Tag: Alice in Wonderland

Exploring Disneyland

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Disneyland

Adventureland

Jungle Cruise

The Jungle Cruise boat ride through the waters of the world is definitely a highlight of the park, not least because of the wacky jokes that are told during the ride and the eighth wonder of the world that you can discover during the ride. Without the long wait shortly after the release of the film of the same name starring Dwayne Johnson, the attraction is twice as much fun.

Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room

The Enchanted Tiki Room is the archetype of all electronic bird shows worldwide and, interestingly, one of the few that still exists. Whilst the attraction hasn’t aged well at any other theme park in the world and even the few remaining shows are just scary, the Enchanted Tiki Room is simply great. The show has great humour, a well thought out storyline and the music is just wonderful, especially when the tiki totem poles come into play. I am blown away!

Indiana Jones Adventure

Probably the biggest attraction at Adventureland today is the Indiana Jones Adventure dark ride. This Intamin Enhanced Motion Vehicle ride is one of the best dark rides around. In keeping with the theme of the films, we have come to help Indiana Jones as he explores an ancient temple, hitting quite a few booby traps along the way.  

Indiana Jones Adventure is a very impressive dark ride. The use of Enhanced Motion vehicles makes our ride a rather wild one. Combined with the immersive environment, this is a ride not to be missed. 

New Orleans Square

Pirates of the Caribbean

Pirates of the Caribbean is one of Disneyland’s classic dark rides that everyone should experience, and it has an unexpected depth here in Anaheim. The ride offers the same breathtaking scenes as Orlando and Paris, but has a few more to offer. This makes for a more rounded ride overall, as Dead Men Tell No Tales is established as the attraction’s leitmotif before you experience the loose story of Blackbeard’s pirates raiding a village in search of treasure.

The Haunted Mansion

During my Halloween visit, the Haunted Mansion was the home of Jack Skellington and the other characters from Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas. The temporary Haunted Mansion Holiday attraction is really worth seeing, which unfortunately makes the beloved attraction even more popular. Yet the dark ride itself has so many striking characters that it is simply fun to follow the action in the creepy mansion.

Critter Country

Splash Mountain

Splash Mountain was originally intended to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the film Song of the South, a film in which Disney succeeded for the first time in combining animated films with real actors. The film is famous for its animation, but also very controversial because of the way it portrays the time in which it is set. After its last release in 1984, the film was never shown again in America. Instead of the log flume dark ride that somehow kept the famous Disney songs “How do you do?” and “Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah” alive, next year we can look forward to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, which picks up the story of The Princess and the Frog and takes us on a jazz-infused journey through the swamps of Louisana.

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh

The journey through the Hundred Acre Wood begins with the story of Winnie the Pooh and the stormy day when everyone is struggling to weather the storm. Exhausted from the exertions, Pooh quickly falls asleep and dreams of Heffalumps and Woozies in a very crazy dream sequence. Barely awake, everyone celebrates Pooh’s birthday together.

Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge

Star Wars Galaxy Edge is by far the most immersive themed area ever realised in a theme park. You feel like you’re in one of the Star Wars films. There is also a great bar, Oga’s Cantina, and a really great restaurant, Docking Bay 7.

Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance

The Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance dark ride is hard to put into words. After standing on our feet for a while, we immediately enter the first pre-show, where we are prepared for our mission. We promptly board a spaceship, which after a while ends up in the clutches of a First Order Star Destroyer. We quickly reach the Stormtrooper hangar and here, at the latest, the whole wait is more than worth it. The oversized room is simply overwhelming. However, we only spend a short time here because we have been captured by the First Order. We are gradually led in small groups to other rooms to await our interrogation. Shortly afterwards, however, we are freed by the resistance and board a captured fleet transporter to make our way to the escape pods. What follows is a wild and, above all, surprising ride through numerous scenes, with each new scene surpassing the previous one. In the end, we reach the escape pods and are able to flee.

Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance is by far the best dark ride in the world. The ride is stunning in every way and should be seen as more of a 15-minute experience that is absolutely worth a much longer wait.

Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run

Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run is the second of the two dark rides in the Star Wars Galaxy Edge themed area and is often considered the weaker of the two attractions. However, Smuggler’s Run is actually a really strong attraction and definitely worth a visit. Here, a crew of six experience a breathtaking mission in which each passenger has their own task to fulfil. The highlight here is that we are in a simulator and can partly control it ourselves, which can lead to some really funny driving manoeuvres. Depending on how well you have controlled the Millennium Falcon, you are rewarded accordingly at the end of the journey. Great fun!

Frontierland

Mark Twain River Boat und Pirate’s Liar on Tom Sawyer Island

In addition to a trip on the Mark Twain Riverboat, which travels past Tom Sawyer Island, it is also worth visiting the island itself, which can only be reached by raft. Although there are no rides on the island itself, there are plenty of places to explore and great photo opportunities in the direction of the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

Sometime in the late 19th century, gold was discovered on Big Thunder Mountain. Overnight, the small mining town of Rainbow Ridge flourished under the thumb of the greedy mine owner Barnabas T. Bullion. Mining flourished and an extensive network of mine railways was built to transport the ore. But the land was sacred, and the desecration of the mountain by the settlers soon led to a great tragedy. After an earthquake destroyed the mines and the town, the village was abandoned. It was later discovered that the locomotives travelled around the mountain by themselves without drivers or crews, giving us the opportunity to take a ride on the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.

We start our journey by entering the mine. After a short right and left turn, we reach the first lift hill. Once at the top, we quickly pick up speed on a downhill right-hand bend. We then race through a rock formation before a turn, followed by a very sudden dip, leads us into another tight bend. We race through a long tunnel on a very fun and bumpy section of the route. After a right-hand bend, we reach the second lift hill. We gain some speed again in a fast downhill bend. Then we climb up a hill and enter a helix at the top. At high speed, we then go over a few hills with very sharp transitions that catapult us out of our seats before we reach the third and final lift hill. Once at the top, we first ride over hill and dale before finally gaining more and more speed. A long right-hand bend is followed by a left-hand bend as we leave Big Thunder Mountain behind us. Passing a dinosaur skeleton, we enter the last bend of the track, which leads directly into the braking section.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is the perfect Mine Train rollercoaster. Compared to the version in Florida, the ride is a little more colourful and the finale during the third lift is a little more explosive. The sometimes quite bizarre ride sections of the track mirrored here emphasise the feeling of uncontrollability that you should expect when riding a ghost train. In short: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is the perfect rollercoaster for the whole family.

Fantasyland

Casey Jr. Circus Train

Casey Jr. Circus Train takes you on an amazing journey through Fantasyland. At the start, Casey Jr. breathes “I think I can” as he climbs up a hill, but soon shows his true strength and accelerates across the flat track. The ride is gentle but fun.

Storybook Land Canal Boats

Next door, and partly surrounded by the track of the Casey Jr. Circus Train, are the Storybook Land Canal Boats. This classic ride takes you on a relaxing cruise along miniatures of classic Disney films and their fairy tales.

Dumbo the Flying Elephant

The Carousel, where you control your elephant’s flight, is one of Disneyland’s most popular and iconic rides. The first version of this ride opened in 1955 with some interesting mechanics that unfortunately never worked. Over the years, the attraction has undergone several visual changes and moved locations within Fantasyland. In 1990, a new Dumbo the Flying Elephant ride opened, now with 16 elephants instead of the original 10.

Pinocchio’s Daring Journey

Pinocchio’s Daring Journey is a charming little dark ride that tells an abridged version of the film, with Pinocchio escaping from Stromboli’s puppet show and visiting Pleasure Island, ignoring Jiminy Cricket’s advice. After an appearance by Monstro the whale, Pinocchio is finally reunited with Geppetto and transformed into a real boy.

Snow White’s Enchanted Wish

Another famous dark ride in this section of the park is Snow White’s Enchanted Wish – formerly known as Snow White’s Scary Adventures. While it used to be Fantasyland’s classic Ghost Train, the ride is now much more lively and tells the story of the film in a more light-hearted way, making it a much less scary and more rounded attraction.

Peter Pan’s Flight

Peter Pan’s Flight is always one of the most popular dark rides at the big Disneyland parks and accordingly usually has a very long queue. It is one of the classic themed rides, but a rather short and, in my opinion, rather unsatisfying experience:

After leaving the Darlings’ nursery, we fly over London before reaching Neverland. Here the children are kidnapped by Captain Hook. Shortly afterwards, there is a short fight scene between Pan and Hook. After Pan has defeated Hook, the children take over the ship and Hook has to face the crocodile. The end.

