Strange Amusement Park Facts That Staff Members Keep Under Wraps

Ever wondered what happens to lost coins at theme parks? Well, Ohio’s Cedar Point puts them to very good use — the workers send the cash to charitable organizations. According to the BestLife website, the annual total is normally around $2,000, but it can vary from year to year. Pretty cool, right?

If you’re a big fan of wave pools, then World Waterpark is just the spot for you. Located in Alberta, Canada, it harbors the biggest indoor wave pool on the planet. We’re talking over 3 million gallons of water here. And in terms of the overall size of the place, only New Jersey’s DreamWorks Water Park can beat it across North America.

The next time you visit a Disney theme park, keep your eyes open for selfie sticks. But the chances are, you won’t spot any. Why? Well, as it turns out, the devices have been barred there since 2015 due to “safety concerns,” according to the BBC News website. Fair enough!

We’re all for creative VR simulators, yet this one in China might be taking things a little too far. Shenzhen’s Window of the World theme park houses a cremation simulation. We’re serious! You’re given a first-hand view of what it’d be like after taking your seat. Thankfully, the temperature doesn’t get cranked up for added effect.

For those who take on the roles of Disney princesses around the parks, one rule stands out. To maintain the illusion, they’ve got to lie. A woman who donned Mulan’s costume provided an example on Reddit. She wrote, “Chinese people would always tell me to speak Chinese. I’d tell them that I bet Mushu if I could go an entire day without speaking Chinese he’d feed the chickens for me tomorrow.”

How about this for bizarre? Going into 2011 a Butlins park in Skegness, England, put up a notice close to its bumper-car area. It simply read “No Bumping.” Hilarious, right? But here’s the thing — it was completely serious. Apparently, some visitors claimed that they’d been hurt in the vehicles, which prompted the strange ban.

If your children are itching to get a taste of adult life, then KidZania could be just the ticket. These parks, which are scattered around the world, basically allow youngsters to live as grown-ups for a few hours. So they can take on jobs, earn “money,” and make tax payments. That last activity sounds… interesting?

Are you a big fan of thrill rides? Well, Cedar Point will leave you in dreamland. After all, the Ohio theme park boasts quite the moniker. Yes, it’s known as the “Roller Coaster Capital of the World.” Thanks to the range of different coasters strewn across the attraction, it more than lives up to its billing.

As quoted by BestLife, Six Flags shone a light on the safety systems around its parks. The statement read, “All of our rides have hundreds of sensors constantly measuring and watching every aspect of the ride. [They’re] similar to the sensors in your car that flash an alert if you’ve forgotten to buckle your seat belt or left one of [the] doors open.” As soon as they ping, the attraction comes to a halt.

Matterhorn Bobsleds is one of Disneyland’s staple attractions, delighting guests ever since it made its bow in 1959. But do you know what sits at the peak of the “mountain”? Nope, it isn’t the Abominable Snowman. Instead, there’s a hidden basketball court up there. It’s a spot for staff to chill out during their breaks. How cool is that?

For many thrill-ride enthusiasts, huge drops on roller coasters just aren’t enough — they need inversions, too! If you’re part of that particular crowd, then you might want to think about visiting Alton Towers. The U.K. amusement park houses a coaster with more loops than any other on the planet. It’s called The Smiler, and there are 14 of them. Dizzying stuff!

If you can reel off a more unconventional theme park than Dig This Vegas, we’d love to hear about it. You see, this place doesn’t house any rides as such. Instead, guests are given the opportunity to drive and operate heavy machinery around a large plot of land for fun. So yes, the name is pretty literal.

When Disneyland turned 40 in 1995, a time capsule was placed below the Sleeping Beauty castle at the park. Mind you, staff have remained tight-lipped about what’s in the box. We’ll eventually get an answer in July 2035 for the 80th anniversary, as it’ll be pulled out then.

