What's New at California's Theme Parks & Attractions

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. April 16, 2010

SACRAMENTO, CA - April 16, 2010 - California's theme parks and attractions are as much of a draw as its surf, mountains and deserts. Now, with many unveiling new rides and shows, there has never been a better time to book a Golden State vacation.

“For many travelers, visiting California's theme parks and attractions is a dream come true. And with parks always offering something new, we know they'll come back,” said President and Chief Executive Officer Caroline Beteta of the California Travel and Tourism Commission (CTTC) and the national chair of the U.S. Travel Association.

King Kong, among the screen's most powerful and enduring icons, will re-emerge this summer as a new signature attraction of the famed Universal Studios Hollywood Studio Tour in Los Angeles. “King Kong 360 3D,” created by Peter Jackson (and , the first theme park attraction to be directed by the Oscar-winning filmmaker), will combine thrilling visceral effects with the world's largest Surround Digital projection system to create a next-generation theme park experience. In the new attraction, guests will be given special 3D glasses as they enter a darkened soundstage aboard the Studio Tour trams and will be transported - via the magic of Surround Digital 3D projection - deep into a tangled jungle location. They'll survive a close encounter with a swarm of hungry raptors, only to be confronted by the terrifying presence of 35-foot-tall dinosaur behemoths, intent on attacking the tram and Studio Tour guests. The trams jolt and shudder as the guests find themselves caught in the middle between these carnivorous reptiles and King Kong.

In June 2010, the world's first LEGO-themed water park will open at LEGOLAND California in Carlsbad. The 5.5-acre water park will feature several attractions, including a Build-a-Raft River where visitors can custom-build their own LEGO raft, several water slides, a 45-foot-tall tower playground and two sandy beach wading areas. The water park is a separate admission attraction located at the north end of LEGOLAND. LEGOLAND California is San Diego's only LEGO-themed family fun park, offering rides, shows, shopping, and dining for the whole family.

“World of Color” is the next major milestone in the expansion of Disney's California Adventure Park. The spectacular nighttime water show is set to debut in 2010, and brings Disney animation to life with powerful fountains that become stars of the show as they create the world's largest projected water screen. Guests are taken on an imaginative journey into the colorful worlds of animated Disney classics, such as Alice in Wonderland, The Lion King and Pocahontas, along with Disney-Pixar films Toy Story and WALL-E. A newly designed 9,000-capacity viewing area provides Disney's California Adventure guests with the best view in the park for this nighttime extravaganza. The show will last approximately 25 minutes.

“Blue Horizons,” a spectacular new show featuring energetic bottlenose dolphins, Pacific pilot whales and a colorful array of exotic birds and amazing acrobatic performers, opens at SeaWorld San Diego's completely renovated Dolphin Stadium on May 29. At the center of “Blue Horizons” is a young girl named Marina, with the show's action both above and under the water. The set, inspired by elements of the sea and sky along with Marina's vivid imagination, is a whimsical, yet dramatic atmosphere with an immense rising sun, hundreds of iridescent bubbles and an elaborate 40-foot-high framework, which envelopes the pool and balances divers and aerialists as they plunge from bungees and soar on “cloud swings.” The Seattle Symphony Orchestra performed the musical score for “Blue Horizons.”

The San Diego Zoo is proud to present Polar Bear Plunge, the newly renovated exhibit that's an expedition for the whole family. Guests can explore the exhibit, experiencing hands-on what a polar bear's life might be like in the Arctic. People can also learn about the San Diego Zoo's ongoing conservation efforts, as well as tips to reduce their own carbon footprint.

