JordyC

^Awesome! I hope you have a great time. I'd expect Valkyria to open by the end of July. I always try to wait a few weeks after opening, just to be sure. So I'll probably be at Liseberg around the time that you're going!

Finally!! As soon as they announce an opening date, I'll be booking my flight to Gothenburg!

Here are some photos I made of the new-for-2018 Crazy Coaster at South Pier. You can find more photos of Crazy Coaster and South Pier along with my review, in my trip report.

South Pier - June 2018 Hello everyone! From June 23th to June 26th 2018, I went for my first ever time to the United Kingdom to visit the major theme parks the country has to offer. I spent my first day at Thorpe Park, my second day at Blackpool Pleasure Beach and South Pier, and my third and fourth day at Alton Towers. On June 24th, I visited South Pier. The park is located about 200 m from Blackpool Pleasure Beach, which I visited earlier that day. South Pier is one of three piers in Blackpool, and it actually was my first park I have ever done on a pier. South Pier has a very solid fun fair, which despite its rather small size manages to pack a punch with a good mix of travelling-model rides. There are some pretty extreme experiences available, including Sky Coaster and Sky Screamer, but they both require an up-charge (£15). New for 2018 is Crazy Coaster, a very solid spinning Wild Mouse. Sadly, it is currently the only Mouse coaster in Blackpool. South Pier also has a great bar, good food, some typical fairground games and an arcade. Welcome to South Pier! It was my first ever park on a pier. The first half of the pier is mainly home to bars, fairground games and the arcade. Lots of different games are available in the arcade. The second half of the pier is where all the rides are located, except for the log flume, which is placed next to the entrance of the pier. The log flume was fun, but nothing too special. I didn't get too wet either. South Pier also has quite a few rides for kids. BrakeDance is the first thrill ride you will come across. It is probably one of the better ones I have done. The carousel looked nice, but I didn't ride it. They even have a bouncy slide. The pier is also home to the Dodgems, which were one of the fastest ones I have done. I always love a good dodgems, and this one was very, very good. While I absolutely love airtime, these type of rides make me feel really sick really fast. I did consider riding it, but the cycle lasted for at least 5 minutes. I am pretty sure that would have been too much for me, so I didn't ride X-Factor. It is maybe hard to believe, but this was the first Waltzer I have ridden. The ride was okay, I probably wouldn't ride it again. I was really looking forward to trying the Sky Coaster, but unlike what the sign says, it was closed. Bummer. Sky Screamer - the bungee ride - was open, though! I have done quite a few of these bungee rides now, a lot of them being a lot taller than this one. But Sky Screamer is at the top of my list. This ride is awesome! The launch is pretty forceful and I flipped upside down a good few times, but the highlight of this ride is clearly the view that you get while you are up in the air. In my opinion, this is the best ride South Pier has to offer. Some other bungee rides I have done have better launches, but this one has the views! Maybe the closed Sky Coaster would have given me another opinion, but this ride is the star attraction of South Pier. Crazy Coaster (5/10) Crazy Coaster is the standard Reverchon spinning coaster you see a lot at local fairs. While the layout is pretty much identical, the main advantage Crazy Coaster has, is that it is located right near the end of the pier. While riding the coaster, you get some amazing views from Blackpool's seaside. Also, because it is located on the end of the pier, you feel a lot higher up than you actually are and on the corners it really feels like you might fall into the deep. I am not a massive fan of spinning coasters, so the ride itself was okay. The drops and the little airtime hill near the end of the ride did give some pretty solid airtime. I didn't spin too much during my ride, but I saw other cars spinning like a top. The ride is also very smooth. Because of its location, Crazy Coaster is probably my favorite one of this model. It is time to ride the new-for-2018 coaster - Crazy Coaster. The first part of the ride is non-spinning, while you will spin like crazy on the second part of the ride. Because Crazy Coaster is located on the end of the pier, you are literally riding a coaster above the water. Spinning around on Crazy Coaster. Really, the location of this ride is what makes it worth a visit to South Pier alone. The little airtime hill near the end of the ride provides a good pop of airtime. You get some crazy views on Crazy Coaster. On the corners, it really feels like you might fall into the water. It is the best Reverchon spinning coaster I have done. Hairtime! The proof that the earth is flat... You can get some stunning views from the end of pier. South Pier is located nearby Blackpool Pleasure Beach. It is really worth a visit after a day of riding classic rides, and Icon! So overall, I had a great time at my first ever visit to park on a pier. The highlight was defenitely the bungee ride, followed by Crazy Coaster. I can highly suggest visiting South Pier after a visit to the Pleasure Beach. It is a brilliant way to end your day. Thanks for reading!