Mr. Toads Wild Ride

Next to the King Arthur Carousel is the entrance to Mr Toad’s Wild Ride. The story is based on the ridiculous speedster Mr. Toad from the novel The Wind in the Willows, which was adapted into The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad. Driving recklessly through the English countryside with Mr Toad, we soon find ourselves in a lot of trouble, and after an accident in a railway tunnel, we end up driving straight through hell. The ride is one of the few remaining attractions to have been in operation since the park opened in July 1955.

Alice in Wonderland

Next to the Mad Tea Party – a classic tea cup ride installed in the park in 1955 – is another classic Disneyland dark ride: Alice in Wonderland. It is one of Disneyland’s most unique rides, taking you through the madcap Wonderland along Alice, with many references to the animated film. The ride directly inspired the Alice in Wonderland Dark Ride at Blackpool Pleasure Beach.

Matterhorn Bobsleds

One of the most important attractions in the world is the Matterhorn Bobsleds rollercoaster. Built in 1959, the roller coaster revolutionised the amusement park industry like no other attraction before it. The company Arrow Dynamics used a tubular steel construction for the first time.   

The Matterhorn Bobsleds offer two different lanes, with the right lane reserved for Genie+ users. Both sides start off alongside each other, and after a short turn through a cave, they enter the lift hill of the ride. At the top of the hill, the two tracks separate again, with the left side (Tomorrowland side) turning left and the right side (Fantasyland side) turning right. After a long curve, the two tracks meet again in a larger hall, with the Fantasyland track now going round in a helix for several laps, while the Tomorrowland track goes round once. After the encounter with the Yeti, both tracks are on their own for a while and experience some very fast cornering manoeuvres. After several long left and right turns, the Tomorrowland track finally dives under the Fantasyland track to continue its way along the mountainside. Shortly after, the Fantasyland track disappears into a long tunnel that runs right through the mountain. After another long turn and some wilder twists and turns, both tracks enter their final shoot ride, which takes them into a water basin. The final turns bring you back to the station at a much reduced speed. 

The Matterhorn Bobsleds are two really great and surprisingly wild rollercoasters. The ride is great fun and is still one of the park’s most popular attractions after all these years at Disneyland. I for one am delighted that it is my 900th rollercoaster ride. 

It’s a small World

The happiest place on earth is also home to the happiest cruise in the world: It’s a small World. The cruise takes us on a journey around the world and shows us the culture of each country from a child’s perspective. It’s a small World is a beautifully themed dark ride with a distinctive style, cute puppets and a very catchy tune. It is one of the must-see attractions at Disneyland.

Mickey’s Toon Town

Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Train

Right at the entrance to Toon Town, we come across the El CapiToon theatre, where Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway is being performed. We watch the latest Mickey Mouse cartoon in a small cinema, which quickly becomes reality. Mickey & Minnie are on a picnic outing while we are travelling on the train with Goofy. Before we know it, Goofy is travelling in one direction and we in another. Mickey and Minnie rush to the rescue to bring our runaway railway to a halt. What follows is a wild ride through various comic scenes, which are mainly supported by projection mapping and can change at lightning speed. At the end, we waltz and conga dance with Daisy before almost ending up in the scrap press. As absurd as it may all sound, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway is great cinema and a wonderful homage to classic American cartoons.

Chip & Dale’s Gadget Coaster

Chip & Dale’s Gadget Coaster is the smallest family coaster at Disneyland. The coaster has a classic Vekoma Junior Coaster layout, but with some modifications to integrate a second train. After the lift, the train immediately turns into a steep curve that brings us to the ground, followed by a curve around the lift hill. After a small dip, a right-hand bend takes us into a helix. A short time later, we hit the brakes – and the ride is over.

Rodger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin

After the success of Who Framed Roger Rabbit, it’s no surprise that Mickey’s Toontown is home to Roger Rabbit’s Cartoon Spin dark ride. During the ride, we steer a taxi and follow Roger Rabbit and Benny the Cab as they try to help Jessica Rabbit thwart the diabolical plans of the villainous Weasels. Although the ride is well done, it does not feel on the same level as the other dark rides in the park.

