Raffi Kaprelyan, vice president and General Manager of Knott’s Berry Farm said there are plans to keep the trend of revitalizing whole areas of the park going. “It’s great to see it evolve from what it was and gotten better as the years have gone on,” he said.
In this humble former Imagineer’s opinion, the redo of both the Calico Mine Train Ride and Camp Snoopy really turned out great, and I look forward to more out of Knott’s in 2015 and beyond.
I had the privilege of interviewing Bud Hurlbut for the 50th anniversary of the ride, and at the time, even at his age of 90 plus, he was working on plans to revitalize the ride, but it depended at that time on Knott’s funding it. Sadly, Bud died the next year and never got to move those plans forward.
Kaprelyan let a hint out that we could maybe look forward to a new dark ride attraction in the Boardwalk area in 2015.
Workers have been seen clearing out the building that once housed “Knott’s Beary Tales” and “Kingdom of the Dinosaurs.” According to sources that did not want to be identified, it is looking like it will, in all probability, be an interactive shooter attraction similar to “Buzz Lightyear” at Disneyland. But until it is announced, and contracts are finalized, Kaprelyan would not say.
He did say, however, that he has definite plans to revitalize other areas. “I want to keep refurbishing and revitalizing every are of the park. I’ve got some plans for Ghost Town,” he said.
Read the rest at Inside the Magic
Friday, June 13, 2014
Thursday, June 12, 2014
Calico Mine Ride Review: The Return Of A Classic Knott's Berry Farm Ride
Knott’s Berry Farm debuted the newly improved Calico Mine Train this morning and I was thrilled to take a ride. Yee-haw! What an adventure – that little railroad is as sweet as Cordelia Knott’s boysenberry pie. Even with a dramatic renovation that dug deep into the 54-year old mountain, replacing all the ancient works with hidden tech, the enhanced theming department at Knott’s did a tremendous job rebuilding the classic dark ride while keeping the mood intact. Like all good restorations, that work is invisible behind new scenes that feel more alive and authentic than ever. Walter Knott loved the desert ghost town of Calico so much he bought it in the 1950s and made it into a roadside attraction. Back in Buena Park, every robot miner has dramatically come to life, and every color is brighter and more intense. You can finally see all 8000 stalactites and stalagmites and hear their lovely organ song. Steam and explosions and bubbling water engage all the senses. The glory hole has never been more glorious.
Read the rest at LAMagazine
Read the rest at LAMagazine
Knott's Berry Farm honors its history in reopening the refurbished Calico Mine Ride and Camp Snoopy
And that's not all. In his remarks at the reopening of Camp Snoopy, Knott's Vice President and General Manager Raffi Kaprelyan promised "more interactive and cutting-edge fun in 2015" in the park's Boardwalk, the site of three new family rides last year, as well as one underutilized old dark ride building that's just begging for a new attraction. Could that be the site of Kaprelyan's promise?
Read the rest at ThemeParkInsider
Read the rest at ThemeParkInsider
Calico Mine Ride Review: Knott's honors the past with an upgrade of Calico Mine Ride
Knott's Berry Farm has transformed the Calico Mine Ride--an aging classic ride from the early days of the park — into a retro marvel that introduces state-of-the-art technology while paying tribute to the past.
Read the rest at LATimes
Read the rest at LATimes
Knott's Berry Farm prepares to unveil Calico Mine Ride updates
An old man used to hold a wheelbarrow still; now he pushes it back and forth.
A man who once sat motionless atop a log now wipes his brow and drinks from a canteen.
And a man kneeling down swinging his pickaxe into a rock who used to be white is now a Native American.
Those are just three of the changes in just one of the rooms of the Calico Mine Ride at Knott’s Berry Farm. The entire ride has undergone its first comprehensive makeover since opening 54 years ago. The public will be able to see those changes on the ground floor of the Glory Hole, along with the rest of the ride, starting Thursday.
Read the rest at OCRegister
Read the rest at OCRegister
Knott's says "interactive family fun" coming to the Boardwalk in 2015!
