Hello, you know what time it is - it’s theme park news time!
First up, big news.
Iron Gwazi, the roller coaster everyone has been talking about for the past one, two,
three years is finally opening.
The world’s fastest hybrid roller coaster will open to guests on 11th March 2022 at
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay.
Just drink in those words: “Iron Gwazi will open”, sounds magical.
The ride was originally intended to open in early 2020, but we all know what happened
then.
Since that moment, the ride’s opening date has been pushed further and further back.
Finally though, you’ll be able to experience North America’s tallest RMC roller coaster,
a roller coaster which many argue could be among the world’s best.
Though, if you have money, and/or a Busch Gardens Tampa annual pass, you’ll be able
to ride Iron Gwazi early, as early as the 13th February.
Kinda makes you think what are they waiting a whole other month for if it’s all ready
to go? *shrugs*, anticipate maybe?
Who knows.
What I do though, is that Nemesis, the icon B&M inverted coaster at Alton Towers in the
United Kingdom, will in fact live forever.
Well, not really.
A planning application by the park has revealed that they intend to retrack Nemesis to extend
its lifespan and secure its position as one of the park’s major attractions.
The application states that all of the track, bar the brake run, station and lift hill,
will be retracted, with new supports.
Additional work will also take place to strengthen the ride’s foundations in key places.
Due to the tight nature of the ride, it seems unlikely that any major track reprofiling
will take place - we should see a like for like retrack here.
However, the plans state that the new track will be filled with sand to reduce noise coming
from the ride itself.
So, if the fantastic roar of Nemesis means a lot to you, make sure you experience it
before it gets refurbed.
When is that happening you ask?
We have absolutely no idea.
Although, Nemesis would turn 30 years old in 2024, so perhaps it’s likely to reopen
as Nemesis 2.0 for the 2024 season.
So there you go, the two iconic UK roller coasters that debuted in 1994, Nemesis and
the Big One at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, are both being retracked, and will both be around
until the day I die - magical.
Over in China, the clone of Phantasialand’s famous multi-launch coaster Taron, has opened
to guests.
The ride, named All Speeds, successfully made its debut on the 31st December 2021.
It features all the same twists and turns as Taron, well of course it does it’s a
clone - but it’s theming is slightly different.
Where Taron is set in the village of Klugheim, surrounded by lots of grey rocks, all speeds
is in fact surrounded by lots of orange-y rocks - very different.
Though, it still has some fantastic interactions with buildings and tunnels, like Taron, just
not as many.
So it’s basically Taron, but slightly worse.
Talking of new coasters - Motiongate in Dubai has just opened two of them!
Late last week the park debuted John Wick: Open Contract, a 4D freespin manufactured
by S&S, and Now You See Me: High Roller, a large scale maurer spinning coaster.
The ride’s both extensively rely on IPs to enhance the experience, attempting to put
guests there in the middle of the action.
The two new attractions become the park’s 6th and 7th roller coasters, alongside many
other IP based rides, such as Madagascar Mad Pursuit.
Over in America, Cotaland made an announcement during Ace Winterfest the other day.
They teased a new roller coaster coming to the park in fall of 2023 with the text “America
first and only coaster”, I can’t believe they’re building the only roller coaster
in America!
Tragic jokes aside, obviously the park plan to construct a ride unique to the country.
Could it be an S&S axis coaster, or something much more mundane?
All we know is this comes hot off the heels of Cotaland’s previous announcement, a new
Gerstlauer infinity coaster set to debut in 2022.
It sounds to me like the park wants to put themselves on the map as quickly as possible
- exciting stuff!
And finally, the Efteling plans to build a new hotel, renovate a themed area, and construct
a new ride, all for 2024.
Firstly, the Dutch theme park plan to expand their on-resort offering with more accommodation,
a new hotel which will sit next to the park’s impressive entrance portal.
The renewed theme area with covered attraction will be constructed between the Pardoes Promenade,
Baron 1898 and Max & Moritz.
A new ride will be placed within this area, one which is said to be entirely indoors.
Sadly, to make way for the addition, one of the park’s oldest attractions, Spookslot,
will close.
The park are yet to confirm the exact closing date for the ride, but they do hope to allow
people to give it a proper send off.
Construction for all three projects is set to commence this year, in 2022.
So there we go, there's lots to look forward to in the future.
Such as riding Iron Gwazi, experiencing Cotaland's new mystery coaster, checking out Efteling's
upcoming indoor ride, or riding Nemesis until the end of time itself, because Towers won't
risk hearing the dreaded screaming of enthusiasts telling them to reopen it.