This summer, the historic Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk unveils a new ride, 12 summer beach concerts and a six-week show featuring Brazilian acrobats. Scheduled to open Memorial Day weekend, the new Haunted Castle, a $9-million-dollar project, utilizes nearly 10,000-square feet of basement space. In a unique design twist, riders load at Boardwalk level, then spiral down backwards into the basement and glide through dimly lit rooms filled with spooky special effects. Free Friday Nights Bands On the Beach, the Boardwalk's free beach concert series, brings top bands from the '80s and '90s to the park's beach bandstand from June 18 to September 3. This summer's lineup includes Blue Oyster Cult, Loverboy, Eddie Money, the Spin Doctors and Starship. Circo Brazil will perform two free shows each day on the beach bandstand every Sunday through Thursday from July 11 to August 19. The dynamic 30-minute show is geared for families and includes martial arts, soccer stunts and acrobatics.

To celebrate the Peanuts characters' 60th anniversary, Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park (about 32 kilometers southeast of Los Angeles) debuts a new nighttime light show, called Peanut's Night-Lightastic, at their Camp Snoopy, starting May 29. The new performance showcases three-dimensional Peanuts figures, themed music, sound effects, voice-overs and colorful projections of Peanuts' characters. The program runs after 8 p.m. every evening that the park is open. At the Charles M. Schultz Theatre, Snoopy take center stage along with world-class ice skaters beginning June 19 in “Everyone Loves Snoopy” (dark Wednesdays). For the younger crowd, “Peanuts Go Hollywood” is a live musical review that tells the story of the Peanuts gang as they try to make it in Tinseltown - the show is held at the Camp Snoopy Theater.

With the much-anticipated “Ecosystems” exhibit opening March 25 at the California Science Center in Los Angeles, guests can experience a flash flood in the Extreme Zone. They'll also have the chance to walk through a simulated ocean-floor tunnel and discover what kinds of icky, earthy things happen in the Rot Room. A major component of the California Science Center's 25-year expansion plan, “Ecosystems” features dozens of interactive exhibits that take visitors on an ecological quest to uncover the complex relationships between living things and their habitat.

The newest permanent exhibit at the Taco Bell Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana (about 50 kilometers southeast of Los Angeles), “Planetary Research Station” (PRS), is now open. PRS is a six-foot, 3D globe that is animated to display dynamic images of the atmosphere, oceans, land and solar system. The exhibit also features a display developed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and is an education and outreach tool used to describe the environmental processes of Earth. With more than 500 graphic scenarios, PRS features everything from real-time infrared satellite over land, to air traffic control flight paths, to the topography of Venus. PRS also includes five plasma displays to further expand on the intuitive and compelling images displayed on its suspended globe.

Two new rides for tots - and their families - are now available at Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier. The 2-acre amusement park is adding Inkie's Pirate Ship and Inkie's Wave Jumper to its roster of family-share rides, which will open early June. Inkie's Pirate Ship is a swashbuckling-themed ship ride that lifts guests to-and-fro in a clockwise and counter-clockwise motion for an all-out, sea-like adventure. Inkie's Wave Jumper is a pier-top surf ride that rotates in a clockwise motion while riders jump up and down and bounce around, just like riding a wave.

California's Great America in Santa Clara (70 kilometers south of San Francisco) will kick off its park opening with the new Planet Snoopy at the children's area, with rides that take kids up and down or round and round. For an added treat, there are hugs from Snoopy, Charlie Brown and all their friends. Also new is “Snoopy Rocks,” a 35-minute ice skating show.

Six Flags Discovery Kingdom is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its Medusa ride, coinciding with spring break this year. As the first floorless looping coaster on the West Coast when it opened in 2000, Medusa still holds the title as the tallest coaster in Northern California. Celebration activities will be scheduled from March 25 through April 11, and include karaoke, live music, and the Ridiculously Long Lasting Scream Contest.

CTTC is a non-profit organization with a mission to develop and maintain marketing programs - in partnership with the state's travel industry - that keep California top-of-mind as a premier travel destination. According to CTTC, travel and tourism expenditures total $96.7 billion annually in California, $16.7 billion of which is international; support jobs for 924,000 Californians and generate $5.8 billion in state and local tax revenues. For more information about CTTC and for a free California Visitor's Guide as well as California Road Trips, go to www.VisitCalifornia.com.