Blooloop offers authoritative reporting and thought leadership on attractions, from major parks and brands to emerging experiences, helping industry professionals stay informed, inspired and connected.
Two Wet ‘n’ Wild branded parks, in Phoenix and the newest Wet ‘n’ Wild water park that opened in Las Vegas in late May, are partnering with Lo-Q to deliver virtual queuing to their guests beginning this summer.
Branded as Xpress Band, guests of Wet ‘n’ Wild locations in Phoenix and Las Vegas are able to use Lo-Q’s virtual queuing wristband technology to get more out of their day by spending less time waiting in line and more time enjoying all the water parks have to offer.
Lo-Q’s innovative system uses a waterproof and lightweight radio frequency identification (RFID) wristband that allows guests to virtually queue for their favorite slides without physically standing in line. Xpress Band users select their desired ride from multiple self-service kiosks located throughout the parks and will be notified on their wristband when it’s time to return. Guests use a separate entrance to enter the ride and scan their band for validation, thereby avoiding standing in line and maximizing their time to enjoy park attractions.
“We’re pleased to offer the Xpress Band option to our guests, which allows them to spend less time in line and enjoy a premium water park experience, ” said Takuya Ohki, Wet ‘n’ Wild Las Vegas general manager.
Xpress Band is the first virtual reservation band of its type to be used by Wet ‘n’ Wild, which has a five-year agreement with Lo-Q. Both water parks are a part of Village Roadshow Theme Parks, a division of Village Roadshow Limited, which is Australia's largest theme park operator and the provider of some of the most thrilling entertainment, rides and slides available anywhere in the world. Headquartered on the Gold Coast, Village Roadshow Theme Parks operates a number of attractions in Australia and three Wet’n’Wild branded water parks in the United States.
“We are excited to be working with Wet ‘n’ Wild Phoenix and in Las Vegas during its inaugural season, ” said Steve Brown, chief operating officer of Lo-Q. “These operators understand that guests want a premium park experience that includes minimizing the amount of time they have to wait in line. We are proud to provide a product that meets this need and helps increase overall guest satisfaction throughout the park.”
Blooloop offers authoritative reporting and thought leadership on attractions, from major parks and brands to emerging experiences, helping industry professionals stay informed, inspired and connected.
The company collaborates with water park owners and operators worldwide as they plan new attractions, extend parks, and refine the guest experience. These discussions are shaped by myriad factors, from innovation and safety to visitor expectations, labour pressures, or technology.
For many leaders, the role is less about visibility and more about clarity, as they set direction, build teams, and make decisions that will shape the future of their parks.
And often, the most important decisions shaping the industry take place during daily operational leadership, rather than in the spotlight.
To explore how this works in practice, ProSlide asked leaders in the attractions sector about the decisions they make and the pressures they navigate.
Tiffany Watts, chief marketing officer at Roaring Springs; Michelle Playfair, general manager of Bingemans Big Splash; Brooke Patterson, chief brand officer at Great Wolf Lodge; and Tanis Berthaudin, senior principal ride designer at ProSlide, share their thoughts.
Empathy, adaptability, & curiosity
In an industry where visitor satisfaction depends on thousands of daily interactions, leaders must balance operational oversight with an understanding of both employees and guests.
"I believe emotional intelligence is what distinguishes truly exceptional leaders in the attractions industry," says Watts.
"The ability to interact with guests and employees with sensitivity, empathy, and proactive problem solving elevates outcomes and builds loyalty and trust."
By combining emotional intelligence with sector experience and strong relationships across the organisation, she adds, it lays a foundation for leadership that teams genuinely want to follow.
This is echoed by Playfair, who sees leadership as a continuous process of listening and adapting.
"Things are always changing - new technology, evolving guest expectations, updated safety standards," she says. "The best leaders stay curious, listen closely, and aren’t afraid to try new ideas."
In the water ride industry, ProSlide adds, these qualities often enable operators to successfully launch new attractions, adapt park layouts, and evolve visitor offerings while maintaining operational consistency.
Strategic decision making
Although strategic decisions in attractions often appear subtle, they can have a significant impact on the experience.