Raffi Kaprelyan, general manager of @knotts says "more fun" coming to the Boardwalk in 2015! pic.twitter.com/DYQwVIapfQ
— MiceChat (@MiceChat) June 12, 2014
Raffi just hinted at the dark ride coming in 2015 @knotts!
— Jim Disney (@westcoasternet) June 12, 2014
“Interactive family fun” as they turn their attention back to the Boardwalk @knotts…
— Jim Disney (@westcoasternet) June 12, 2014
Knott's News: This basically confirms the rumors that a new dark ride is going into the old Knott's Bear-y Tales / Kingdom of the Dinosaurs building. Just a reminder, Knott's considers the Roaring 20's area of the park the Boardwalk.
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
RUMOR - Workers cleaning up old KoD building for new dark ride in 2015
Is Knott’s Berry Farm about ready to add a new dark ride to the park? After we’ve seen them restore the Log Ride last year and are about ready to reopen the new Calico Mine Train in a few days, Screamscape is hearing rumors that crews have been spotted performing some clean-up work inside the former home of the Kingdom of the Dinosaurs dark ride building. The location would be perfect for a new dark ride… perhaps Knott’s own version of a Wonder Mountain’s Guardian style interactive dark ride attraction. Stay tuned!
Original source of the rumor Screamscape
Knott's News: This is nothing new, we've been hearing this for a while now and I've even talked about it in an article I wrote HERE. I Just hope it's not the TrioTech dark ride system that Canada's Wonderland received this year (Wonder Mountain's Guardian) going in the old Knott's Bear-y Tales / Kingdom of the Dinosaurs building. I've heard some negative things about that ride; from the worlds largest 3D screen being only 720p (causing blurred vision and eye strain) to the short ride length at around a minute long (add to that the LONG wait caused partially by the horrible ride capacity). IMO the ride scenes need to be rendered at 4K to be comfortable to the eye (especially when soo close to such a large screen), the same resolution as the Spider-Man and Transformers rides (keep in mind that these shows are pre-rendered while the TrioTech ride system has to render it real time due to the interactivity, not an easy task at 4K) but I just feel the tech just isn't there yet. In the end, I say Knott's should stick with a high capacity ride system and preferably physical props and sets. You know I want a re-imagined Bear-y Tales!
Original source of the rumor Screamscape
Knott's News: This is nothing new, we've been hearing this for a while now and I've even talked about it in an article I wrote HERE. I Just hope it's not the TrioTech dark ride system that Canada's Wonderland received this year (Wonder Mountain's Guardian) going in the old Knott's Bear-y Tales / Kingdom of the Dinosaurs building. I've heard some negative things about that ride; from the worlds largest 3D screen being only 720p (causing blurred vision and eye strain) to the short ride length at around a minute long (add to that the LONG wait caused partially by the horrible ride capacity). IMO the ride scenes need to be rendered at 4K to be comfortable to the eye (especially when soo close to such a large screen), the same resolution as the Spider-Man and Transformers rides (keep in mind that these shows are pre-rendered while the TrioTech ride system has to render it real time due to the interactivity, not an easy task at 4K) but I just feel the tech just isn't there yet. In the end, I say Knott's should stick with a high capacity ride system and preferably physical props and sets. You know I want a re-imagined Bear-y Tales!
