What can theme parks learn from festivals and vice versa
At first glance, theme parks and festivals seem to operate in entirely different worlds. Where theme parks are permanent and highly themed environments, festivals are temporary, flexible, and often fast-paced in their development. But when you zoom out, it all comes down to one objective: Creating memorable experiences for guests to enjoy.
At Leisure Expert Group we design both festivals and theme parks. Working across both worlds allows us to continuously transfer knowledge from one to the other. Over the past decade, we have discovered that despite their differences, the overlap in masterplanning is surprisingly strong. In this article, we share key learnings from working across both domains.
Foundations and key differences in masterplanning
First and foremost, what is a masterplan exactly? A masterplan is a comprehensive spatial overview that guides the development of a physical environment. We start with the client’s objectives, from there we determine capacity, spatial needs, and how these translate into physical areas. This process often starts with a “bubble plan”, creating functional zones that connect to a narrative.
Festival masterplanning is driven by efficiency and flexibility and moves through a fast-paced design process. Stages and areas are designed around an overarching story, translating a narrative into the atmosphere, structures, and visual identity. Besides focusing on the guest experience, practicality plays a large role in masterplanning for festivals. Visitor movements are heavily influenced by the programming of artists, which could cause massive groups of people to move from one side to another. Wide pathways and clear routes absorb peak crowds and guide visitors intuitively across the site. With the aid of visual cues and eye-catching structures, visitors efficiently move through the festival grounds. Unlike theme parks, festivals allow for iteration. Areas can be expanded, relocated or reimagined after each edition.
In contrast, theme parks offer a completely different canvas. Because they are permanent, it allows for detailed theming and more complex structures. Masterplanning for theme parks rely heavily on sightlines and immersive storytelling. By mapping out what a guest experience looks like, we gain an understanding what visitors want and need, at what time and at what location. People move around based on curiosity and a sense of exploration. Appealing sightlines and visual anchors play an important role in this free-roaming environment. By developing layered experiences, connecting retail, food and attractions, we create fully harmonious environments that immerse visitors by using all their senses.
What festivals can learn from theme parks
Festivals are more than the main stage. When you apply elaborate storytelling and focus on themed environments in the masterplanning stage, visitors are given a reason to explore festival grounds more thoroughly. It is important to design beyond the stage: “More is more”. Theme parks are the perfect example in this and inspire us to excel in immersing all senses, allowing for deeper experiences and turning space into story. By designing experiences for smaller groups, similar to attractions in theme parks, people tend to share the moment more deeply, making it more memorable. While festivals come with certain constraints due to their temporary nature, increasing the level of decoration and the number of visually appealing spaces could help shift the focus toward something more intangible: atmosphere and vibe. In many ways, festivals can be seen as pop-up theme parks.
What theme parks can learn from festivals
Festivals have taught us one thing above all: the predictability of guest flow. By calculating the minimum space needed if an area were completely full, makes it possible to determine path width and gate sizes and optimized capacity. The efficient flow also determines where you need certain facilities such as restrooms and F&B. While the guest journey is the utmost priority, some form of flflexibility could be found in masterplanning for theme parks; temporary events could be used a a tool. Strategically designated spaces for temporary events and show productions could decrease peak guest flow and increase overall capacity. This is an additional layer to an immersive experience.
Where two worlds meet, knowledge emerges
The real value lies in combining both worlds. Where festivals are likely to design movement through time, theme parks design movement through space and visual cues. The most powerful masterplans bring those two together. By having experience in both industries, we naturally bring insights from one into the creation of new experiences in the other. There are many parallels, which makes it feel natural for us to work across both festivals and theme parks. We continuously learn, adapt, and strengthen every new design. The real value lies in combining both perspectives and applying what we learn from one to elevate the other.
