[quote]We have a three-year Thanksgiving celebration plan for our park, and this is just the start.” — Holiday World park president Matt Eckert[/quote]
Santa Claus, IN, USA (May 1, 2014) — Holiday World theme park opens for its 68th season this Saturday with the first sailing of the Mayflower swinging ship ride.
“Since 2006, when we expanded Holiday World to include a Thanksgiving-themed section, we’ve received hundreds of suggestions to add a classic swinging ship ride and name it the Mayflower,” says park president Matt Eckert. “
Eckert says the new family ride will carry up to 60 riders at a time, swinging in an arc 54-feet-high over a pool of water.
Additional projects for this season include:
• Friday Night Fireworks (Friday evenings from June 13 through August 1)
• Extended Splashin’ Safari hours
• Mrs. Klaus’ Kitchen makeover, including a new home for Santa Claus
• Summer Fun Card program, for multi-day summer visits
• New Wildebeestro restaurant and Safari Outpost shop in Splashin’ Safari
Eckert says the cost of this year’s improvements totaled $8 million. Ticket prices for Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari did not increase from last season.
On May 10, a production crew from Hollywood will spend the day at Holiday World to capture the enhanced theming of the park’s Christmas section for a new holiday special for The Travel Channel.