2008 preview: International amusement & theme parks

Sixth in a series: 2008 amusement and theme park preview

While Disney theme parks around the world draw more than 100 million visitors annually, Mickey Mouse isn’t the only player on the international amusement park stage.

An overview of new rides and attractions debuting worldwide in 2008:

Hong Kong Disneyland — It’s a Small World boat ride builds on the classic Anaheim attraction by adding four new languages to the existing six: Cantonese, Mandarin, Korean and Tagalog (Philippines). Also new: Several Asian landmarks (Great Wall, Temple of Heaven, Hong Kong skyline) plus 30 Disney characters (including Mulan, Peter Pan and Aladdin). The Hong Kong park will also add a few attractions familiar to Disney’s California Adventure fans: Turtle Talk interactive chat and “High School Musical 2″ parade.

Disney Studios Paris — The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror free-fall drop ride, which soft-opened in December 2007, hews closely to its Anaheim and Orlando cousins. The French park will also add the sci-fi-themed Stitch Encounter, which is similar to California Adventure’s Turtle Talk With Crush.

Tokyo Disney — An original and permanent 2,000-seat Cirque du Soleil show will be the first for the avant-garde circus outside North America.

Ocean Park (Hong Kong) — The hybrid zoo-aquarium-theme park begins a $700-million (U.S.) expansion that doubles the number of attractions to 70, including a soaker coaster mounted with water cannons, according to Screamscape.

Everland (South Korea) — A massive mile-long wooden coaster with a figure-8 layout and a killer 77-degree first drop.

Six Flags Mexico – The Glow in the Dark nighttime parade features drummers, puppeteers, singers, dancers and stilt walkers.

Canada’s Wonderland — The $21-million (U.S.) Behemoth coaster is billed as the country’s longest (5,300 feet), fastest (77 mph) and tallest (230 feet).

You can find all the blog entries in the 2008 Preview Series on the theme park page.

What’s the world’s best amusement park?

— Brady MacDonald, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

[Image: Disney]

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This entry was posted on Saturday, December 29, 2007 at 6:07 pm by Brady MacDonald and is filed under Asia, Eastern Canada, Europe, Family & Kids, Mexico, Theme Parks. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.