After 21 years of thrilling guests at the Gold Coast’s Dreamworld theme park, the Thunderbolt rollercoaster is being dismantled, due to rising maintenance costs.

When it opened in 1982, the coaster was the first double loop coaster in the Southern Hemisphere and the first mega coaster built on the Gold Coast. Built from steel, it was designed to emulate the turbulence and exhilaration of a wooden coaster but its popularity has since been eclipsed by the more high tech thrill rides like Dreamworld’s Tower of Terror and Giant Drop.

Tony Braxton-Smith, who has just resigned as CEO of Dreamworld says, “removing the coaster paves the way for the implementation of a master-plan that will herald some exciting developments in this part of the park, including the addition of some of the latest cutting edge thrill rides to be rolled out over the coming years.”

Meanwhile, a new family attraction called Farmyard Friends will open at the park on 9 April, to compliment existing family offerings, including the Australian Wildlife Experience, Tiger Island and Nick Central, which is themed on the characters from popular children’s television channel, Nikelodeon.

The new attraction is an interactive baby animal nursery where guests can bottle feed baby lambs and calves, feed chicks and play with piglets! Farmyard Friends will be open during park operating hours, with scheduled feeding times throughout the day.

Details: +61 7 5588 1159