Parque de Atracciones de Madrid

Location: Madrid, Spain
Official Debut: 1969

Roller Coasters
Abismo
Padrinos Voladores
Tarántula
TNT Tren de la Mina
Tornado
Vagones Locos
Vértigo

Thrill Rides

Parque De Atracciones Madrid is the amusement park of the city of Madrid in Spain. It is located in the area of Bataan, Madrid. Parque De Atracciones Madrid (Spanish for Madrid Amusement Park), officially opened on May 15, 1969, the feast of San Isidro, patron Saint of Madrid. Carlos Arias Navarro, Juan Botas, the first president of the park and Claudio Colomer, considered the leading amusement park experts in Spain at the time began building the park into the great park that it is today. When it opened, the park had 30 rides including popular rides such as a Formula 8 ride, a Magic Carpet ride, a Journey to the Center of the Earth ride, and the Octopus ride, among others, that captivated guests. There was a special children’s section as well.

The Auditorium Theatre deserves special mention because of its design. The building’s structure has been the subject of study in Architecture schools over the years because of its uniqueness. After its construction at the time, it was the only place in Madrid that could seat 5,000 people for performances. Most performances were free of charge to audiences.

The park continued to evolve through the years but the most important change came in 1998 when it was divided into five distinct areas called zones. The zones are known as Zone Machinism Area, Tranquility Zone, Nature Zone, Kids Zone and Grand Avenue. Each zone is themed differently and the name of the attractions take on the look and theme of their respective areas, The pathways were filled with souvenirs merchants and food vendors as well as the number of artistic performances increased. That same year, the Amusement Park was purchased by Parques Reunidos. However, in November of 2003, Parques Reunidos was purchased by Advent, an American company.

Currently the park has seven roller coasters. In May 1999, the park worked with Swiss company Intamin to bring guests the Tornado roller coaster. This is an inverted coaster. It was one of the first revolutionary roller coasters that the park added after it got rid of its Looping Star roller coaster. Tornado includes two loops and a corkscrew.

The Abismo (the Abyss) roller coaster, which opened in spring 2006 is a model Skyloop XT-450. It was designed by the German company Maurer Söhne. It replaced Seven Peaks. The coaster goes vertical then goes 90 °, next the train does a corkscrew. It is considered one of the park’s best attractions. The park added the Tarantula spinning roller coaster model XC 3000, which opened a year earlier in spring 2005. It was also designed by the same German company. This coaster is a long and intense roller coaster. It is made up of cars that seat four people, sitting in pairs back to back. It is a topsy turvey ride.

Padrinos Voladores, a Wild Mouse coaster from Zamperla was installed in the park in 2007. Its former name was Turbulencia (Spanish for turbulence) which can give you an idea of how a Wild Mouse coaster works! There is also the very popular family coaster called Vagones Locos (Crazy Wagons). This coaster, which also opened in 2007, and is also a Zamperla family gravity coaster. The children are entertained greatly by this coaster because the train is shaped like a dog.

Vertigo, another classic Wild Mouse roller coaster designed by Mack Rides opened in 2009 for the park’s 40th Anniversary. It is where the classic bumper cars used to be. However, there was a fire which burned that attraction in 2008. This roller coaster was relocated to the park from Bobbejaanland in Belgium and was formerly known as Speedy Bob.
What’s a park without a classic mine train? The park added a mine train in March, 2012. The TNT Tren de la Mina (TNT Mine Train) was designed by Gerstlauer and despite being an attraction for children, it is a fun ride for everyone.

Since the 2007 season the park has capitalized on the holiday seasons as well. The Halloween season is big. The park runs haunts such as the "Mausoleum" and "Deadly Games" and several shows with Zombies. In 2012, the park decorated and opened with special shows for a Christmas event for the first time.

The park now has over forty years as part of the city of Madrid’s history. It has tried to offer the best in amusement entertainment to its more than 100 million visitors over the years and it is keeping alive the high expectations of the public has in the amusement industry in making the best of their leisure time. When in Spain, give it a try.