Have you ever wondered just how many roller coasters there are around the globe? Well, here’s an answer! According to BestLife, there were over 4,600 of them in operation in 2018. To break things down even further, Asia harbored more than 2,200 at that time, compared to North America’s 894.

Try not to get too stressed if an attraction comes to a sudden halt: it usually isn’t a sign of danger. As quoted by BestLife, Six Flags stated, “While it may look dangerous, these controlled ride stops are proof that our ride safety systems are working exactly as they should. All of our rides are engineered to stop in a safe location.”

Attention all Hello Kitty fans — this next entry could blow your mind. As it turns out, the franchise has a presence at an amusement park in Tokyo, Japan. The place is called Sanrio Puroland and it’s chock-full of cuteness. As per BestLife, annual attendance figures normally reach about 1.5 million.

When it comes to speed, nothing can touch Formula Rossa. Seriously — it’s the quickest roller coaster on the planet. Located at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, this beast hits 150mph from rest in 5 seconds flat. Stats like that will even give the firm’s famously fast cars a run for their money.

Here’s a crazy story for you. Back in the 1950s, Disneyland staff discovered that a group of wild cats had settled inside the Sleeping Beauty castle. No one could come up with a humane way to get rid of them, so the felines were given a job instead. Yep, they were let loose in the evenings to hunt down rats and mice. Not Mickey and Minnie obviously! The park still uses that same method today.

Found at Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey, Kingda Ka is the undisputed king of tall roller coasters. It’s 456 feet high and boasts a stomach-churning plunge of 418 feet. No other ride on Earth can touch those numbers. Fancy giving it a go? It’s certainly not for the faint-hearted…

Afraid of heights? Well, the theme park found at the top of The Stratosphere building in Las Vegas, Nevada, definitely won’t be for you. It’s over 1,100 feet in the air. Unsurprisingly, that makes it the “highest amusement park” on the planet. Good luck beating that record…

How often do you think the attractions at theme parks are given the once over? At Six Flags anyway, it’s a lot more frequently than you might suspect. A worker was quoted by BestLife saying, “Every day, before we open the parks to you and your family, all Six Flags rides and attractions are thoroughly inspected by highly skilled maintenance and operations staff.”

For those of you who’ve never heard of Club 33, don’t worry — you’re certainly not alone. It’s a well-hidden eatery found at the top of Disneyland’s Café Orleans. You need an invitation to get in there, as well as paying out an “initiation fee.” The cost? Between $25,000 and $100,000. Sheesh! Despite that, though, the waiting list is still absurdly lengthy. It can take years to nab a spot inside.

Taking to Reddit, a Six Flags worker offered up an interesting piece of advice. They wrote, “Don’t talk about suing at any point if you want to get something. I can’t stress this enough, because if you mention ‘sue,’ ‘court,’ or ‘lawyer,’ all employees are trained to stop talking to you and call security.”

Back when Disneyland made its bow in the mid-1950s, the Tomorrowland section of the park really was a glimpse of a potential future. In fact, there was even a date in mind. Ready to hear it? Okay then: 1986. Yep, close to 40 years ago. A bit ambitious on its part, then! Perhaps 2086 would have been a more accurate estimate.

Expedition Everest is one of Disney World’s most visually impressive rides. It’s an absolute stunner! But the hard work didn’t come cheap. According to BestLife, the higher-ups at the Florida theme park spent roughly $100 million to bring it to life. That makes it the priciest roller coaster on Earth. Wow!

Okay, just to be clear here: Rush Mountain Adventure Park won’t literally be found at Mount Rushmore. Instead, it’s just a few miles outside it in South Dakota. It’s a fun spot filled with rides for the whole family to enjoy. Plus, you can visit Rushmore Cave, which is the nearest cavern to the iconic site.

Back when roller coasters were in their infancy, they were a lot slower than today’s attractions. Here’s an example: The Switchback Railway ride, which opened in 1884, only hit speeds of 6mph on drops. We’re not joking, folks! Yet given its newness, it still provoked screams from visitors.

