Bally's Worlds of Wonder
Bally's Worlds of Wonder is an air-conditioned behemoth that puts the Circus Circus Adventuredome and MGM Grand Adventure to absolute shame. So massive that you can fit the Louisiana Superdome inside and still have room for countless attractions, restaurants and shops.
The teal shape is the actual footprint of the theme park. The chunk facing Flamingo road to the north is both for show building space and to provide an entrance to the park from the Paris Casino. The white oval indicates the dome, the focal point of the park's exterior.
The Paris Hotel is moved to the corner of Flamingo and Paradise (top right) in order to allow direct access to Worlds of Wonder from Las Vegas Boulevard on the west side. On the corner of Harmon and Paradise is the Hard Rock Hotel.
The Bally's hotel in Vegas was formerly the original MGM Grand IOTL. In preparation for Worlds of Wonder, much of the old hotel was demolished with the hotel towers rebuilt in a serpentine with a swimming pool. All that remains of the OTL MGM/Bally's are the Grand Bazaar Shops in the Bally's forecourt. The Grand Bazaar can pretty much act as Worlds of Wonder's equivalent of Universal's City Walk.
The outer part of the dome is made up of turquoise or bluish-teal, soundproof, semi-visible glass. The rooftops surrounding the dome are equipped with industrial-grade ventilation systems to reduce the amount of dust in the event of upgrades or the replacement of an attraction. The dome's highest point is at 280 feet. The roof is cantilevered similarly to that of the Adventuredome.
The guest parking garage is eleven stories tall while the employee parking structure is seven stories.
The Eiffel Tower at the Paris Hotel & Casino is scaled down to half size to accommodate the nearby McCarran Airport.
Opened on May 3, 1996 in Paradise, Nevada on the Las Vegas Strip.
FOUNDING PARTNERS
BALLY'S, INC.
BULLWINKLE STUDIOS
PAWS, INC.
GOLDEN HARVEST OF AMERICA
FELD ENTERTAINMENT
PREMAVISION
THE J. ARTHUR RANK GROUP [1]
PEPSICO
DR. PEPPER CORPORATION
MILLER BREWING COMPANY
[1] Then-parent company of Hard Rock Cafes and Hotels. Shortly after Worlds of Wonder opened, Rank sold the chain to the Seminole Tribe of Florida.
Bally's Worlds of Wonder Grand Opening Special
Aired on the night of May 3, 1996, simultaneously on The Hub and NBC.
Dedication speech delivered by
Barry Diller, chairman of Bally's, Inc.
Additional speeches given by
Alan Ladd, Jr., chairman of Hollywood Pictures
Haim Saban, head of Golden Harvest of America
Tiffany Ward, daughter of
Bullwinkle creator Jay Ward
Jim Davis, creator of
Garfield
Art Clokey, creator of
Gumby
Grand Marshall
Wayne Newton
Honorary King and Queen of Worlds of Wonder
Gus St. Pierre
Reese Witherspoon
"America the Beautiful" sung by
Ray Charles
"The Star Spangled Banner" sung by
Harry Connick, Jr.
Music performed by
The UNLV Student Orchestra
Conducted for this event by
Michael Kamen
Other special guests
Dennis Miller
Penn and Teller
Rosie O'Donnell
Billy Crystal
Patrick Stewart
Amy Jo Johnson
Jason David Frank
Karan Ashley
OPENING NIGHT ATTRACTIONS
THE STRIP
The park's equivalent of Main Street, themed with scaled down parodies of now-defunct Vegas hotels. This is the first land you see if you enter through the atrium adjacent to Las Vegas Boulevard.
[Naming Rights] Theatre at Worlds of Wonder: The park's answer to the VH1 Videopolis venue.
Boulevard Buffet: The park's answer to the numerous buffets at other casinos.
Astrocade: Featuring the latest games from Bally's Midway division. Named after the late 70's-early 80's home console.
Roulette: A round up-ride with Vegas flavor.
Lucky Streak: A Vegas-themed coaster.
Devil's Den: A Tower or Terror-style haunted casino with a Vegas twist. The storyline for this attraction takes place at the derelict Lucky Thirteen. Be careful, because if you spin a 666 on the ride's slot machine, you'll earn a jackpot of flames or spiders. Don't forget about the succubus showgirls, vampire magicians, werewolf comedians and zombie bands.
THE INCREDIBLE WORLD OF DIC
(This is the first area you see if you're coming in from the Paris Hotel/Casino).
Madeline's Tour of Paris: A dark ride in a similar vein to those at the Fantasylands in Disney's castle parks.
Go-Go-Gadget Coaster: Just as the name says, a kid-friendly coaster based on Inspector Gadget.
THE MIDWAY
(Themed after Midway video games)
Mortal Kombat: Scorpion vs. Sub-Zero: A dueling coaster.
Defender: A simulator ride akin to Star Tours.
Joust: The Tournament: Coming soon.
SpyHunter: Coming soon.
HEROVILLE
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Ride: A simulator ride that takes guests inside the Megazord. Most of the queue is themed after the Command Center from the original series with Zordon giving the safety instructions.
Shezow: Pink Thunder: Coming soon.
Sailor Moon Meet and Greet: Coming soon.
CARTOON CANYON
(Next door to the DiC section of the park)
Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls: The log flume ride similar to what you recognize from OTL's Islands of Adventure.
Gumby's Daring Escape: A dark ride that puts guests in the POV of Gumby, jumping through books across Toyland to outrun the Blockheads.
Garfield's Kitty Carousel: Just as the name says, a Merry-Go-Round themed after the comic strip.
US Acres: A meet and greet zone for Jim Davis's other comic strip.