Divv3k Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 Well here it is at long last. It's my trip report from last summer's TPR Mainland Europe Trip! I've been meaning to post this for months now but life has kept getting in the way and so it's only now, into 2009 that I'm actually able to start the TR. I was gonna just not bother after a certain stage but I figured that if Lou can post her 2007 year in review all the way through 2008 I can post this now! So I'm sorry about it being a bit later than planned but I had some other stuff taking up my time after the trip and well, there were already loads of fantastic trip reports going on from all the various TPR trips this year. Posting this now also means I don't have to compete with them and worry about mine being inferior. Yet again the Alveys put on an absolutely fantastic tour for us lucky participants and hopefully I'll be able to share a bit of that with you guys here. UPDATE LIST: Day -1: MER DE SABLE (Below) Day 0 - Part 1: JARDIN D'ACCLIMATATION Day 0 - Part 2: PARC ST PAUL Day 0 - Part 3: BEAUVAIS FAIR Day 1: PARC ASTERIX Day 2 - Part 1: WALIBI BELGIUM Day 2 - Part 2: AVENTURE PARC (Ropes Course) Day 3 - Part 1: BOBBEJAANLAND Day 3 - Part 2: TOVERLAND Day 4 - Part 1: EFTELING Day 4 - Part 2: DRIEVLIET Day 5: WALIBI WORLD Day 6: HEIDE PARK Day 6 - Part 2: DRAGON BAR! Day 7 - Part 1: MOVIE PARK GERMANY Day 7 - Part 2: SCHLOSSBECK Day 8: PHANTASIALAND Day 9 - Part 1: TRIPSDRILL Day 9 - Part 2: HOLIDAY PARK Day 9 - Part 3: HOTEL COLOSSEO BAR! Days 10 & 11: EUROPA PARK Day 11: WALYGATOR TOUR BUS TRIBUTE! Days 11 - 13: DISNEYLAND PARIS, Part 1 Days 11 - 13: DISNEYLAND PARIS, Part 2 Days 11 - 13: DISNEYLAND PARIS, Part 3 Days 11 - 13: DISNEYLAND PARIS, Part 4 --- DAY -1: MER DE SABLE Seeing as I'm a bit of a credit whore and there seemed to be a few others on the trip a bunch of us made plans to hire a car for the first weekend before the trip offically kicked off to hit a couple of other parks in the Paris area. The plan was for five of us to hire a car and head to Mer de Sable on the first afternoon we were there (Day -1) and hit Jardin d'Acclimatation and Parc Saint Paul on Day 0. Unfortunately some members of our group of credit whores got hit by flight delays and so it was only Erik and I, who had travelled to Paris by train who were actually in Paris in time to make our way to the first park. So we quickly picked up the car, checked into the hotel and headed out to Mer de Sable. Anth was hanging about the hotel with nothing to do so he was lucky enough to make the most of Steve. Jes and Ben's misfortune and nabbed this bonus credit. I only go on about this at length to rub it into those three that I got a credit that they didn't on this trip! =P Mer de Sable is a nice little park set on a slight hill which is made up almost exclusively of sand and western theming. The one coaster there Train du Colorado was my first Souquet coaster. After riding it I'm not surprise there aren't many of those around. The ride was quite amusing as the complete lack of banking on the turns mean that you're thrown right into whoever is sitting next to you multiple times. Well it as quite amusing for us, maybe not so much for the poor little girl who ended up sitting next to Erik! We had a quick look around the rest of the park but as it was warm we opted to do the log flume which had a really insane drop. Really one of the best drops I've ever experienced on a log flume. Anyway, we went back to the hotel and met up with the rest of the group. It was great to catch up with some old friends and fantastic to meet some amazing new people. The evening wasn't so great for poor Erik who witnessed Holland crashing out the Euros but for the rest of us fun was had! In what was to become a theme for the trip we closed out the hotel bar and so headed to another hotel bar and closed that one out too! I'll try and ramble less next time! Here's the day -1 photos... One park down and still many, many more to go! This was a nice little park to spend an hour in. Especially since it meant I got a credit that Steve should have but didn't. =P Day 0 is up next... Bloody hell, we better get moving if we want to make the start of the trip! Anth and Erik both approve of the awesome Mer de Sable log flume! SKLOOOSH!!! With it being such a hot day this was much needed. The park's log flume was really great. It has such a fantastic drop. Probably the best ride in the park. Or this fire fighting thing that I've seen at a few European parks now. Probably a good thing we passed on this. It would have likely ended in tears! The park features mostly kiddie rides. Like this very RCT looking thing. Don't expect any banking on the turns. Just expected to be crushed by the person next to you! First credit of the trip! Hi Steve! Erik prepares to crush the innocent little girl next to him! Le Train du Colorado is Mer de Sable's only coaster. It was my first chance to ride one of these Souquet concoctions. The park is built on the side of a hill with mostly kiddie rides. Here's the first constipation shot at the first park of my trip - Mer de Sable! Being a total train geek as a youngster who followed the channel tunnel construction I was super excited to pop my Eurostar cherry! My journey begins at the sexy new St Pancras International Railway station. