New Sesame Street Land and Ride Open at PortAventura - And at Sea World Orlando !

Not less than two Sesame Street mini-lands and attractions opened in less than a week, the first at Sea World Olando and the second at my favourite theme park in Spain, at Port Aventura.

We will start by the the Sesame Street of Port Aventura where this year, the season kicks off with the arrival of Street Mission, PortAventura World’s first dark ride and the first of its kind to be inspired by Sesame Street. The new ride is an interactive adventure for all ages where visitors have to help Detective Grover successfully complete a secret mission. The attraction consists of a pre-show and a 3D ride experience, featuring numerous animatronics and immersive experiences thanks to 3D video mapping technology.




Outside, the Sesame Street buildings themselves have a bit of  Toon Town design - much different than the one at Sea World Orlando as we will see - but that's okay.

The project has been created in collaboration with Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit organization behind Sesame Street, and Sally Corporation, one of the leading international companies in the development of dark rides and the design of animatronics. The interactive ride is titled "Sesame Street Street Mission" and the full Sesame Street land has cost Port Aventura $15 Million.



Riders embark on a now classic trackless vehicle - may be coming from Oceaneering, as it is often the case. Before that guests move in a queue decor with a quite well done pre-show using a mix of Animatronics and screen - you'll see all of it in the second video below. Then guests embark and the vehicle move in the ride decor and stops in front of screens. Riders are equipped with 3D glasses, not with laser gun but with a device looking like a remote control and they must shoot at targets on the screens along the ride, as usual. In addition to the screens the ride include many Audio-Animatronics, including one of Big Bird, the beloved Sesame Street character.






But where the ride is smart is when, just at the moment you start to think "oh, well, another kind-of Toy Story Mania ride..." it suddenly moves to a different kind of ride like Universal's Transformers or Disney's Ratatouille rides while riders can't still continue to shoot. You'll see all of it in the videos below.

So, let's start by a short official footage, just move a bit ahead to avoid the Grand Opening number.




I strongly suggest that you take the time to watch instead this second video showing everything, from the queue decor and pre-show to the ride itself.



As i've told you, another Sesame Street land also opened a few days ago, this time at SeaWorld Orlando - but without the "Street Mission" ride - and the whole area is, according to Midway Mayhem who filmed the footage below, "absolutely fantastic looking! Imagine stepping into your TV screen and onto 123 Sesame Street, seeing your favorite characters all around you." Check it in the video below!




One more thing about Port Aventura as the resort sixth hotel opens its doors in June, becoming the Resort’s first carbon-neutral hotel, consolidating its commitment to sustainability. The highlight in terms of accommodation, the new Colorado Creek hotel is located in the Far West area of PortAventura Park. The kotel will offer superior 4-star accommodation and will have direct access to PortAventura Park. This new hotel, scheduled to open its doors on 1 June 2019, will have 150 rooms, bringing the resort total to more than 2,200 rooms.

The Hotel Colorado Creek, inspired by the Far West gold rush and mirroring the style of this particular era, will offer its guests a wide range of benefits such as unlimited access to PortAventura Park, 1-day access to Ferrari Land, Express Premium wristband for PortAventura Park, exclusive breakfast buffet and free gifts for children.



The Colorado Creek hotel will also be the first zero-emission hotel when it opens at the Resort. This is a strategic approach from PortAventura World, which will be extended to other areas of the Resort to minimise its environmental footprint.

Together with Clean CO2, PortAventura World will offset its emissions by purchasing Verified Emission Reductions (VERs), a type of carbon credit, for projects that improve the environment and surroundings. Through this initiative, in 2019 PortAventura World will be contributing to the Malawi Borehole project. This project involves the restoration of wells for local communities in Malawi to provide 450,000 people with drinking water, a resource that almost half of the rural population currently does not have access to.

Pictures: copyright PortAventura World