Tag: Rapid River

A guest at Holly’s

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Preface

13 years after my first visit and only 4 years after my second visit I went back to the Holiday Park in Haßloch to see their last novelty before the takeover by the Studio 100 Group and to have a look at the recent developments of the park.

One of the most significant changes since Plopsa is the relocation of the entrance area directly adjacent to the car park. This means that you no longer have to walk along the main road running through the park to find your way through the eye of the needle of cash registers, as was the case all those years ago. Thereby, the whole place got quite big and for the first time, one finally notices the position of the park in the international park landscape.

Holiday Park

Anubis Free Fall Tower

When you enter the park, the first attraction you will meet is the redesigned freefall tower of the park. After the Tower of Olymp, the Anubis Free Fall Tower is now the second version I’ve seen and so it’s nice to see bigger changes than just irrelevant video clips and a new banner. The building has now been repainted, foils decorate the outer walls, in the waiting area an episode of the TV series Das Haus Anubis is shown, ugly picture frames decorate the walls and unfortunately the second title song of the series is played. The ride itself can still convince, but doesn’t offer the samefeeling of falling of La Lanzadera from the Parque de Atracciones de Madrid.

Donnerfluss

At the edge of the Palatinate village is the entrance to the Donnerfluss (named after the first ride of its kind, the almighty Thunder River of Astroworld), the first rapids ride in Germany.  The trip through the artificially rocked canal features some rapids, a cave passage with a waterfall and a large wave pool towards the end of the ride. As it is the case in all rafting rides in Germany, the degree of wetness is limited, but there is at least the possibility to get out a little wetter than expected.

Burg Falkenstein

Behind a beautiful merry-go-round, in an old-looking building, is the dark ride at Burg Falkenstein. Once you have overcome the far too long queue and taken a seat in the wagon, the journey through the Middle Ages can begin. Here even an attempt was made to follow a storyline; the plundering is endless, but not without creating a lot of distraction. The best part of the ride, however, is aimed at the male passengers: an animatronic which is clearly very open-minded about sexuality. Even though the animatronic could be a bit nicer, it can still cause some surprised faces.

Hollys Wilde Autofahrt

The park’s newest roller coaster is found in Holly’s Cartoon Town and is a Wild Mouse by Maurer Söhne. As a used ride, Hollys Wilde Autofahrt was taken over by the Bemboom family, who operated it in two of their amusement parks at the time. Completely renovated and equipped with fancy new cars it now presents itself as the only real family roller coaster of the park and is very convincing. Typical for a ride built by Maurer Söhne is the ingenious handling in the hairpin curves, as they are not as shallow as Mack’s. The rest of the track is also ridden through at a constant high speed, even if the brakes are once again on a borderline level.

Superwirbel

Due to the drizzle the roller coaster Superwirbel from Vekoma unfortunately didn’t run. In a way I was really looking forward to a ride, because the compact ride is the epitome of a well designed layout. Even though the Bayernkurve was quite borderline four years ago, the ride surprised me with its high speed. Since my friends Hauke and David could only report positively about the ride during their visits last year, it would have been nice to verify their opinions.

Lighthouse Tower

Due to a lack of passengers, the Lighthouse Tower, probably the most beautiful Star Flyer in the world, did not run either. The rear area at the lake is not worth the trip due to the few passengers, especially since I was almost kicked out of the park four years ago, because I raised my hands in the ship swing, which is completely normal elsewhere.

Balloon Race

Since the City Jet has been sent into well-deserved retirement, a quite central place has become available, which will soon be filled by the Balloon Race from Zamperla. On the one hand, it’s a pity about the torn down carousel, which I loved to ride as a child, but on the other hand it’s a much better place for the Balloon Race.

Bounty Tower

At the time of my first visit, the HUSS Condor Bounty Tower was unfortunately broken. Since I was very impressed by the aesthetics of the ride, I found it especially tragic. Even years later, I still find the construction and the ride of a condor simply beautiful from the outside, but in the Holiday Park, the design of the gondolas is simply outstanding. However, most of the times, the ride sequence is simply boring, strangely enough, the ride program in Haßloch is quite balanced, fast and does not only resemble a simple panorama ride.

Teufelsfässer

The Teufelsfässer, together with Tripsdrills Badewannen-Fahrt zum Jungbrunnen, are the most modern log flumes in Germany. The special feature of the Teufelsfässer are the elaborately designed turntables during the ride, which initiate and terminate the reverse passage with drop. A smaller shot at the beginning of the ride and the double drop at the end round off the experience, but unfortunately do not ensure that the passenger gets out halfway soaked, as is the case with Flashback from Walibi Belgium.

