Photo TR: Shampoola Wonder Park (April 6, 2018)

The Angry Darren Mullins · April 7, 2018

Prelude/Warning/Disclaimer: The following trip report contains the truth and a look at the process that occurs when bringing you a trip report to parks that you may never get to. If the truth offends you in any way shape or form, you need to adopt a different set of values. I do not want to hear overblown accusations of racism, insensitivity or any other BS. I also do not want to hear any craphead remarks from people who do not know the difference between a married person or a single person. The following is my Correct (Not Politically Correct) TR:

April 6, 2018: Shampoola Wonder Park (Fogang, Qingyuan, Guangdong, China)

I left home on the evening of the 5th and spent the night in Guangzhou. Going to Shampoola is at least a four hour journey from where I live-not counting the layovers between the trains and the buses. I went to the motel in Guangzhou and was told that they did not accept foreigners, so I had to find another motel that did. It is shame that this type of racism is on display so much in China, but I need to be "sensitive" to their BS ways. "We do not accept foreigners"-a phrase I have heard at legitimate motels in NONE OF THE OTHER ASIAN COUNTRIES that I have traveled in.

The following morning, I go to catch a bus to Fogang. Fogang is part of the city of Qingyuan, but it is over an hour from Qingyuan by bus. Fogang is also very small and a city bus ride from one end to another takes about 30 minutes. A taxi ride from one end of Fogang to another is less than 10 minutes. Once I was at the park, I bought a ticket for 120 RMB. This is about USD $19.20 that included admission and 180 RMB of rides. It is not a POP, but the 180 RMB allowance will get you at least one ride on most of the rides. You can also pay for extra rides as well once your 180 RMB is used up.

The park has a lot of natural beauty and many activities for guests. The amusement rides are standard Chinese fare, but they are enough to entertain guests. There is a nice lake and so on here. A couple of downsides that I have to mention about this place (this is Theme Park REVIEW-not Theme Park VALENTINES) would be the fact that the website is still showing the mouse coaster that was removed in 2017. Showing something on a website or an advertisement is the same as saying they offer it. If they do not offer the product or service, they should remove it from the website. Many parks, regardless of the country do this. The location is another thing. As this park is located far from any population center and the lack of a big coaster, it is probably not going to be included in too many travel plans when enthusiasts visit China. This is a real shame too as the park is in a beautiful location and the resort hotel is very nice and rooms can be had for around 500 RMB (about $80 USD per night).

One very sour note for animal lovers involves a small area with gold fish at the park. There are pools that are about two inches deep with large goldfish. I have included a photo of this. The fish just barely fit in the pool and I do not know how they swim around. They did not move (as far as swimming) at all, but I could tell they were real as their fins were moving and their mouths would open.

Shampoola Wonder Park is a nice park for the most part and having a big coaster would make me go back there. Like its near namesake, Shampoola is very clean with soap dispensers (actually filled with soap) in the restrooms and there are western toilets in the restrooms. With the addition of a big coaster, Shampoola would be a nice alternative to the "dandruff" that make up the parks in smaller, poorer areas such as Fogang. As I found Shampoola a while back, I have found 419 coasters before ACE or RCDB.