Nickelodeon Universe / American Dream Discussion Thread

[AmyUD06]

Might as well just quote the last time I posted this, when they spent almost all their money to make another payment...

On 2/3/2022 at 8:11 PM, Mike240SX said:

I'm absolutely shocked, shocked I say!

At least they made that one LOL.

[AmyUD06]

In today's bizzarro news, it appears that their "the market can support insane prices" theory has collapsed, by virtue of them offering a season pass for slightly less than double the cost of a one-day ticket.

Daily ticket on a Saturday: $79
Season Pass through 9/30/22: $139

https://americandream.com/nickelodeon_season_pass/tickets

[coasterbill]

It should be noted that a “Season Pass” doesn’t mean what most people think that it means.

It means that it’s good for the Summer season with mystery restrictions. It’s $139 for a pass that’s good from July 1st through September 30th and subject to blackout dates, though they won’t tell you what those blackout dates are.

This means that if they offer this for each season assuming price point remains the same, an annual pass is $556 and has blackout dates, making it the most expensive annual pass for any park in America with blackout dates that’s currently offered for sale.

I’d actually be excited to buy this if they offer it for Q1, but also how are you going to sell a pass with blackout dates and not tell people what they are?

[coasterbill]

Sorry for the double post, but this is actually big news.

Nick Universe is now letting you pay per ride, which is great news for everyone who wants to go back and ride the 2-3 coasters that were broken on their last visit but doesn't want to pay full admission again! They call it a "Points Pass" but basically it's just a pay-per-ride system. The only thing that's weird is that it works with wristband and not a card or actual tickets so it seems like everyone needs their own points pass.

Kids rides start at $6.99. Adult rides and coasters (if you can find any that aren't broken) start at $9.99 but realistically nobody is going to pay that much for a kids ride and the more points you buy, the price per point drops as you would expect. All rides are either 3 points or 6 points. This is apparently not valid on Saturdays or Holidays. Also, note that every adult coaster except for the spinner is currently broken per usual so don't go rushing out there. Oh, and points expire after 90 days.

Link

[CaptainUnknown]

FWIW, the Minnesota Nick U gives wristband-esque slips to both those paying for all-day access vs the pay per ride/points system. The ride op at the first attraction you go to with the all-day version will give you a sticker that attaches the wristband to your wrist.

Probably just the easiest solution with all the self-serve kiosks. Be interesting to see how this park deals with it.

[KBrylczyk]

2 hours ago, coasterbill said:

Also, note that every adult coaster except for the spinner is currently broken per usual so don't go rushing out there.

[Midgetman82]

I've been interested in coming to this mall for a while... but seemingly for the wrong reasons? I'm much more interested in the indoor ski hill, as the U.S. is sorely lacking anything else like it. I guess the point system makes it easier to consider dropping by as well on a brief day visit, but sure is a shame there's so many sudden ride closures.

I will say, I didn't expect Blasting Bronco to not be listed on the closed rides list when I glanced just now. That's one I'm especially interested in trying.

[SoCalJasonland]

Perhaps the pass expires on September 30th because that is the earliest they can be foreclosed on?  How many bond payments can they miss before the lender takes it over and either finds a new operator or closes the park?  It looks like the water park has a similar pass deal.

https://www.americandream.com/dreamworks_season_pass/tickets

DREAMWORKS WATER PARK SEASON SPLASH PASS

$179

Enjoy the best of DreamWorks Season Splash Pass. For one price, dip in again and again, as often as you want from now until September 30.

[SoCalJasonland]

Just in case people think that a park with several new coasters can't go out of business within a  year; here is an example below of a brand new park with 17 new coasters that closed within a season.  Even if Nick. U. gets their debt forgiven or renegotiated in bankruptcy, if you don't have enough revenue to cover employee and other continuing variable expenses then the business will not survive.  The fact that the major attractions are unreliable and attendance is low when it is still new amusement park, makes me think that the rides will be auctioned at some point.  Does anyone here have an idea on what could make this park survive?

https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2021/09/photos-abandoned-wonderland-eurasia/620011/

Wonderland Abandoned: The Swift Fall of “Europe’s Biggest Theme Park”

ALAN TAYLOR - SEPTEMBER 8, 2021

19 PHOTOS (redacted)

IN FOCUS

Wonderland Eurasia, billed as “Europe’s biggest theme park,” opened in Ankara, Turkey, in March 2019. Political turmoil, uneven ride quality, and a lack of attendance caused the massive park to close its doors permanently after less than a year of operation. According to an AFP story, the park’s abandoned dinosaur statues now piled in fields tell a “tale of grand ambition, waste and troubles facing the long-ruling party of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.” The project, built by the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, cost hundreds of millions of dollars, and featured 17 roller coasters and dozens of other attractions spread over a 320-acre park, which now sits empty.

