Naturalia

After this botanical forest garden was abandoned, the Spirit of Mother settled in the land. Now, visitors can interact with the Spirit of Mother Nature, learn about different forest habitats, and act as conservationists in the forest of Naturalia.

The focal feature of Naturalia is the magnificent waterfall situated in the center of the forest.

The concept for Naturalia went through several iterations before crystallising into the package that it is today. But at the heart of this project was always the desire for guests to form an emotional connection to the land that compelled them to preserve natural habitats even after they left the park. Mother Nature serves as an entry point for guests to learn about the complexity of ecosystems, while also personifying the beauty and whimsy of the natural world. 

In an effort to create a meaningful experience and to satisfy aspects of the client brief, we focused on making Naturalia a highly interactive and engaging land with a variety of activities. The Caverns offers an interactive learning opportunity as guests experience echolocation in real time. The Burrows, an accessible and immersive indoor playground, provides an area where kids can burn off extra energy while also exploring the different habitats that exist in a forest. The main attraction of Naturalia, Conservation Quest, is an interactive dark ride that teaches guests the importance of preserving natural habitats and ecosystems by positioning them as conservationists embarking on a quest into the inner part of the forest.  

The benefit of having these attractions built indoors is that it allows them to operate in all weather conditions. However, we wanted to incorporate outdoor elements in Naturalia as well to encourage guests to spend time exploring the forest. The Grove 

is one area where guests can spend time outdoors in nature. There are a few, simple interactive water elements in The Grove, but this area was intentionally designed to be somewhere guests can relax and escape the over-stimulation of the rest of the park. We also decided to create interactive elements around the land that are motion activated, such as butterflies that flutter their wings or rock sculptures in the shape of Mother Nature that will tell you more about the land when you approach it. These interactive elements do not require any kind of additional technology, which means that everyone is free to play with them. However, some of these elements are intentionally hidden so that guests will have to spend dedicated time looking for them. This is to encourage guests to return to the land to continue their search and to provide a challenge to frequent visitors. 

Finally, Naturalia does have options for retail, food, and beverage. The retail and restaurant locations are built in what remains of the old greenhouses from when the botanical garden was built in this forest. All of the man-made architecture draws inspiration from Art Nouveau. We felt this ornamental style best captured the essence of Mother Nature since it was inspired by the natural forms of plants and flowers. These magnificent buildings are the perfect representation of the balance between man and nature, as the forest has regrown around these buildings in a way that preserves their architectural integrity, thus combining the wild and the artificial. It was important to us that the food options in Naturalia be sustainably and ethically sourced, so we made the decision to offer only vegan and vegetarian options in the land. 

Ultimately, Naturalia serves to be an example of the resiliency of nature. It is a beacon of hope, demonstrating how ecosystems can be restored. Our hope is that guests will feel inspired to be good stewards of the environment because of their time in Naturalia. We hope that as guests depart from Naturalia, they will carry not just fun memories, but a renewed dedication to conservation.

CONCEPT GALLERY:

Naturalia Birds Eye

Naturalia contains three indoor attractions, an outdoor rest area, interactive environmental elements, a retail location, a restaurant, and a guest services building

Operations

The operational aspects of Naturalia show the blend and balance between the natural and the man-made

Sustainability in Everything

Sustainability is a primary focus of Naturalia, so we have chosen to use compostable packaging on single-serve snacks, offer reusable cups for purchase, and opted to use natural and sustainability sourced fabrics for cast costuming.

The North Gate

The North entrance to Naturalia incorporates rocky and wooden elements to help transition between the mountains and the forest.

The Southwest Gate

The Southwest entrance incorporates primarily wooden elements to help transition between the forest and the wetlands. 

Naturalia Masterplan

This masterplan shows the positioning of our show buildings and includes the marquees for all of the offerings in Naturalia. 

Echolocation in The Caverns

The Caverns explores the cave system that runs underneath the forest and lets guests experience what it is like to navigate the world with echolocation through specially designed bat-ears headband. 

Outside of The Burrows

In a special section of the Naturalia, guests can explore different forest habitats…

Playing in The Burrows

… through and immersive and accessible indoor playground. 

Lunch in The Rose Garden

One of the abandoned greenhouses is now used as a restaurant location, serving vegan and vegetarian versions of many theme-park favorites such as burgers, hot dogs, and french fries. 

The Butterfly House Retail Location

Another one of the ornate, abandoned greenhouses is being used as a retail location. 

Inside the Butterfly House

The retail location in Naturalia offers general park and land-specific merchandise featuring Mother Nature in her human form and the animals guests discover in the main attraction, Conservation Quest. 

Entrance to Conservation Quest

The entrance to our main attraction, Conservation Quest, takes guests through what was once the primary greenhouse, though now reclaimed by nature 

Forest Queue

Guests twist and turn through a grove of trees, following the path deeper into the forest.

The Forest Clearing

As they come to a clearing in the forest, guests meet Mother Nature, who explains the purpose of this quest and the role of the guests as conservationists. 

A Secret Passage

When Mother Nature finishes speaking, butterflies move the branches and leaves of a large bush aside to reveal the path forward out of the clearing. 

Loading the Cocoons

Guests load into their cocoon, which has been outfitted with a bench, lanterns, and natural camouflaging elements. 

Lighting the Lanterns

Mother Nature explains how to use the lanterns to search for animals and reminds guests that they should be looking for beavers and bison since these two animals are major indicators of the forest ecosystem’s health. 