Expedition GeForce

For almost 11 years the main reason to go to the Holiday Park is the Intamin roller coaster Expedition GeForce. Since then the ride, which was often in the media because of some incidents, is a guarantee for a good roller coaster ride, but also for an extremely slow dispatch. Funnily enough, even under the direction of Plopsa absolutely nothing has changed in this circumstance.

After you have completed this time-consuming ritual, the journey can already begin. Through the cable lift you will be released into the magnificent first-drop quite quickly, followed by airtime hills with an airtime similar to Colossos from Heide-Park Soltau, some nice turns and a missing first trimbreak. The experience in the following part is now outstanding and not as before slow and relatively dull as before. The turnaround is now genuinely ingenious due to the increased speed and therefore no longer the worst part of the course. The hills after the second reduction brake form a great finale, although the braking section is clumsily placed.

The Expedition GeForce is certainly one of the better roller coasters in Germany and a pretty good roller coaster in worldwide comparison, but it could be a lot better. If you look at the second mega coaster of Europe, Goliath from Walibi Holland, the Holiday Park clearly lacks the staff of this ride and the outstanding Stengel Dive to really call itself the best roller coaster in the world again.

Closing Words

Since the takeover by Studio 100, a lot has happened in the Palatinate, many things have changed for the better, but there are also some things that should be viewed critically. Due to the sale of the Dancing Pavilion to the Leipzig amusement park Belantis, another family rides is missing, which all the children’s rides in Majaland can not yet compensate for. In general, there is simply a lack of rides in Haßloch, nevertheless I like the park.

Specially worth mentioning is the possibility of the afternoon ticket, which we also used for our visit, as a whole day in the Holiday Park gets too long at some point. Surprisingly, it was even decided to have the cash desks staffed with people so that this offer could actually be taken advantage of. Unfortunately, this is rather seldom the case in the leisure parks that offer this offer, specially as the rush on the day of the visit was very low.

 

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Holiday Park

Climbing mountains in Fort Fun Abenteuerland

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Preface

After the Sternrodler was tested, we went past the actual highlight of the trip, the Bruchhausen Stones, towards the village of Wasserfall to visit the local amusement park. The Fort Fun Abenteuerland was founded from the western city Fort Fun City and can still show this leading theme today, but also the ski lift and the two former summer toboggan runs led to the success of the park at that time.

After I informed the cashier about the 50% discount of the Movie Park Germany annual ticket, we went into the park. David was luckier than me concerning the staff, so that his first impression about the customer friendliness and motivation of the staff was still positive.

Tour of the park

Devil’s Mine

This should not change even at the first attraction visited, the Vekoma roller coaster Devil’s Mine. But first you have to pass the much too long, but worth seeing queue, even if it’s too dark in the first part. The ride itself is surprising and very fun due to the two airtime moments after the hills with the friction wheels. Unfortunately we could not make another ride in the afternoon because the ride had a defect.

Crazy Washhouse and Mystery Warehouse

Other attractions on the really beautiful top level of the amusement park Fort Fun Abenteuerland include a wave swinger, the Funhouse Crazy Washhouse, which lost all its charm due to empty rooms and offering just some mirrors, a Nauta Bussink Ferris wheel and the ghost train Mystery Warehouse. The latter ride was quite amusing and even thematically convincing due to individually placed theming elements.

Rio Grande

Probably the best themeing can be found at the small rafting ride Rio Grande from Bear Rides, which can score with its original cacti. Even if you look at the age of the ride and how wet it is, the ride is still one of the better rapid rivers.

Dark Raver

The path now led us further and further downhill and so directly to the next highlight in the Fort Fun Abenteuerland, the Indoor Round-Up Dark Raver. Even though the building is rather strange from the outside, the ride was really successful. The light effects and the music give the old Fähtz ride another live.

The show stage and the climbing structure next door don’t look very nice, even though the idea was not bad. We didn’t watch the show itself, because it seemed to be over by the time we arrived. Furthermore there is plenty of space for attractions on this level of the park, but the use of this area is rather sparse. Considering how many top-class rides have left the park in the course of time, I wonder why they did not find their place here, as attractions are generally missing in this park.

Trapper Slider

Our way leads us to the highlight par excellence of the amusement park Fort Fun Abenteuerland with a ride that changed my world view on alpine coasters in general, the Trapper Slider. The slogan “Feel the thrill – Rock the hill” basically says it all, because what the ride offers is outstanding. After a little longer time in the lift you reach the top of the lifthill and after a small 270° downhill helix the ride starts. After a very short time you reach your cruising speed of about 50 km/h and you are sent over elements that would virtually pull you out of your seat if the seatbelt was not so tight. The centrifugal brake has to work quite hard in the curves, provided there is no lurker in front of you. After a good 1300 m the ride is over and the only thing you can think of is the word brilliant.

