Disclaimer: I have never been to the Holy Land Experience in Orlando. It first opened in February 2001. The park seems to get pretty good reviews on Trip Advisor (average rating: 4.0). Guests seem to really like the shows there.
It is also well-known that right before COVID, the owners (Trinity Broadcasting Network) stated that they were considering cutting some of the live entertainment due to the the deficit they were running the park at (to a tune of $2 million). They were looking to find more investors to help fund the park. That seems like a reasonable thing to aim for; after all, even a resort Disneyland Paris, had a lot of outside investors. There are no rides at The Holy Land Experience. Maybe the owners and the guests would agree that it would seem inappropriate to have rides there, because it would take away from the realistic approach they are trying to do in the park. Now for my opinion. Orlando is certainly the City of Theme Parks. But it is even moreso the City of Rides. As a priest, I should have a strong desire to get to this park. But when I only go to Florida every 3-5 years, I am going to head to the parks with rides. If Holy Land Experience wants to get more interest in its park, then they should re-consider their rule of not having rides. Should they add roller coasters and Dumbo-style rides? That probably shouldn’t be their first priority. The Holy Land Experience park prides itself on attention to realistic detail, so dark rides seem the way to go. Just adding one or two would require a serious up-front investment (as well as maintenance), but I think it would pay dividends. They would want to contract the design of the project out to a group like Sally Rides, which specializes in dark rides. We find ourselves at an interesting dilemma: Disney and Universal have shied away from rides with much of a religious focus (other than maybe some sleeping monks in Spaceship Earth) and The Holy Land Experience has steered clear of rides. If The Holy Land Experience took a leap of faith (pun intended), they might find out that there are many people who would be interested in such rides.
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A Christian theme park or ride might sound rather odd. Chances are that you’ve never experienced one yourself. Other entertainment genres, though, have their own Christian versions. For example:
Music—praise and worship, others (like Lifehouse) that are not overtly Christian Movies—Passion of the Christ, The Prince of Egypt, Overcomer, Fireproof TV Shows—The Chosen, Veggie Tales, EWTN There have been a couple of attempts at Christian theme parks. The Holy Land Experience in Orlando operated for many years before closing recently (I could write a whole post on why that failed). Kentucky has the Ark Encounter. The Bible Museum in Washington D.C. is mostly a museum but it has some immersive, multimedia experiences, too. I think there is an untapped demand for high-quality Christian theme parks/attractions. If someone like Disney or Universal doesn’t capitalize on it, other parks like Silver Dollar City or Dollywood or a brand new one could step-in to become the leaders in this niche industry. |
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