58 Fun Facts About Hard Theme Parks

Which organization ran the early-1950s feasibility study that picked Disneyland's site?

The Stanford Research Institute's study, led by Harrison 'Buzz' Price, recommended Anaheim; Disney bought a 160-acre orange grove there in 1953, and the park opened in July 1955.

Disney California Adventure, opened in 2001, was built on the site of what?

Disney California Adventure was built on Disneyland's original parking lot, which a new parking structure replaced; it sits directly across the esplanade from the original park.

Roughly how many acres does the Walt Disney World resort cover?

Walt Disney World's roughly 27,000 acres, assembled secretly in the 1960s, equal about 42 square miles, nearly twice the size of Manhattan; the land holds four theme parks and two water parks.

What is the official height of Cinderella Castle at Magic Kingdom?

Cinderella Castle's official height is 189 feet; it was built of steel and fiberglass-reinforced gypsum plaster on a concrete frame, with no bricks at all.

Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland reaches what height, despite looking much taller?

Sleeping Beauty Castle stands only 77 feet tall; forced perspective, with bricks and turrets shrinking toward the top, makes it seem larger, and its model was Neuschwanstein in Bavaria.

Which attraction was the last Walt Disney personally oversaw, opening three months after his death?

Pirates of the Caribbean opened at Disneyland on March 18, 1967; Walt Disney, who had overseen its construction, died of lung cancer in December 1966.

At the 1964 New York World's Fair, It's a Small World was housed in which organization's pavilion?

The ride was a salute to UNICEF, housed in the pavilion Pepsi sponsored; its entrance featured Rolly Crump's 120-foot spinning Tower of the Four Winds.

Which Disney 'mountain' ride was the world's first tubular steel roller coaster?

The Matterhorn Bobsleds, built by Arrow Development for Disneyland in 1959, ran on tubular steel track; its Abominable Snowman is nicknamed Harold by Imagineers.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at Disneyland replaced which earlier Frontierland attraction?

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad took over the site of the Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland, which closed in 1977; Tony Baxter led the design and Arrow Development built it in 1979.

Which airline sponsored Disneyland's Enchanted Tiki Room for twelve years from 1964?

United Airlines sponsored the Enchanted Tiki Room from 1964 to 1976; the 1963 show was the first attraction to use Audio-Animatronics, a WED Enterprises patent.

The original Space Mountain, at Magic Kingdom, opened in which year?

Space Mountain opened at Magic Kingdom on January 15, 1975, sponsored by RCA; Disneyland's version followed in 1977.

Splash Mountain at Magic Kingdom closed for good on what date?

Magic Kingdom's Splash Mountain closed on January 23, 2023; the Disneyland version lasted until May 31, 2023, and both were rebuilt as Tiana's Bayou Adventure.

Frozen Ever After at Epcot reused the vehicles and track of which former Norway Pavilion ride?

Maelstrom, the Norway Pavilion's boat ride, closed in October 2014 and its track and boats were reused for Frozen Ever After, which opened in June 2016.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at Epcot was Disney's first roller coaster to do what?

Cosmic Rewind's reverse launch made it Disney's first coaster to launch backwards; it opened in May 2022 as the first Walt Disney World attraction with Marvel characters.

Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge is set in Black Spire Outpost on which planet?

Black Spire Outpost is on the planet Batuu, created for the land; each 14-acre version opened in 2019, Disneyland's in May and Hollywood Studios' in August.

Expedition Everest is Walt Disney World's tallest attraction, beating the Tower of Terror by how much?

Expedition Everest stands 199.5 feet, 6 inches more than the 199-foot Tower of Terror; both stayed under 200 feet to avoid needing aircraft warning lights.

After Jane Goodall's visit, which chimpanzee was carved into Animal Kingdom's Tree of Life?

David Greybeard, the first chimpanzee Goodall saw using tools at Gombe, was carved into the Tree of Life after her visit; the 145-foot artificial baobab carries more than 300 animal carvings.

Which manufacturer built Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom?

Vekoma, based in the Netherlands, built Expedition Everest, which opened in 2006; the firm had built Rock 'n' Roller Coaster seven years earlier and later built Cosmic Rewind.

Which park opened at Universal Orlando Resort in May 2025?

Epic Universe opened on May 22, 2025; its five lands are Celestial Park, Dark Universe, Isle of Berk, Super Nintendo World and the Wizarding World's Ministry of Magic.

Universal Islands of Adventure officially opened in which year?

Islands of Adventure's grand opening was May 28, 1999, after soft-opening previews from March that year; it was the second park at what became Universal Orlando Resort.

