Where Shopping Meets Roller Coasters

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Nickelodeon Universe

Nickelodeon Universe sits at the center of Mall of America and is the largest indoor amusement park in North America. Unlike a traditional amusement park, admission is completely free, allowing visitors to wander through the park and simply pay for the rides they want to experience. The result is a lively atmosphere that lasts all day.

The park opened in 1992 as Knott’s Camp Snoopy, developed by Knott’s Berry Farm. Fans of the original Camp Snoopy in California will quickly recognize a few familiar details. In 2008, the park was reimagined as Nickelodeon Universe and today features attractions inspired by SpongeBob SquarePants, PAW Patrol and many other well-known Nickelodeon characters.

Our tour begins with one of the park’s oldest roller coasters.

Pepsi Orange Streak

Pepsi Orange Streak is a Zierer Tivoli coaster and one of the park’s original attractions. Much like the very similar Jaguar! at the former sister park Knott’s Berry Farm, it features an unusually long layout for a Tivoli coaster.

The ride winds its way through the middle of Nickelodeon Universe, weaving between many of the park’s attractions. It isn’t until the train reaches the large log flume that the pace begins to slow slightly before gently returning to the station. Even by today’s standards, Pepsi Orange Streak remains one of the better Tivoli coasters I’ve ridden.

Log Chute

Log Chute is another original attraction dating back to the park’s days as Knott’s Camp Snoopy. Built by Hopkins Rides, this classic log flume takes guests into the world of Paul Bunyan and has become one of Nickelodeon Universe’s signature attractions thanks to its charming theming and surprisingly long ride.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have enough time to experience it during my visit, so Log Chute has earned a spot at the very top of my to-do list for my next trip to Mall of America.

Fairly Odd Coaster

Fairly Odd Coaster is a Gerstlauer spinning coaster with a fun layout that gets off to a promising start. Unfortunately, the ride is surprisingly rough, which takes away much of the enjoyment. That’s a shame, because the coaster itself has plenty of potential.

Shredder’s Mutant Masher

Shredder’s Mutant Masher is a KMG Afterburner that combines powerful G-forces with moments of surprisingly strong airtime as the gondola swings high above the midway.

By the time the ride reaches its finale, the gondola is spinning like crazy, turning the whole thing into an absolute puke machine. I loved every second of it, but anyone with a weak stomach has been warned.

Back at the Barnyard Hayride

Back at the Barnyard Hayride is a small Zamperla powered coaster aimed primarily at families with young children. While it’s a perfectly pleasant ride for its target audience, there’s simply not much to remember once it’s over.

Brain Surge

Brain Surge combines the familiar feeling of a classic Musik Express with the ability to flip your gondola upside down whenever you feel like it. Since every rider controls their own flips, no two rides are ever quite the same.

If you really want an unpredictable experience, let a child take control. Chances are you’ll spend the next few minutes upside down far more often than you expected.

Ghost Blasters

Ghost Blasters is a classic Sally interactive dark ride where guests use laser guns to blast ghosts, skeletons and other spooky creatures. Its light-hearted haunted house theme makes it a fun attraction for the whole family.

While Ghost Blasters is an enjoyable ride, it never really stands out from other interactive dark rides. It’s fun while it lasts, but once it’s over, there’s very little that sticks with you.

SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge

After climbing the vertical lift, the train dives straight down a 97-degree first drop and charges through a fast-paced opening sequence featuring a loop, a small airtime hill, an overbanked turn and a heartline roll. It’s an intense and thoroughly enjoyable start that showcases just how much Gerstlauer managed to pack into such a compact layout.

Unfortunately, the ride loses some of its momentum after the mid-course brake run. While the second half is still enjoyable, it never quite matches the intensity of the opening sequence. Even so, SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge remains a very good coaster that simply deserved a stronger finish.

