This article
originally appeared in the March issue of AGENTatHOME magazine. Subscribe
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There are
theme-park people — and there are not-so-theme-park people. But what often
makes someone think they won’t like theme parks is apprehension about fast
roller coasters or dizzying spin rides. Lucky for them, today’s parks offer
much more than that; many parkgoers can have a fun-filled time without ever
stepping into a thrill ride queue.
Older clients may
remember wild carnival-style rides at seaside amusement parks in the 1950s and
’60s. However, Walt Disney’s original idea for Disneyland in Anaheim,
California, was a place where adults and kids could spend time together — and
when his park opened in 1955, there wasn’t a single thrill ride.
Seventy-plus years
later, 13 of Disneyland’s charming opening-day attractions are still going
strong, including the Disneyland Railroad, King Arthur Carrousel and Storybook
Land Canal Boats. Guests sidestepping thrills can also cruise down Main Street,
U.S.A. in turn-of-the-century-era vehicles, fly to Neverland on Peter Pan’s
Flight and sail around the globe on It’s A Small World. In Disney California
Adventure Park, clients can learn to draw their favorite Disney characters at
Animation Academy and meander the shady paths of the Redwood Creek Challenge
Trail.
It’s also easy to
swap E-Ticket attractions at Orlando’s Walt Disney World for the toe-tappin’
Country Bear Musical Jamboree show or the pun-filled Jungle Cruise in Magic
Kingdom, the educational Living with the Land boat ride in Epcot, the Wildlife
Animal Express train in Animal Kingdom or several musical stage shows, as well
as the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular in Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
And, while Universal parks are known for exciting coasters and screen-based
motion-simulator rides, clients can also spend hours perusing magical merch and
casting spells in shop windows in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
When Mark
Woodbury, chairman and CEO of Universal Destinations & Experiences,
announced Universal’s newest addition to the lineup, Universal Epic Universe,
he said the company was "putting the ‘park’ back into theme park" —
and it did. Celestial Park in Epic Universe features shade trees, fountains,
gardens and the beautiful zodiac-themed Constellation Carousel. The park’s four
highly themed worlds offer immersive experiences with no fear of motion
sickness, including innovative stage shows based on the How to Train Your
Dragon and Fantastic Beasts film franchises, along with engaging character
interactions across the entire park.
So, although
families may be made up of both theme-park people and non-theme-park people,
everyone in the gang can happily spend quality time together at a theme park
these days.
And that’s just
the way Walt would have wanted it.
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