Theme parks: Vortex ride opens in Sea World’s $50 million New Atlantis precinct
Buckle up thrillseekers – the Gold Coast’s newest theme park ride opens today in the first stage of a $50 million new precinct of attractions.
Gold Coast
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MORE than two years of work will pay off on Monday when thrillseekers have their first go on Sea World’s newest ride, the Vortex.
The attraction, the first piece of the park’s $50 million New Atlantis precinct, will open to the public after a COVID-induced delay.
It won’t just be the public getting to try out the giant Wipeout-style contraption, Sea World’s own staff have been anxious to try it themselves, with test dummies first put through the 5G forces generated on the 18m tall pendulum ride.
Village Roadshow Theme Parks CEO Clark Kirby said the ride would give the tourism industry a major boost.
“We are incredibly excited to officially open the Vortex ride at Sea World, and we can’t wait to welcome our guests to experience this thrilling attraction,” he said.
“While on the ride, guests will tumble and whirl through the air as they experience pendulum movements and circular rotations all while taking in the spectacular views of the park.”
The new Atlantis was announced in mid-2019 and construction of the Leviathan wooden roller coaster and the Trident, is well underway, with both due to open in June 2021.
The $20m Leviathan will be the first new wooden roller coaster built in Australia and is already rising to be part of the city’s skyline.
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The first major peak of the attraction can already been seen soaring above the theme park itself, with construction only just passing the 25 per cent mark.
The Trident, first announced in mid-2019, will soar 42m off the ground, spinning guests at 38km/h.
Village Roadshow chief operating officer Bikash Randhawa said the opening had been years in the making.
“This is the culmination of more than two years of planning and work and we are certainly hoping for big numbers (of guests) coming through,” he said.
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“Our team has done a lot of technical training for this and (the Vortex) is spectacular to see in action.
“The level of sophistication which comes with it is phenomenal.”
Mr Randhawa said the ride offered thrillseekers a dramatically different experience to other attractions.
“It has three different speeds and it is a really immersive experience because once you are elevated there is water all around you,” Mr Randhawa said.
Village Roadshow bosses said they were hoping for big crowd numbers through the Christmas and New Year period despite the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak limiting visitors from the Greater Sydney region.
“We are looking closely at the Sydney situation, but right now it is what it is and we just hope people do the right thing,” he said.
“I really feel for everyone given everything which has happened this year, from floods, to bushfires to COVID and now this, so I hope we can put it behind us.”
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