You certainly can’t accuse Drive A Tank of false advertising. This unique Minnesota park offers visitors a chance to pilot the massive machines themselves. Oh, and if you’re willing to pay for some “add-ons,” they include running over abandoned vehicles and destroying a building. You don’t get that at Disneyland!

Should you ever visit Pennsylvania’s Lakemont Park, you’ve got to give Leap-The-Dips a ride. It’s the oldest coaster on Earth. This wooden attraction was first constructed back in 1902 and close to three-quarters of the materials from that time are still in use today. Sure, it’s received touch-ups across the last 120 years, but that’s to be expected.

As most guests will attest, Disney World goes all-out with its fireworks: they’re pretty spectacular. But the cost and sheer amount of explosive material that the park gets its hands on are insane. Apparently, only the U.S. government purchases more. As for the figure, BestLife shared best guesses of between $45,000 and $50,000 for each display. The official total is firmly under wraps.

Here’s something to remember for your next quiz night. The earliest version of the Ferris Wheel made its debut in Bulgaria in the 1600s, and was named “the pleasure wheel.” The design itself was similar to modern attractions, yet the power source was very different. Incredibly, “strongmen” were responsible for moving the structure. 

If you’re planning to head to Belgium soon, you’ve got to visit Mini-Europe. This charming park gives you the chance to explore spectacular miniatures depicting the continent’s most famous sights. From Buckingham Palace to the Eiffel Tower, there’s plenty to see. You’ll feel like a real-life Gulliver with every step!

It’s easy to forget that not all theme parks endure. Yes, there are a huge number of theme park graveyards scattered around the world. Hồ Thuỷ Tiên is one of the standouts for us. The Vietnamese water park might be long gone, but a huge, and somewhat haunting, stone dragon still watches over the site. 

It goes without saying that constructing a roller coaster from the ground up can be a very costly endeavor. So, as noted by BestLife, a lot of theme parks just recycle older rides and turn them into newer attractions. For instance, a Mexican coaster by the name of The Tsunami opened in 2018 was the fourth “incarnation” of a previous effort.

A post on Disneyland’s official website revealed, “The plants in Tomorrowland are meant to be edible! The visionary landscaping doubles as a potential farm, projecting an ecologically astute future, where humanity makes the most of its resources.” We wonder how they taste?

Have you ever questioned what inspired the creation of roller coasters? Well, here’s the answer. To aid their efforts in the mines, a group of workers in Pennsylvania built a “gravity railroad” which allowed them to transport coal. But when they weren’t busy, folks from the nearby area wanted to sit in the carriages for a trip. And before long, the miners were getting money thrown at them for the privilege.

Looking to bag a job at an amusement park? If so, keep this in mind — you’re going to need a good memory. Yes, the likes of Disneyland and Six Flags all have codes to aid communication. For instance, the latter refers to “Guest Illness” as a 10-5 A, while “Meet Guest” is 10-17. The list is absolutely enormous!

Ah, Doritos. Such a tasty snack, right? But were you aware of its origin? According to BestLife, Disneyland was responsible for cooking up the first batch following its grand opening. No, we’re not pulling your leg, folks! Doritos were conceived in one of its eateries as a way of avoiding wasting unused tortillas.

While Dyrehavsbakken might look like any other park today, it boasts a pretty incredible history. For one thing, it’s been operating in Denmark since 1583. Yep, that makes it the world’s oldest theme park. In the early days it was called a pleasure garden, hosting fun activities and firework displays. Obviously, a lot’s changed in that time.

We probably know what you’re thinking — what kind of a name for a theme park is “The Energy Factory”? It’s more than a little odd. If you know the location it makes more sense, though: it can be found inside an abandoned nuclear power plant in Germany. Now, don’t panic! As per BetterLife, no harmful materials were kept there at any point. The place actually looks pretty cool now.