Fēnix had a technical problem with its software all morning, which caused the roller coaster to not be in operation on its opening day. However, after this difficult start Fēnix is making its first runs right now. To compensate, Port Laguna & Avalon remain open until 8 pm today. Source

Blackpool Pleasure Beach has always been a park that I wanted to visit, too. The great selection of classic rides and wooden coasters alone, make it worth the visit. Now that they have Icon, it should be very high on everyone's to do list. I really liked the Alice in Wonderland dark ride. Like you said, it is very, very obvious, but that makes me love this ride even more.

I can definitely see why someone would prefer Grand National over Big Dipper. For me, the shakiness just took away too much of the experience, so I simply could not enjoy the ride as much I would have liked to. If Grand National would have been as smooth as Big Dipper, then it would also be my favorite wooden coaster at Blackpool.

What a great report and photos. Pixar Pier sure looks like a ton of fun. Thanks for sharing!

Excellent report from what looks to be a fantastic TPR Japan trip! I really need to get out there someday, Japan looks so awesome. I knew Yokohama Cosmoworld from its famous Dive Coaster Vanish and the screaming log flume, but it is good to see the other rides this park has to offer. The dark rides are certainly very unique.

Thank you! Blackpool Pleasure Beach is an awesome park that deserves a lot more attention, in my opinion. Icon may very well be the first step for a very bright future for this park. Big Dipper certainly has excellent airtime on the first half of the ride, that I was not expecting at all. The airtime on the second half is still good, but nothing in comparison with the airtime you get on the first two drops. I wonder why there is not enough talked about Big Dipper as it should, because it is my favorite wooden coaster at Blackpool.

^According to RCDB, it is not.

Thanks! Just book your trip, you won't regret it. That is how I do it

Onride POV of Fenix

Here are some of the photos I took of the new-for-2018 Icon at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. You can find more photos of Icon and BPB, along with my review, in my new trip report.

