KarlaKoaster

Europa Park's Rulantica waterpark will be closed from 16th March. There will be an announcement regarding the park's planned 28th March opening next week. "Due to the dynamic developments regarding Coronavirus, the Mack family has decided, in close coordination with the responsible authorities, to begin preparations to close Rulantica from 16th March 2020. The decision to take such measures hasn’t been easy for the Mack family, but the safety and health of the visitors will always be the highest priority. The Mack family is aware of its responsibility for visitors, employees, and their families. Guests who have already bought tickets, or packages including hotel stays, can amend their bookings flexibly. For further information, please visit: rulantica.com and europapark.com respectively. Europa-Park is also currently in close contact with the authorities in regards to the season opening on 28th March 2020. We will publish another update on this next week. We hope for your understanding during these challenging times and look forward to welcoming you at Rulantica and Europa-Park again soon. Stay with us and more importantly, stay healthy." Source Thank you, yes, you're right.

The next TEA Attendance Report is going to be sobering reading. The impact of Coronavirus is just unthinkable for so many industries in every corner of the world. I don't think there's ever been anything quite like it, not even 9/11. And it's not 'just flu' - it's far more contagious and there is no vaccine. With the respiratory problems it causes it will overwhelm health services as it has done in Italy and as it is now beginning to do elsewhere in Europe.

Premier's trains are just about the worst in the business at the moment, but these at least look quite pretty, especially as they don't have those ugly shield things on the side (yet?). Maybe it's like Stockholm Syndrome where I've seen so many of their trains lately I'm starting to fall in love.

I guess this was the discounted one that was on sale at IAAPA?

Yeah, I was wondering if they would eliminate a turn at the end of the ride and just be able to launch the ride forwards regardless of which direction it was facing. It would help with capacity (even though the turntable is pretty fast).

Probably referring to the track which itself is quite serpentine.

I've only ridden a couple but never had a real problem with them. I'm really small though so that might be something to do with it. I think it's impressive how a coaster can have two decent drops and six inversions within such a tiny amount of space, so I can see why they're popular.

That drone footage is just incredible

This coaster looks so good they literally built it twice.

Thanks for a great trip report. I'm interested to know what you thought of Kronasar's location? It's the only thing that puts me off staying there - I know there is transport to the park/the other hotels, but it's not quite the same as walking around the different hotels etc.

Oh sorry, of course.

"The tallest rollercoaster in the dark"?

Glad you had a great time. Your post is super-useful, thanks for all the detail about entry, the priority pass etc, it's really helping me plan for my trip there - as are many other posts in this thread.

That first drop must be like being pushed backwards off a cliff! I guess it's not being tested for the public as there's no floor on the back of the train. Hopefully if it does become permanent they'll put a 'front' on the back of the car too... one good thing about double-ended trains is that it doubles the photo opportunities.

Finally rode Wickerman at Alton Towers. It was pretty good and probably my second favourite coaster at Alton Towers (although that's damning it with faint praise)

I like that the park aren't just plonking the rides in a field, it looks like they are really improving the whole environment of the park too.

One day is absolutely fine, and they do Parc Rapidus which is around 25€ which allows you to skip the queues on the major coasters as it can sometimes get quite busy there.

Also you can drink around the world in the evenings; most of the bars in the hotels are really good, particularly the Buena Vista Club on the 9th floor of the Castillo Alcazar hotel (use the lift from reception). The views across the park are fantastic, and there is a little Moroccan-style smoking lounge tucked away at the back. It's magical. The bar in Bell Rock is nice, too. It's good that you can explore the hotels and their restaurants/bars here (unlike Efteling or Port Aventura where you're kinda stuck in whichever hotel you stay in) and there are always fountain shows going on, or nice garden areas to sit in.

Maybe retracked might be the wrong word, but they did a LOT of work which involved putting scaffolding up on most of the inversions, cutting sections of track out, replacing crossties and the running rails etc. But honestly, it wasn't quite as bad as what people said. Hilltopper, if you fly to Paris CDG, it's a super-simple journey from the airport - there's a shuttle bus, but also you can get an Uber and it's only about 20 minutes maybe.

What a fantastic trip report. I love this park; they have a few great coasters, some great support rides and the theming is so unique and really fun. Since I last visited the operations have far improved and are actually excellent now, and I totally agree about OzIris. My expectations were low, but it blew me away. Not sure if it has improved over time, but I loved the layout, and the first drop in the back seat is remarkable. I'm not a fan of the elevated helix, but the presentation and the ride in general is just brilliant. Regarding Goudurix, it's always been the coaster enthusiasts love to hate. Since the retracking it is a lot better, but even before it wasn't THAT bad. There were a couple of really brutal moments, but apart from that it wasn't a constant pummeling like you'd find on many SLCs.

Yeah, I'm going to stick my neck out and say OzIris is a great invert. I only noticed two pops of airtime, but the layout is great and it's definitely forceful. Not sure if it has got better with age as I have only ridden it in the last few years. Regarding Goudurix, there was a LOT of work done to it a few years ago. The track wasn't replaced but it seemed there was a lot of welding, replacing cross-ties etc. Honestly I think Goudurix's reputation is a little unfair and I have always found it generally okaaaaaaay apart from a couple of admittedly rough transitions. It's not like El Condor where almost everything is rough.

Be still my beating heart, that train is a total stunner. By far my favourite Intamin train, maybe even one of my overall favourites.

Wow, I love that the layout for this is totally different. It looks really nice nestled into the trees too.

Great pictures, especially the workstation one - it's an interesting aspect you don't normally get to see (although it does remind me of flat pack furniture assembly instructions!)

I can't understand why anyone would pay admission to Alton Towers, then take an hour out of an already short day and pay an additional £7.50 to see what looks to be a very similar experience to all of the other dungeons. These actor-led attractions never seem very popular in Merlin parks, and I can't see how making it an upcharge will help at all. It will be interesting to see how long it takes before it's included on the annual pass, and how much longer after that before it is changed or dropped completely.