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPDave Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 Good stuff Divv, let's see if you can beat Lou's record for not only the latest TR in history, but also the longest running. Wasn't her's like 8 months from the first to last update? Has she even finished it yet?! Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Divv3k Posted February 8, 2009 Author Share Posted February 8, 2009 ^ Thanks Dave. I'm hoping to do a park a day after today. Whether or not that actually happens remains to be seen! With that in mind I'll throw in a disclaimer here. *This TR is being posted in "Lou time".* That should cover any lack of updates at any point over the next few months! --- DAY 0 - Part 1: JARDIN D'ACCLIMATATION The first park of that TPR visited as a group was Jardin d'Acclimatation. A nice little park in the middle of the city. There were two credits for me and weren't much more than that. The powered coaster was cool with a kinda psychoish bit in the middle. We didn't really stay here long as we, the "credit whore group", had plans of hitting Parc St. Paul that same afternoon. Here's some photos... With the credits conquered it was time to go hunting for some more! That's right! The Big Mike Road Show is in Europe!!! Hey who's that in the front row? One credit to go and it appears a takeover is in order! That's a lot of train blur! This was the real surprising moment of the ride. Erik may still be standing on that bridge waiting for the perfect shot. Hands up if you remember the Cretaceous period! It may have been powered but this thing wasn't too bad. NERD!!! The car is all "what the hell are these guys doing in there?" No wasting time here. It's straight to the credits! Every TPR member who visited this park cycled here. Fact. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Divv3k Posted February 8, 2009 Author Share Posted February 8, 2009 DAY 0 - Part 2: PARC SAINT-PAUL Jes, Erik, Steve, Ben and myself headed off in our rental car to Parc Saint-Paul with the expectation of it being a crappy park with some crappy credits. We were pleasantly surprised. Okay it was no theming paradise or anything but it was quite scenic and had two coaster which were really surprising. In a good way! Who knew the Russian company PAX made such fecked up rides?!? Anyway here's some pictures... Phew. Escaped! Back to Paris we go! Quick! Which way to Paris? Don't make us dance with the bears! Once the bears start doing the macarena you know its time to move on! Finally we checked out the drop tower. It was fun with a nice view of well... trees. The surrounding trees hide most of the rides. Believe me, they're in there! From the ferris wheel you can see how nice the parc(k) is. I include this only to share how creeped out I was by this thing. Give me an Efteling babything over this anyday! Moments before Erik came within an inch of losing his head! It's not a credit but it is FUN! Speaking of sad and pathetic... Some coaster counter sites list this thing! Seriously! Yes, hang your heads in shame whores. This is where it gets really sad and pathetic. Another credit in the bag. NO JAZZ HANDS!!! Lift hill photo quota for this TR: Satisfied. Back to credits and to the spinning mouse that didn't spin! Yay! I never realised we were visiting the same day as ACE! No copyrights were infringed in the making of this ride. It wasn't anything special in the end. Just your typical carnie dark ride. When sex games go wrong... It took us a while to persuade Erik to ride. Moving away from coasters for a minute we had a look at the dark ride. Erik and Ben can't believe how messed up it all is! This was seriously one of my favourite coasters of the trip! Why aren't there more of these? This thing had some ridiculous air! It was like a wild mouse but everything was kinda shifted a little to make it insane! The other PAX ride was even more messed up! Look how steep this lift hill is! We rode this thing a few times because it was so messed up. Who said this was just a whoring park, I mean parc? This thing was all kinds of messed up in the back. Really insane! That be the Wild Train baby! What's that thing peeking over? In true credit whore style we head straight for the Wacky Worm! Here's our second park, I mean parc of the day. Parc Saint-Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Divv3k Posted February 8, 2009 Author Share Posted February 8, 2009 DAY 0 - Part 3: BEAUVAIS FAIR & PARIS On the way back from Parc Saint-Paul we started to see posters for a carnival in Beauvais. A place we just so happened to be driving through. We decided to stop, not thinking there would be a credit because SURELY credit whores, Jeff Johnson, Big Mike and Elissa would have all noticed this place when they passed the day before and check the place out. So much to our surprise when we walked through the carnival and noticed, lo and behold, can you believe it, a freaking spinning coaster! Woo! BONUS CREDIT! We all felt this was an extra special bonus credit because no one else on the trip apart from the five of us got this credit and we'd be able to be very obnoxious about it and rub it in to everyone. I kid, as I'm sure we were the only people who