Tomorrowland

Tomorrowland has always been home to many first-class and admittedly quite unique attractions such as the ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter – later Stitch’s Great Escape – or the Rocket Rods. Today, unfortunately, you will only find attractions here that you can also find at the other Disneylands.

Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage

The Submarine Voyage is one of Disneyland’s oldest dark rides. Opened in 1958, the ride simulated a dive into the ocean. Unfortunately, the original idea of using real fish and other sea creatures never came to fruition. Today, the ride features Nemo and his friends on screens as you pass by. 

Autopia

One of the best attractions in Tomorrowland is the old-fashioned car ride Autopia, which takes us on a cosy road trip. I particularly enjoyed the short off-road section during the ride.

Monorail 

Walt Disney pioneered the modern monorail – a mode of transport that has become very popular in amusement parks and airports. The elevated track takes you on a journey through Disneyland, Disney California Adventure and Downtown Disney. It runs mainly through backstage areas and features a long and winding section above the Autopia ride. 

Space Mountain

Two years after the opening of the Space Mountain indoor coaster in the Magic Kingdom, a version of this coaster followed in Disneyland. However, instead of two tracks, the coaster had only one, and instead of the bob-like seating position, you sat in rows of two next to each other. The track layout is very similar though. Unfortunately, the ride was undergoing maintenance when I visited, so I was unable to test it. 

Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin

The interactive dark ride Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger is one of the smaller attractions in Tomorrowland, but it’s still fun because you can control the rotation of the vehicle as you try to get the highest score. The interactive dark ride is very solid and you should give it a chance if the wait times are limited.

Star Tours – The Adventures Continue

Galactic space travel agency Star Tours has been offering flights to Endor since 1987. The giant motion simulator ride defined this type of attraction and made it extremely popular in the 1990s. Nowadays, instead of just travelling to Endor, there are a variety of elaborate experiences that, combined with the fun simulator ride, invite you to return for more. However, as of 2019, waiting times at this Star Wars attraction have been significantly reduced due to the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Pictures Disneyland

Conclusion Disneyland

I really enjoyed my visit to the original Disneyland. The park combines the best attractions that Disney has ever created in one park and has still remained small. Everything is much cosier here and the little castle in the middle of the park is simply cute, especially compared to the castle in Paris. Disneyland in Anaheim is and remains a park that every theme park fan should visit once in their life. I for one am glad that I finally made it.

 

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California Adventure Day 11 and 12 / Disneyland

¡Viva España!

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The History of Parque España

It is an indisputable fact that the Japanese are always enthusiastic about European culture; places like Rothenburg ob der Tauber, for example, are considered one of the hotspots of any trip to Europe and restaurants from all possible regions of the Occident – in a selection that one would wish for more often in Europe – are extremely popular and sometimes very exquisite. One could therefore make the assumption that the same explains Parque España.

In order to improve the utilisation of its railway line, the railway company Kintetsu planned several resorts along the Shima Line, among which the resort at the terminus was to have its own amusement park to meet the increased needs of tourists – a modern interpretation of a classic trolley park.

It is strange that the amusement park that most closely resembles a typical park in our favourite holiday destination is located in Japan and that there is no similarly themed amusement park in Spain. It is even stranger if the reason for this decision was that the theme of the resort was simply hardly or not at all known to the Japanese at the time of the planning and it was only chosen because of the similar weather conditions. Major media events, such as the Summer Olympics in Barcelona and the 1992 Expo in Seville, then generally suited the park so that it could successfully start its first season in 1994.

After just a few weeks, the park welcomed over one million visitors. By the end of its first season, it had attracted 4.2 million visitors – an unparalleled success, one might think. In fact, things were a little different at Parque España, because its initial success was immediately followed by its decline. Already in its second season, the number of visitors dropped to about 3 million – not unusual in itself, as this is usually followed by a stabilisation of the figures – but in the following year the number of visitors dropped by another 500,000. The opening of the Pyrenees roller coaster and the dark ride Viaje Aventurero de Don Quijote counteracted the trend for a short time, but it could not be stopped. It was not until 2000 that the decline stagnated for the first time for several years at around 1.6 million visitors. In 2005, the numbers for the entire resort once again dropped in the double-digit range, but again they were able to catch up until 2008. Then in 2009 the number of visitors dropped by 13.4%, in 2008 by 7.2% and so on and so forth. It remains to be seen whether Shima Spain Village will be able to maintain its position for much longer and whether the number of visitors will actually stabilise at some point.