Wildwasserbahn

Those who need something leisurely after the ride can get into the chair lift next door or go downhill for a few metres and take the Wildwasserbahn. This early log flume, from the cooperation of the manufacturers Mack and Arrow, has a considerable track length and a great setting. As with the log flume in Thorpe Park, England, there is a mixture of different styles, which unfortunately is not really convincing here. The degree of wetness of the ride was quite high, because the two passengers got really soaked.

Tomahawk

Next to a ship swing from the manufacturer Huss you can admire an exotic in the park: a Shake R5 from Mondial. The ride was long and balanced, but there were no rollovers. If you know the Commander von Hanstein or if you have done a round in Schäfer’s Shake & Roll, you will be a bit disappointed here, but if you know how awful sometimes the rides on Vorlops Shaker are, you will find the ride good. For a medium sized park the Tomahawk is a good investment.

Speed Snake

The roller coaster Speed Snake, a Vekoma Whirlind, was formerly known as the whirlwind. Since the original Arrow chaises unfortunately became too old, as in Heide-Park, a new train had to be brought in. This one is a first generation Vekoma train from the Prater in Vienna. If you have any bad suspicions now you will be disappointed, as it is usually the case with the Dutch manufacturer, because the train offers the same seating comfort as the old Arrow trains and this even with legroom in the second row. The ride itself is surprisingly intense in the corkscrews, as I previously only knew the identical specimen in the Zoo Safari- und Hollywoodpark Stukenbrock with an empty train, I was a bit surprised, and will pass through without any significant jerking or even hitting. The theming does not enhance the ride, but it is nicely placed and easy to look at, and the successful train does its best to do so.

Marienkäferbahn

Where the Fort Fun Abenteuerland on the top level could still create a harmonious picture, the design decreased more and more, which at first sight is not really disturbing, because the gardeners do a good job here. But there is a place in the park that really belongs to the worst what you can see in a park. The whole thing is declared as a children’s land and can be seen next to some cheap rides of Italian origin, the Zierer dragon train, which has been unused for some years, with an ugly blue facade and a Tivoli large. The Marienkäferbahn scores with its location in the middle of a forest, and the ride also offers a decent amount of speed – which is not always the case on such a roller coaster ride.

Beverly Hills Drive

At the lowest point of the park you will again find a well-designed attraction. The Monza track, known as Beverly Hills Drive, offers a long driving distance and a design that can be found in a similar form at Disney.  In any case, the ride is a ray of hope for the rather weak lowest part of the park.

Fun Xpress

Because we missed the Fun Xpress we went back up the mountain by foot. As the gastronomy in the lowest area of the park was more busy with itself than with the customers, we went to the gastronomy at the log flume. The offer here is decent, but also a bit expensive. After a while the staff noticed me and I ordered a portion of Pommes Spezial. The taste was great and I was satisfied.

Pictures Fort Fun Abenteuerland

 

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Fort Fun Abenteuerland

A roller coaster ride in Phantasialand

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Phantasialand

Due to a competition with a low participation for the attraction Maus au Chocolat, which had not been opened yet, Phantasialand gave away several tickets for this year’s season. Since the time of my last visit in 2009 a lot has changed, for example the old Schwarzkopf dark ride Gondelbahn has been demolished. In addition, many new children’s rides from Zamperla have moved into the park, the neighbours have found a reason to complain – about the whisper-quiet water attraction Wakobato – and an extension is still far in the stars because of some environmental activists.

The first impression from the old entrance, which now only serves the shuttle guests, is quite nice, even though Main Street used to look nicer. The now present space looks quite strange at Phantasialand and the construction sites don’t fit into the ambience. A similar situation exists with the huge passage from Berlin to the fantasy area.

Fröhliche Bienenjagd

As one of the newer attractions, the Fröhliche Bienenjagd (Happy Bee Hunting) in particular was a good investment. From the outside, the ride can be quite inconspicuous, but this perception changes during the ride at a stroke when the car first dashes over the small hill. The corners of the mouth distort and a wide grin appears.

Hollywood Tour

The off-the beaten track located dark ride Hollywood Tour should separate itself from the old-fashioned theme, which is hardly recognisable during the ride. However, the ride is still more exciting than Pirates in Batavia at Europa-Park, where you can take a nap for 2/3 of the 20 mins journey. Still, there is so much more potential in this ride that can be used; a look at the current state of the ride is too much of an effort and should be avoided by any means.

Temple of the Nighthawk

One floor above the Hollywood Tour you will find the Vekoma roller coaster Temple of the Nighthawk. Unfortunately this roller coaster could hardly reproduce its once fast past ride. If you ride through the pitch dark with its constant changes of right and left curves at a snail’s pace, you can definitely do without the ride despite its outstanding length. Efteling’s Vogel Rok shows how intense comparable rides can be.