For example, Watts has focused on branding for each attraction. "I believe naming and branding each attraction builds excitement and helps create a ‘big park’ image," she says.
By branding attractions, such as the interactive RideHOUSE, Camp IdaH2O, the park goes beyond marketing to add both gravitas and narrative detail to the experience.
At Bingemans Big Splash, Playfair encourages teams to actively gather and act on guest feedback. "Those conversations help us respond quickly, understand what matters most to guests, and make meaningful improvements," she says. "Everyone feels connected to our purpose, delivering exceptional experiences."
Design choices can also significantly shape the visitor experience.
"Being able to maximize the amount of seating we have on the deck is really important for our guest experience," says Patterson.
"One of the unique strengths of ProSlide is their ability to efficiently design the ride structures in a way that helps us maximize our seating."
She adds: "Both ProSlide and Great Wolf Lodge have a deep commitment to guest experience, so when you bring together the expertise of ProSlide’s water park attractions with Great Wolf Lodge’s storytelling, you create a deeper, more meaningful guest experience."
Collaboration drives success
From the design side, Berthaudin sees many of these decisions take shape early in the planning process:
"Designing a new water ride is always a balance. At ProSlide, we’re always trying to deliver the best, most innovative ride possible for the client. Parks want something visually impactful or record-breaking, but we also have to consider guest flow, operational access, safety, and how the ride fits within the park’s footprint.
"Our role is to help realize our clients’ vision while making sure the attraction works well day-to-day for both guests and operators."
This approach looks beyond the ride and considers the wider park. "We spend a lot of time thinking about how guests approach the attraction, what they see from different pathways, and how the ride fits within the surrounding environment," says Berthaudin.
These insights show how operational leadership and attraction development are connected, says ProSlide. Close collaboration between park teams and their partners often results in the most successful projects.
Clarity, accountability, & relationships
Attraction leaders are continuously balancing short-term performance demands with the need to foster long-term growth.
This is a key challenge for Roaring Springs, which spans multiple venues. "Executing campaigns for everything from season passes to swimming lessons to bowling leagues requires constant planning and creativity," says Watts.
A similar dynamic can be seen when building and leading park teams, says Playfair. "Building a strong team starts with living your core values. When people feel supported and empowered, that’s when the magic really happens."
These insights reveal a common theme: effective leadership today relies less on visibility and more on clarity, accountability, and relationships. And although those decisions often occur behind the scenes, their impact is felt every time a visitor walks through the gate.
Last month, ProSlide celebrated the launch of Sun World Vũng Tàu Aqua Adventure in Vietnam, a destination-scale portfolio of the company's water rides developed with Sun Group.
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Semantic, a company thatdesigns and optimises websites for visitor attractions worldwide, has announced that Sir Nick Varney, the former chief executive officer of Merlin Entertainments, has become a significant investor.
Varney brings over 30 years of experience to Semantic, and his involvement marks a pivotal point in the company's evolution.
Having established itself as a trusted digital partner to leading UK attractions, the company has experienced increasing demand for LOOP, its website platform designed specifically for the attractions, leisure, heritage, and tourism sectors.
The investment supports Semantic’s long-term dedication to the platform and will facilitate ongoing product innovation, stronger strategic focus and growth into related markets.
Delivering 'Premier League' websites
Beyond financial backing, this partnership marks a shared belief that websites now play a key role in generating revenue, handling demand and defining the visitor experience.
LOOP was developed to solve some of the sector's common problems. Typically, websites are costly to build, tricky to update and quickly become disconnected from operational realities. LOOP provides a flexible platform that can grow with attractions and adapt to evolving expectations and technology.
A high-profile influencer in the sector, Varney brings additional operational experience, a proven track record of scaling international attractions businesses, and ongoing mentorship to help ensure LOOP continues to meet the real needs of operators.
"I have known Neil and Semantic for some time and was particularly impressed by his vision in developing the LOOP platform," says Varney.
"In location-based entertainment and indeed broader hospitality, a brand’s website is its most important asset after the physical venue or attraction. It is both the provider of information (and inspiration!) and the key route to market for converting customer interest into ticket sales or attendance.