[AmyUD06]

By all accounts I've seen, the waterpark and amusement park are the most successful parts of this boondoggle. I could see Triple Five defaulting and the whole complex being sold to a more seasoned park operator with the sole intention of operating the rides/slides and turn the mall into an Amazon warehouse. It already looks like one. 

[tndank]

In case folks may not know, they have pay by the ride now similar to their other location.  It started earlier this month.

[SoCalJasonland]

22 hours ago, AmyUD06 said:

By all accounts I've seen, the waterpark and amusement park are the most successful parts of this boondoggle. I could see Triple Five defaulting and the whole complex being sold to a more seasoned park operator with the sole intention of operating the rides/slides and turn the mall into an Amazon warehouse. It already looks like one. 

I haven't had the opportunity to visit either Nick U. parks but the Youtube videos make the Minnesota park look somewhat busy where I don't see hardly any customers at the New Jersey one.  I didn't know if it was because people actually go to the Mall of America for other reasons or if just more of their rides actually work but I hope something can be done for the American Dream Mall.  I do agree that a giant Amazon warehouse sounds like a more profitable use for the mall though:-)  Prime member should get free coaster rides if they are willing to pick up their own packages.

[CaptainUnknown]

MN version is in the middle of the mall and free to enter. People frequently cut through the park to reach the other side of the mall. It also has an optional pay per ride system..This location is tucked into a corner and just implemented the pay per ride idea. So that definitely helps.

[AmyUD06]

18 minutes ago, CaptainUnknown said:

MN version is in the middle of the mall and free to enter. People frequently cut through the park to reach the other side of the mall. It also has an optional pay per ride system..This location is tucked into a corner and just implemented the pay per ride idea. So that definitely helps.

There's also the plethora of other entertainment options in North Jersey. 

 

[coasterbill]

On 7/26/2022 at 7:42 PM, SoCalJasonland said:

Does anyone here have an idea on what could make this park survive?

The same thing that has kept this project from dying since it started in 2002... taxpayer bailouts.

[SoCalJasonland]

6 hours ago, coasterbill said:

The same thing that has kept this project from dying since it started in 2002... taxpayer bailouts.

Or, they could put in a food court where you can play corn hole, Connect Four, or Jenga   

https://www.northjersey.com/picture-gallery/entertainment/dining/2022/07/28/first-look-food-hall-american-dream-mall/10169931002/

[jamesinclair]

Does the pay per ride system mean you can now walk through the park to take a look without riding anything?

When I went a year or two ago, they basically had the theme park hidden behind temporary walls and you couldnt even get close, which is a super idiotic way to generate interest

[coasterbill]

On 7/28/2022 at 9:54 AM, coasterbill said:

The same thing that has kept this project from dying since it started in 2002... taxpayer bailouts.

How good am I?

Quote

An American Dream spokesperson told NJ Advance Media on Wednesday that American Dream is under no financial obligation to make payments to bondholders.

Instead, bondholders are paid from sales taxes generated from the mall that are paid to the state, which then appropriates funds in its budget to make the necessary payments, according to the spokesperson.

“The bondholders are paid exclusively from sales tax generated from the project, subject to state appropriation of up to 75% of those collected funds,” the spokesperson said in an email. “We have no financial obligation to make any payments to the bondholders.”

The spokesperson added, “we believe the state has appropriated funds in the budget to make bondholder payments.”

NJ.com - American Dream fails to make $8.8M interest payment on $290M in N.J.-backed bonds

[KBrylczyk]

I swear the more I learn about the economy the more I realize it's mafia economics all the way down.

[coneyislandchris]

On 8/2/2022 at 2:58 PM, jamesinclair said:

Does the pay per ride system mean you can now walk through the park to take a look without riding anything?

When I went a year or two ago, they basically had the theme park hidden behind temporary walls and you couldnt even get close, which is a super idiotic way to generate interest

I know it's a bit of a late response, but since no one else answered this question, yes, that's exactly what it means. My son and I visited for a couple hours this past Wednesday. We had pre-purchased a points pass online just in case they required that for entry, but when we got there, there was no security checkpoint or anyone scanning barcodes or anything at the top of the main entry. We just took the escalator down and walked throughout the park without any issues. When you get to the front of the line on whichever ride you're going on, they'll ask to scan either your wristband (if you have one) or the QR code on your phone.