Tour of the park

But enough of the doom and gloom, we are going to Spain after all. So bring out the red wine and your best Brandy; you probably already have the tapas to go with it, and if not, I’ll now present you with a few delicacies. However, if you’re short on wine, you can also reach for your favourite cervesa.

We enter the Parque España via the Avenida de España, the covered main street of the park, and immediately feel like we are on the Iberian peninsula. The effect is intensified on the Plaza de Cibeles, where we immediately see ourselves in the middle of the Spanish capital. Unlike the original, the large square here is not lined by the town hall, but by facades of various Spanish buildings and a bullring.

Steampunk Coaster Iron Bull

Where recently the train was forced into the arena on the Matador bullfight coaster, an iron bull now rolls impressively through a machine hall. The Steampunk Coaster Iron Bull is by no means as memorable as its design. Secured by shoulder restraints, we first ride through a short left turn and immediately climb the ride’s first lift hill. In an increasingly steep left turn, the bull plunges 12 m to the ground and reaches a top speed of 52 km/h. After this, we quickly climb a hill and before we know it, we are in a downward helix, whereupon the track runs close to the ground along the wall of the hall. Continuing in a right-hand bend, we now cross the section of the first slope and plunge towards the hall floor once more. Passing through a backdrop, we then climb another hill, whereupon we reach the show part of the ride.

During the time in the block brake, the steam train is supplied with hot coals for the rest of the ride. A progress scale is displayed and finally we are given the green light, just like a classic accelerator coaster; only the launch is missing. Instead, we move forward a few metres before the brake brings the train to a halt out of the blue. A very slow turn follows, after which the second lift hill is reached. The train also leaves this hill in an increasingly steep curve and immediately reaches the floor of the hall. After the subsequent left turn, the braking section follows and shortly afterwards the station and the ride, which was quite entertaining until the show part, comes to an end.

El Circo Pierrot

Hidden behind one of the other facades is the covered and very nicely designed children’s land El Circo Pierrot, including an interactive dark ride on the hall ceiling, which is not to be missed.

However, if you are drawn to Madrid, you can step through a portal onto the Plaza Mayor. Just as impressive as the original, it is adorned with a multitude of bars, restaurants and shops; of course in a rather high-priced segment. A visit to the Plaza Mayor is perfect for a cervesa or an afternoon siesta.

Those who want to find out more about Spain outside the visible architecture can do so in the spacious and extremely worthwhile Castillo de Xavier museum. Here, a tour through Spanish history, art and crafts awaits the interested visitor.

ABCDEspaña

Meanwhile, a completely different image of Spain is conveyed in the musical show ABCDEspaña, in which typical Spanish customs and terms are conveyed by the park mascots using the ABCs. In doing so, they fall back on the Spaniards’ favourite form of entertainment – in my view very authentically – because well-choreographed shows always go down well. All in all, the show is extremely enjoyable, quite entertaining and even the sound was very good.

We leave the upper plateau using (disco) escalators and descend to the Plaza Colón, a beautifully designed area where two dark rides and a short walkthrough await visitors.

Casa Misteriosa de Choquy and Feliz Cruise 

While the Casa Misteriosa de Choquy is a black-light funhouse with the mascot Choquy, the quiet dark ride Feliz Cruise is characterised by the fact that it was once a much more interesting state-of-the-art water ride with a pirate theme called Adventure Lagoon.

It is rather disappointing when an elaborately designed ride with vertical lift, incline and normal lifts is converted into a simple canal ride for cost reasons and the former station is then marketed as an almost independent pirate ship attraction. Although the Feliz Cruise with its dioramas is anything but bad, it leaves a bad aftertaste if the large (dark ride) hall is simply left unused.

Viaje Aventurero de Don Quijote

But anyone who thinks that a visit down here is therefore no longer worthwhile is very much mistaken, because the second of the two dark rides is quite something. On the Viaje Aventurero de Don Quijote, the adventure ride of Don Quixote, guests can expect a fabulous flight through the adventures of the Spanish knight, represented by the mascots of Parque España. The ride system is similar to that of the dark ride Peter Pan’s Flight from Disneyland, but it does one thing better than the other copies: it beats the original by miles! As much as I was amazed by it after my first ride, I liked the subsequent repeat ride just as much; a genuine insider tip.