"As such, in a competitive world, you need your website to be optimised and constantly updated. For all types and sizes of location-based businesses, LOOP offers the ability to have a 'Premier League' website at an affordable monthly price.
"I am very much looking forward to working with Neil to develop the business further to the benefit of current and future clients."
Neil Lewin, managing director of Semantic, says: "Nick’s investment is a testament to the capabilities of the platform, how we’ve developed it and the potential to help attractions, leisure, heritage and hospitality brands around the world.
"With decades of experience already baked into the platform, we are delighted to have Nick’s support to take the platform to the next level.
"We look forward to continually growing and evolving LOOP to keep pace with client needs, guest expectations, evolving technology and AI."
Last year, Semantic ran a campaign offering support for attractions preparing for the summer season, using LOOP to quickly establish or enhance their online presence.
At the museum, visitors can engage with digital avatars of historical figures who shaped Saratoga Springs and the institution itself.
Using their smartphones, guests can chat with these AI figures, ask them questions, and explore the city's past.
In select exhibits, visitors can also speak directly to portrait-based avatars for an immersive, face-to-face experience with history.
The AI tour guide software was created in-house by the museum's director of communications, L.F. Leon, as part of a project to combine innovation and accessibility.
Among the AI tour guides are John Morrissey, who helped to establish Saratoga as a leading destination in American culture.
Morrissey founded the Canfield Casino (now home to the museum) and created the Saratoga Race Track.
AI-powered museum experiences
Another AI tour guide is Frank Leslie, a pioneering publisher and advocate for women’s suffrage, whose legacy contributed to national conversations around women’s rights.
Also appearing as an AI guide is civic leader and founder of the Saratoga Historical Society, Ellen Hardin Walworth, who played a pivotal role in shaping local and national history.
"This reopening marks an exciting new chapter for the Saratoga Springs History Museum," said the museum's executive director James Parillo.
"We are honoring our past while embracing the future, using innovative technology to create meaningful connections between our visitors and the people who shaped this city."
The AI tour guides are included with museum admission and available to all guests.
Cloward H2O, an expert in aquatic design, reveals how delivering a successful surf park involves more than just selecting the appropriate wave technology or securing an appealing location.
The best projects rely on strong industry knowledge, proven expertise, and careful design. As surf parks evolve from stand-alone attractions to parts of larger destinations, insights from the broader attractions and aquatic industries have become more valuable.
As the demand for top-tier surf experiences continues to grow, Cloward H2O is dedicated to helping developers turn innovative ideas into dependable, high-quality destinations.
Its mission is to guarantee that each surf park offers consistent waves, excellent water quality, and a memorable guest experience.
A reliable partner
Cloward H2O collaborates closely with leading wave system developers and aquatic technology suppliers, enabling the creation of environments that blend excitement with durability.
By leveraging expertise in wave mechanics, water treatment, and circulation systems, it designs surf experiences that excite guests while adhering to top operational standards.
For the company, the “wow factor” goes beyond the wave, encompassing pristine water quality, smooth system performance, and assurance that every component is durable and well-engineered.
Cloward H2O supports surf park development, from initial concepts to final commissioning, offering expert guidance at each key phase.
The team works with clients, architects, and wave suppliers to develop designs that integrate seamlessly with the overall destination, enhancing the guest experience. Once a concept is finalised, the firm engineers systems for water circulation, filtration, and treatment, emphasising performance, safety, and sustainability with proven and innovative technologies.
Throughout construction, it works closely with project teams to ensure smooth progress, providing technical support and safeguarding the original vision until project completion.
Developers choose Cloward H2O for its reliable integration of proven practices and innovative technologies, ensuring modern advancements enhance surf park projects.
The company serves as a collaborator, guiding concepts through construction while keeping stakeholders informed and aligned. With extensive experience in the water park industry, the team minimises risks and improves project outcomes.
Committed to sustainability, Cloward H2O emphasises environmentally responsible water and energy solutions that support long-term success.
The Cloward H2O process involves initial project onboarding to understand client goals, followed by conceptual aquatic design support if needed. Approved concepts are then developed into detailed technical plans that meet industry standards.
