Amusement Today has announced the winners of its 14th annual Golden Ticket Awards, presented to amusement parks from around the world for being tops in 25 different categories from best park and best new ride to the friendliest and cleanest parks.

Golden Ticket Awards

The winners of the Golden Ticket Awards were selected based on a survey of amusement-park fans from around the world, conducted by Amusement Today.

Once again, the Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, was named the best park with 23 percent of the vote.

Disneyland was in fifth place with 7 percent, and Universal’s Island of Adventure was just behind Disneyland with 6.5 percent.

Cedar Point’s Millennium Force rollercoaster was also named as the “Best Steel Roller Coaster” for the second consecutive year.

To cap it off, Richard “Dick” Kinzel, CEO of Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, was named by Amusement Today as the first living “Legend, 2011″ as part of the magazine’s Publisher’s Pick Awards.

“This is a very special day for us,” said John Hildebrandt, vice president and general manager of Cedar Point. “Not only is our park and our rollercoaster named as the best in the world, but Dick Kinzel, who has been a mentor and trusted friend to many of us in the industry, has been recognized for his many achievements.”

Six Flags Over Texas earned the best new ride award for 2011 with 45 percent of the vote going to its New Texas Giant wooden and steel beast that opened in April, boasting the steepest drop of any wooden coaster in the world at 79 degrees and three bank turns at more than 90 degrees.

“The original Texas Giant led the pack for many years and enjoyed a strong allegiance among coaster enthusiasts. Our goal was to merge that legacy with 21st century technology in the form of the Iron Horse steel track design,” said Steve Martindale, Six Flags Over Texas park president.

Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels, Texas, was named the best waterpark. Idlewild & SoakZone in Ligonier, Pennsylvania, was named the best children’s park, and the Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg, Pennsylvania, apparently offers the best food among all amusement parks in the world.

SeaWorld Orlando was named best marine life park, while Epcot was named as the best outdoor show production. Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey at Universal’s Islands of Adventure was named as the best “Dark Ride” of 2011. Revenge of the Mummy at Universal Studios Orlando was named as the best indoor coaster.

Universal Orlando Resort also was recognized as offering the best Halloween event, while the best Christmas event award went to Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.

To see the full list of all 2011 Golden Ticket Awards winners, visit goldenticketawards.com.

Photo – Amusement Today

Related posts:
Cedar Fair Investors Nix $2.4b Sale to Apollo
Top 10 Water Parks in the U.S., per TripAdvisor

Game Nation, an experiential video game theme park and resort, has chosen Florida as the location for its proposed park, based on the results of votes cast by the company’s fans on Facebook.

Game Nation

“We’re creating Game Nation for our fans and want to listen to their voices whenever possible,” said Daniel T. Ruke, founder and creator of Game Nation, in a statement. ”The vote for a location was the perfect opportunity to let our fans be heard. After all, this is their park.”

In the Facebook poll, Florida got 79 votes, with Georgia a distant second with 16 votes and Louisiana in third place with two votes.

It’s early days yet for Game Nation, and the park and resort are far from reality. But if it does pan out as planned, it will mean an investment of millions of dollars for Florida as the park is built—not to mention hundreds of new jobs and a boost to the local economy, all because 79 people voted for the state on Facebook.

Game Nation will combine video game mechanics with physical themed attractions. Visitors entering the park become players and are guided to the armory to select a weapon. The choices include machine guns, ninja swords and double-fisted handguns.

The role-playing game is a war zone set in the “Alternet” where players can choose to become a spy, modern warrior or one’s favorite superstar.

“The Alternet will allow you to live your ultimate cyber punk fantasy,” said Ruke. “Game Nation is fueled by the passion of gamers to create a totally immersive experience, that seamlessly blends both digital and real worlds.”

Game Nation also recently announced that video-game company Atari is interested in having some of its classic games, like Centipede and Asteroids, made into fully interactive rides and attractions at the Game Nation park.

Naturally, Game Nation ran a Facebook poll asking fans what Atari games they wanted to see in the park. Space Invaders topped the responses with 22 votes, followed by Gauntlet and Centipede. If you happen to visit the Game Nation park in Florida a couple of years down the line and see a giant Centipede game, it’ll could be because 10 people voted for it on Facebook.

Photo – Game Nation

More info: http://www.demandgamenation.com/; Facebook

Related posts:
Cinecitta World – Rome’s $800m Ben-Hur Style Movie Theme Park
Legoland Planning New Theme Park in Florida

Families and other travelers planning to make one last summer splash to beat the heat before the end of summer can now look to TripAdvisor’s 2011 list of the top 10 water parks in the United States before selecting their aquatic destination.

The Midwest has long been a champion of the mega water park, perhaps to make up for the lack of an ocean coastline, and this year has three parks on TripAdvisor’s list, including the top spot. The others range from New England to Williamsburg to Texas. None of the water parks on the West Coast made the list.

1. Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari, Santa Claus, Indiana
With high marks for cleanliness and organization, this combined water and theme park includes “Wildebeest,” the world’s longest water coaster, and “ZOOMbabwe,” the world’s largest enclosed waterslide at nearly 900 feet long. Admission includes soft drinks and sunscreen: $42.95 for adults, $32.95 for guests less than 54 inches tall and seniors.

2. Typhoon Lagoon, Orlando, Florida
This Sunshine State water park offers body slides, inner tubing, surf lessons and more. Travelers can raft the 2,000-foot long waters of “Castaway Creek” and snorkel with sharks, stingrays and tropical fish at “Shark Reef.” Admission: $52.29 for adults, $43.67 for children ages 3 to 9.

