Theme Park | Themeparkblogger

A funky bumper car and a jousting tournament

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On my last visit to Heroldsbach, I was faced with closed gates at the Erlebnispark Schloss Thurn; in the low season, the amusement park is sometimes only open during the week. This time, however, a visit fell on a quiet Sunday within the high season.

Fledermauszentrum

Before we even get close to the castle that gives it its name and can pay our entrance fee, we are already in front of the first attraction. In the bat centre we can learn a lot about the animals in a fun way.

Schloss Thurn

The theme park originated in 1975 in the castle garden of the moated castle of Thurn. The origin of today’s Baroque castle complex was a fortified residential tower surrounded by several moats, which can be traced back to the year 1422. In 1747, the Bamberg cathedral chaplain Lothar Franz Horneck von Weinheim acquired the estate and began to convert the former knight’s castle into a Baroque pleasure palace.

The area around the castle mainly invites you to dangle your soul, and you can also explore the water around the moated castle with rowing boats and pedal boats.

Westernstadt

The first ride on our way to the western town is the small interactive water ride Piratenflotte. Along the way we also find numerous adventure trails for the younger park visitors before we then come across the Monzabahn vintage cars and shortly afterwards a fort.

The western town inside extends over a main street and a large square with a western show. The main restaurant of the theme park is also located in the saloon. However, the culinary offer is not quite adapted to the ambience, which is a bit of a pity.

Steampunk VR-Scooter

The main attraction in the Western Town is the Steampunk VR scooter. This bumper car is unique in the world because it is the only one with virtual reality (VR), which is a thoroughly immersive experience. A film is shown where you end up fighting a robot spider and where the ride floor suddenly curves. The quality of this trumps the VR attractions of most amusement parks and makes for an absolutely coherent overall concept.

To be honest, I’m surprised why the VR trend was mostly used on large roller coasters and thus went under again after a very short time, when it’s precisely the implementation on standard rides that offers a much better experience. Bumper cars in amusement parks always have the charm of a fairground and don’t really fit into the big themed worlds of today, but with the right idea you can definitely upgrade the classic ride principle, be it the former Space Race in Hansa Park or with the VR experience here. I only hope that in the future more parks will invest as courageously as Erlebnispark Schloss Thurn.

Wildwasserbahn

Behind the Western Town is the entrance to the park’s log flume. The ride, built by Reverchon, also has a rather classic appearance at the Erlebnispark Schloss Thurn, although the waiting area is quite unusual. The ride offers a total of two drops, with the smaller one offering an additional wave. The degree of wetness of both drops is within reasonable limits.

Magisches Tal

In addition to the Knappenschule electric horse track, the chain flyer Kettenflieger, the family free-fall tower Ritterschlag and the boat swing Schaukelschiff Fledermausflug, park guests in the Magic Valley mainly romp around the tournament square, where the knights’ tournament takes place.

Ritterturnier

Quite unusually in a theme park, you can experience a real jousting tournament at Erlebnispark Schloss Thurn. Two teams face each other in a jousting match. This is an exciting competition between good and evil. Despite the very simple story, the acting is extremely convincing and the games and the fight choreographies with sword and shield are breathtaking.

VR-Achterbahn

The VR roller coaster is a classic family roller coaster made by Zierer. The roller coaster, which is about 9 m high, offers a 220 m long, winding layout that is ridden through twice in a row.

Animal park and playgrounds

On the other side of the park there is a large playground and several smaller rides, such as the two Butterfly roller coasters, the carousel Schwanenkarussell and the Wasserbob dinghy slide. To get there, however, we have to pass through the beautifully landscaped game park. This is best done on foot or by taking a ride on the Westerbahn train ride or the monorail Schwebebahn.

Pictures Erlebnispark Schloss Thurn

Conclusion Erlebnispark Schloss Thurn

I really liked Schloss Thurn. The steampunk VR-scooter and the knights’ tournament are two highlights that you can’t even find in the big theme parks around the world. So a visit is definitely recommended, especially for families with smaller children.

What do you think about the Erlebnispark Schloss Thurn? Just write it in the comment field below the report or visit our social media channels:

TKathke July 19, 2022 March 16, 2023 Erlebnispark Schloss Thurn

Everything new at Freizeit-Land Geiselwind

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A lot has happened since my last visit to Freizeit-Land Geiselwind. In 2016, the animal and amusement park was taken over by showman Mathias Mölter and has been steadily expanding ever since. Interestingly, the charming funfair is developing more and more into a theme park as more and more funfair rides are added.

Verrückte Farm

It all starts with the nice children’s area right at the entrance. The crazy farm is home to the Doggy Dog children’s roller coaster, a classic Big Apple.

Freizeit-Land

The charm of the old amusement park can still be discovered today in Freizeit-Land. Most of the rides have been given new names, and the Shot ‘n’ Drop Tower T-Rex Tower has been completely re-themed with an artificial volcano, from whose crater you are now ejected.

