Premier launches free tickets for athletes and volunteers

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has today announced Village Roadshow will give all athletes and volunteers free access to their four Gold Coast theme parks during the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

The Premier met with Village Roadshow CEO Clark Kirby and members of Movie World’s ‘Justice League’ cast to make the announcement at Parliament House today.

“We want to make sure the 600,000 visitors who come to Queensland for the Games return in years to come,” the Premier said.

“A big part of that revolves around partnering with local businesses to make sure athletes have a great experience while they’re here and share that with millions of people around the globe.

“That’s why I’m proud to announce that Village Roadshow has agreed to give free access to their theme parks to all athletes and volunteers for the duration of the Games.

“Any athlete or volunteer who, on a day off, wants to go to either Sea World, Movie World, Wet’n’Wild and Paradise Country will get free entry. 

“And today I’m looking forward to meeting Wonder Woman and the whole Justice League team along with some of our hard working volunteers to spruik this announcement - because it’s also about giving back to the people who have made the Games possible.”

Commonwealth Games Minister Kate Jones said it was important to recognise the volunteers who had already started to work at Games venues in the lead-up to the opening ceremony. 

“We’ve trained more than 15,000 volunteers who are selflessly giving their time to make sure we deliver the best Commonwealth Games of all time,” she said.

“It’s great that Village Roadshow have recognised them for their hard work as well.

“What makes the Gold Coast such an important visitor destination is the variety of its tourism offering – from the natural beauty of the hinterland and the beaches, to the theme parks and the nightlife.

“Village Roadshow are an important part of that mix and we’ll continue to work with them on tourism opportunities in the future.”

Village Roadshow Theme Parks CEO Clark Kirby said Village Roadshow was Australia's largest theme park operator and he was proud to showcase the parks during GC2018.

“We are excited to offer athletes and volunteers the opportunity to experience our world-class rides and attractions while they are here on the Gold Coast,” he said.

“The parks will provide a great opportunity for athletes to simply relax and have some fun outside of the fierce competition taking place.   “It is also a fantastic way for us to say thank you to the thousands of hard-working volunteers who will be helping throughout the period.”

Media contacts:

Jack Harbour (Minister Jones' office) 0419 620 447

Shane Doherty (Premier's office) 0439 624 473