SEPTEMBER 2019 NEWSLETTER

We are delighted to present our September Newsletter, rounding up the exciting happenings in the last month. We are delighted to welcome Saudi's giga-project QIDDIYA to the MENALAC family, share MENA industry blockbuster news and news from across the globe, celebrate our member achievements & milestones and wrap up with some exciting trends & tips for the leisure, entertainment & attractions industry.

MENALAC WELCOMES QIDDIYA

Qiddiya - Saudi Arabia’s pre-eminent entertainment, sports and cultural destination joins MENALAC. The giga-project is poised to become the place to live, work and play, a prominent landmark and an important hub to meet and satisfy the recreational, social and cultural needs of the kingdom’s current and future generations. The Saudi Leisure & Entertainment Industry is a huge player in the MENA Leisure & Entertainment Industry, growing at a rapid pace. Qiddiya will be at the forefront of that growth.

MENA INDUSTRY BLOCKBUSTER NEWS

Saudi opens its doors to the World with Visas on Arrival and relaxed dress codes

The world's largest underwater theme park opens in Bahrain

New Six Flags Qiddiya theme park will be its largest yet

GEA: Entertainment infrastructure in Saudi to reach $64bn in next decade

WOW NEWS FROM ACROSS THE GLOBE

Legoland California brings Lego Movie World to life with new themed land in 2020

The American Dream Epicenter to be a Massive All-in-1 Theme Park, Water Park & a Mall

Pulau Brani to house Downtown South resort and attractions similar to Sentosa

Boogie Board Racer, the longest mat racing slide in the South east, debuts at Carowinds, USA

World’s first escape room on a jet plane flies into London for three months before it moves on

Beijing amusement park offers immersive travel experience of "flying all over the world"

MEMBER ACHIEVEMENTS & MILESTONES

Landmark Leisure launches Tridom, claimed to be India’s largest amusement facility in Hyderabad. Citymax Hotels India, part of the Landmark Group, which is into leisure and amusement business, has launched Tridom covering 70,000 sq ft of space featuring indoor rides and interactive games. The facility also features India’s first Paradrop virtual reality 

Majid Al Futtaims' VOX Cinemas collaborates with The Kempinski Hotel at MOE to offers a luxury movie experience with private screenings & five-star food. Majid Al Futtaim’s newest collaboration between Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates and VOX Cinemas offers a luxury movie experience with private screenings and five-star food, f or the ultimate cinema experience.

Emaar Entertainment to soon add the UAE's first high-end indoor e-karting experience EKART ZABEEL to The Dubai Mall. Emaar Entertainment will soon launch EKart Zabeel, the UAE’s first high-end indoor e-karting experience at Dubai Mall. With a challenging course & latest generation of electric go-karts, EKart Zabeel will provide the ultimate e-karting experience. 

Emaar Entertainment's Reel Cinemas opens second phase of Al Ghurair Centre megaplex in Dubai Reel Cinemas, the cinema experience by Emaar Entertainment, has announced the completion of the megaplex at Al Ghurair Centre. The second phase of opening has been completed with 18-screens including Reel Cinemas’ flagship experiences - Standard, Platinum Movie Suites, Reel Junior & Dolby Cinema.

Legoland Dubai launches a new 4D movie Pursuit where kids can catch criminals LEGOLAND Dubai launches a new 4D movie where little thrill-seekers and their parents become part of the action in the new LEGO City 4D-Officer in Pursuit movie, which follows LEGO City Police Officers as they try to get their hands on a mischievous criminal. 

Warner Bros, Abu Dhabi secures the Guinness World Record for for the largest gathering of people wearing capes in the world. Aiming to celebrate The Dark Knight’s anniversary in style the Yas Island theme park asked fans to gather in the park’s town square to set a record for the largest gathering of people wearing capes in the world. And they did, creating the record.

Cheeky Monkeys wins Timeout Kids Awards 2019 in the Best Soft Play Area Category. In a short span of time Cheeky Monkeys has become a multi-award-winning center, crediting their success to conducting numerous surveys, listening to their customer base and acting on advice from clever mommies - and constantly working to perfect their offerings 

Walltopia builds the world’s largest artificial cave attraction Green Box in Beijing, China. Well known for its climbing walls and ropes courses, Walltopia is now supplying an adventure attraction of a different kind: artificial caves. The 330 square-meter installation boasts 250 meters of tunnels. Spread over six tunnels are 26 different routes.

WhiteWater wins multiple European Star Awards, including two for Europe’s Best Family Water Slides (2019) and one for Europe’s Best Thrill Water Slides. WhiteWater has had a successful run at the European Star Awards, an annual celebration conducted by the trade magazine Kirmes & Park Revue, to showcase new ideas and innovative thinking within the European attractions industry.

Rainbow Productions showcases its new services and the Pierrot Bear body puppet at IAAPA Rainbow Productions, a leading mascot manufacturer and character events company, showcased new services at IAAPA Expo Europe. To meet the rising demand for puppets , Rainbow Productions has created innovative designs both with and without technological requirements. 

EMBED & Booking introduce powerful Cashless Business Solutions at IAAPA Paris and TAAPE 2019 Award-winning ticketing and booking management platform Booking Boss s howcased at IAAPA a web-based solution that allows businesses to manage ticketing & bookings centrally, improves guest experience by streamlining the process & reducing queues, and generates more sales and profits. 

TRENDS, TIPS & UPDATES

How Cinemark Theaters leaned in to digital transformation to reinvent movie-goer's experience

Will Reliance Jio’s First-Day-First-Show offering disrupt the cinema hall business?

A New Trends Update as Disney reveals about its parks, cruise lines and resorts at D23 Expo

WhiteWater's Splash Factor Report highlights emerging trends in waterrides

How to build an immersive new world, the Disney way - An Article by Robert Niles

Sony and Yamaha partner on self-driving cart for theme parks and attractions

A Summer Recap of the biggest new rides and stories that debuted this summer in the US

Secret Cinema Presents Casino Royale, its immersive movie experience in Shanghai in Nov.

The Pirates Experience - a fully-immersive day & night adventure attraction to launch in 2020.

How Technology can bring your brand story to life. Everyone loves a good story

An insight into Trampoline Park demographics: what the data tells us

Dining with a twist! Restaurant delivers meals through loops, twists & spirals

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