Monday, June 9, 2014
Sunday, June 8, 2014
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
Knott's Berry Farm attendance up 5% in 2013
Top 20 visited North America Theme Parks in 2013
1. MAGIC KINGDOM at Walt Disney World: 18,588,000 - Up 6%
2. DISNEYLAND: 16,202,000 - Up 1.5%
3. EPCOT: 11,229,000 - Up 1.5%
4. DISNEY'S ANIMAL KINGDOM: 10,198,000 - Up 2%
5. DISNEY'S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS: 10,110,000 - Up 2%
6. DISNEY'S CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE: 8,514,000 - Up 9.5%
7. ISLANDS OF ADVENTURE: 8,141,000 - Up 2%
8. UNIVERSAL STUDIOS at Universal Orlando: 7,062,000 - Up 14%
9. UNIVERSAL STUDIOS HOLLYWOOD: 6,148,000 - Up 4%
10. SEAWORLD FL: 5,090,000 - Down -5%
11. SEAWORLD CA : 4,311,000 - Down -3%
12. BUSCH GARDENS TAMPA: 4,087,000 - Down -6%
13. KNOTT'S BERRY FARM: 3,683,000 - Up 5%
14. CANADA'S WONDERLAND: 3,582,000 - Down -2%
15. CEDAR POINT: 3,382,000 - Up 5%
16. KINGS ISLAND: 3,206,000 - Up 0%
17. HERSHEYPARK: 3,180,000 - Up 1.3%
18. SIX FLAGS MAGIC MOUNTAIN: 2,906,000 - Up 3.5%
19. SIX FLAGS GREAT ADVENTURE: 2,800,000 - Up 5.7%
20. BUSCH GARDENS WILLIAMSBURG: 2,726,000 - Down -4.5%
Read the rest at TEAConnect
Knott's News: For reference, Knott's attendance during previous years:
2013 - 3,683,000
2012- 3,508,000
2011 - 3,654,000
2010 - 3,600,000
2009 - 3,333,000
2008 - 3,565,000
2007 - 3,630,000
2006 - 3,670,000
1. MAGIC KINGDOM at Walt Disney World: 18,588,000 - Up 6%
2. DISNEYLAND: 16,202,000 - Up 1.5%
3. EPCOT: 11,229,000 - Up 1.5%
4. DISNEY'S ANIMAL KINGDOM: 10,198,000 - Up 2%
5. DISNEY'S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS: 10,110,000 - Up 2%
6. DISNEY'S CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE: 8,514,000 - Up 9.5%
7. ISLANDS OF ADVENTURE: 8,141,000 - Up 2%
8. UNIVERSAL STUDIOS at Universal Orlando: 7,062,000 - Up 14%
9. UNIVERSAL STUDIOS HOLLYWOOD: 6,148,000 - Up 4%
10. SEAWORLD FL: 5,090,000 - Down -5%
11. SEAWORLD CA : 4,311,000 - Down -3%
12. BUSCH GARDENS TAMPA: 4,087,000 - Down -6%
13. KNOTT'S BERRY FARM: 3,683,000 - Up 5%
14. CANADA'S WONDERLAND: 3,582,000 - Down -2%
15. CEDAR POINT: 3,382,000 - Up 5%
16. KINGS ISLAND: 3,206,000 - Up 0%
17. HERSHEYPARK: 3,180,000 - Up 1.3%
18. SIX FLAGS MAGIC MOUNTAIN: 2,906,000 - Up 3.5%
19. SIX FLAGS GREAT ADVENTURE: 2,800,000 - Up 5.7%
20. BUSCH GARDENS WILLIAMSBURG: 2,726,000 - Down -4.5%
Read the rest at TEAConnect
Knott's News: For reference, Knott's attendance during previous years:
2013 - 3,683,000
2012- 3,508,000
2011 - 3,654,000
2010 - 3,600,000
2009 - 3,333,000
2008 - 3,565,000
2007 - 3,630,000
2006 - 3,670,000
I hope attendance continues to rise to reassure management on Knott's new direction.
Calico Mine Ride and Camp Snoopy Preview
Be among first to experience a fresh Camp Snoopy and ride its 3 new rides as well as the fully restored Mine Ride. Camp Snoopy will open at 7:30am to Season Passholders on Thursday, June 12th. Then at 9:15am the fully restored Mine Ride will open to unveil its new décor, figures, and more. Last year’s fully restored classic the Timber Mountain Log Ride will also open at 9:15am that morning for your enjoyment. A valid 2014 Knott’s Berry Farm Regular, Gold, or Platinum Season Pass is required for entry.
Monday, June 2, 2014
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