Bosque de Cuentos

Through the Bosque de Cuentos, a kind of fairy tale path, and the Calle de Santa Cruz, a typical Spanish street with several restaurants, mock shops (including prices in €) and small exhibitions, we ascend to the Avenida de Carmen, where the Carmencita is already performing its predatory game. In fact, this allusion is quite valid, because the Parque España offers a flamenco show, which, however, charges a fee and features cast dancers from Spain. This would be legitimate if the park itself was not already one of the most expensive in the country.

La Suite del Cascanueces

Instead of the show, we dedicate ourselves to the Suite del Cascanueces by the Russian composer Tchaikovsky – instead of ballet, however, an extraordinary dark ride awaits us, in which the story of the Nutcracker is taken up, accompanied by a lot of coloured lights.

Castillo de Hielo and Alice in Wonderland

Passing the Castillo de Hielo, one of the typical Japanese freezer walkthroughs, which I have absolutely no memory of, we now head to the Plaza del Fiesta, the main theme park part of the park. Here you can see the Alice in Wonderland interactive walkthrough attraction, a boat swing, a balloon race, tea cups, a carousel, a 360° cinema and the station of the Tren Fiesta.

But you can also marvel at the main attractions of Parque España here. The first is the double ride consisting of Splash and Gran Montserrat, one of the early versions of the popular combination of roller coaster and log flume.

Splash Montserrat

The ride in Splash Montserrat starts with a wide turnaround, which you enter in a short right turn. The lift then takes you up quickly so that, similar in construction to the Europa Park’s Tiroler Wildwasserbahn (Tyrolean log flume), there is a medium-sized shot ride that releases you onto an elaborated level. Here you bob along the channel and the artificial rock massif for a little longer. Always with a good view of the course of the Gran Montserrat roller coaster, the canal zigzags straight ahead until you take a similarly constructed right-hand bend towards the second lift hill. Once you have reached the top, the big of the two shot rides immediately follows. After a final (almost non-existent) splashdown and the return to the station, the far too dry whitewater ride comes to an end.

Gran Montserrat

Five years after the opening of the Eurosat roller coaster, the Mack company was able to open another ride of this roller coaster model, but this time as a classically designed mine train. Gran Montserrat is therefore a very special ride in two respects, which we will now take a closer look at.

The ride begins with a left-hand turn into the first of the two lift hills. After reaching the starting height of 20m, we immediately plunge to the ground in a steeply descending right turn, reaching a speed of 66km/h. With a lot of pressure we cross the first valley, whereupon we gain height on a flat ramp leading to the left along the log flume. In a serpentine fashion, we now make a right and a left turn above the water ride, whereupon we plunge down a flat ramp to the ground and whiz over it in a wide right turn. After a short climb, we immediately reach the second lift hill parallel to the first.

Once again at 20m, we now disengage a little more leisurely and as a result dedicate ourselves to a flat downhill straight with a subsequent 180° helix. We change direction with momentum and reach the ground again after a left-hand bend, which is now quite steep. After another extremely pressurised valley, a relatively tight right turn follows, which takes us far up. High above the log flume, we now pass through a straight and then two downward helices, which are lined up in the shape of a figure eight and are first passed through to the right and then to the left. We then reach the final brake of the ride.

Gran Montserrat is a nice family roller coaster that is extremely fast and punchy in some places. In short, the Mack Rides Mine Train is quite appealing – just don’t make the mistake of comparing it to indoor roller coasters of the same design. The ride characteristics are particularly positive, as they are smooth and hardly distinguishable from modern rides by the manufacturer.

Batalla del Alcázar “Adelante”

In the immediate vicinity of the mine roller coaster is the entrance to the interactive dark ride Batalla del Alcázar “Adelante” by the Japanese manufacturer Senyo. As always with this type of dark ride, you shoot at worm-like animatronics and other enemies, but the highlight of this ride is that the passenger gondolas can additionally be moved transversely to the direction of travel, which has enhanced the already very great ride even more.

