Gardaland

Gardaland Resort

Gardaland's entrance
Location	Castelnuovo del Garda, Italy
Coordinates	45°27′16″N 10°42′50″E / 45.45444°N 10.71389°E / 45.45444; 10.71389
Status	Operating
Opened	19 July 1975 (1975-07-19)
Owner	Merlin Entertainments
Operating season	Spring-Summer & Holidays
Attendance	1.350.000 (2020)
Area	260,000 m2 (64 acres)
Attractions
Total	37[1]
Roller coasters	7
Water rides	3
Website	Official 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.^{[citation needed]}

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

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.^{[citation needed]} 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

Name	Picture	Additional information
Fantasy Kingdom		Fantasy themed area featuring a variety of family rides.
Rio Bravo		Western themed street.
Kung Fu Panda Academy		An area based on Kung Fu Panda with family rides.
Peppa Pig Land		A small Peppa Pig themed area with younger rides just by the main entrance.
Prezzemolo Land		Medieval themed area featuring a variety of family rides, a restaurant & a playground.

Attractions

Roller coasters

Name	Picture	Type	Opened	Area	Manufacturer	Additional information
Blue Tornado		Suspended Looping Coaster	1998	-	Vekoma	The 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.
Shaman		Steel sit down coaster	1985	-	Vekoma	Vekoma 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.
Raptor		Wing Coaster	2011	-	Bolliger & Mabillard	Raptor is the prototype Wing Coaster by Swiss manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard. It opened on 1 April 2011. The minimum height restriction is 1.4 metres.
Mammut		Steel sit down	2008	-	Vekoma	Mammut (Italian for Mammoth) is a steel roller coaster which includes a herd of mammoth.
Oblivion: The Black Hole		Dive Coaster	2015	-	Bolliger & Mabillard	Oblivion: 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'![citation needed] The minimum height restriction is 1.4 metres.
Kung Fu Panda Master		Steel spinning roller coaster	2016	Kung Fu Panda Academy	Fabbri Group	Family spinning coaster from Fabbri. Opened on 14 May 2016 as part of the Kung Fu Panda Academy area.
Ortobruco Tour		Steel	1990	-	Pinfari	Ortobruco Tour is a Family Caterpillar Coaster from Pinfari and opened in 1990.

Water rides

Name	Picture	Type	Opened	Area	Manufacturer	Additional information
Colorado Boat		Log flume	1984	-	Mack Rides	Log flume themed to the Americas.
Fuga da Atlantide		Shoot the Chute	2004	-	Intamin	Fuga 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 Rapids		River rapids ride	1999	-	Intamin	Rapids ride which passes by various Asian scenes.[7]

Dark rides

Name	Picture	Type	Opened	Manufacturer	Additional information
Jumanji - The Adventure		Dark ride	2022
I Corsari: la vendetta del fantasma (The Corsairs: the ghost's revenge)		Dark boat ride	1992	Intamin

Flat thrill rides

Name	Picture	Type	Opened	Area	Manufacturer	Additional information
Space Vertigo		Drop Tower	1998	-	Intamin	A drop tower.
Magic House		Madhouse (ride)	2001	Fantasy Kingdom	Vekoma	A mad house built underground.

Family rides

Name	Picture	Type	Opened	Area	Manufacturer	Additional information
Flying Island		Flying Island	2000	-	Intamin	An observation tower offering panoramic views across the park and Lake Garda.
Baby Pilota		Spinning ride	2000	Prezzemolo Land	-	The planes rotate and move up and down.
Peter Pan		Spinning ride	1986	-	Mack Rides	Fast spinning family ride.
Monorotaia		Monorail	1990	-	Mack Rides	Monorail with views across the bottom section of the park.
Mr Ping's Noodle Surprise		Teacups	2016 (1993)	Kung Fu Panda Academy	Mack Rides	Formerly known as Kaffetassen. Rethemed in 2016 as part of the Kung Fu Panda Academy area.
Il Trenino di Nonno Pig		Junior train ride	2018	Peppa Pig Land	I.E Park	Children's train ride.
La Mongolfiera di Peppa Pig		Balloon ride	2018	Peppa Pig Land	I.E Park	Balloon ride with scenic views.
L'Isola dei Pirati		Junior boat ride	2018	Peppa Pig Land	I.E Park	Spinning boat ride.
La Casa di Peppa Pig		Walk-through attraction	2018	Peppa Pig Land		A walkthrough where you go through Peppa Pig's house.

Other attractions

Name	Picture	Type	Opened	Area	Manufacturer	Additional information
Sea Life Aquarium		Aquarium	2008	-	Sea Life	Located outside the park at the back of the car park. Upcharge.
Gardaland Theatre		Theatre	2006	-		Theatre that houses various shows over the years.
Jumanji - The Labyrinth		Mirror walk-through maze	2023	-		A walkthrough mirror labyrinth attraction themed to Jumanji. It's an upcharge attraction.
Il Bosco degli Gnomi		Walk-through attraction	2023	Rio Bravo		A gnome walkthrough.

Gallery

Food and features

• 
  Fantasy Kingdom
• 
  Fast Food Blue Tornado
• 
  Pizzeria Saloon
• 
  Transgardaland Express
• 
  Information centre outside the park

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gardaland.

• Official website
• Gardaland at the Roller Coaster DataBase
• Information about Gardaland
• Gardaland's roller coasters
• Gardaland Weather

This page was last edited on 10 April 2024, at 19:53