Melbourne and Sydney going head-to-head with new MCG skywalk and zipline
by Tom Anstey | 19 Feb 2016
Melbourne Cricket Ground in Australia is creating an experience to “rival the Sydney Harbour Bridge walk” – a skywalk and zipline experience on top of the famous stadium.
Attempting to emulate the success of the Harbour Bridge climb, which has attracted more than 3 million people – including the likes of David Hasselhoff, Kit Harington, Usain Bolt and even Derek Zoolander – the AU$2.55m (US$1.8m, €1.6m, £1.3m) project will place tourists 70m (229.6ft) above the famous oval, where they can ride a 173m (567.6ft) zipline from the stadium’s scoreboard to a landing point on the opposite side.
The Victoria government is supporting the project, which it hopes to become a tourist lure, with funding of AU$650,000 (US$464,200, €416,900, £324,900). According to MCG, the project is still in the design phase and will take a year to become operational.
“We are very confident that these new products will add value to the experience of visiting the MCG and enhance its reputation as a premier tourist attraction,” said Melbourne Cricket Club CEO, Stephen Gough.
“This will cement the MCG as a one-stop shop for events, with an all-round, unique Melbourne experience in the one venue – a stadium tour, roof experience, meeting and function facilities, sports museum, and food and beverage services all on site.”
Australia’s Sport and Tourism minister, John Eren, added that the idea will offer “unprecedented” promotional opportunities for Melbourne.
"We're building this infrastructure so that all of those visitors from interstate and international can have a bird’s-eye view of Melbourne's CBD (central business district), and also the sporting precinct," he said.
"The tourism sector is worth AU$21bn (US$15bn, €13.5bn, £10.5bn) to Australia’s economy and we want to grow that sector.”
Melbourne Sydney Cricket Melbourne Cricket Ground MCG Skywalk Zipline Sydney Harbour Bridge BridgeClimb
Melbourne Cricket Ground has a capacity of 100,000 and is one of the world's most famous sporting venues Credit: Shutterstock.com
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Melbourne Cricket Ground in Australia is creating an experience to “rival the Sydney Harbour Bridge walk” – a skywalk and zipline experience on top of the famous stadium. Attempting to emulate the success of the Harbour Bridge climb, which has attracted more than 3 million people – including the likes of David Hasselhoff, Kit Harington, Usain Bolt and even Derek Zoolander – the AU$2.55m (US$1.8m, €1.6m, £1.3m) project will place
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"Culture is the beating heart of this project"
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