actually cared about it. LOL! Apart from the credit which was pretty ghetto in itself the rest of the place lived up to the ghetto theme. Throwing in the odd copyright infringement here and there for good measure. We only rode the coaster before deciding there wasn't anything else worth riding so we all grabbed a crepe (hey, we were in France!) and I got a frozen coke. After that we drove through Paris so that we could be semi touristy at least. We walked around the Eiffel Tower, got back in the car and headed back to the hotel and hit the bar! A good day! Here's the photos... Anyway, that'll do it from Paris. There's a TPR trip to get properly started tomorrow! After the fair we headed back to Paris for some sight seeing. Although its not really my thing I enjoy spending a little time seeing these things. Is this where I say something like "Hi Jahan!"? And even better than crepes - Frozen Coke! Steve and Ben agree! These were awesome! Even more exciting than bonus credits is banana and nutella crepes! The ride op points and laughs at the names of everyone who DIDN'T get this credit! LOL! It was only a crappy fair coaster, but we were still pretty excited to find it, even though I'm sure no one else cares! Ben and Jes feel so much cooler than the rest of the trip participants! Especially Big Mike! Bonus credits are Erik approved! WOO!!! It's only a freaking BONUS CREDIT!!! Hey, what's that over there? All copyrighted images used with licences. Honest! Here's that Nintendo park everyone keeps asking for! Erik loves boobs too! Boobs! I love ghetto fairs. Why? Woo, it's a ghetto carnival! Until we see this! We're heading back to Paris with full intentions of going straight back to the hotel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gisco Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 Nice Pictures Divv. Love the European parks. Don't be a Louise and not finish. She gets a PROPER job and has no time for us anymore! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy_Behemoth_Lady_Jess Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 Nice TR, doesn't seem like alot of what I'd consider "extreme rides" at those parks. Still, the kiddie coasters look kinda cute. That "bonus credit" is a Maurer spinner right? Or a knockoff copy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eBen Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 The cars do look like Maurer but its an Italian manufacture. They are also link as one long train instead of individual. It seams hard to understand how good those PAX rides are from there small footprint and short layout but they are both better than frostys GREEEEAT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy_Behemoth_Lady_Jess Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 Yeah, its because they were linked in a train that made me wonder whether they were really Maurer's are not. I noticed that most of the cars for spinners of various brands do have some resemblence to each other in a way. ~ Jess "Never ridden a spinning coaster" Chan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thrillerman1 Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 Sweet TR so far Divv. Looking forward to the rest of it...and some Doritos credit pictures! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speeddeamon128 Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 Nice TR! Everyone loves a kiddie bonus credit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkeyoverlord71 Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 YAY! Another Divv TR. It looks like you had a better journey to France than when you went on the Midwest trip. Cant wait for more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ginzo Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 Nice work, Divv. Since you're finally doing your Europe trip PTR, maybe I should finally complete mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveC Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 Stupid Easyjet and delayed flights Bah! So I missed a lousy credit....am I bothered?.......damn right I am Thanks for posting Divv - looking forward to the rest as and when Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldJJman Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 On the way back from Parc Saint-Paul we started to see posters for a carnival in Beauvais. Yeah, we saw it. But we were heading in the opposite direction (Parc St. Paul, La Mer de Sable) and due to time constraints, we opted not to chance it. We decided to stop, not thinking there would be a credit because SURELY credit whores, Jeff Johnson, Big Mike and Elissa would have all noticed this place when they passed the day before and check the place out. (bla.bla.bla.bla...) BONUS CREDIT! (bla.bla.bla.bla...) You guys suck! (That's a collective shout out to your whole group of 5!) Nice TR, doesn't seem like alot of what I'd consider "extreme rides" at those parks. Do not underestimate those PAX coasters!! (like we did at first!) Those 2 coasters provided some of the most extreme airtime on the whole trip. It was quite a pleasant surprise! JJ (Who, in fact, does NOT remember the "Cretaceous Period") Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveC Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 We