Which manufacturer built The Incredible Hulk Coaster, its first coaster to feature a launch?

Bolliger & Mabillard built the Incredible Hulk Coaster, which opened with Islands of Adventure on the park's first day; its tyre-driven launch was the firm's first, and the ride was rebuilt in 2016.

Which Wizarding World area opened first at Universal Orlando, in 2010?

Hogsmeade, with Hogwarts castle and Forbidden Journey, opened at Islands of Adventure in June 2010; Diagon Alley followed at Universal Studios Florida in 2014.

Which Cedar Point coaster is considered the world's first hypercoaster?

Magnum XL-200, built by Arrow Dynamics, opened at Cedar Point at 205 feet, the first complete-circuit coaster taller than 200 feet, and it spawned a wave of hypercoasters.

Top Thrill Dragster, opened in 2003, was the first ride in what height class?

Top Thrill Dragster's 420-foot tower made it the first strata coaster, a class for rides over 400 feet; it was later rebuilt as Top Thrill 2 with a second tower and LSM launch.

Kingda Ka was designed by which engineer, the man behind most of Intamin's record coasters?

Werner Stengel's Munich engineering office designed Kingda Ka for Intamin; it opened in May 2005 with a 456-foot tower and a 418-foot drop, taking the height record.

Formula Rossa at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi launches riders to what top speed?

Formula Rossa's hydraulic launch takes it to 240 km/h, about 149 mph, in under five seconds; riders wear goggles against insects and sand at that speed.

Nagashima Spa Land, one of Japan's largest amusement parks, is in which prefecture?

Nagashima Spa Land is in Kuwana, Mie Prefecture, near Nagoya; besides its giant coaster the resort has one of Japan's largest water parks and the Nabana no Sato flower park.

Which ride broke El Toro's record for steepest wooden-coaster drop in 2008?

T Express at Everland, another Intamin prefabricated wooden coaster, opened in 2008 with a 77-degree drop, beating El Toro's 76 degrees; Rocky Mountain Construction built the track for both.

Which park became the first to offer 20 roller coasters, in 2022?

Six Flags Magic Mountain reached 20 coasters in July 2022 when Wonder Woman: Flight of Courage opened, the first park to hit that number.

Cedar Point is the second-oldest operating amusement park in the US; which park is the oldest?

Lake Compounce in Bristol, Connecticut, opened in 1846 and is the oldest continuously operating amusement park in the United States; Cedar Point followed in 1870.

Which two US amusement parks are designated National Historic Landmarks?

Kennywood near Pittsburgh and Rye Playland in New York, opened in 1898 and 1928 respectively, were both designated National Historic Landmarks in 1987.

Leap-The-Dips, the oldest standing roller coaster in the world, was built in 1902 in which state?

Leap-The-Dips runs at Lakemont Park in Altoona, Pennsylvania, and is thought to be the last surviving side-friction figure-eight coaster; it was named a National Historic Landmark in 1996.

Luna Park Melbourne's Scenic Railway, the oldest coaster, still requires what on every train?

It opened with the park in December 1912 and is one of only five such coasters left in the world.

LaMarcus Adna Thompson's 1885 patent was based on which ride he opened a year earlier at Coney Island?

Thompson's Switchback Railway opened at Coney Island in June 1884; riders climbed a tower and coasted about 600 feet at six miles per hour for a nickel.

Who designed the Coney Island Cyclone, which opened in June 1927?

Vernon Keenan designed the Coney Island Cyclone and Harry C. Baker built it; the wooden coaster opened on June 26, 1927, and is a New York City landmark at Luna Park.

Which food company took over sponsorship of the Enchanted Tiki Room in 1976?

Dole took over sponsorship of the Enchanted Tiki Room in 1976; its Dole Whip, a dairy-free pineapple soft serve introduced in the 1980s, is sold at the attraction's entrance.

Tivoli founder Georg Carstensen told King Christian VIII that amusing people stops them thinking about what?

Tivoli opened in August 1843 and is the world's second-oldest operating amusement park, after nearby Bakken.

Bakken, the world's oldest operating amusement park, opened in what year?

Bakken traces its origin to 1583, when a spring found by Kirsten Piil drew crowds to the royal deer park about 10 km north of Copenhagen; it predates Tivoli by 260 years.

Efteling in the Netherlands opened on what date?

Efteling opened on May 31, 1952, when Anton Pieck's Fairytale Forest was unveiled beside an existing playground; it grew into the Netherlands' largest theme park.

Europa-Park was founded by which German ride-manufacturing family as a showcase for its products?