Drachenbucht

Wo früher noch Autos parkten, befindet sich heutzutage der Themenbereich Drachenbucht. Der weitläufige Themenbereich bietet fernöstlichen Charme, ohne dabei allzu kitschig zu wirken. Hauptattraktion hier sind die SBF Visa Frisbee Auge des Drachen, der überaus kurzweilige Walkthrough Meister Ling’s magisches Labyrinth (Master Ling’s magical maze) und die Drachenhöhle.

Drachen Höhle

Die Drachenhöhle ist die ehemalige Black Hole des Schaustellers Schierenbeck. Der Hell Diver aus dem Hause Zierer ist mit seiner rasanten Achterbahnfahrt in den kleinen Bobs auch heute ein wahres Highlight und sollte deshalb keineswegs ausgelassen werden.

Land der Piraten

The Land of the Pirates used to be home to the theme park’s terrific HUSS corner, where you could experience a variety of classic rides from the HUSS company. Today, the main attraction here is Jack’s Versteck (Jack’s Hideout)- a huge funhouse, as well as a variety of well-themed rides. Unfortunately, however, the new Bounty ship swing doesn’t really fit in here.

Fluch des Kraken

The world record roller coaster Boomerang now also belongs to this area. The ride, now known as Fluch des Kraken (Curse of the Kraken), convinces with a coherent overall concept and the still magnificent ride characteristics. Personally, however, I think it’s a shame that the original design has been thrown overboard, because it was actually very successful. It’s a pity that an Australian themed area didn’t fit into the concept of the theme park.

Safari

At the back of the Freizeit-Land, in the middle of the forest, is the Safari themed area. Here you will find a number of children’s rides, the great horror walkthrough Dr Lehmann Horror Lazarett, and the roller coaster Taka Waka.

Taka Waka

The roller coaster that sounds confusingly similar to Tiki Waka from Walibi Belgium is a cyclone coaster from SBF Visa. The medium-sized roller coaster offers a classic Figure 8 design based on the Pinfari model, with several smaller drops and a large number of helices, as well as rather rough brakes. The ride is not worth mentioning and looks outdated despite its fairly recent construction.

Forbidden Kingdoms

The newest themed area is the Forbidden Kingdom. This area is home to the Cobra roller coaster, as well as the Merlin sling shot and the Ramses walkthrough (the former Tal der Könige by showman Bügler). The theme area’s focus is a mishmash of all kinds of adventures, be it in mystical England, the ancient Egyptians or someplace in the jungle. Surprisingly, the concept works and the Forbidden Kingdoms proves to be an extremely coherent themed area.

Merlin

The undisputed main attraction of this themed area is Merlin – a Sling Shot from Funtime. The ride catapults two brave passengers to lofty heights, where they then experience several somersaults. The ride is absolutely breathtaking and definitely a recommendation for anyone who wants to brave the rather short (yet very long) queue.

For me, it was the first Sling Shot. Although I have already stumbled across many rides of this kind, the high price of the attractions, which are usually operated as up-charges, was never worth it to me. Here at Freizeit-Land Geiselwind, however, the ride is included in the park ticket, just like at Skyline Park, and is therefore a must for every amusement park fan. The ride, which seems quite extreme, is simply a great and surprisingly gentle experience in the end.

Pictures Freizeit-Land Geiselwind

Conclusion Freizeit-Land Geiselwind

Freizeit-Land Geiselwind has changed considerably. Although it was much emptier during my visit this year than during my first visit, I spent much more time in the park. Nowadays, there is something to discover around every corner, and sometimes you even come across attractions that you hadn’t even thought of before and which you really want to try out. Especially the self-built walkthroughs are all worth a visit. A visit is therefore definitely worthwhile, especially as the next few years will certainly offer one or two more surprises.

What do you think about the new attractions at Freizeit-Land Geiselwind? Just write it in the comment field below the report or on our social media channels:

TKathke July 19, 2022 March 13, 2023 Freizeit-Land Geiselwind

The mountain coaster at Steinwasen Park

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Since my last visit to Steinwasen Park, not much has happened in the park itself. In 2014, an Alpine Coaster from the Wiegand company opened in the park. In the meantime, the Schwarzwaldpark was acquired and converted into Tatzmania Löffingen.

Coasterbahn

Parallel to the chairlift, we climb the lift of the coaster. At the top, we slowly pick up speed over a few waves and curves before we enter the first helix. After a few bends, the second helix awaits us. Now much faster, we can have a race with the two luge tracks for a while. But even this is only short-lived, as we immediately turn off to the left. Far above an animal enclosure, we make our way to another helix. This is followed by a fairly straight path with only one wave, which leads us to the finale of the ride. This also takes place through a helix.

The Coasterbahn is a very gentle alpine coaster with a pleasant length. The ride basically offers no real highlight; with the exception of a few waves, there are only helices and a few leisurely curves, but that’s about it. As a starter ride before the nearby Hasenhorncoaster in Todtnau, the ride is certainly not a bad choice.