Dubai’s tallest swing ride, the Bollywood Skyflyer was unveiled earlier this week. Located inside Bollywood Parks Dubai, the ride is 460 feet tall (140 meters), the same height as the Great Pyramid of Giza. It beats the previous tallest record-holder, the Orlando Starflyer (450 feet) by 10 feet. According to CNN, the Bollywood Skyflyer is made up of 421 tons of steel. It took reportedly 600 days to build and a further 120 days to install, revealed Milton D’Souza, general manager of the popular theme park. Bollywood Parks Dubai shut down for a long time following the Covid-19 outbreak in the UAE last year. It reopened on January 21 this year, with nine new rides, including the Bollywood Skyflyer.
Latest attractions in the Bollywood-themed park include a 180-foot (55-meter) Ferris wheel, a Mumbai-taxi-themed rollercoaster and a free-fall rocket drop tower. According to D’Souza, the latter will bring to life the vibrant culture of India. “We used the time to create and build a brand-new area in the park that we call the Mela Zone, which is home to the majority of the nine new rides at Bollywood Parks Dubai,” he said.
In 2019, Dubai Parks and Resorts attracted 2.6 million visitors. D’Souza hopes the new rides will attract more visitors, adding that Bollywood Parks is set to break more records in 2021. Later this year, the park plans to open the Bombay Express — the region’s first and only wooden rollercoaster. Meanwhile, beyond Dubai Parks and Resorts, Ain Dubai is set to take the title of world’s tallest Ferris wheel when it opens later in 2021 at Bluewaters Island, overtaking the 550-foot High Roller in Las Vegas. As Dubai opened its doors to more and more tourists from around the globe, Covid-19 cases witnessed a rapid increase once again, with the city going back into lockdown this month.