During construction, Cloward H2O offers ongoing support to ensure proper installation. Finally, the team assists with testing, commissioning, and operator training to ensure everything functions smoothly from day one.
Although surf parks are still a developing industry, the company considers water parks a valuable source of operational knowledge accumulated over decades. Important lessons include prioritising safety, creating inclusive guest experiences, investing in dependable infrastructure, and designing for smooth, efficient operations.
Environmental responsibility is now also a key priority for the company. Water conservation, energy efficiency, and sustainable materials are expected standards rather than choices.
Moreover, successful attractions adapt to seasonal changes, leverage guest data effectively, and build strong brands through active community involvement.
Rising to the challenge
Surf park projects face significant challenges, including high upfront investment, advanced technological requirements, and complex regulatory frameworks. Choosing the right site is essential, says Cloward H2O, as it affects both construction feasibility and future visitor numbers.
Operational complexity also presents a hurdle. Ensuring consistent wave performance, water quality, and guest satisfaction demands skilled teams and well-designed systems.
As competition increases, surf parks must also set themselves apart through innovative design, strong branding, and superior experience quality.
The firm adds that design is crucial for the success of any aquatic attraction. Careful layout planning boosts guest movement, minimises congestion, and enhances safety.
Effective theming and appealing aesthetics strengthen brand identity, while sustainable designs ensure long-term durability. Common mistakes involve inadequate circulation plans, underestimating maintenance requirements, neglecting accessibility, and not incorporating sustainability early on.
Achieving a balance between innovation and practicality is vital to prevent expensive operational problems later.
Successful projects start with a clear understanding of market demand and guest expectations. Then, designers should focus on safety, operational efficiency, and creating immersive experiences, while utilising modern technology and planning for future growth, explains Cloward H2O.
Collaboration among stakeholders, thorough simulation and planning, and an emphasis on durability help ensure that attractions remain relevant and profitable in the long term.
Based in Lindon, Utah, Cloward H2O typically oversees 50 to 55 active projects globally. The company’s teams consist of seasoned senior engineers and designers, backed by mentored mid-level and junior staff, enabling the firm to uphold quality while managing complex, multi-project tasks.
SSA Group has been working on a transformative approach to operations. By weaving its signature 452 Hospitality ethos, rooted in a legacy of welcome and human connection, into Scout, a new AI-driven operating system, the company demonstrates how AI can enhance rather than replace the human side of hospitality.
For nearly 60 years, SSA Group has been a staple in the cultural attractions sector, collaborating with zoos, aquariums, and museums to provide comprehensive guest services. As a family-owned business, the company has continually adapted, but its core mission remains centred on a simple, powerful concept: hospitality.
We speak with CEO Sean McNicholas and vice president of people and culture, Jason Stover, to unpack Scout's mission and learn how it can open the door to both greater efficiency and more memorable moments.
SSA reimagines the industry
Starting by looking at the bigger picture, McNicholas says: “What I love about SSA and our family business is our curiosity for continuing to reimagine the industry.
"Those are pillars of our plan. We approach 60 years as a family business in 2030, and what’s exciting to us is continuing to innovate, not just our business, but the guest experience for our clients and partners.”
Sean McNicholas and Jason Stover
This culture of curiosity is what prompted McNicholas and Stover to investigate the potential of artificial intelligence long before it became the industry buzzword it is today.
"Five or six years ago, Jason came to me as one of the early adopters of AI. We started talking about it, and the more we looked at tools like AI, we asked a very simple question: what one, two, or three areas could AI positively impact our business?"
For SSA, the goal was not to replace staff or remove the human element from the museum or zoo experience through automation. Instead, the emphasis was on liberation.
"The thing that became clear was how tools like AI could help us become more efficient with data, back-end systems, and administrative work," adds McNicholas.
"If we can be more efficient there, we can spend more time meeting guests where they need us, which is on the front line.”
The outcome of this exploration is Scout, an AI-assisted tool and ‘unified intelligence layer’ designed specifically for cultural attractions.
