Europa ParkLocation: Rust, Germany
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Europa Park, owned by the Mack Family of Mack Rides fame, is the largest amusement park in Germany and one of the most popular in Europe opened in 1975. Most of the rides in the park are Mack Rides but there are a few exceptions like the B&M designed hyper coaster Silver Star.
Europa Park is split into fifteen separate areas, each one offering several attractions and its own special theme. The park’s oldest coaster, built in 1985, is a 19.7 feet tall powered coaster Alpenexpress, in the Austria section. Schweizer Bobbahn, added in 1985, is one of only twenty-five bobsled coasters in the world. This coaster earns its classification as a bobsled coaster because it does not run on a traditional track but instead runs freely within a trough. In 1989, the park added a fully enclosed indoor coaster called Eurosat featuring a space-saving spiral lift inside of a geodesic sphere shaped building. Euro Mir, Mack Rides’ first spinning coaster, was added in 1997. Two years later the park added Matterhorn Blitz to the Swiss section of the park. This wild mouse coaster features a vertical lift inside a themed building. Poseidon, which opened in 2000, is a Greek themed water coaster that features coaster style track along with the splash down elements of a traditional water ride. Water coasters are rare but Europa Park has two! In 2005 added another water coaster called Atlantica SuperSplash. This ride’s cars are turned by two turntables that are separated by a dip that the car travels backwards through. After the turntables, the ride goes through a double-dip drop and then has a splashdown before returning to the station. In 2002, Europa Park would open their first coaster designed by an outside company. B&M’s hyper 240 foot tall hyper coaster would prove to be a success. In 2006, a family coaster Pegasus, the first YoungSTAR model, opened in the Greece section. Blue Fire Megacoaster, which features four inversions and a linear synchronous motor (LSM) launch, representing a large jump in coaster technology opened in 2009. The park’s first wooden coaster, Wodan Timbur Coaster opened in 2012. This coaster intermingles with Atlantica SuperSplash and Blue Fire. Built by Great Coasters International, the ride is well-appointed with three GCII Millennium Flyer trains that highlight polyurethane wheels rather than the typical steel wheels. The park offers interesting hotel facilities to park goers as well. Guests can choose six different themed experiences; Seafaring 18th Century New England, Italian Renaissance, Portuguese Monastery, Medieval Fortress, Mediterranean Spanish Moor right down to staying in an authentic teepee, log cabin or covered wagon! In spring 2014, the park added Arthur in the Minimoys Kingdom. It features indoor and outdoor elements, on board audio, rotating ride vehicles and a raft of special effects. There are other attractions in the works for the future such as a water park coming in 2016-2017! Europa Park is an exciting park that will continue to expand and bring joy to visitors across the world. |
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