Blackpool Pleasure Beach (Icon) - June 2018 Hello everyone! From June 23th to June 26th 2018, I went for my first ever time to the United Kingdom to visit the major theme parks the country has to offer. I spent my first day at Thorpe Park, my second day at Blackpool Pleasure Beach and South Pier, and my third and fourth day at Alton Towers. On June 24th, I visited Blackpool Pleasure Beach. This was a park I wanted to visit for a very long time, mainly because I have always had a soft spot for classic parks. And the fact that it is located right next to the seaside, put it even higher on my bucket list. And guess what, I absolutely loved this place! It probably is my favorite classis amusement park. Most of the rides have barely any theming, although there are a few exceptions like Nickelodeon Land and - of course - Valhalla. But the atmosphere in the park more than makes up for that. Of course, the main reason that made me visit this park this year was Icon - their brand new Mack Double Launch Coaster. But Blackpool Pleasure Beach has much more to offer: they are home to an awesome collection of classic wooden coasters, some classic and unique dark rides and one of the best and wettest water rides I have ever done. Much like the day before, the weather was absolutely gorgeous. Despite it being a Sunday in June combined with the beautiful sunshine, the park was fairly quiet. Normally, whenever I am going on a foreign trip, I always buy the skip-the-line passes the park has to offer. But I didn't need it at Blackpool, because the longest I have waited was about 20 minutes for Avalanche. Yes, you read that right! The longest line was not for their brand new coaster. Icon never had a queue of more than 15 minutes. Seriously, it is a capacity monster. Most of the other rides were a 5-10 minute wait. Welcome to Blackpool Pleasure Beach! What an impressive view when you enter the park. I really liked the entrance plaza of the Pleasure Beach. Derby Racer is an awesome classic carousel, that also happened to be the first ride of the day. Next up was the oldest attraction in the park, from 1904 - Flying Machines. Ice Blast was next. It is just a standard S&S Shot Tower, but you get some great views of the sea. Valhalla was probably my most anticipated non-coaster of the trip. This ride is absolutely stunning. It has awesome theming, fantastic music, a backwards section and loads of fire. When I say loads of fire, I mean a massive amount of fire! Seriously, I have never seen so much fire on ride. On top of that, Valhalla will also make you soaking wet, but like absolutely drenched. It is by far the wettest ride I have ever done! All of this makes Valhalla my new favorite log flume, beating both Chiapas at Phantasialand and Rio Bravo at Parque Warner. Valhalla has lots and lots of fire and water! That might be an understatement.. You *will* get drenched! This ride blew my already high expectations completely out of the water. It ended up being my second favorite ride at the park. Grand National (6/10) Grand National is probably the most iconic wooden coaster at the Pleasure Beach. It is actually one big Möbius loop, so you start for example in the left station, then make your way around the track duelling with the other train before ending your ride in the other station. To be honest, I wasn't a massive fan of Grand National, mainly because it has some very rough spots and it is very, very shaky. And that is a real shame, because the airtime is phenomenal. On almost every hill you get some serious ejector airtime, which I was not expecting at all. The ride has no theming, but the trains were very comfy. I would have rated this coaster a lot higher if it just was a more enjoyable experience. Time for a ride on the park's iconic wooden coaster - Grand National. I really wanted to love this coaster. The airtime is amazing, but it was just a bit too rough for me. Alice in Wonderland was my first dark ride of the day. I really like these classic rides. The Ghost Train was awesome! It is my favorite dark ride at the Pleasure Beach. Wallace & Gromit Thrill-o-Matic was great, but is likely the weakest dark ride the park has to offer. Revolution (5/10) This coaster was better than I expected it to be. The loop had some pretty good G's to it going forwards. Going backwards, it was even better. Revolution also provided some unexpected airtime after the launches, and who doesn't like that?! The ride was also very smooth. Like almost every coaster at the park, there wasn't any theming. But the views from the station at the top more than made up for that. Revolution - a classic Arrow coaster. You get a nice pop of airtime going down into the loop. I will always prefer a backwards loop over a forwards loop. A three train shot, only at Blackpool. Time to explore Nickelodeon Land! It is the best themed area in the park with lots of rides for the kids and two coasters. Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? Some more Nickelodeon themed rides. Blue Flyer was our next ride. Blue Flyer (4.5/10) Blue Flyer was probably my least favorite wooden coaster at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. It is still a very fun ride, but it is more a kiddie coaster. It did have a few pops of floater airtime, though. There was also a tunnel, which was probably the highlight of the ride. Blue Flyer didn't have any theming, but it was a surprisingly smooth ride. It is a small, but fun wooden coaster. I wasn't expecting much from Nickelodeon Streak, but I really enjoyed this coaster. Nickelodeon Streak (6.5/10) Nickelodeon Streak is the park's big orange coaster. I wasn't expecting much from this ride, just a normal classic wooden coaster. But this was the biggest surprise of the day. It is full of awesome floater airtime and it is very smooth, considering its age. The ride also had some good forces at the bottom of the drops. The trains were again very comfy. Nickelodeon Streak ended up being my second favorite wooden coaster at the park. You get some great airtime on these hills. For it being over 80 years old, it is a very smooth ride. It is one of my favorite wooden coasters at the park. Even Avatar has his own ride at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. Steeplechase (5.5/10) I was very excited to finally ride Steeplechase, because it is a very unique coaster. The seating position was surprisingly comfortable. The ride itself was very fun. It doesn't have massive drops or airtime, but it doesn't need that. The main aspect is the fact that you are racing. It is likely my favorite racing coaster I have done. Steeplechase is also very smooth and it even has a bit of theming around the track. I heard that most of the time the park only runs two of the three sides, and that was exactly the case the day I visited - only the green and the yellow side were open. It is the only one of its kind left in the world, so I was really looking forward to riding Steeplechase. It is one of the best racing coasters I have done. It is so much fun! Big One (7/10) It was finally time to ride the coaster that Blackpool is famous for - Big One. It certainly is big, very big. It really dominates the skyline of the park. The climb on the