Scout is positioned not as a replacement for human workers, but as a co-pilot. It is an operating system that gathers data from across the industry to provide real-time insights. Unlike general-purpose AI tools, Scout has been built for the sector's operational realities.
"AI is trending now, but it’s not new," says Stover.
"I’ve been with SSA for almost 30 years, and my journey with AI in this company has existed since day one. When I first became a manager, we were already experimenting with predictive analytics, trying to forecast attendance and staffing.
"That was AI at the time."
However, the leap to generative AI offered a new opportunity to support SSA's secret sauce: its people.
Stover employs a cinematic analogy to describe Scout’s role within the workforce:
"I compare it to Tony Stark," he says. "He’s brilliant, but he doesn’t become Iron Man until he has Jarvis. That’s what Scout is. It’s a co-pilot that takes away routine, monotonous work so our people can focus on what matters."
Real-time, useful insights
Designed to support guest-journey walkthroughs, the platform collects real-time observations and converts them into actionable insights tailored to each attraction.
The tool was created in accordance with SSA’s core belief that technology should never replace connection; it should enhance it. The idea is that data and design can collaborate to create memorable guest experiences.
This supports SSA’s wider focus on innovation, which aims to turn curiosity into meaningful change that advances partners' missions. By automating data analysis, Scout helps operators make more informed decisions about designs, platforms, and revenue strategies.
"Guest expectations are evolving faster than ever," says Stover. "Scout was built to meet this moment as a tech-forward AI tool that allows us to keep experiences deeply personal.”
The heart of the system: 452 Hospitality
Although the technology is impressive, the engine driving Scout remains entirely human. At the centre of Scout’s design is 452 Hospitality, the cultural ethos that defines SSA Group’s purpose and character.
Named after 452 Leyden Street, the Denver home where SSA’s founders first lived and practised hospitality, 452 has since become both a numeric and philosophical code for what the company stands for: a spirit of welcome, belonging, and genuine human connection.
At 452 Leyden Street, anyone could come in for a meal, a chat, or a place to rest. And that sense of genuine warmth now lives on in every SSA service encounter.
Today, 452 Hospitality reflects SSA’s ongoing dedication to creating authentic, memorable moments that uplift guests, partners, and colleagues alike.
That same spirit guides Scout’s purpose: rather than replacing people, the AI system aims to enable staff to embody 452 Hospitality more fully, freeing them from administrative burdens so they can provide the personal engagement that makes guests feel welcome and valued.
In practice, this involves a particular method for engaging with guests and monitoring operations. Scout develops a digital framework for this using the SOQ model: Observation, Opinion, and Question.
"Scout is being trained by the entire zoo, aquarium, and cultural attraction industry," Stover says. "Every conversation, every audit, every partner insight gets ingested and shapes how Scout operates.”
Within the Scout ecosystem, there are various ‘agents’ dedicated to different tasks, such as labour optimisation and inventory management. However, the ‘452 agent’ is unique.
"It has vision and voice capabilities. As you walk through operations, it analyses images and observations in real time and evaluates them against our hospitality standards. It acts as a co-pilot for auditors and operators, making observations, offering insights, and matching them with best practices and solutions.
“You might miss something as a human, but Scout won’t.”
Scout in action
The deployment of Scout is already producing tangible outcomes, progressing from theoretical ideas to solving complex on-site issues. This highlights SSA’s focus on turning insights into action by combining data, technology, and human connection.
McNicholas emphasises that the team is "continually evolving Scout by testing it across multiple attractions," noting that "every new site adds more data and sharper insights.”
Stover offers an example of Scout’s operational intelligence in action from a working session with the Detroit Zoo. The team was exploring a complex “what-if” scenario: opening a new entrance near a new exhibit while navigating compliance considerations, budget constraints, and a nearby rail track.
“Using Scout as a sandbox alongside their team, we pressure-tested the constraints, surfaced relevant regulatory considerations, explored alternative approaches like repurposed shipping containers, and generated rough-order cost ranges. It was less about committing to a final plan and more about accelerating discovery.”
“What’s exciting is that every audit surfaces a new real-world question, and we ask: Should this become a new sub-agent? That’s how Scout keeps evolving.”
