I think this speaks to the somewhat recent trend of parks relying too much on online marketing. Social media hype only goes so far. The enthusiast community exists in a bubble, more parks need to realise who their main audience is (its not us).

Speaking with friends who love theme parks but aren't enthusiasts per se, they had no idea that Pleasure Beach is soon to open potentially the best flat ride in the UK. I really hope that Aviktas is a success, but the lack of a proper advertising campaign is concerning.

As much as I love the retro futurism of old EPCOT and the Carrousel of Progress, it hits different in the age of AI. Kinda saps that feeling of naive optimism😔

Ulrike Ottinger's Prater (2007)🎡 Wow what a gem! This might be my new favourite film. An incredible overview of Vienna Prater and its fascinating history, up until then-current day. If you're at all interested in the history of amusements I can't recommend this enough!! 10/10

Nooooooooooooo thank you

I gotta say, DLP was looking gorgeous last visit, probably the best I'd ever seen it. There's areas that still need a lot of TLC (Fort Comstock, parts of Adventure Isle etc.) but for the most part it's looking absolutely stunning. Especially with the Spring planting!

I still keep the last free Fastpass I ever got at Disneyland Paris in my wallet, like a photo of my husband lost at sea. Miss you 💔

The Paris Tower of Terror is still a beautifully themed, thrilling attraction, but the original ride sequence and show scenes were FAR superior. The current version feels (and looks) like a cheap Halloween overlay on an otherwise perfect attraction. Please Disney, bring back Mr Serling!

Everywhere I look something reminds me of her 💔

Phantom Manor, my beloved 💜 Always my unconditional fave, but I was really missing the old version this visit. On a technical level it looks great, but they clearly didn't understand the original melodramatic tone with its Victorian gothic tragedy influences.

As excited as I am for Aviktas I'm more anxious to know what is or isn't happening next door. It's been 2 years since River Caves last operated. I hope management realise what an important piece of history it is. Whatevers happening, swinging over a sad derelict looking ride will sure be interesting

Microsoft's Project Helix logo looks familiar for some reason🤔

Went to a screening of the 1925 silent film The Phantom of the Opera yesterday. It was super cool to see the visual influences on DLP's Phantom Manor! (miss you original finale Phantom💀)

Brean is... back? Shortest closure ever.

Some of you people talking about the Merlin disability passes really sound a lot like the "lazy people claim benefits" crowd. Just sayin.

Another small UK park gone. Sign of the times innit. I visited briefly a couple of years ago just for the Astro Storm coaster and their surprisingly decent ghost train, Terror Castle. I hope Astro Storm can survive yet another closure!

The saga continues. So their excuse for the closure boils down to "we'd have to do daily safety checks". You mean like every ride ever? What a joke. Classic health n safety coverup for a spineless financial decision.

The "Creative Call Out" is hilariously lazy too. They haven't got any ideas, so why not give it to the public?? It reads like a uni project brief. Side note, given that 100k+ is listed last, I expect they don't want to spend a huge amount of money on it.

Interesting statement from the Dreamland Heritage Trust on the closure of the Scenic Railway. Evidently Live Nation have the means to continue operating the ride but simply don't want to. They obviously don't care about the park, besides it serving as a backdrop for the music venue.

Everyone losing their minds over Merlin's bland rebrand. Where was the outrage when they attempted to ban trans people from their park bathrooms?

Yes! More bland corporate minimalism in our theme parks! That's what we want!

The Flying Trunk was one of my favourite attractions at Tivoli. A very charming dark ride that takes you on a whistle-stop tour through the stories of Hans Christian Anderson. Perfect for the park that inspired him!

Surprised that there aren't any head chopper elements on Falcons Flight considering where it is.

Let's play trace the snake! Can you follow the Aviktas snake from its head to its tail? No? It must be the mysterious power of Aviktas! Or maybe its because its a recreation of something spat out by AI. You could just... draw a snake. Or at least look at a picture of one.

I'm tempted to make Efteling's Chinese Nightingale next.

Tivoli Gardens may well be the prettiest place I've ever stepped foot in. And that's especially true at Christmas, at night!

Crazy how this is the first thing you see leaving Copenhagen central station ❤️

Daemonen is pretty good. Short, but better than I expected. What's more impressive though is the fact that they're even operating this thing with all the construction going on. Just look at it!

First visit to Tivoli Gardens today! Such a charming beautiful park, I'm very impressed so far.

Had to go see the lads 🧀

Some seriously questionable decisions by Efteling management over the past few years. For every one good thing, there's another that I really disagree with. Let's not forget what makes Efteling so special in the first place, yeah?

Welp. I guess that's it. They really are demolishing the Chinese Nightingale. One of the most beautiful and atmospheric fairytales in the park =/

If Efteling demolishes The Chinese Nightingale we riot.

Pleasure Beach's heritage rides, or at least those with a listed status, really ought to qualify for some sort of Lottery or council funding. It'd relieve them of a significant financial burden.

The quiet morning after.

Upon further reading the @looopings.nl article on this, it doesn't even have any interactive elements??? So there's really no point at all in it being AI, other than being just for the sake of it or not having to pay actors...

Not to mention how totally soulless and insipid this is. What makes Efteling so special is the human touch, and this is the anthesis of that. Shame on whoever allowed this, I hope the fanbase kicks up a fuss.

Considering how important being environmentally conscious is to the Efteling brand (supposedly), this feels extremely hypocritical. Just because it might not directly affect their carbon emissions doesn't mean the tech behind it isn't incredibly bad for the environment🙄

The travelling fair near Blackpool Tower was super busy this weekend, lots of people spending money on rides and food despite the awful weather. Meanwhile, just down the coast, Pleasure Beach felt empty by comparison. They seriously need to rethink their ticket pricing strategy.

Hyde Park Winter Wonderland was a lot better than I expected! Didn't do many rides cos I'm not made of money, but it was worth making the trip down for the atmosphere alone.

More treasure 🫧🎵

Dark ride treasures 👀

Woke up to our back yard fence missing. At least the storm probably blew away what's left of the tatty England flags.

RIP to my childhood ghost train :( I'll always have fond hazy memories of riding this with my grandad, absolutely terrified. Very glad I paid a visit a few years ago to ride it one last time for him 💀💜

Also for anyone whose not spotted yet we have a fast growing Alton Towers Archive sub page on Insta and Facebook! www.facebook.com/altontowersa... www.instagram.com/altontowersa... #altontowers #themepark #themeparkhistory

Make sure to follow our new sub-page on Chessington World of Adventures for in depth Chessington theme park history! facebook.com/chessingtonarchive/ instagram.com/chessingtonarchive #themepark #chessington #themeparkhistory

De Efteling heeft alvast een Clip aan het album toegevoegd met daarin een snippet van de demo van Villa Volta! Inclusief ein-de-lijk een stukje van de beruchte elektrische gitaarsolo, die de uiteindelijke versie jammer genoeg niet gehaald heeft.

If you only visit UK parks like BPB and Alton Towers all your life, because that's what you can afford, you're no less of an enthusiast than the people who travel all around the world every year to tick off all the boxes. The gatekeeping feels weirdly classist.

"You aren't a real theme park fan if you haven't been to X amount of parks" is such an insane take. I feel very fortunate to have been able to visit new parks this year, but apparently my numbers wouldn't cut it. Not everyone has that kind of disposable income.

NEMESIS HATCHLING TOY, WITH POSEABLE PHALANX SOLDIER ACTION FIGURE 👁️🦀 The perfect gift this spooky season - get yours today!* *Batteries not included. Also, this is not a real product.