Continue reading
An oldie driving the train!
When I worked at a British theme park I was unusual amongst my colleagues because I was in my late 40’s. Most of my fellow workers were much younger and I often wondered if this was a good thing. Having visited Europa Park in Germany where the operation of the rides appears to run much more smoothly I was interested to note that many of the workers there were much older than those in the UK. Europa Park can attract mature workers so what is happening at parks in the UK and is it better to have an older workforce?
Seasonal
I think the main obstacle to attracting older workers to British parks is the seasonal nature of the employment. Mature people generally have financial responsibilities and need to work year round but with so many people either unemployed or retired there surely has to be a good number who would appreciate the job. I simply don’t think that the positions are marketed well to the older generations who may not have considered giving theme parks a try. Perhaps advertising the vacancies in a different way would result in more mature applicants.
The Environment
I know that when I applied for a position at a park I did so wondering if I would fit in as I was aware that most of the workers were young. I went ahead anyway and I shouldn’t have worried because the youngsters accepted me immediately and it transpired that the other older employees at the park were amongst the most popular people there. Indeed probably the most celebrated and loved person in the workforce where I worked was one of the oldest.
Older people may feel that that they would not enjoy the environment at a theme park but they would almost certainly be wrong. It is great fun, highly social, you get to meet lots of people and the exercise is good too!
Suitability
I guess the burning question would be are older people effective workers at theme parks? After all there can be a lot of new skills to learn and information to take in and some of the jobs are pretty active with it. Older people are thought to learn new skills more slowly than the young and to have memory issues. There are a lot of tests to pass to work on rides so were this true it could be a stumbling block. In truth there is nothing that complex to get to grips with and I am pleased to see that recent research in Germany has revealed that the older generations memories are not as impaired as previously thought. Indeed the research showed that mature workers they are often more effective employees in repetitive tasks as they are more motivated to do well and do not suffer from over confidence.
Older workers also bring life experience to the job often making them better at handling difficult situations and dealing with guests and in my experience they are better at simply being responsible. In an environment where health and safety is crucial this is very important.
The German research did support the notion that older people pick things up a little more slowly but I don’t think this really matters in the context of the parks. I certainly learnt how to operate a roller coaster much more quickly than I have been able to get to grips with skiing and horse riding in my recent attempts to learn new skills! Whilst I have frequently been on the point of throwing out my riding gear and disposing of my skis, I never struggled with thrill rides.
Conclusions
I think it would be better all-round if more mature people worked in theme parks. There would more responsible behaviour and the rides would be run with greater efficiency. The older generations have a lot of skills and knowledge which would be very valuable in a theme park environment and so it is a shame to see so few applying for the jobs.
Byline
Article by Sally Stacey
I have always been an enormous fan of Europa Park which possesses a winning combination of great rides, extreme efficiency and brilliant food. My trips to Europa Park have been so enjoyable that I have always been left wondering why I can’t find the features I so admire elsewhere. Most parks have dreadful food, British parks seem incapable of keeping their rides running and most curiously nobody seemed to have picked up on Blue Fire as act of brilliance. Nobody until now that is because Blue Fire technology is coming to Sweden!
Blue Fire
Blue Fire is an exceptional roller coaster and quite different from any other ride. A decent launch is followed by a fun and thrilling circuit packed with twists, turns and inversions which makes you grin with pleasure until you are back in the station. There are no shoulder restraints and so guests have a great feeling of freedom and are not assaulted in the head. The ride has a fabulous throughput which keeps the queue moving along nicely, a great boon in a busy park and Blue Fire’s greatest asset is the smoothness of the ride experience which is second to none. Blue Fire is so smooth and therefore so quiet that it is surely a ride system which is ideal for parks with concerns about disturbing the neighbours and yet unlike so many other coaster models this one has not been taken up with enthusiasm.
New Coaster
Whilst B & M’s wingriders are all the rage without any real justification in my personal experience, the potential of Blue Fire has been overlooked until now. A longer and more dramatic coaster with Blue Fire technology is being built at Liseberg in Sweden and this is enough to get me planning trip! I had not considered an expedition to Sweden before, at least not to visit a theme park, but the new coaster, currently dubbed Project Helix, looks fabulous. Project Helix will offer 2 minutes of ride time on a 4500 ft track and there will be two launches on the circuit. With the smoothness of Blue Fire thrown in this one is sure to be winner and I want to give it a go.
Sweden
Liseberg were concerned about noise pollution from a new ride and this fact heavily influenced their decision to go with Mack for their latest attraction. This is a ride that is sure to run smoothly with Mack technology and Scandinavian efficiency. The Scandinavians don’t appear to be able to do anything wrong these days. The clean lines and functionality of their furniture and homewares has taken the world by storm and I now suspect that I may have missed a trick in not sampling the theme park offering.
Sweden will almost certainly be a place where I can visit a park which will be clean, attractive and which runs its rides efficiently. There is a fair chance that I will like the food too and so it is time to plan a trip. The new ride opens Spring 2014 which sounds as good a time as any for a Scandinavian adventure.
Byline
Article by Sally Stacey
If you are going to spend an entire day at a theme park then it can be difficult to take everything you need in your pockets but carrying a bag can be a total pain. Unless you are at a Disney Park where they don’t appear to care what you take onto the rides with you then your bag is going to have to go somewhere whilst you experience an attraction. Parks have adopted various solutions to the bag issue but not all of them work too well. Continue reading
Whilst theme parks are generally pretty safe places to be they can be hazardous for small children and sadly most of the threats to young visitors arise from the behaviour of their parents. Whilst working at a park I saw some of the most ridiculous and irresponsible behaviour from many adults who clearly had no concept of dangerous the environment could be. I never witnessed a disaster but on several occasions it was a close run thing! Continue reading
The retail offering at UK theme parks never ceases to amaze me. I am always looking for a decent souvenir of my visit but usually find a huge array of plastic junk and silly toys that have little or nothing to do with the park. Whilst guests don’t visit theme parks to go shopping most end up wandering around the stores at some point but you rarely see people leaving the parks with bags full of merchandise. It is a very different story at the Disney parks overseas where almost everyone leaves weighed down under the enormity of their purchases. With a great deal of money to be made why don’t the British parks make more of an effort? Continue reading
A theme park is obviously a fun environment with an upbeat atmosphere where you get to be part of a team and so some of the attractions of the job are obvious. There are other perks to be considered if you are considering applying for a job on the rides but several downsides too which should not be overlooked. Continue reading
Giving advice about what to wear for a day out at a theme park might seem a little curious but having worked at a park for several years I can tell you that clothing is a major consideration. Guests who dress inappropriately can run into trouble and the problems do not stop at being uncomfortable. The wrong attire can result in being denied access to a ride and can cause operational and safety issues too so here are some tips on how to dress for a successful day out. Continue reading
Paultons Park is situated near Romsey in Hampshire and is easily accessed from the M27. Sitting on the edge of the New Forest, the park is a popular attraction amongst families holidaying in the area and is worthy of a visit if you have children to entertain. Paultons is not a great destination for adult only groups, however, as almost all of the rides and attractions are aimed at the under 12’s. Continue reading