Franz and Roland Mack visited US parks in 1972 and opened the park in Rust in 1975.

Sir Hiram Maxim's Captive Flying Machine, operating since 1904, is at which park?

Blackpool Pleasure Beach has run Maxim's Captive Flying Machine since 1904; the park's Big One was the world's tallest and steepest coaster when it opened in 1994.

Alton Towers, in Staffordshire, began developing as a theme park with a pay-once ticket in which year?

Alton Towers became a theme park in 1980, when John Broome added the Corkscrew coaster and introduced a single admission price; the estate later added Nemesis, The Smiler and Wicker Man.

Which park opened at PortAventura World in 2017 as the resort's third park?

Ferrari Land opened in April 2017 beside PortAventura Park and the Caribe Aquatic Park water park; its Red Force launched coaster was Europe's tallest and fastest at opening.

Phantasialand's Colorado Adventure mine train was opened by which celebrity?

Michael Jackson inaugurated Colorado Adventure in 1996; the Brühl park, founded in 1967, is also home to the multi-launch coaster Taron and the inverted coaster Black Mamba.

Liseberg's wooden coaster Balder, twice voted the world's best, is in which Swedish city?

Liseberg opened in Gothenburg in 1923 for the city's 300th-anniversary jubilee exhibition; Balder won the Golden Ticket award for best wooden coaster in 2003 and 2005.

The Wiener Riesenrad in Vienna was the world's tallest extant Ferris wheel from 1920 until what year?

The Riesenrad, built in 1897 by Walter Bassett and 64.75 metres tall, was the tallest extant wheel until 1985, when Japan's Technocosmos opened at the Tsukuba Expo; it stars in The Third Man.

Tokyo DisneySea opened in 2001 at a cost of roughly how many yen?

Tokyo DisneySea cost about 335 billion yen, roughly three billion dollars, making it the most expensive theme park ever built at its 2001 opening; ground was broken in October 1998.

Hong Kong Disneyland was built on reclaimed land in Penny's Bay on which island?

Penny's Bay is on Lantau Island, Hong Kong's largest; the park opened there in September 2005 as the second Disney resort in Asia, and Shanghai followed in 2016.

Disneyland Paris sits in Marne-la-Vallée, roughly how far east of central Paris?

Marne-la-Vallée lies about 32 km east of central Paris; the resort opened there as Euro Disney in April 1992, with Disneyland Park as its original theme park.

Lotte World in Seoul, famous for its huge indoor park, opened in what year?

Lotte World opened in July 1989; it combines the indoor Adventure park with the outdoor Magic Island on Seokchon Lake, a folk museum, malls and a hotel.

Everland, South Korea's largest theme park, is operated by a subsidiary of which conglomerate?

Everland is run by the resort arm of Samsung C&T; it opened in 1976 as Yongin Farmland, south of Seoul, and took the Everland name in 1996.

Kings Island replaced a flood-prone Cincinnati resort on the banks of which waterway?

Coney Island, the old Cincinnati resort on the Ohio River, flooded repeatedly, so Taft Broadcasting opened Kings Island inland in 1972; its Racer coaster is credited with reviving interest in coasters.

Cotton candy debuted to the masses at the 1904 World's Fair under what name?

Dentist William Morrison and confectioner John Wharton sold their machine-spun 'Fairy Floss' at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair, 68,655 boxes at 25 cents each.

In what year did Cedar Fair and Six Flags merge into Six Flags Entertainment Corporation?

Cedar Fair and Six Flags completed their merger on July 1, 2024, forming Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, with offices kept in Sandusky, Ohio.

What did the Knott family start selling in June 1934 that turned their berry stand into a tourist draw?

Cordelia Knott's fried chicken dinners, first served in June 1934, drew such queues that Walter Knott built shops and a replica ghost town to entertain waiting diners; admission was not charged until 1968.

How much did Cedar Fair pay for Knott's Berry Farm when the family sold it in 1997?

Cedar Fair paid about $300 million for Knott's Berry Farm in 1997, ending seven decades of Knott family ownership of the Buena Park property.

Which NFL owner bought the Tennessee park that became Dollywood in 1970?

Art Modell of the Cleveland Browns bought the Rebel Railroad park in 1970 and renamed it Goldrush Junction; the Herschends bought it in 1976, and Dolly Parton's 1986 stake made it Dollywood.

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay grew out of a 1950s plan by Anheuser-Busch to build what on the site?

Anheuser-Busch built a Tampa brewery on the 160-acre plot it bought in 1957, and opened the adjoining Busch Gardens as a free hospitality garden on March 31, 1959.