Winja’s Fear and Winja’s Force

Next door you have the choice between two mediocre spinning coasters, one of which is rather bad and the other simply better in almost every respect. Of course we are talking about Winja’s Fear and Winja’s Force. If you have to queue here for more than 30 minutes, only a ride on Winja’s Fear is worthwhile, as the layout tends to approach the top-class spinning coasters Dragon’s Fury and Crush’s Coaster due to its choice of elements. Only the special elements make the rides on both tracks an experience that you should – if still unknown – experience.

Race for Atlantis

If you walk up the hill, the first thing you encounter is the simulator Race for Atlantis, the highlight of which is the safety rap of the preshow if you are guided into one of the cabins at all, as the staff often forget the passengers. The simulation itself isn’t very worth mentioning, which is a shame, as the way the movie is shown has a lot of potential.

Talocan

The HUSS Suspended Top Spin Talocan is quite stylish from the outside, but always has the problem that more people watch than ride and therefore stand gawping in your way. The ride itself is balanced, intense and can score with its rollover series, which fortunately are longer than with an older Top Spin. You get the better – and also more stomach-friendly – ride on the spectator-directed side, as the wall doesn’t constantly rob you of your orientation.

Stonewash Creek and Wildwash Creek

If you enjoy the water, you can use two water playgrounds, the multi-storey rafting ride River Quest, as well as the two log flumes Stonewash Creek and Wildwash Creek. The left side of both rides has a much too short outlet, while the other side can be surprisingly wet. However, both rides are very in need of restoration and thus it wouldn’t be really surprising to see both rides soon levelled to the ground.

River Quest

With a little luck, the Hafema raft ride can make you more wet than the two log flumes together. However, if you are really lucky it can happen that you get soaked down to your underpants. But if you are damn very lucky, it can also happen that you are temporarily flooded with so much water that the other passengers in the boat cannot even see you for a short time. Amazingly, the shoes stayed dry, so there was no danger of catching blisters or other unfavourable stuff.

Mystery Castle

In order to get dry again, a trip on the nearby freefall tower can be taken. Unfortunately, the ride which is located in a high masonry does not offer, what it should offer. Basically, Mystery Castle is just a very loud elevator in a building. There is a lack of forces which prevents the ride of being as awesome as other Intamin installations worldwide.

Silbermine and Geisterrikscha

The Silbermine and Geisterrikscha dark rides were unfortunately not worth mentioning this time, although the Silvermine had no reputation to defend, as the ride is generally considered to be boring and, above all, lengthy. In the case of the Geisterrikscha, some of the scenes were literally made worse. If you don’t want to renew the entire ride, you should make sure that the charm of the ride is not damaged by your actions.

Feng Ju Palace

In the Feng Ju Palace – the Vekoma Mad House from Phantasialand – nothing wanted to run as it should. The projection towards the end of the ride missed the intended surface and was shown on the still spinning drum. At the end of the actual ride, this mistake caused the doors to be in a rather awkward position. After some time the drum was brought back to its starting position and the doors opened.

Black Mamba

It remains a mystery how the newspaper Bild titled the roller coaster Black Mamba as a crash-coaster, as the death of the person last Saturday was not caused by an accident, but by the carelessness of the victim. Despite all attempts to experience a crash by ourselves, the Black Mamba offered the solid ride for which it is well known. Since remaining seated in spite of empty seats is still not allowed and the queue is simply too long for such undertakings, we did not make many rides.

Colorado Adventure

One or two rounds – this time with remaining seated – were instead taken on the park’s showpiece roller coaster, the Colorado Adventure. The right side of the train became compulsory for friends of water sports, as it was not spared by the waterfall of the third lift. The strangely banked curves and the generally high speed make the ride one of the best of its kind, even though the back cushion is still not very comfortable.

Tikal

This year, in addition to a good and, above all, fast wave swinger made by Zierer, which also offers a wonderfully refreshing ride, two children’s free-fall towers from the same house were able to move into Phantasialand. Even if the size is deceptive, both towers of Tikal, as well as almost all children’s rides in Phantasialand, are very convincing. The ride is very surprising and unlike elsewhere it is very dynamic.

Conclusion Phantasialand

Phantasialand is a recommendable amusement park if you either have too much money or just won a card somewhere. Unfortunately, most rides are not worth mentioning anymore. It is also astonishing that several construction sites exist until the high season. Thus, there is unfortunately the hint that there are also other amusement parks in the vicinity of the city of Cologne that do a lot better than the park in Brühl. Phantasialand currently invests a lot, so the future remains open.

 

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Phantasialand