Please do - I wondered about those, as I saw 4-6 of them behind Eiffel Tower and only saw people in one of them, was wondering if there would be many takers since they were $299 each...
Winterfest
- Thread starter jornor
- Start date
Please do - I wondered about those, as I saw 4-6 of them behind Eiffel Tower and only saw people in one of them, was wondering if there would be many takers since they were $299 each...
I'm 99% sure you're are wrong here.
If you look closely, they have anchor points for additional strands all around the back of the tower. Additionally, they installed one of the green truss structures over the back path behind the tower just as they did on the three other paths. The sole purpose of these structures is to allow there to be anchor points for the tower lights over the pathways.
I honestly don't think it looks bad without the back 1/4 of the tower covered, but I also am confident that they ran out of something (presumably time) which made the back quarter of the lights fall by the wayside.
Last edited by a moderator:
When I was standing in the queue I didn't hear the normal announcement on prohibiting recording as I normally hear during Haunt, so I took out the phone and recorded the trip, see below. You're right, the lights were nice but music definitely would have helped. I don't know how viable it would be to put audio into each car, as external speakers along the path would have to be pretty loud to be heard over the engine noise on the cars.
That reminds me that back in the day, when you did the lights on the boardwalk at VA Beach, they would give you a cassette to play in the car.
Cassettes are clearly the answer.
Cassettes are clearly the answer.
I think the merch was spot on. We were also suprised at the variety and quality. I despise the cheap plastic molded ornaments that most parks use, the ball ornaments were simple, classy and had the year. Even the clothing with the WF logo was tasteful. I did like the fact they cleared all the shops of regular merch and put in all Christmas items.
As far as the cookies, we got a peek inside before it opened to see how it looked and then went back later to see what the cookies looked like. We commented on how huge they were. I agree it looked messy and having either smaller cookies or large plates or cookie sized cookie sheets would make a huge diffrence. I did like the fact they allowed a group effort for one price and not charging a family or 3 the cost three times.
I understood that the carriage rides all along would go through Candy Apple Grove, the pick up point was to be Safari Village entrance but that looked like a huge bottleneck last night, maybe thats why they moved it.
We joked too about the cars needing music and 3/4 way through I started to pull up the music on my phone.On the car audio is not feasable with the diffrent speeds of the cars and starting and stopping variations...at least not cost wise. I think the simpliest way would be to have each "day" looping that section of the song on a speaker, very easily done.
For the tree origional plans had stars on 3 sides too from renderings but those didnt make the final cut it looks like.
Overall I was happy last night, and for them to pull this off on the first night was pretty impressive. Im sure they leaned heavily on their sister park who opened a winter event last season to learn what did and did not work.
As far as the cookies, we got a peek inside before it opened to see how it looked and then went back later to see what the cookies looked like. We commented on how huge they were. I agree it looked messy and having either smaller cookies or large plates or cookie sized cookie sheets would make a huge diffrence. I did like the fact they allowed a group effort for one price and not charging a family or 3 the cost three times.
I understood that the carriage rides all along would go through Candy Apple Grove, the pick up point was to be Safari Village entrance but that looked like a huge bottleneck last night, maybe thats why they moved it.
We joked too about the cars needing music and 3/4 way through I started to pull up the music on my phone.On the car audio is not feasable with the diffrent speeds of the cars and starting and stopping variations...at least not cost wise. I think the simpliest way would be to have each "day" looping that section of the song on a speaker, very easily done.
For the tree origional plans had stars on 3 sides too from renderings but those didnt make the final cut it looks like.
Overall I was happy last night, and for them to pull this off on the first night was pretty impressive. Im sure they leaned heavily on their sister park who opened a winter event last season to learn what did and did not work.
Attachments
They performed in front the 3 point basketball game. They have a bandstand set up that they perform under.
Ah ok thanks . They must of not been preforming when we passed by that area... how was it?
I have to somewhat disagree on this point. While I do have some concerns about the setup on busier nights the horses are extremely well behaved and both well trained and handled. I personally would prefer to see more side walkers around them to insure that they are given enough room to maneuver but I do right now see a serious issue with the current course. I personally have more concern about footing and traction for the horses on nights were its slightly damp but may not appear wet enough for the par to consider it to wet to operate. I assume that the company that is providing the horses and carriages has final asy and will make the right call butbnb it is s fear on that was at the back of my mind last night. I also worry about the possible public out cry carriage horses have been a major priority target for Peta and over groups for s while now. While I see nothing wrong with their use I do see it as a possible easy PR target which is something the park doesn't need at the start of the even.
Last edited:
1st night of WinterFest
Just put up a new video from last night
Just put up a new video from last night
If they used Safari Village or the Waterpark either they would have to spend considerable money on decoration that they probably wouldnt be able to make back with only two carriages running or people would complain that it wasnt decorated or decorated enough. Im sure the company that is supplying them is getting a considerable cut of whats made. I think the current setup is very good. Take a look around, many places use them around huge crowds with zero problems. Look at Disney Parks, they use them with no one walking ahead to keep a clear path.
Thanks for the video - a few comments -
1 - Yes I also noticed the "do not touch the moose" and the woman holding it, and the same thing happened when we were in there. I guess it won't be long before it gets roped off somehow.
