What's in Orlando?

Orlando is the world capital of theme park of attractions. The largest exhibition of the entertainment industry runs exactly here, not in Vegas.

Everybody checked in the week leading up to the exhibition. Everybody but not me. Thanks to colleagues from the Entertainment Industry Catalogue, and especially to Elizabeth Nagornova — she helped me to solve this problem.

Thanks to Elizabeth I came to the exhibition. PRESS text flaunted on my badge and a big camera hang around my neck. I felt myself as a reporter of the Times magazine and went to study trends of the entertainment business.

The USA market is on rise now. 2016 Exhibition is larger than the previous ones. Traditionally companies that deliver the equipment for aqua parks are provided to Orlando. Before, I passed by these stands. But this year we began to manage the Kazan aquapark «Baryonix» therefore at the exhibition I learned a completely new direction for me — aquaparks.

In Orlando I had several business meetings. One of them was with Igor Rodionov, 1st Vice President of Russian Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (RAAPA) By the way, we agreed to provide a training during the next exhibition in Moscow. Perhaps, we will even organize a competition for producers of the entertaining equipment.

I didn’t forget about main goals of my trip, these are to pick up equipment for updating of the FUN24 entertainment center in Kazan and to study rapidly emerging market of virtual reality (VR). The first task I made short work. FUN24 Guests will become the first who will estimate innovations. With virtual reality it was more difficult.

There are a lot of companies that represent this direction. But, unfortunately, I haven’t seen what I expected. The equipment was the most different — moving platforms for VR helmets, spherical cinema, etc. All of these attractions are expensive. Their price fluctuates from 30 to 200 thousand dollars.

It is next to nothing in comparison with the most expensive attraction in the world The Magic World of Harry Potter, its cost is half a billion dollars. But to keep the ticket in our parks at the level of 300–800 rubles, it is necessary to look for more available decisions.

For comparison, the entrance to the Universal park is from 10 000 to 12 000 rubles+ local taxes and tickets to Orlando. Every day you don’t descend. It is cheaper to visit our entertainment centers. Always you can find entertainment heart-to-heart there and cheerfully spend time.

I would like to tell you a lot more interesting, but it is time to me on board. I leave Orlando and fly to Kazan where the second module of our Manager development course starts.

I invite you to see photos from the Exhibition.