lift hill provides some amazing views of the Pleasure Beach and the sea - it was stunning! Before you know, you are whipped out of your seat while you are going down the epic first drop - awesome. But sadly, the views and the first drop were the best part of the coaster. The ride does pull some very good G's at the bottom of the hills. But let's be honest, for a coaster that big with such massive hills, you'd expect it to have at least some airtime. At most, there were two or three minor pops of airtime. On the plus side, the ride is very fun and fairly smooth. Also, the back seat is definitely the place to be. The drop gets even crazier. If have to rank Big One in terms of other Hypers I have done, it would probably be at the bottom of that list. But like I said earlier, it is a very fun ride. The main reason to ride Big One is probably for the views. Big One is clearly a big one. Feel on top of the world! The first drop is the clear highlight of the ride. The views that you get during the ride are breathtaking. It looks like an airtime hill, but you get none. The ride dominates the park's skyline. Big One does have some good forces to it. Big One is a very fun ride that you should definitely ride just for the views alone. It is time for Sky Force. I really like these kind of rides. Avalanche (5/10) Avalanche is the best themed coaster at the park, although only the station is themed. I have ridden a lot of bobsled coasters and Blackpool's version is clearly the wildest and best one. There is even a little pop of airtime halfway through the ride! Avalanche just keeps going faster and faster and it swings more and more in the turns. It has some very good focres near the end of the ride. While bobsled coasters are very fun, they are not really my type of ride, though. Avalanche is the best themed coaster at the park. It is a very fun ride and the best bobsled coaster I have done. Big Dipper (7/10) I wasn't expecting much from this classic wooden coaster, just a nice and relaxing ride. The pre-lift section was a bit funky. After the climb on the lift hill, you make a very tight turn that almost seems impossible to do. Next, you drop down and you get some crazy ejector airtime. This was something I was not expecting at all. The next hill also provided some crazy ejector airtime. Wow! Then you hit the turnaround and the ride suddenly became a whole lot tamer. The airtime is still good, but not as crazy as the first two moments. The ride was also a bit shaky, but not as bad as Grand National. Big Dipper was much better than expected. So much so that it is my favorite wooden coaster at Blackpool. That is one very thight turn after the lift hill. I really love the station of Big Dipper. Infusion (4.5/10) Infusion is quite possibly the best looking SLC out there, with its placement over the water and all the fountains underneath the ride. But that is all the love this ride gets from me. It is not the smoothest SLC I have done, but also not the roughest one out there. I always thought that the layout of these SLC's are pretty good, but it is the head banging that makes this ride so horrible. Next up was Infusion. The ride was quite visually pleasing. It even has awesome water effects! Lots and lots of steel at Blackpool. There are some good positive G's during the ride, but because you are holding on for your life, it is almost impossible to enjoy. It does have a fairly good layout, it is just poorly executed. River Caves was our next ride. It is another classic dark ride where you visit displays of "around the world". I liked it, but it was nothing too special. Icon (9/10) I absolutely love Blue Fire, Alpina Blitz, Star Trek: OE and Helix, so my expactations for this ride were pretty high. And guess what, it exceeded all of them! This coaster is awesome from start to finish! Granted, it is not the most intense coaster in the world, nor are the launches the most powerful out there. But this coaster doesn't need that. Icon is a very enjoyable coaster experience. Would it have been better if it was more intense? Probably. But I don't mind. This ride is just pure fun, and that is what it is all about. The hangtime in the first inversion is just phenomenal, just like the hangtime in the Immelmann after the second launch. The airtime is also outstanding. Probably just a bit better than the airtime you get on Helix. Also, I really love the interaction with the other rides on Icon. It really adds to the overall ride experience. The second part is definitely my favorite part of the ride, mainly because of all the twisty sections and crazy airtime. Of course, the ride is butter smooth and the trains are as comfy as they can get. The ride has a very modern Japanese look to it, which I really liked. I also loved the soundtrack of Icon. The back seat was definitely my favorite. The airtime on the first hill is better in the front, but the rest of the ride is better in the back. I really, really enjoyed Icon. I loved it so much that I would rank it inside of my top 10. I still prefer Helix, but I'll take Icon over Alpina Blitz, Blue Fire and Star Trek: OE. Overall, it's a stunning ride and the reason to visit Blackpool Pleasure Beach. Icon is the new icon for this park! The moment you have all been waiting for - Icon! Icon is not the most intense coaster out there, but this ride proves that a coaster doesn't have to be forceful to be awesome. The hangtime on Icon is fantastic! The ride has a really modern feel to it. You also get some great hangtime in the Immelmann after the second launch. Icon is just pure fun, and that is what it is all about. The airtime hill after the first launch gives some great airtime in the front. The second half is probably my favourite part of the ride. I really like the Japanese style theming. Launching! The modern feel of this coaster fits in really well with all the classic rides at Blackpool. There is also lots of fog after the first and before the second launch! Even more hangtime! Icon is definitely the best coaster in the park. The airtime on the first hill is better in the front, but the rest of the ride is better in the back. You get real close to the track underneath when you are going through the in-line twist. Who doesn't love some gorgeous Mack curves? One last photo of Icon to end the report. So overall, I had an excellent time at this park. The highlight of the day was clearly Icon, closely followed by Valhalla. There are a lot of other solid rides, but Icon really is the modern coaster this park needed. It fits in really well between all the classic rides the park has to offer. Blackpool Pleasure Beach really is a park to keep your eyes on in the near future. Thanks for reading!

Holiday Park

Octonauts Roller Coaster Adventure - Alton Towers

Yup, that's at the top of my bucket list!

Robin

Update: I have ridden 17 B&M's. It will be 18 by the end of this week, with the opening of Fenix at Toverland. Baron 1898 Batman: Arkham Asylum Black Mamba Daemonen Dragon Khan Flug der Damonen Galactica Krake Monster Nemesis Nemesis Inferno Oblivion OzIris Shambhala Silver Star Superman Swarm

Duinrell, The Netherlands

Joris en De Draak - Efteling

Alton Towers

Helix - Liseberg

Falcon - Duinrell