3. Noah’s Ark Water Park, Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin
The largest water park in the United States features 49 rides, two wave pools, two endless rivers and four children’s water play areas. Attractions include “Scorpion’s Tail,” the first near-vertical looping waterslide in the United States, and a 4-D “Dive-In” theater. Admission: $35.99 for adults, $28.79 for children and seniors.

4. Morey’s Piers, Wildwood, New Jersey
Travelers have two water parks to explore here: Ocean Oasis Waterpark and Beach Club, with its “Cliff Dive” speed slide, and Raging Waters Waterpark, with “Sky Pond Journey” and its slide complex of four elevated splash pools. Admission: $36 for adults, $28 for guests less than 54 inches tall, free for seniors.

5. Kahuna Laguna, North Conway, New Hampshire
Located in the middle of the mountains at the Red Jacket Mountain View Resort, northern New England’s first indoor water park has four high-speed tubes, a swirling wave pool and a water basketball court—where travelers can “dunk” to their hearts’ content. Admission: $40 for adults and children.

6. Water Country USA, Williamsburg, Virginia
Virginia’s largest water park has more than 30 water rides and attractions, including the darkened tunnels of “Aquazoid,” with speeds of 20 feet per second, and “Big Daddy Falls,” which boasts 700 feet of flumes and tunnels. TripAdvisor users also give nods to its selection of healthy foods. Admission: $46.99 for guests ages 10 and up, $39.99 for ages 3 to 9, free for children under 3 years of age.

7. NRH20 Waterpark, North Richland Hills, Texas
Travelers can ride the “Green Extreme,” a seven-story tall waterslide, or plunge head first down the four-lane “Accelerator.” Admission: $23.99 for guests at least 48 inches tall, $19.99 for those less than that height, free for children under 2 years of age.

8. Adventureland, Des Moines, Iowa
This 180-acre resort has both an amusement and water park with four intertube slides on the “Bermuda Quadrangle,” and more than 100 water features on the seven-slide “Kokomo Kove.” Admission: $35 for guests ages 10 and older, $30 for ages 4 to 9 and seniors.

9. Aquatica, Orlando, Florida
SeaWorld’s water park, Aquatica, has the “Dolphin Plunge” submerged tube slide and the lazy river ride, “Loggerhead Lane.” Admission: $47.99 for adults, $41.99 for children ages 3 to 9.

10. Wild Water & Wheels, Surfside Beach, South Carolina
Located just south of Myrtle Beach, Wild Water & Wheels has 24 slides—from the “White Water Express” to the enclosed depths of “The Dark Hole.” Admission: $29.25 for guests at least 48 inches tall, $18.40 for those less than that height and for those 55 and older, free of charge for children under 2 years of age.

Image: TripAdivsor

Related posts:
TripAdvisor’s 2011 World’s Best Destinations List
Top Family Vacations for 2011 Announced by TripAdvisor

A study commissioned by Walt Disney Parks and Resorts shows a staggering $18.2 billion in annual economic activity generated by the company in Florida alone, which amounts to 2.5 percent of the state’s entire gross domestic product.

Walt Disney World Resort entrance

Highlights from the study, conducted by Arduin, Laffer & Moore Econometrics:

Jobs: Disney directly employs 62,000 “cast members” and pays them $1.8 billion (FY 2009 compensation).

The total number of jobs statewide that lead back to Disney directly or indirectly is pegged at 160,000, or one out of every 50 jobs in Florida with compensation amounting to $6 billion.

Six percent of all jobs in Central Florida can be attributed to Disney’s operations.

Purchasing Power: Disney buys more than $2 billion worth of goods and services. Of this, nearly $1 billion goes to Florida-based vendors, half of half of which are in Central Florida.

Spending by Guests: Spending by Disney guests outside its resort area totals around $1.7 billion, including spend for hotels and lodging, meals at local restaurants, retail purchases and transportation.

Taxes: Even after factoring in the cost of the government services used by Disney’s facilities, staff and guests, the net benefit to Florida from Disney’s operations exceeds $400 million. Orange County alone gets a net benefit of more than $100 million.

These figures are the official results, as per a statement put out by Disney.  There’s no denying the outsize influence that Disney operations have on Central Florida’s economy. But why was this study commissioned and the findings published by Disney at this particular moment?

One of the reasons could be because Disney is involved in a high-stakes lobbying match with Florida’s vacation rental industry.

The Florida legislature is considering vacation-rental legislation (HB 883) that was originally supposed to remove many of the regulations and restrictions which prevent residential properties from being rented out for a period of less than six months, including in Disney’s Orange County home-base.

The fight was fair and square between the associations representing Florida’s 20,000 vacation rental home owners and Walt Disney World Resort, with its 25,000 hotel rooms, time-share units and the 2000-room Art of Animation Resort, which is scheduled to open in 2012 with 1,120 large and affordable family suites.

To make a long story short, Disney won the lobbying battle, and the bill was amended so that existing restrictions on vacation rentals will remain in place. Disney will no doubt have used the study results above to remind Florida’s legislators what would happen if the vacation rentals took a bite out of Disney’s hotel and lodging business.

Photo – Jrobertiko

Related posts:
Even Disney Can’t Find Magic Mix of Vacation Packages
Vacation Rental Business Improving in 2011
Florida’s Billionare Amendments
VisitFlorida Reorganization Threatens Tourism Marketing