Gardaland Resort

Gardaland's entrance
LocationCastelnuovo del Garda, Italy
Coordinates45°27′16″N 10°42′50″E / 45.45444°N 10.71389°E / 45.45444; 10.71389
StatusOperating
Opened19 July 1975 (1975-07-19)
OwnerMerlin Entertainments
Operating seasonSpring-Summer & Holidays
Attendance1.350.000 (2020)
Area260,000 m2 (64 acres)
Attractions
Total37[1]
Roller coasters7
Water rides3
WebsiteOfficial website

Gardaland Resort is an amusement park resort located in northeastern Italy. Opened on 19 July 1975, the resort includes Gardaland Park, Gardaland Sea-Life, Legoland Waterpark, Gardaland Hotel, Adventure Hotel and Magic Hotel. It is adjacent to Lake Garda. The entire complex covers an area of 445,000 m2 (4,789,940 sq ft), while the amusement park alone measures 200,000 m2 (2,152,782 sq ft). Sporting both traditional attractions and entertainment shows, it attracts nearly 3 million visitors every year.

In June 2005, Gardaland was ranked fifth in Forbes Magazine's list of the top ten amusement parks in the world, with the best turnover. According to 2011 data, is the eighth in Europe by the number of park visitors.

Since October 2006, the park has been owned by the British company Merlin Entertainments. Major attractions at the park include Mammut, Jungle Rapids, Fuga Da Atlantide, Shaman, Blue Tornado, Raptor and Oblivion: The Black Hole which opened on 28 March 2015.[2] The park's mascot, Prezzemolo, was popular in the Italian licensing market during the 1990s and the 2000s.

History

The Castle garden

Built on the eastern shore of Lake Garda at Castelnuovo del Garda, Gardaland opened on 19 July 1975, between Peschiera and Lazise.[3]

It has expanded steadily in both size and attendance, topping 1 million visitors annually for the first time in 1984. By 2007, attendance reached 3 million.[4] Gardaland is now the eighth-most-popular theme park in Europe,[3] and is run and operated by the Merlin Entertainments Group. It has a total of 32 rides, including 7 roller coasters and 3 water rides. The roller coasters are Blue Tornado, Shaman, Ortobruco Tour, Raptor, Kung Fu Panda Master, Mammut and Oblivion: The Black Hole.[4] Fuga da Atlantide is a Shoot the Chute.[5]

The park opened a ride based on the Jumanji film franchise called Jumanji - The Adventure for the 2022 season, featuring a large animatronic figure.[6]

Themed areas

NamePictureAdditional information
Fantasy KingdomFantasy themed area featuring a variety of family rides.
Rio BravoWestern themed street.
Kung Fu Panda AcademyAn area based on Kung Fu Panda with family rides.
Peppa Pig LandA small Peppa Pig themed area with younger rides just by the main entrance.
Prezzemolo LandMedieval themed area featuring a variety of family rides, a restaurant & a playground.

Attractions

Roller coasters

NamePictureTypeOpenedAreaManufacturerAdditional information
Blue TornadoSuspended Looping Coaster1998-VekomaThe Vekoma SLC (765 m [2,510 ft] extended with helix) is situated near the entrance of the park, and stands 33.32 m (109 ft 4 in) tall from the ground. The track is 765 m (2,510 ft) long, and the main elements are a rollover, sidewinder and a double in-line twist ending with several high speed helixes close to the ground. The minimum height restriction is 1.4 metres.
ShamanSteel sit down coaster1985-VekomaVekoma Double Loop Corkscrew, and is situated on the lower level of the park. The oldest coaster in the park. It stands at 30 m (98 ft 5 in) above the ground and 700 m (2,296 ft 7 in) long. Its main elements are a double loop, double corkscrew and a rising helix. In 2009 the classic Arrow Dynamics trains have been replaced with the new model of Vekoma. The minimum height restriction is 1.2 metres. In the 2017 season the ride was rethemed and renamed as 'SHAMAN' and featured a Virtual Reality experience. The VR was removed prior to the 2018 season.
RaptorWing Coaster2011-Bolliger & MabillardRaptor is the prototype Wing Coaster by Swiss manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard. It opened on 1 April 2011. The minimum height restriction is 1.4 metres.
MammutSteel sit down2008-VekomaMammut (Italian for Mammoth) is a steel roller coaster which includes a herd of mammoth.
Oblivion: The Black HoleDive Coaster2015-Bolliger & MabillardOblivion: The Black Hole opened on 28 March 2015 and is a dive coaster manufactured by Bolliger and Mabillard. It's based on the prototype dive coaster at Alton Towers which is called 'Oblivion'! The minimum height restriction is 1.4 metres.
Kung Fu Panda MasterSteel spinning roller coaster2016Kung Fu Panda AcademyFabbri GroupFamily spinning coaster from Fabbri. Opened on 14 May 2016 as part of the Kung Fu Panda Academy area.
Ortobruco TourSteel1990-PinfariOrtobruco Tour is a Family Caterpillar Coaster from Pinfari and opened in 1990.