decided to stop, not thinking there would be a credit because SURELY credit whores, Jeff Johnson, Big Mike and Elissa would have all noticed this place when they passed the day before and check the place out. (bla.bla.bla.bla...) BONUS CREDIT! (bla.bla.bla.bla...) You guys suck! (That's a collective shout out to your whole group of 5!) See Divv - I knew nobody would care Oh and throw in the happy dance for no reason whatever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ginzo Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 Do not underestimate those PAX coasters!! (like we did at first!) Those 2 coasters provided some of the most extreme airtime on the whole trip. It was quite a pleasant surprise! So, I take it I should try to ride the Wild Train in Salzburg when I'm there in May. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveC Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 ^ Joe - I know nothing of this Wild Train in Salzburg but if Parc St Paul is anything to go by then absolutely 100% it is a MUST DO! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldJJman Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 So, I take it I should try to ride the Wild Train in Salzburg when I'm there in May. Hell yes. Back seat! JJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ginzo Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 ^ Joe - I know nothing of this Wild Train in Salzburg but if Parc St Paul is anything to go by then absolutely 100% it is a MUST DO! http://www.rcdb.com/id2775.htm Looks like this one is about 10' taller on the lift than the one in Paris. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Mike Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 Great job Divv! It is refreshing to see our trip one more time since time has passed! Can't wait to see the whole gang again in a few months! Peace, Big (doesn't count carnival or fair coasters) Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Divv3k Posted February 9, 2009 Author Share Posted February 9, 2009 Thanks guys! It's fun looking back at this trip a few months later. Joe, the PAX rides were amongst my favourites of the whole trip. Don't miss that one in Austria! --- DAY 1: PARC ASTERIX The first proper park of the trip was Parc Asterix. I wasn't sure what to expect from this place. On paper it looks so so but in person it was really great. Every inch of every building is well themed, there's a very good woodie and just a general good atmosphere. It was a great place to start the trip proper. The biggest surprise of the park was the new mad house. OMG, this thing was awesome. I never used to bother with madhouses but this one with all its cool preshows just blew me away. Anyway, I'll not ramble any more and post a few photos... Parc Asterix is such a cool place. I was really surprised by it all. Go visit! We're off to Belgium next! This is the bunch of losers that I spent day 1 with. Thanks guys for an awesome start to the trip! Oh yeah and there's a mad house at the end of it all. That's good too! It's so freakin' cool! The photos don't do the coolness of the preshows for ride justice. Ouch. Any park with a human slingshot in the queue gets the thumbs up from me! This was the biggest surprise of the day. Brad and Erik recover from the boredom of the dolphin show by sleeping it off on the kiddie thing. Don't let this photo fool you. The dolphin show was lame! This was the only time where they came close to doing anything with any kind of synchronisation. "Everyone put your balls in your mouths!" Steve and Jes get some balls of ice cream. Hey didn't I see you guys in the hotel this morning? It's not a duck but it's close enough to merit inclusion under the "mandatory fire, ducks, lightning and mist to be included in Divv's TRs!" rule. This might do the job of cooling us down. Rapids score for the trip so far: One out of one. Cupid's attire inspired some of Steve's fashion choices later in the trip. Riding these kiddie water rides will NOT do that job! After getting the credits Steve tried to find some means of cooling down. "It's just a Vekoma!" Yeah Erik, we'll put that on your tombstone. Including this death machine. It was a hot day so we conquered the credits as quick as we could. It wasn't super smooth but it was lots of fun. Tonnere de Zeus was a great coaster to start the trip with some fun ERT. PA has some awesome theming. Everywhere. This is the station for the woodie. If you see this dude sitting on top of a mountain you know you're in for a good time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad_G Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 Some good memories coming back, thanks for posting these Divv. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eBen Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 I liked Goudrix a lot. And the muggins facing the camera were pretty darn cool too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy_Behemoth_Lady_Jess Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 How was the "death machine"? Those things can be real "killers" indeed! That one is the Goudrix right? I've heard about it. ~Jess "anti-Vekoma for now" Chan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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