Leaving Naturalia

Butterflies once again part the foliage, creating an opening so guests can travel to the inner part of the forest that is still healing. 

The Forest Floor

A variety of animals can be discovered on the forest floor hiding among the rocks, bushes, and trees. 

The Ascent

When a falling tree blocks the path forward, the only option is to travel up!

Up in the Trees

Up in the trees, squirrels run from branch to branch and birds settle into their nests for the night.

The Spiral Down

Mother Nature guides the cocoons from the treetops back to the forest floor is a magnificent spiral around the trees. 

Underground

Returning to the forest floor, guests enter a tunnel illuminated only by streaks of the remaining sunlight and their lantern. 

Along the River

A creek leads from the end of the tunnel to a large river that bisects the forest where beavers and bison abound - Mother Nature is overjoyed to see them!

Return to Naturalia

As the quest concludes, the butterflies reveal the path back to Naturalia by once again separating a dense patch of bushes. 

A Final Request

As guests unload, Mother Nature thanks them for their help and compels them to continue their work as conservationists by caring for ecosystems and natural habitats everywhere. 

Exiting back to the Forest

The tunnel of vines leads back into the main forest of Naturalia. 

Mother Nature

Mother Nature serves as an entry point for guests to learn about the complexity of ecosystems, while also personifying the beauty and whimsy of the natural world. 

Our schematic documentation focuses on the general land development of Naturalia and the ride layout of Conservation Quest, with special attention given to the S3 scene. 

S3 is the third show scene after guests load the attraction. S1 involves the guests practicing using their lanterns, S2 is when Mother Nature transports guests to the inner section of the forest, and S3 is the first show scene where guests are using their lanterns to find the animals living in the forest. 

SCHEMATIC GALLERY

Naturalia Master Plan with Details

The masterplan of the Naturalia expansion (1:500 scale)

Main Attraction - Conservation Quest

Keyplan showing Conservation Quest, the main attraction of Naturalia (1:500 scale)

Conservation Quest: Ride Layout

Ride layout for Conservation Quest, the main attraction of Naturalia (1:300 scale)

Conservation Quest: Ride Vehicle Orientation and Sightlines

Ride vehicle orientation for full layout of Conservation Quest including the corresponding sightlines (1:300 scale)

Conservation Quest: Ride Vehicle

Ride Vehicle for Conservation Quest. This ride uses the Suspended Dark Ride system from Vekoma

Conservation Quest: Interactives

Joystick-controlled onboard interactive “lanterns” on the ride vehicle

Conservation Quest, Scene 3: Animatronic Placement

Placement diagram for animatronics in Scene 3 of Conservation Quest (1:150 scale)

Conservation Quest, Scene 3: Animated Prop Placement

Placement diagram for animated props in Scene 3 of Conservation Quest (1:150 scale)

Conservation Quest, Scene 3: Reflected Ceiling Plan

Placement diagram for lights from ceiling in Scene 3 (1:150 scale)

Conservation Quest, Scene 3: Ground Plan

Placement diagram for lights from floor in Scene 3 (1:150 scale)

Conservation Quest, Scene 3: Backlight & LED-Funghi placement

Placement diagram for Backlight and LED-Funghi in Scene 3 (1:150 scale)

Conservation Quest, Scene 3: Worklight & Evacuation signage placement

Placement diagram for Worklight and Evacuation Signage in Scene 3 (1:150 scale)

Conservation Quest, Scene 3: Sound placement

Placement diagram for Sound in Scene 3 (1:150 scale)

Conservation Quest, Scene 3: Special Effect placement

Placement diagram for Special Effects in Scene 3 (1:150 scale)

Conservation Quest Show control placement

Placement diagram for Show control in Conservation Quest (1:300 scale) 

Conservation Quest: OCC Control Panel

Operator Control Console for the Conservation Quest attraction

Conservation Quest CCTV placement

Placement diagram for CCTV in Conservation Quest (1:300 scale)

Conservation Quest: CCTV Control Panel

CCTV Control Console for operator at Conservation Quest

Conservation Quest: Evacuation Pathways

Evacuation Pathways for the Conservation Quest attraction (1:300 scale)

Conservation Quest: Fire safety placement

Placement diagram for Fire Alarm and Fire Extinguisher in Conservation Quest (1:300 scale)

Staffing for Naturalia

Staffing calculation for Naturalia

Team Members

Britt Vermeeren - Project manager

https://www.linkedin.com/in/brittvermeeren/

Koryn Wicks - Asst. project manager & design team

https://www.linkedin.com/in/koryn-wicks-1a265272/

Sarah Hicks - Creative lead

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahhicks17/

Bill van Loo - Technical lead

https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-van-loo/

Lana van der Stonden - Art director

https://www.linkedin.com/in/lana-van-der-stonden/

Jordyn Kieffer - Design team

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordyn-kieffer-b7514aba/

Max Mikkers - Design team

https://www.linkedin.com/in/max-mikkers/

Satria Djajasudarma - Design team

https://www.linkedin.com/in/satria-djajasudarma-ms-march-460388175/

Aleix Bondia - Design team

https://www.linkedin.com/in/abondia/

Daniel Childs - Design team

https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-childs-660133137

Stefan Neichel - Technical team

https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefan-neichel/

Dion Kemmeren - Technical team

https://www.linkedin.com/in/dion-kemmeren/

Daniel Hope - Technical team

https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-hope-416093175/

Mentors:

Lisa Cuisenier - Mentor

https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-cuisenier/

Robert van den Boom - Mentor

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rvdboom/