Orlando to get Great Wheel!

[DrT]

Fab News!
From The Sentinel:

Firm to reveal details for wheel attraction in Orlando's I-Drive district
Sara K. Clarke | Sentinel Staff Writer
June 20, 2008

The company planning to build a massive observation wheel in Orlando, similar to the famed London Eye, said Thursday the project is moving forward.

Executives from The Great Wheel Corp., a company based in Singapore, will be in town next week to announce details of the planned attraction in the International Drive tourist corridor.

Reports of the giant observation wheel -- rumored to be 400 feet high -- first surfaced last summer. In August, Great Orlando Wheel Corp. purchased 20 acres near SeaWorld Orlando and the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau for $38 million.

Orlando would be the first North American site for The Great Wheel Corp., which has built or announced projects in cities including Beijing, Singapore, Berlin and Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Project renderings on the company's Web site show enclosed glass capsules that can each hold 40 people for the slow, Ferris-wheel-like sightseeing ride.

The London Eye, which opened in March 2000, is owned by Merlin Entertainments Group. With an annual attendance of 3.5 million people a year, that 443-foot-high observation wheel is now that country's most popular paid attraction, the company says.

The Great Wheel Corp. is expected to announce an opening date for its Orlando attraction Wednesday, when it hosts a media event marking the start of construction. It will also reveal the local companies working on the project, organizers said.

[TampaMike]

Great news, but the wheel will never get the same amount of people/tourists like the one in London.

[DrT]

London's 3.5 million will be hard to beat, but Disney had:

Disney’s Magic Kingdom in Orlando, Florida, was again the world’s most visited park in 2007, attracting just over 17 million guests

Not unthinkable we could be in the ballpark on attendance.

[MNiemann]

Really cool! It will make that part of town look that much more touristy, but it will set us apart from other cities in the U.S.

[SkyDiveJunkee]

I personally find the location to be very odd, it is going to overlook a sea of trees and a few highrises on I-Drive. The London Eye overlooks one of the greatest urban environments in the world. But who knows, we'll see.

[brickell]

Agree about the location. I-drive is pretty ugly and it's mostly trees and sprawl beyond. I just can't imagine enough people wanting to see that to make it worth while, but it's not my money. And of course, I'll probably go, but I'm a geek.

[DrT]

Originally Posted by brickell

Agree about the location. I-drive is pretty ugly and it's mostly trees and sprawl beyond. I just can't imagine enough people wanting to see that to make it worth while, but it's not my money. And of course, I'll probably go, but I'm a geek.

At night, the lights would be pretty spectacular. The coast would probably be visible on a clear day.

It is also somewhat of a "thrill" ride for those suburbanite visitors that have never been that high up. You're pretty much in a clear plastic bubble where you really feel the vertigo of the 400' height.

[TampaMike]

Originally Posted by SkyDiveJunkee

I personally find the location to be very odd, it is going to overlook a sea of trees and a few highrises on I-Drive. The London Eye overlooks one of the greatest urban environments in the world. But who knows, we'll see.

That's what I meant when comparing to London. No doubt will people flock to go in the Wheel, but as the eyars go by, the attendence will slump because London has something that Orlando doesn't, and that is a view. The Londo Eye lays directly across the river from the Big Ben, it's taller than the proposed one in Orlando, so it'll have more of a biew of the city, and London has a fantastic skyline.

I'll go on the wheel once or twice, but I think it'll become pretty dull until I have children to bring to it.

[jzquince69]

Local 6 said it's 492' tall...

well, other than a sea of trees, people will be seeing the following points of interest:

1. Sea World to the SE
2. OCCC, Pointe Orlando & mega hotels to the N & NE
3. fireworks in the distance and at Sea World to the S & W-SW
4. Dr. Phillips Wal-Mart to the W
5. Tangelo Park to the NE

wow. what a mix of attractions.

[southfloridamiamian]

miami is also planning on building its own wheel
http://cbs4.com/local/miami.dade.giant.2.563857.html wonder which one would get more visitors. Ours is supposed to be built by the port so you would get to see downtown from on direction and southbeach on the other. Would be aswome being the only state with two wheels.

[smiley]

YEa, that should be fun on a summer afternoon in central Florida.

[MNiemann]

OK wait a second guys...

492 feet! umm...you'll be able to see EVERYTHING in Orlando at that height, from Disney to Downtown. Ever been to the top of the Contemporary? You can see everything from there and that's only 18 stories.

[Middle-Island]

I've never been a fan of these in most cities, but Orlando is obviously the perfect place for a ride.

[Dale]

Originally Posted by jzquince69

Local 6 said it's 492' tall...

well, other than a sea of trees, people will be seeing the following points of interest:

1. Sea World to the SE
2. OCCC, Pointe Orlando & mega hotels to the N & NE
3. fireworks in the distance and at Sea World to the S & W-SW
4. Dr. Phillips Wal-Mart to the W
5. Tangelo Park to the NE

wow. what a mix of attractions.

Won't the height-nazis get this chopped to 440' ?

[Dale]

Only in Central Florida. The two tallest structures are a rocket hanger and a ferris wheel.

[FLAWDA-FELLA]

What a shame!!

[jzquince69]

lol.

actually, when you think about it, Miami would be a great place to put one of those, being at the Port and all. you could see everything; islands, bldgs, ships, etc... it would rock.

Orlando's, seriously, though, would offer the birdseye view of OCCC, the big hotels there and Pointe Orlando, Seaworld, Aquatica, Discovery Cove, the Grande Lakes Resort, Marriott World Ctr, Dr. Phillips area & Big Sand Lake, and OIA, Disney, Universal, some malls. and downtown Orlando in the distance. Also, Sea World's 400' Skytower nearby.

No Intracoastal to speak of, but there is a lot to see from that vantage point.

[SkyDiveJunkee]

^would you really pay to see a convention center, hotels, and a few malls from a birds eye view?

[MNiemann]

x

Originally Posted by SkyDiveJunkee

^would you really pay to see a convention center, hotels, and a few malls from a birds eye view?

People pay for 100' ferris wheels at the county fair where you get to see nothing. I think tourists would like it to take pictures. i'd certainly go on it at least once just to try it out and probably take anyone from out of town who was visiting.

But I agree with jzquince, makes more sense in Miami.

[karim aboussir]

GREAT !!! but why not put it in downtown orlando !! personal opinion that is the best place and an attractive landmark for downtown
any thoughts ?