We ended up doing their stupid massive 9-story-high ropes course for a bit (an upcharge, but it was only $15 per person with the purchase of any points pass), and then we rode two of the coasters that were closed on his previous visit. Both of these cost us "6 points", or $10 per ride. Sandy's Blastin Bronco was absolutely worth the wait, an intense Intamin launcher that has airtime and hang time galore, then turns you around so you can do it all over again but in reverse. Glad to see this is finally up and running. Timmy's Half-Pipe Havoc was fun, but the kiddo wasn't too keen on it... he said it didn't really feel like a coaster, it felt more like a flat ride to him. I don't blame him. He's been on a lot of Zamperla Diskos over the years and it's not that vastly different of an experience.

The entire time we were there on Wednesday, the place was absolutely dead. We had no issues walking onto every single attraction we wanted, and we didn't see lines for the rides we skipped. A good chunk of the kiddie rides were closed for maintenance. Shellraiser was listed as closed on the website, but was open and running when we got there, so it actually ended up being one of those days where all five coasters in the park were up and running. From the top of the ropes course, we could see the storage section behind Shellraiser where they're keeping the bumper cars from the ill-fated Invader Zim attraction, which I guess is just never going to reopen at this point.

We also took a ride on the Dream Wheel, which didn't open until 3 PM. About a 20 minute round trip that we paid approximately a buck a minute for. Absolutely great views of the Manhattan skyline and the Hudson River, and, uh, also rush hour traffic on the highway, a bunch of weeds, and graffiti-covered billboards on the NJ side of things. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[Satans Hockey]

Sad story, shame that just trying to have some fun turns horrible in basically a split second... 

https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/bergen/east-rutherford/2022/12/14/american-dream-mall-man-dies-snowboarding-big-snow/69726358007/

"A 24-year-old Long Island man died last week after falling while snowboarding at Big Snow at the American Dream mall in East Rutherford, according to a Newsday report.

The family of Peter Mathews, of Bay Shore, New York, told Newsday that he fell backward on Thursday night while snowboarding, hit his head and became unconscious. The family told the newspaper that Mathews was wearing a helmet and other safety gear. He was taken to Hackensack University Medical Center, where he was later pronounced dead.

In a statement, Big Snow representatives said: “We can confirm that our ski patrol responded to a guest incident last Thursday evening. First aid was administered, and the guest was transported to a local hospital for further care. In the interest of the guest’s privacy, no additional information will be provided. Our thoughts are with this guest’s family at this time.”

[Midgetman82]

My heart goes out to the family affected by this, very sad indeed to hear of a fun day out turned so bad. Snow sports are still inherently risky even on a slope as tame as Big Snow (they have rails and jumps), but never good hearing of incidents like this on any slope.  Let alone within American Dream with its current reputation already.

[SharkTums]

Visited American Dream on Sunday and had a really nice day!  Did the Nick Park, Dreamworks Water Park, and got Mr. Beast Burger (for the child).  Was surprised at how much was actually open on a Sunday with their bizarre Jersey laws! I definitely think the place is now worth a real full day visit!

[Zand]

Stopped by the mall for a couple hours this afternoon. Last time I was there was Oct 2020 when the mall had nobody in it and the park REALLY had nobody in it. After hearing about how dead it's been recently I was surprised to see the place really hopping today. 

Didn't have a lot of time and I spent most of the time shopping with the wife, but stopped in Nick Universe for a few minutes. They had a really healthy crowd and some lines for the more family based attractions, but with pay per ride now available I only had two things I wanted to hit.

First was Shellraiser which I really didn't like last time I was there. I had a brutal ride and it left me with a pounding headache. I seemed to be in the minority with this experience and have been looking forward to riding it again and hopefully getting a better ride. I walked right up to a waiting front row and we were off. Definitely had a better ride on it this time around. Very minor bumpiness in spots but nothing much. There is still one brutal moment at the bottom of the big hill where there is a pothole so strong that I felt my brain slosh around in my head, but no headache this time at least. I definitely have a more favorable view of it now...the positives are great in the first half, fun inversions, and a couple areas of great airtime. Launch is great and the drop is incredible.

The other ride I hit was Sandy's...not only because I love it but also because I know it can be very temperamental. Walk on for a back seat ride, fantastic as always.

Definitely will come back when I have more time so I can make a wristband worth it and ride everything else. Still blows my mind how good a park in a mall can be. Would love to get to Minnesota and check out that park too sometime.

Guess my "offseason" starts now although a 2.5 hr drive to the meadowlands or a 3 hr flight to Orlando would take care of that. Hopefully 3 months or so until outdoor parks return in the northeast!

[SharkTums]

I've heard it's been pretty busy during the holidays and I'm so happy for them!!! I really want them to do well, succeed, and add more!