Main Street (Dreamworld)

Main Street is a themed land at the Dreamworld amusement park on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The area acts as the main hub for the park catering as a gateway to many other lands including Gold Rush Country, DreamWorks Experience and Ocean Parade.[1]

Main Street

Attractions
Total	8
Roller coasters	1
Other rides	3
Shows	4
Status	Operating
Dreamworld
Coordinates	27.863228°S 153.315979°E
Opened	15 December 1981

History

In 1974, John Longhurst purchased 85 hectares (210 acres) of land at Coomera in order to construct the Dreamworld theme park. Although a lot of the initial work was done by himself, Longhurst spared no expense when he employed designers from Disneyland (in Anaheim, California) and Walt Disney World (in Florida) to design Main Street. Many of the buildings in Dreamworld can be compared to those in the Disney parks. The main entrance at Dreamworld is modelled after the Main Street train station at the Magic Kingdom. Inside Dreamworld, the IMAX Theatre's building is modelled after the Emporium at Disney parks.[2]

• 
  The train station for Main Street, U.S.A. at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World.
• 
  The main entrance at Dreamworld.

The area now known as Main Street, opened with the park in 1981 as Central Plaza.[3] Since its opening very little has changed about the area. As with the rest of the park, general maintenance has been performed from time to time.[1]

Attractions

Dreamworld Railway

Dreamworld Railway

The Dreamworld Railway is one of Dreamworld's original, opening day attractions. At opening the ride was known as the Cannon Ball Express and only featured one stop.[2] The train takes guests on a scenic route around Dreamworld with four stops along the way: Central Station, Billabong Station, Australian Wildlife Experience Station and Log Ride Station.[1] The railway has two trains. The first is a Perry with the second being a Baldwin. Due to high levels of maintenance it is very rare that both trains operate on the same day.[4][5]

Illuminate Light & Laser Spectacular

As the name suggests, Illuminate Light & Laser Spectacular is a light and laser show which is run seasonally during school holidays resulting in the park remaining open an extra two hours. It began in April 2010 with SpongeBob SquarePants and "Celebrate" shows. This was followed by Illuminate Winter Wonderland for the June and July school holidays featuring 4 lane, 40-metre (130 ft) long inflatable tube slide and a snow play area featuring 12,000 kilograms (26,000 lb) of snow.[6][7]

Mick Doohan's Motocoaster

Mick Doohan's Motocoaster is an Intamin Motorbike Launch Roller Coaster named after the Moto GP champion Michael Doohan.[8] Although being classified as one of Dreamworld's Big 8 Thrill Rides,[9] the ride failed to gain support within its first year of operation.[10]

Sky Voyager

Shopping and dining

The Kodak Express outlet and Main Street Emporium.

Main Street is the main shopping and dining precinct in the park. The lack of attractions in this area is made up for by the amount of merchandise and dining outlets. Merchandise shops include:

• Fairy Tale Treasures – fairytale themed merchandise shop
• Hat Cart
• Main Street Emporium – the main merchandise shop
• Dreampix Photos
• LEGO Store – Australia's first Lego store
• Motocoaster Pit Stop Shop – Mick Doohan Motocoaster themed merchandise store

Food and beverage can be purchased from:

• Candy Nut Shop
• Churros Stand
• Ice Cream Parlour – ice cream shop with Streets ice cream
• Food Central – the main eating area with gourmet burgers, foot long Hot Dogs and kids meals
• Green Bean Coffee Co. – cafe with beverages from Byron Bay Coffee and snacks
• Dough Bros. Pizzeria – gourmet pizza restaurant
• The Sandwich Shop – cafe with sandwiches, wraps, salads and smoothies

An outlet for Q4U rentals is located adjacent to the park's entrance.[11]

Character Appearances

Kenny and Belinda in 2007.

At various times throughout the day guests Dreamworld's mascots appear on Main Street. Dreamworld's original mascot, Kenny Koala, appears alongside 1983 addition Belinda Brown for meet and greets. Guests can also have their photo taken with The Wiz or Goldie the Clown.[12]

References

1. "Park Map" (PDF). Dreamworld. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 March 2010. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
2. "Dreamworld History" (PDF). Dreamworld. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 December 2010. Retrieved 15 July 2010.
3. Dreamworld (1987). "1987 Map". Scottware. Retrieved 18 July 2010.
4. "Dreamworld Railway (Dreamworld)". Database Entry. Parkz. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
5. "Dreamworld Railway". Dreamworld. Archived from the original on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 18 July 2010.
6. "Illuminate Winter Wonderland". Dreamworld. Archived from the original on 30 December 2012. Retrieved 18 July 2010.
7. "Illuminate Program". Dreamworld. Archived from the original on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 18 July 2010.
8. "Mick Doohan's Motocoaster". Database Entry. Parkz. Retrieved 29 July 2010.
9. "Man Up Landing". Dreamworld. Archived from the original on 5 March 2010. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
10. Wilson, Richard (13 March 2008). "Motocoaster comes in second last in worldwide coaster poll". News Article. Parkz. Retrieved 29 July 2010.
11. Dreamworld and WhiteWater World Park Map (2009).
12. "Entertainment". Dreamworld. Retrieved 21 October 2010.