Final safety checks underway ahead of soft opening of Universal Studios
By Hoe Yeen Nie | Posted: 16 March 2010 1850 hrs
SINGAPORE : Final safety checks are underway as Universal Studios
Singapore gets ready for its soft opening on Thursday.
After months of waiting, the public will finally be able to go on the
rides.
The Universal Studios theme park includes existing crowd pleasers like
its Water World show. Members of the public can also check out the
attraction based on the animation film Madagascar, the only one in the
world
18 of the 24 attractions planned for the park are either newly created
or adapted for the Singapore park.
No theme park would be without a rollercoaster, and the Battlestar
Galactica trumps them all. It is Asia's first duelling rollercoaster,
and the world's tallest too.
At several points, riders on the two rollercoasters whizz by one another
with just inches to spare. It is certainly not for the faint-hearted!
When MediaCorp journalists visited the studio on Tuesday, some rides
were closed briefly due to technical and safety glitches. The park said
this could happen from time to time, lasting anywhere between a few
minutes and a few hours. But it expects the rides to be fully
operational come opening day.
John Hallenbeck, director of Operations, Universal Studios Singapore,
said: "We've been testing attractions for months, and that's just part
of the process. And it's not just the testing phase, but every day every
attraction gets looked at - not only from a technical or mechanical
standpoint, but also from an operational standpoint.
"As far as the processes that we have (are concerned), checklist,
everything gets put together to ensure that we're 100 per cent safe.
There are times when attractions will have technical difficulties -
that's just the nature of theme parks and Universal Studios Singapore
won't be an exception on that."
Robin Goh, assistant director for Communications at Resorts World
Sentosa, said attractions may be closed to make "creative adjustments".
"For example, we have to make sure that the dinosaurs, for example, at
Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure pop out at a certain time. We expect the
park to be fully operational and fully running by Thursday."
Tour agents said packages to the theme park are selling fast. And
observers believe spinoffs to Singapore's tourism sector will be
considerable.
Travel agent Eric Seetoh said: "Usually tourists to Singapore, they
would only stay two to three days. But nowadays, I notice that because
of the theme park, they're willing to stay in Singapore for more than
four days or even five days."
About 4.5 million visitors are expected to the park each year.
- CNA/al
my sister went last weekend and had a lot of fun.
They only have 1 coaster in the entire park!?
Originally posted by sand king:They only have 1 coaster in the entire park!?
got 2 roller coaster .haha
one in the egypt zone
the other is the one mentioned
Originally posted by BEARZAIS:got 2 roller coaster .haha
one in the egypt zone
the other is the one mentioned
Well, I haven't been to a theme park before... but isn't 2 coaster not enough???
what i know is that quees are expected to be long, maybe up to 2 hours........
personally i cant comment much la..but nah the theme parks tat i had been to
such as lotte world korea, have 5 i think.....
70% of merchandise at Universal Studios theme park exclusive to S'pore
By Hoe Yeen Nie | Posted: 17 March 2010 2002 hrs
SINGAPORE: Southeast Asia's first Universal Studios theme park
opens to the public on Thursday. Many of the rides are making their
world debut.
At Universal Studios Singapore, it's all about the movie experience. You
can take a picture with your favourite star or take home your very own
Oscar.
With over 6,000 products to choose from, visitors are spoilt for choice.
Said one man in the street: "There are tee-shirts, mugs and just so much
that I want to come back again!"
70 percent of the items for sale can only be found in the Singapore
theme park such as the Betty Boop pins with the Chinese Zodiac or a
clapperboard photo-frame.
Resorts World Sentosa said only the Singapore theme park has the full
range of the clapperboard merchandise.
There are 30 food outlets in the theme park alone, serving burgers and
fries along with briyanis and chicken rice.
Noel Hawkes, vice-president, Resort Operations, Resorts World Sentosa,
said: "We've got our very own nasi lemak, beef rending and chicken rice.
We also have beef burgers, milkshakes and our Mel's Diners and all
that. We're catering to just about anybody.
“Many of these restaurants are in fact Halal because we recognise the
importance of looking after our Muslim guests who dominate this region.
Let's face it, Indonesia and Malaysia are at our doorstep and we expect
those markets to become very important to the success of Universal
Studios in Singapore."
There are six Halal food outlets in the theme park.
The theme park also expects tourists from the Middle East to take up a
growing slice of the tourism pie. - CNA/vm
Same-day tickets for Universal Studios on sale from Monday
By Wang Eng Eng | Posted: 21 March 2010 0027 hrs
SINGAPORE : Starting Monday, Universal Studios Singapore will
release tickets that can be bought on the day itself.
Tickets that were sold since the theme park opened on March 18 had to be
purchased at least a day in advance.
But for 600 underprivileged children visited the park on Saturday, they
were invited to join in the fun for free.
The children from various charities such as Mendaki and the Children's
Cancer Foundation arrived early for their one-day visit to Universal
Studios Singapore.
They started their visit by watching a performance at the theatre and
they also took part in quizzes.
Ivan Wong from Make-A-Wish Foundation was of the children.
He said: "I took pictures with Kung Fu Panda. Later I am going to take
roller coasters."
Despite the rain, the number one attraction at the park was Battlestar
Galactica.
Universal Studios Singapore has welcomed thousands of visitors since it
opened. And there are plans to admit more.
Robin Goh, assistant director, Communications, Resorts World Sentosa,
said: "Considering this is only the soft opening phase, and we are only
third day into our operations, we have limited the number of tickets
that are available, which accounts for the park not looking as crowded
as it is.
"However, it will be ramped up as we ease in the operations, the rides,
and the retail and F&B as well. "
Resorts World Sentosa is looking into the possibility of extending the
theme park's opening hours on weekends.
Its opening hours are from 9am to 6pm daily. - CNA/ms