Kiddy Montserrat

Parque España’s newest roller coaster is the Kiddy Montserrat children’s roller coaster, which, despite its name, does not ride through the artificial Montserrat mountain range. With a height of 8.5m and a length of 216m, the Mosaic Salamander takes you through a shallow left turn after the lift hill, followed by a wide right turn along the station. This is followed by a downward helix with an ever increasing radius before the station is reached again and the rather nice jet coaster ride ends.

Pyrenees

Let’s now turn to the last roller coaster of Parque España, the B&M Inverted Coaster Pyrenees. With a height of 45m and a length of 1234m, the ride is the top dog of the park and a real eye-catcher. But can the elongated inverter live up to the high expectations of the ride?

After passing through the deserted queue, we are immediately assigned to one of the front rows. After some time, the gates are opened and the train is quickly processed, so that we meet again in the lift a short time later. We cross the pre-drop with full vigour and immediately plunge towards the ground. What follows is an interplay of extremely pressure-rich valleys and beautiful loops, which are connected in the middle by a relatively tame zero-G roll. This is followed by a very long left turn close to the ground, which then turns into the Cobra Roll. We perform this inversion figure with the best of devotion and are turned upside down twice during the process. We pass through the next valley at high speed and immediately dedicate ourselves to the ascent into the block brake. We go through a long right-hand bend that narrows more and more towards the end and finally wraps around the second loop in an intense helix.

Without reducing the speed in the block brake, it pulls us towards the abyss one more time, whereupon the world is turned upside down for the last time in an exceedingly rapid corkscrew. Now we cross the track of the first drop in a left turn and pick up speed on a very long straight for the return to the station. With a lot of momentum we shoot over the queue and after a tight turning curve we soon find ourselves in the final brake and the station.

Pyrenees is a very nice inverted coaster of larger construction, but unfortunately its peculiarities do not convince me personally. During the ride, there are simply far too many parts of the track that are only meant to stretch the ride, and the long downward ramp before the final hill just seems strange, both visually and in terms of the ride. However, that doesn’t mean that fans of the manufacturer’s big inverted coasters won’t get their money’s worth – the ride is perfectly fine.

Pictures Parque España

Conclusion Parque España

Parque España is a beautifully designed amusement park, but its best years are long behind it. Although the park has some top-class attractions, overall Parque España simply lacks the attractions to justify the high entrance fee and the time-consuming journey to the park. This is a pity, because the idea of running an amusement park with authentic food and appropriate cultural offerings of a country far away from the country in question is quite charming; but perhaps as a European visitor, one simply associates Spain more as a holiday destination and consequently feels a little more in tune with the theme than the Japanese tourists, whom the park is known to miss out on.

 

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Parque España / Titanic Max Day 7 to 9

Casey Jr. – Le petit Train du Cirque

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Disneyland Park

Some years have passed since my last visit to Disneyland Park. During Easter 2010 we could do a lot of runs on all rides but the smallest roller coaster Casey Jr. – Le petit Train du Cirque was not available. This time in February, the roller coaster was open, but the biggest roller coaster of the park was not. When we arrived at Disneyland Park, we went down the fully renovated Main Street which was not quite as busy this time and then turned to the right at the Central Plaza towards the future. Unfortunately, the most beautiful area of the park is currently almost half closed off, which resulted not only in a lot of scaffolding, but also in the closure of the indoor roller coaster Space Mountain.

While the visionary car ride Autopia was dominated by a rather long queue, the waiting time in the remaining area was almost zero. Thus one could quickly travel to Endor using the airline Star Tours or prevent the villain Zorg from stealing the valuable energy sources with the help of Buzz Lightyear.

Captain EO

New to me was the legendary – but quite antigue – Michael Jackson 3D film Captain EO, which is being shown since the 2010 season in recognition of the artist’s death in June 2009. It replaced the only marginally younger film Honey – I Shrunk the Audience, on which the design of the theatre was based. Although the film was one of the most expensive productions at that time, it did not aged well. The story of a clumsy gang of losers in space who, with a little music and dance, liberated a whole planet from a borg-like society is just as trashy as the spongy 3D effects of that time. Even if Honey – I shrunk the audience didn’t look any better regarding the image quality of the film, it did entertain me a little bit more.