2 - Our third mug of hot chocolate also had a funny taste, we got them in the middle of Candy Apple Grove and our observation was that it tasted "soapy" so I hope they get that one worked out.
3 - I didn't see any coverage of the area at the exit/gift shop leaving Dominator. Did you make it over there? We walked past and there was a karaoke type dance party down there with a couple of employees/hosts leading some people in singing and dancing but there were only 4-5 people there. This are was pretty deserted, and I guess it needs more exposure for more people to wander over there.
We had the last carriage ride of the night, so the paths were nearly empty. Yet somehow several people came very close to us. One person was taking a picture of the tree and simply wouldn’t move. We passed within and inch of her. There was also a group of peopke who saw the horse and unaccountably wouldn’t get out of our path, until the very last minute.
While I absolutely think the drivers are very professional and the horses were calm, the guests are apparently complete idiots. I believe it is just a matter of time before someone steps underneath a carriage, if they continue to use Candy Apple Grove for the route.
Based on the map, the plan was not originally to load at Americana. I fervently hope they were simply not done with set up, and the rides move to Safari Village (or somewhere besides the midway).
When we took the carriage ride at Carowinds last year, they took us through the water park. It was not as well decorated as the rest of the park, but it was pretty and a fun ride.
On another note, our hot chocolate was salty. I actually got a free mug with my igloo, but I disliked it so much that I bought a bottle of water, rather than drink any more free cocoa, despite being freezing all night. I have come to conclusion that all three of our regional parks ruin hot chocolate in diffferent ways. I am really curious to see if it is any good at Disney.
While I absolutely think the drivers are very professional and the horses were calm, the guests are apparently complete idiots. I believe it is just a matter of time before someone steps underneath a carriage, if they continue to use Candy Apple Grove for the route.
Based on the map, the plan was not originally to load at Americana. I fervently hope they were simply not done with set up, and the rides move to Safari Village (or somewhere besides the midway).
When we took the carriage ride at Carowinds last year, they took us through the water park. It was not as well decorated as the rest of the park, but it was pretty and a fun ride.
On another note, our hot chocolate was salty. I actually got a free mug with my igloo, but I disliked it so much that I bought a bottle of water, rather than drink any more free cocoa, despite being freezing all night. I have come to conclusion that all three of our regional parks ruin hot chocolate in diffferent ways. I am really curious to see if it is any good at Disney.
WinterFest was a beautiful event and far exceeded my expectations. So far, however, I don’t think there was enough to do that wasn’t an up-charge. I also think the park suffers from only having one indoor theater. Each of the shows had some amazing talent, but I think they spread themselves way too thin trying to have as many shows as they do. Still, the park had fantastic color schemes for the lights, and they went all out with choreographed lights. Amazingly, the guest service that I saw last night was some of the best that I have ever seen a Kings Dominion, and I hope that becomes the new norm all year round. I saw several associates last night who seemed genuinely enthusiastic, and well informed, especially considering it was the first night. Great job, KD!
Compared to Busch Gardens, I would say that Kings Dominion’s WinterFest is more about spectacle than reflectiveness. Everything was perfect (almost too perfect). However, as the event goes on, I would suggest that the park focuses more on sound. Sometimes there were places in the park where it seemed like an entire soundtrack was coming from one speaker, others had the wrong soundtrack playing (main season), and some places had no soundtrack at all. I know the sound is not usually a big focal point at Kings Dominion, but I think it is even more critical during Christmastime.
Overall, I think there is room for both KD and BG at Christmas, and I believe WinterFest is an excellent addition to Virginia’s strong holiday lineup.
Compared to Busch Gardens, I would say that Kings Dominion’s WinterFest is more about spectacle than reflectiveness. Everything was perfect (almost too perfect). However, as the event goes on, I would suggest that the park focuses more on sound. Sometimes there were places in the park where it seemed like an entire soundtrack was coming from one speaker, others had the wrong soundtrack playing (main season), and some places had no soundtrack at all. I know the sound is not usually a big focal point at Kings Dominion, but I think it is even more critical during Christmastime.
Overall, I think there is room for both KD and BG at Christmas, and I believe WinterFest is an excellent addition to Virginia’s strong holiday lineup.
I agree that this was probably at the bottom of my show list (it wasn’t bad at all, it was just a little low-energy at points), but that soundtrack they played along with was LIT. I really want to find that playlist somewhere for my own Christmas party. LOL.
To be fair about the hot chocolates I anyone with any experience in making significant bulk hot chocolate supplies can tell you that it's not as easy as one thinks to make it in huge quantity and keep a high quality consistently throughout the production.
I thought the hot chocolate was good except the last cup we got had some kind of funky taste to it. It was almost a chemical taste to it. My guess is whatever they use to clean the giant containers they use.
And there was a lot I didn't see. I totally missed the area by dominator. I never saw the trolley and we didn't get on the old timey cars. I'm going back tonight and I'm gonna try to catch a few more of the shows and see if the drummers are any more exciting than the first night. I think with the music they are using it could have been a lot better.
And there was a lot I didn't see. I totally missed the area by dominator. I never saw the trolley and we didn't get on the old timey cars. I'm going back tonight and I'm gonna try to catch a few more of the shows and see if the drummers are any more exciting than the first night. I think with the music they are using it could have been a lot better.