The theme park opened as Grand Slam Canyon on August 23, 1993, in the west parking lot of the hotel. It sits on a reinforced 18" thick deck elevated 18 feet (5 m) above ground. The dome itself consists of over 350,000 sq ft (33,000 m2) of pink tinted, insulated glass over a teal green space frame (to minimize structural poles inside). Each pane of glass weighs approximately 300 lb (140 kg). After customer feedback, the park was closed for 45 days in 1994 to add new attractions. Grand Slam Canyon was renamed the Adventuredome in 1997.
Circus Circus Enterprises (later Mandalay Resort Group) initially owned the Adventuredome until 2005, when it was sold to MGM Mirage, which later became MGM Resorts International. Ruffin purchased the resort and theme park in 2019.
Construction was underway in September 1992, and the opening was initially scheduled for the following July.[3] Circus Circus hoped to have the Grand Slam Canyon opened before the upcoming MGM Grand Adventures Theme Park.[9]
The building's dome design was created entirely out of pink tinted glass, with each pane weighing approximately 300 lb (140 kg). The dome itself consists of over 350,000 sq ft (33,000 m2) of pink insulated glass placed over a teal green frame.[10] The dome has 8,615 panes of glass.[11]
Adventuredome interior
Grand Slam Canyon eventually opened on August 23, 1993.[10][12][13] It featured river-rapid rides, two lagoonlike pools, a lazy creek and a re-creation of a pueblo.[13] It had four attractions: the Canyon Blaster roller coaster, the Twist 'N' Shout water raft, the Rim Runner, and the Hot Shotz Lazer Tag arena, now known as Lazer Blast.[12][14] The park also featured eight large animatronic dinosaurs spread throughout the park, with visitors being able to read the informational placards in front of each one. Though visitors could not ride them, the dinosaurs often "interacted" with the visitors, with some spitting water on guests.[13]
Grand Slam Canyon was initially popular, but visitors often expressed their desire for more things to do. Tom Nolan, the vice president of theme park operations at Adventuredome, suggested that "it was a [matter] of what people wanted versus what they could do" and added that "there were a lot of animatronics, a lot of theming, but people said there weren't enough things to do."[12] Following the feedback, the park was closed for 45 days beginning in April 1994 to remodel,[12][15] adding $15 million in new attractions. The park originally charged a $10 admission fee, but this was dropped in favor of a $2.50 fee for each ride.[16]
During the remodeling, several family-friendly attractions were added, such as Midway shows, Canyon Cars (bumper cars), Sand Pirates (a swinging pirate ship), Miner Mike (a mini roller coaster), Thunderbirds (a mini airplane ride), and Drifters (a mini Ferris wheel).[15] The Twist 'N' Shout water raft ride was removed to make way for several of these rides, solely due to its size.[13][15] After the remodeling, as space became available, rides were added to the theme park one or two at a time every few years.[15] Near the laser tag arena, for example, management added a rock climbing wall and a miniature golf course. Though initially hesitant to add the golf course out of concern for the park's glass dome, there has not been a single golf ball incident as of 2009.[15] The animatronic dinosaurs were eventually removed.[13]
In its early years, the park was sometimes also known as "Grand Slam Canyon Adventuredome".[17][18] The name was changed to simply "Adventuredome" in 1997.[19][20] The theme park is climate-controlled,[14] and this helped it succeed over its rival, MGM Grand Adventures, which was outdoors and struggled during the hot summer months in Las Vegas.[20] The Adventuredome also competed against the nearby Wet 'n Wild water park.[21]
The Adventuredome began offering IMAX film rides in 1998,[22][23] including one based on the animated series ReBoot.[24][25] In 1999, management tried to keep up with the latest developments in the industry by consulting visitor surveys. This resulted in the addition of several dynamic thrill rides across the next few years, including the Inverter that same year, Chaos in 2001, and the Sling Shot in 2004.[15] The new rides were part of an effort to target an older demographic, from ages 13 and up.[21]
On February 3, 2013, the Rim Runner was permanently closed to make way for a newer roller coaster named "El Loco", which opened on February 18, 2014.[26][27] The Rim Runner's closure left the Canyon Blaster as the only original ride left from the park's opening.[28]
Aside from rides, the Adventuredome also includes midway and arcade games.[31]
Attendance
The park received its 1-millionth guest in May 1994,[32] and its 10-millionth in July 1998.[19] At that time, the park averaged two million visitors a year.[33][34] A record for daily attendance was hit on November 27, 1999, with 30,130 visitors. For 2000, the Adventuredome ranked 19th in North America and 34th in the world for attendance, with 2.9 million visitors. As of 2001, the park received an average of 7,500 visitors daily.[20] For 2003, park attendance ranked 11th in North America and 19th in the world. The park had received 30 million total visitors as of 2004.[35] Another single-day record was reached in November 2005, with 41,182 people.[11] The Adventuredome had its 50 millionth visitor on January 1, 2009.[15] Attendance was 3.2 million people for 2014.[36]
Fright Dome
In 2003, the Adventuredome partnered with brothers Jason and Michael Egan, who owned Fright America, to transform the theme park into a temporary Halloween attraction known as Fright Dome.[37] The project, modeled after Knott's Scary Farm, was intended to boost attendance during October, which was usually a poor month for visitation as children return to school. Fright Dome included haunted houses and actors in costumes. Nine of the theme park's rides, aimed at younger children, were closed during the Fright Dome event, in an effort to appeal to an older demographic.[38]
Fright Dome became an annual event at the Adventuredome each October.[39][40][41][42] It cost $2 million to put on each year.[43] New features were added for each Fright Dome.[44] In 2005, it attracted 50,000 visitors.[45]USA Today considered Fright Dome to be among the top 10 haunted house attractions in the U.S.[46] In 2014, the Travel Channel ranked Fright Dome as the second best haunted attraction in the country, and another location was opened that year in Hong Kong.[43]
This was a ride that would spin while allowing each car to flip on its own axis while tilted to a 70 degree angle. This attraction will be replaced by a new upcoming ride which is yet to be announced.
A rafting ride that travelled along twists and turns.[86] Occupied an area that is now home to Canyon Cars, Sand Pirates and midway games. This was an original park attraction.
In popular culture
In the 1999 film Baby Geniuses, the Adventuredome makes an appearance as the fictional "Joyworld" theme park. Sly starts the Canyon Blaster ride with two scientists on board and restraints still open. Both fall from the ride.[11]
In the season 3 episode "Rollercoaster Thru Criss" from the TV series Criss Angel Mindfreak, a train "goes through" Criss' body while he stands on the track of the Canyon Blaster ride after the corkscrews, and Criss ends up in the front seat.[87]
Notes
^ abArchived versions of the Adventuredome's website indicate the ride opened between April 2004 and June 2004.
References
^"Gambling with nature". Detroit Free Press. August 27, 1992. Retrieved March 23, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ abcMylchreest, Ian (May 28, 2004). "Adventuredome goes vertical". Las Vegas Business Press. Archived from the original on June 6, 2004. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
^Mihailovich, Steven (October 10, 2003). "Fright Dome to scare up a crowd". Las Vegas Business Press. Archived from the original on March 10, 2004. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
^White, Ken (October 22, 2004). "Fright Nights". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on October 30, 2004.
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