It is interesting to note that in the now 23-year-old history of Disneyland Park, only two 3D films have been shown in alternation, although Disney always attracts attention with successful short films.

It’s a Small World

In the themed area next door, the happiest cruise through our world was waiting to be completed with a catchy tune. In this sense: “It’s a small world after all, It’s a small world after all, It’s a small world after all, It’s a small, small world”.

The small, always peaceful, world trip It’s a Small World shows an ideal world from the children’s perspective. Especially in relation to Paris – which was still under the highest warning level at the time of the visit – a state of affairs that one quickly wishes for, even if this is very unlikely.

Le Pays des Contes de Fées

In the immediate proximity, but clearly belonging to Fantasyland, there is another boat trip with Le Pays des Contes de Fées. Here, one passes some fairy tale scenes, but their miniatures do not really stand out and/or their respective fairy tales are sometimes not so common in order to clearly recognize them.

Casey Jr. – Le petit Train du Cirque

A little bit above this attraction runs the track of the small circus train Casey Jr., known from the Disney movie Dumbo, which in contrast to the original version from Anaheim functions here as a roller coaster. At the beginning Casey Jr. breathes “I think I can”, but shows his true strength relatively fast and accelerates over the flat track. Especially in the back of the train, the inconspicuous track layout of Casey Jr. – Le petit Train du Cirque comes as a big surprise, especially if you do it backwards, while sitting in the back row.

With Casey Jr. – Le petit Train du Cirque the only Vekoma Powered Coaster can convince all along and not only because of the airtime that is rarely seen on this type of coaster. The possibility to ride a roller coaster both forwards and backwards is always a big plus and should be available more often, even if it’s only the last row.

Alice in Wonderland

Not quite as psychedelic as in Blackpool Pleasure Beach is the influence of Alice in Wonderland in Disneyland Park. With the extremely clumsy Mad Hatters Tea Cups and the stylish Labyrinth, it’s not so easy to resist a drug trip par excellence and the cuckoo waltz.

Disney Dreams

The rest of Fantasyland is based on classic Disney movies with three smaller dark rides, a compressed air carousel and a classic horse carousel, and can score points for the Disneyland Park’s landmark, especially at night. During the 20-minute long show Disney Dreams, this serves as a projection screen for the sequences, which are accompanied by fireworks, music, laser and fire effects. The only disturbing factor during the show are the children who are always taken onto the shoulders of the parents without consideration for other people. It’s amazing how timed this play takes place and how few alternatives you have. Camera-loving children are certainly an advantage if you want to take good pictures of the show.

Indiana Jones et Le Temple du Péril

In Adventureland, little has changed since my last visit – at least visually. At first sight, you simply cannot spot a difference in the completely renovated Temple of Fear. Also the ride itself hadn’t changed at Indiana Jones et Le Temple du Péril, although the loop was completely replaced.  Just the train seems to be much more comfortable than before.

Since we could not afford a binge with the Pirates of the Caribbean anyway, we looked for cheaper alternatives. Since the pizza in Colonel Hathi’s Pizza Outpost seemed to be too small, we looked for something edible in Frontierland and found it in the Cowboy Cookout Barbeque not far from Big Thunder Mountain.

Big Thunder Mountain

Before the coaster closes for more than a year, we had to spend some time at this coaster as Big Thunder Mountain is without doubt one of the best of its kind, although with the newly acquired constitution of the Colorado Adventure mine train roller coaster from Phantasialand it has gotten much harder to keep on the throne.

Phantom Manor

The old abandoned manor house on the edge of Frontierland will not lose its morbid character so quickly. Welcomed by extremely elegant ladies, we descend one floor into the realm of the dead. Seated in the doom buggies, accompanied by eerily beautiful music, we set off on a journey of discovery through the cursed estate of Phantom Manor and its history.

Pictures Disneyland Park

Closing Words

In contrast to previous visits – which I always made at Easter – February proved to be the ideal time for a visit to Disney, as the waiting times at most rides were less than 20 minutes at Disneyland Park, only Big Thunder Mountain, Casey Jr., Autopia and Peter Pan had longer waiting times, but even these were always within reasonable limits. Of course, some rides were closed due to refurbishment. A few laps on Space Mountain would have made the visit purely awesome.

 

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Disneyland Park