Another success story comes from the Dallas Zoo, where Scout was instrumental in helping the zoo team explore their own AI journey while SSA conducted an inter-department relationship audit.
Scout is tailored to each user’s psychology
What makes Scout different from typical business AI tools is its incorporation of behavioural psychology. Acknowledging that strong operations don't happen by accident, SSA has combined leadership development with its technological roadmap.
Stover, whose background is in people and culture, insisted that if they were to create co-pilots, they had to understand the humans who would use them. So, instead of providing generic recommendations, Scout adapts its guidance to each leader's thinking and communication style.
"One of the first things we decided was that if we were going to build AI co-pilots, they needed to integrate Behavioural Essentials," Stover says. "We already use behavioural assessments that give leaders a 21-point profile, with strengths, tendencies, and blind spots. We’ve now incorporated that into Scout.”
This means that when a manager logs into Scout, the system is tailored to their specific personality profile.
"It understands how I communicate, where I might need softer language, or where I might need more structure," Stover says.
He adds that McNicholas served as the ‘guinea pig’ for this feature:
"We merged his traits and blind spots into Scout as he was working through our future roadmap. Scout isn’t just an AI tool; it understands your psychological makeup and helps cover your blind spots as you operate in your role.”
The future of the workforce
A common concern about AI is the risk of job displacement. However, SSA’s leadership firmly states that their investment in technology aims to safeguard, not eliminate, their workforce.
"As CEO, culture is my responsibility, and culture starts with values," McNicholas says. "Hospitality, human-to-human interaction, has always been our foundation. I don’t want a world of all robots and automation. I love people too much.
“That’s why Scout exists. It helps us live what we love to do: creating special moments for people.”
Stover shares this view, considering AI as a safeguard against the decline of interpersonal skills observed in other industries:
"We have to be proactive in shaping the future. Many companies will use AI purely to impact the bottom line. That’s their choice. But SSA has always been people-focused. We’re adopting AI safely and intentionally to better our people. As interpersonal skills decline elsewhere, we’re protecting them by freeing people up to reconnect.”
The efficiency gains are clear. Stover notes that tasks like scheduling, which previously took hours to analyse against weather and sales history, now happen in seconds. "That frees managers up to spend time with their team. That’s the point.
“We’re hospitality people. We want to be in front of guests, not behind a screen.”
A vision for 2030
Looking ahead, SSA has set bold goals for the next five years. As the company approaches its 60th anniversary in 2030, the vision is for a fully enabled workforce where each employee has a digital partner.
"By 2030, every person in our company will have a co-pilot that helps them be more efficient," predicts McNicholas. "We’ll also bring a unified revenue strategy to attractions, something the industry lacks.”
He also believes the metrics of success are shifting. It is no longer enough to simply count heads at the gate:
"The future metrics won’t just be attendance. They’ll be revenue, guest experience, and fulfilment," he says.
"There’s more competition than ever, and we have to be the place where guests leave thinking, 'That felt right.' To do that, our people need tools like Scout so they can spend more time creating those moments.
“That’s how we reimagine the industry.”
The future of hospitality
Summing up the benefits, COO Travis Kight says:
"AI is the future of hospitality, but not in the way most imagine. We see AI as a co-pilot, not a replacement, designed to protect the human connection that defines our industry.
“Tools like Scout allow us to turn data into real-time insights, freeing our teams from repetitive tasks so they can focus on creating unforgettable guest experiences.
"As Sean mentioned, by 2030, our vision is for every team member to have a digital partner that amplifies their strengths, covers blind spots, and helps us deliver hospitality at a level the industry has never seen.
“AI isn’t about automation. It’s about empowerment.”
As SSA Group looks towards the attractions of tomorrow, its message is clear: the path to the future is built on data, but the goal remains human connection.
By anchoring Scout in 452 Hospitality's philosophy of creating meaningful, human-centred moments, SSA isn’t just adopting AI for efficiency. It’s enhancing its ability to deliver heartfelt experiences that define its brand and shape the future of the guest experience.
"That’s the foundation of Scout," Stover says. "If a tool doesn’t protect hospitality or make us better people-facing operators, it doesn’t get built.”
