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The Danish amusement park Sommerland Sjælland has made it a niche to come up with activities controlled by the guests’ mobile phones. SMS, Tele-remote and an app for iPhone and Android are popular and the owner is full of ideas and visions for the mobile interaction.
Smaller parks have to be innovative, if they are to stand the competition from the larger parks, who easily throw millions at huge roller coasters and water slides. In Denmark the owner of Sommerland Sjælland, Kaare Dyvekaer, has therefore found his niche in the mobile interactions area.
In Sommerland Sjælland you can for example:
- Use your mobile phone as an online remote control for a water cannon via DTMF tones (first of its kind in 2005)
- Shoot water cannons via SMS at a pirate ship in a lake, where other guests are passing in canoes
- Feed goats and rabbits via SMS
- Activate smoke on a train and several features and surprises on the jungle trip via SMS
- Be prepared for all the fun with the park’s app Fidy Guide
Guests activate surprises for each other
“We want to make use of the things that the guests bring with them on their visit, and thereby let the guests make their own surprises for each other. Instead of being passive guests, our mobile activities make the guests use their phones to activate and interact with each other in new ways ”, states Kaare Dyvekaer, owner and managing director of Sommerland Sjælland.
And the mobile activities are becoming very popular, as guests are getting used to the technology and possibilities in the park: “When we first started the mobile activities with Telesplash (water cannon via mobile remote control) back in 2005, only a few guests dared to try. Today we see the opposite picture, and thousands are using in particular our SMS activities and app for smartphones ” adds Kåre Dyvekær.
9000 messages for a pirates ship!
At the beginning of the summer, the pirate ship with water cannons received its 9000th SMS , which means that 216, 000 liters of water have run through the cannons this summer. This activity is the far most popular mobile activity, as one guest can shoot after other guests, as they paddle by.
The new app Fidy Guide makes it easier to use all of the mobile activities. The app is used to provide service information, but even more interesting is the handy way to use all of the mobile activities. On one page in the app you can see all of the mobile activities in the park and easily control them from where you are.
With the app open you can receive GPS controlled service messages on your way through the park, which are relevant to your location. Thereby you are informed of history of an attraction, time for a show, offers in the nearest shop and eating place, gifts etc. As a treat the guests can find secret zones that reward their effort with a bottle of water, a candy stick or something else.
Furthermore, you have a score card for adventure golf, you can share your score on Facebook, play a game, download wallpapers/ringtones, see the local weather forecast etc.
People are willing to pay if they get that little extra something
It is the experience of Sommerland Sjælland that guests are willing to pay a bit extra for an SMS activity, if they feel that they also get an extra experience out of their day. Lots of the mobile activities only cost the price of an SMS, and some extra activities such as getting food for a goat or rabbit cost a symbolic amount of money in Sommerland Sjælland.
Kaare Dyvekaer sees a potential in this way of thinking: “I believe that with this knowledge and knowhow we can make a 2 in 1 park within a few years, where one guest gets all of the fun as usual, and another guest, who is willing to pay a little more, gets a bit ‘more’ during their visit. It could be that at the entrance the guests activate the ‘big visit’, and as they move around with their phone open, it will automatically open a secret way on a jungle trip, a bigger track for the gokart ride etc. ” he explains.
Danish minister visits Sommerland Sjælland
The Minister of Economic and Business Affairs Mr Brian Mikkelsen visited Sommerland Sjælland this summer and talked to owner Kaare Dyvekaer about tourism in the future and innovative ideas in the summer park. “It is a great credit for us that the minister pays attention to our little park, and we thereby hope that our ideas can be an inspiration to the rest of the tourism industry in Denmark. Our mobile ideas are not isolated for use in Sommerland Sjælland, but can also be used by local tourist offices, museums etc. which we are willing to help in the mobile activating world ” Kåre Dyvekær ends.
NewsParcs' Theme Park Supplier's News of the Week is a review of the latest news and releases of companies supplying the theme park industry worldwide. This weekly report covers topics such as corporate announcements, ...
NewsParcs' Theme Park Supplier's News of the Week is a review of the latest news and releases of companies supplying the theme park industry worldwide. This weekly report covers topics such as corporate announcements, financial...
We publish today the second issue of our new Theme Park Supplier's News of the Week series of articles, a review of the latest news and releases of companies supplying the theme park industry worldwide. This weekly report...
NewsParcs will do a full coverage of the IAAPA Attractions Expo 2013 in Orlando to have a look at the latest trends and developments of the global theme park industry.