TMNT Shell Shock

TMNT Shell Shock is a Gerstlauer Sky Fly, a ride type I’ve always been a big fan of. Unfortunately, this newer generation comes with redesigned restraints that offer noticeably less upper-body support. As a result, pulling off flips is far less comfortable than on the original Sky Flys at Nigloland and Legoland Germany.

Despite the lack of wind inside the building, it’s still surprisingly easy to flip the gondola throughout the ride. TMNT Shell Shock is definitely a lot of fun, but for me it never quite recaptures the magic of those original installations.

Avatar Airbender

Avatar Airbender is an Intamin Half Pipe Coaster that holds a very special place in my coaster journey. It was here that I reached my 1,000th roller coaster—a fitting milestone for an Intaminion, considering I had already been working for Intamin for more than two years at the time.

Fortunately, the ride itself is every bit as memorable as the milestone. Avatar Airbender delivers an intense and surprisingly long ride experience, while the gondola rotates just enough to keep things interesting without ever feeling out of control. Personally, I would have loved a little more rotation, but that’s a minor complaint. Overall, it’s an excellent attraction and a worthy coaster to celebrate such a special milestone.

Pictures Nickelodeon Universe

Conclusion Nickelodeon Universe

Nickelodeon Universe probably isn’t a park worth traveling to Minneapolis for on its own. As part of Mall of America, however, it’s a completely different story. The combination of shopping, dining and a surprisingly diverse collection of rides creates an experience unlike any traditional amusement park.

My personal highlights were Avatar Airbender, Shredder’s Mutant Masher and SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge. While not every attraction was equally memorable, it’s the mix of classic rides and modern thrill attractions that gives the park its unique character.

If you’re visiting Mall of America and enjoy amusement parks, Nickelodeon Universe is an easy recommendation. My visit became even more memorable thanks to my 1,000th roller coaster on Avatar Airbender.

 

What is your opinion about the amusement park Nickelodeon Universe?  Just write it in the comment field below the report!

Click here to get to the overview page of Nickelodeon Universe.

Nickelodeon Universe / The great Mid-Western Road Trip Day 4 - 5

Riding the Legend

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Arnolds Park

Coming into Arnolds Park is just stunning. After passing a camelback-like gate arch which even features an old coaster train on top, guest can park their car on the big parking lot opposite the Iowa Great Lakes Maritime Museum. From here, guest can take a walk on Lake St. towards the Queen II excursion boat passing a few nice restaurants and shops.

The amusement park is located to the left of Lake St. Here we enter the park at the turn around of the roller coaster The legend. At the back half of the park, guests can find most of the park’s major attractions, like a dodgem, a Scrambler, a Tilt-a-Whirl, a Round-Up and three classic rides by the Eyerly Aircraft Company.

Roll-o-Plane and Rock-o-Plane

One of the main reasons for visiting was to see a Roll-o-Plane in action. This compact ride, designed by Eyerly, would have been a blast if it had been open when I visited. The ride itself is an improvement on the Loop-o-Plane ride, where the gondolas take one loop after another; here, the gondolas can rock sideways and the cantilever is lifted during the ride, creating a unique Immelmann Turn-like ride sensation.

A little disappointed, I soon boarded the Rock-o-Plane, also by Eyerly. I had the chance to ride a similar ride at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, so I was eager to give the Ferris wheel-like ride a good rock. It took a while to get started, but I had a great time and ended up doing a few somersaults.

Octopus

The last ride in this great collection is the Octopus. Unlike the more common monster rides, there are only two gondolas per arm and the arm itself has no additional rotation. However, due to the design of the ride, there is always a pop of airtime at the top and the fast wave motion makes it easy for the cars to spin. A great ride!

Mad Mouse

Another great ride in the back of the park is the small family coaster Mad Mouse by the Allen Herschell Company, which unfortunately broke down a few minutes before I was able to try it. The compact design consists mainly of narrow hairpin bends and very gentle slopes.

