First major rollercoaster installed in Dubai

Rollercoaster enthusiasts can finally get a sneak peak of what is believed to be Dubai's first major rollercoaster at Middle East's largest multi-themed leisure and entertainment destination.

The Dragon roller coaster is the first ride to be installed at Dubai Parks and Resorts, a Dh10.5 billion project set to open in October 2016 with three separate theme parks, a hotel, and a retail and dining district spread across 25 million square feet of land.

Images released on Tuesday showed the 530 meters long and 16 metre high amusement ride fixed on Shaikh Zayed Road close to the Palm Jebel Ali between Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Reaching speeds of up to 60 km per hour, the ride is said to form the centrepiece of the first LEGOLAND Park in the Middle East.

Siegfried Boerst, General Manager of LEGOLAND Dubai told Gulf News that the Dragon is LEGOLAND Dubai's biggest roller coaster and is unique to the emirate in that it is designed along with six themed areas, over 40 interactive Park's rides, shows, attractions and 15,000 LEGO model structures made from more than 60 million LEGO bricks.

"With two trains each containing 10 cars with the capacity for two passengers each, passengers will be amazed by the roller coaster's medieval features and animated LEGO brick models,” said Boerst. Each train will have a LEGOLAND Dragon theme and the cars will be built with glass reinforced plastic.”

The ride will be open to public in October 2016, when LEGOLAND Dubai and all of the Dubai Parks and Resorts theme parks are on track to open, they confirmed.

While nowhere near as fast as the 241kmh F1 roller coaster in Abu Dhabi going as high as 50 metres, the new Dubai Legoland is still impressive. Visitors will be taken on an interactive journey of vibrant LEGO animation when taking the ride, which will then weave through the LEGOLAND Castle, before twisting and turning onto a fun-filled outdoor track.

The Dragon rollercoaster was manufactured, and is being assembled, by Zierer Rides and overseen by leading construction firm Hill International. Boerst said it is expected to draw tourists from around the world due to its creative design.

More than 50 per cent of the ride engineering and manufacturing across all of the theme parks has been completed and ride components such as LEGOLAND's Dragon ride have started arriving on site for installation, said Stanford Pinto, Chief Parks Operations Officer of Dubai Parks and Resorts.

6.7 million ticketed visits is already being expected to Dubai Parks and Resorts by 2017, the first full year of operation.

"LEGOLAND Dubai and the other theme parks will have a major impact on drawing more tourists to Dubai and boosting its family tourism appeal. All of LEGOLAND Dubai's rides and attractions are designed to provide a fun family experience and The Dragon is at the heart of that,” said Boerst.  
Source: Gulf News