Water rides

NamePictureTypeOpenedAreaManufacturerAdditional information
Colorado BoatLog flume1984-Mack RidesLog flume themed to the Americas.
Fuga da AtlantideShoot the Chute2004 -IntaminFuga da Atlantide (Escape from Atlantis), is a Shoot the Chute, the Intamin Super Splash, and is situated near Blue Tornado.[5] The ride begins with a cable lift hill, then the car/boat turns on a shallow helix and plummets down a steep drop on a track with water jets into a pool. The ride progresses to another similar element.
Jungle RapidsRiver rapids ride1999 -IntaminRapids ride which passes by various Asian scenes.[7]

Dark rides

NamePictureTypeOpenedManufacturerAdditional information
Jumanji - The AdventureDark ride2022
I Corsari: la vendetta del fantasma (The Corsairs: the ghost's revenge)Dark boat ride1992 Intamin

Flat thrill rides

Name Picture Type Opened Area Manufacturer Additional information
Space VertigoDrop Tower1998-IntaminA drop tower.
Magic HouseMadhouse (ride)2001 Fantasy KingdomVekomaA mad house built underground.

Family rides

NamePictureTypeOpenedAreaManufacturerAdditional information
Flying IslandFlying Island2000-IntaminAn observation tower offering panoramic views across the park and Lake Garda.
Baby PilotaSpinning ride2000 Prezzemolo Land-The planes rotate and move up and down.
Peter PanSpinning ride1986 -Mack RidesFast spinning family ride.
MonorotaiaMonorail1990 -Mack RidesMonorail with views across the bottom section of the park.
Mr Ping's Noodle SurpriseTeacups2016 (1993) Kung Fu Panda AcademyMack RidesFormerly known as Kaffetassen. Rethemed in 2016 as part of the Kung Fu Panda Academy area.
Il Trenino di Nonno PigJunior train ride2018Peppa Pig LandI.E ParkChildren's train ride.
La Mongolfiera di Peppa PigBalloon ride2018Peppa Pig LandI.E ParkBalloon ride with scenic views.
L'Isola dei PiratiJunior boat ride2018Peppa Pig LandI.E ParkSpinning boat ride.
La Casa di Peppa PigWalk-through attraction2018Peppa Pig LandA walkthrough where you go through Peppa Pig's house.

Other attractions

NamePictureTypeOpenedAreaManufacturerAdditional information
Sea Life AquariumAquarium2008 -Sea LifeLocated outside the park at the back of the car park. Upcharge.
Gardaland TheatreTheatre2006 -Theatre that houses Nautilus live show.
Jumanji the labyrinthMirror walk-through2023 -A walkthrough mirror labyrinth attraction themed to Jumanji. Upcharge.
Il Bosco degli GnomiWalk-through attraction2023 Rio BravoA gnome walkthrough.

Food and features

References

  1. ↑ "Gardaland Park Map" (PDF). Gardaland. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 April 2015. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
  2. ↑ "Best Theme Parks in Europe". Simify. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  3. 1 2 "Grande festa per il trentesimo anniversario di fondazione". Gardaland (in Italian). Archived from the original on 14 May 2009.
  4. 1 2 "Gardaland". Roller Coaster DataBase.
  5. 1 2 "Super Splash". Intamin Amusement Rides. Archived from the original on 6 September 2012.
  6. ↑ "Gardaland unveils huge animatronic created for new Jumanji ride". Blooloop. 15 December 2021. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
  7. ↑ "Jungle Rapids". Archived from the original on 19 September 2016.
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