Boji Falls Log Ride

The Boji Falls Log Ride is one of the park’s largest attractions. This very compact 1970 log flume ride by Arrow Dynamics was donated to the park in 1999 by the Morey family, owner of Morey’s Piers in Wildwood, New Jersey. In Wildwood, the ride was part of the defunct Dinosaur Beach.  

After climbing the lift, the boat bob through a bunch of turns at high altitude making its way to the other side. After a final turn, the riders are confronted with the only downhill chute and a nice splash soon after.

Long Lines Limited Train

Probably the sweetest attraction in the front section of the park is the Long Lines Limited Train. This small train ride gives you brilliant views onto the park’s wooden coaster, the small Kiddie Coaster and the park’s Ferris Wheel.

Legend

The ride on the small wooden coaster Legend starts with a dip out of the station. After the lift hill it goes straight into the first drop of the ride. This is done by a gentle curve to the left, which gives a nice lateral sensation. After an uphill, we make a turn to the left. Now we go down and race over a series of camelbacks, which offer some good airtime. After a turn to the right, we make our way parallel to the Okoboji Lake promenade, hitting a few more camelbacks on our way to the station. Soon after, our great ride on this nearly 100-year-old roller coaster comes to an end. The Legend is a great ride and a great reason to stop in Iowa.

Pictures Arnolds Park

Conclusion Arnolds Park

Little Arnolds Park is a hidden gem and not to be missed when travelling through Iowa. Not only is the location on Lake Okoboji stunning and absolutely beautiful, but the park also boasts a large selection of America’s finest rides. The Legend roller coaster is certainly a blast and the main reason for a visit.

 

What is your opinion about the amusement park Arnolds Park?  Just write it in the comment field below the report!

Click here to get to the overview page of Arnolds Park.

Arnolds Park / The great Mid-Western Road Trip Day 4 - 5

An Ocean of Fun

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Oceans of Fun

After spending the morning at Worlds of Fun, I headed over to the neighboring Oceans of Fun water park around noon. The weather was expected to get worse later in the afternoon, so I decided to move my visit to the water park forward a little.

The entrance to Oceans of Fun is located right next to the Fury of the Nile rapids ride. This is also where the large Monsoon spillwater ride once stood, and I still walked past the now abandoned ride during my visit. What made Monsoon particularly interesting was the way it was integrated into both parks: the ride could be accessed from Worlds of Fun as well as Oceans of Fun, essentially making it part of both parks. Quite a clever idea – it’s just a shame that the ride hasn’t operated since 2022.

My first stop inside the water park was Castaway Cove, where I set up camp for the next few hours. The adults-only pool is a nice little oasis within Oceans of Fun and I liked it right away. The swim-up bar built directly into the pool is also a great feature and fits the area perfectly.

Aruba Tuba, Coconut Cove and Typhoon

From Castaway Cove, I eventually made my way to the first slides. I started with Aruba Tuba, a classic tube slide featuring two separate enclosed courses winding their way down the hillside. The ride itself isn’t particularly spectacular, but the numerous turns make it a fun way to start exploring the water park.

Right next to the slide’s runout is Coconut Cove. The large pool area features several water play elements and is mainly aimed at families and younger visitors. After a quick look around, I continued straight on to Typhoon.

Typhoon is a classic kamikaze slide and definitely takes a little courage. The slide runs down the hillside over several large humps, gradually building up speed along the way. You can even get a little airtime over the crests, which makes the ride surprisingly wild. Add in the age of the slide and the whole thing somehow feels just that little bit more daring. I really enjoyed Typhoon.

Riptide Raceway

Riptide Raceway is a much more modern addition. The large mat racer has been cleverly built into the natural hillside of Oceans of Fun and features four different courses. Rather than simply running parallel to each other all the way down, the individual lanes wind their way through numerous turns before eventually meeting again for the final race to the finish.

You ride headfirst on a mat, picking up plenty of speed as you race through the turns. With four different courses to choose from, there is also a good reason to ride Riptide Raceway more than once. The different layouts in particular make it one of the more interesting mat racers.

Caribbean Cooler and Hurricane Falls

After the first few slides, it was time to slow things down a little on Caribbean Cooler. The classic lazy river runs through a larger section of the water park and is a good place to simply lie back in a tube and float around for a while. The course itself isn’t particularly spectacular to look at, but after several slides, the relaxing lap came at just the right time.

Next up was Hurricane Falls, a classic family raft slide where, of all places, I encountered the longest queue of the entire day. Luckily, I had received a Fast Pass for Worlds of Fun when I bought my Cedar Fair season pass. At the time, I wasn’t even sure whether it could be used inside the water park. There was no harm in trying, though – and sure enough, it was accepted, cutting my wait considerably.

Hurricane Falls sends riders down the wide channel in large rafting boats. The raft rocks back and forth through the turns, making the experience slightly different depending on where you are sitting. All that swinging around makes for a really fun ride.

Surf City Wave Pool

I also spent some time in the Surf City Wave Pool, which has been part of Oceans of Fun since the water park first opened in 1982. The generously sized wave pool is therefore one of the park’s oldest surviving attractions. Once the waves start, there is plenty of movement in the water. I enjoyed the Surf City Wave Pool – for me, a good wave pool is simply part of a good water park.

Predators’ Plunge

The next slide tower is home to Predators’ Plunge, a classic speed slide with a drop-floor start. After climbing roughly 20 meters to the top of the tower, you step into the launch capsule. Door closed, arms and legs crossed, and then all you can do is wait for the floor to suddenly disappear beneath your feet.

You immediately pick up plenty of speed and shoot down through the enclosed tube. And it isn’t simply a straight drop: several fast turns keep the pace high all the way to the runout.

I really enjoyed Predators’ Plunge. The drop-floor start provides just the right amount of suspense and makes it one of the better slides at Oceans of Fun.

Shark’s Revenge

Shark’s Revenge is a tube slide on the same tower that starts off rather innocently. Several turns take you down through the enclosed tube, gradually building up speed along the way. The real highlight, however, is waiting right at the end.

Suddenly, the tube opens up and a surprisingly large drop appears directly in front of you, leading down towards the runout. It’s quite a breathtaking moment and makes for a great finale. That unexpected final drop makes Shark’s Revenge one of my favorite slides in the park.

Constrictor

Constrictor is another tube slide, but what makes this one particularly interesting is its unusual series of turns. The individual curves are extremely tight and sometimes follow each other almost immediately. As a result, the tube repeatedly climbs high up the walls before being thrown straight into the next turn.

It makes for a pretty wild ride, with plenty of swinging from side to side. This unusual layout makes Constrictor much more interesting than your average tube slide and certainly made it one of the more memorable rides of my visit.

Pictures Oceans of Fun

Conclusion Oceans of Fun

Overall, Oceans of Fun was a pleasant surprise. The water park first opened in 1982 and certainly shows its age in a few places, but some of those older slides are also among the most fun. I particularly enjoyed Typhoon and its slightly daring ride over the large humps. At the same time, newer additions such as Riptide Raceway ensure that the slide lineup doesn’t feel outdated.

There is also plenty to do away from the slides. Castaway Cove and its swim-up bar made a nice place to retreat to for a while, while Caribbean Cooler and the Surf City Wave Pool offered a chance to relax between rides.

In the end, I had much more fun at Oceans of Fun than I had expected before my visit. In fact, I almost spent too much time in the water park and eventually had to hurry back to neighboring Worlds of Fun to keep up with my roller coaster schedule. Considering that I had originally planned Oceans of Fun as little more than a short detour into the water park, that says a lot about the quality of the place.

 

What is your opinion about the water park Oceans of Fun?  Just write it in the comment field below the report!

Click here to get to the overview page of Oceans of Fun.

Oceans of Fun / The great Mid-Western Road Trip Day 3