Mrenata Posted May 25, 2012 Share Posted May 25, 2012 (edited) Early this year I decided to explore those south american parks that are not well known and that barely no one talks about it. I left Rio de Janeiro towards Santiago, Chile in order to travel all the way to Buenos Aires by bus/plane. On my way I could visit six parks, including the most amazing abandoned park ever, Parque de la Ciudad! One thing you should know is that Chile and Argentina are pretty much "first world countries" in South America, so it's kind of easy to get around, even for a woman traveling by herself who didn't speak a fluent spanish. Both countries are very safe, have decent hotels and hostels, reasonable airports, good public transportation and most important, everything is cheap compared to USA or Europe, or even Brazil. So, those were the parks I visited: Fantasilandia - Santiago, Chile Super Park - Córdoba, Argentina Neverland - Buenos Aires, Argentina Argenpark and Parque Luján - Luján, Argentina Parque de La Ciudad - Buenos Aires, Argentina That was pretty much my itinerary Edited June 1, 2012 by Mrenata Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrenata Posted May 25, 2012 Author Share Posted May 25, 2012 (edited) Fantasilandia - Santiago, Chile Santiago is Chile's capital, and one of the biggest cities in South America. It's architecture is a mix of new office buildings with some old colonial houses. There's a hop on, hop off bus that goes arount the whole city and it works pretty much the same way the other hop on/offs buses around the world do. The subway system ir really good, it takes you everywhere and it's easy to understand how the lines are combined. Fantasilandia is one of South America's biggest and most important parks. And is one of my favourites around here. It is located inside Parque O'Higgins, a local city park, and it's easily accessible by subway. The park even offers a shuttle from the subway station to the park gate, even though it's a 500m walk. The park area is not big, but they make the best out of it. Their flat ride collection is very good, and includes a Condor, Top Spin, Disk'o, Go Karts, Drop Tower, Wave Swinger, Tidal Wave, etc. They also have 5 roller coasters: A SLC, a Wild Mouse, A Boomerang, A dragon and a Galaxi. Their website is also very good and easy to navigate, even for non-spanish speakers. http://www.fantasilandia.cl/ The entrance fee is very cheap, around US$16.00! If you're flying from Brazil or Argentina to Santiago, the plane will cross the Andes, giving you a nice view of Aconcagua, South America's Highest point Santiago's achitecture is a mix of new and old This bus takes you from the subway station to the park entrance. There was a sign saying that it costs 100 pesos, but when I tried to pay for the ride, the bus driver told me it was free. Raptor, a Vekoma SLC Coaster Raptor, along with MP Express are the two smoothest SLC coasters I've ever ridden. And it also has a nice landscape! The park has a lot of gardens, benches and family rides. It looks like a cute RCT park. Fun South American fact: Both Fantasilandia and Parque de la Costa (Argentina) have a wild mouse coaster, but for some reason none of the brazilian parks have got one yet. It's a shame, since it is a nice adition to any small park. The lap bars were all tied toghether. Never seen that on a wild mouse before. The Top Spin that really makes evryone wet! They also have a Pirates of Caribbean ride that is actually good, even though the boats are really, really tiny! For some reason, this ride is very, very popular in South America! The Go Kart track goes under Boomerang A galaxi coaster, another VERY popular ride in South America This one has no lap bars, just a creepy car seatbelt The seatbelt is completely loose and one can easily take it off during the ride Ikarus was the newest addition for 2012 season And they also have this boat ride that is so rare to find nowadays. It's the only one of it's kind in South America. Edited May 25, 2012 by Mrenata Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simon8899 Posted May 25, 2012 Share Posted May 25, 2012 Looks like a nice little park with a good flat collection. The Top Spin looks a like a former carnival ride as it still has the faded german sign "Ausgang" on its side... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerrykoala2112 Posted May 25, 2012 Share Posted May 25, 2012 I love it when people hit 'out of the way' parks like this! The park itself might not have the best coasters, but the scenery and greenery look top notch. It looks like such a clam park where people can relax and not worry about anything. And it looks like they take care of your rides, if you say that the SLC is smooth. I'm planning a trip to Peru in the upcoming years, and I may just make a pit stop in Santiago to visit this place. I'm am interested in picking up the credits, but that's not the only reason I'd want to visit the park. Cannot wait to see your other trip reports Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoCo Posted May 25, 2012 Share Posted May 25, 2012 Thanks for sharing this adventure! Great to see and hear about South American parks, which absolutely don't get much coverage. That Pirates dark ride is hysterical; those boats are absurdly small. And loved the shot of the Andes from the plane window. Awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle11 Posted May 25, 2012 Share Posted May 25, 2012 Looks and sounds like a nice little park. Looking forward to the rest of the report. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrygator Posted May 26, 2012 Share Posted May 26, 2012 Is the "boat" in this picture a funhouse? I saw a few of those riverboat funhouses in Spain and really liked them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted May 27, 2012 Share Posted May 27, 2012 The pirate boat ride is what intrigues me the most about this park--looks like a nice place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrenata Posted May 27, 2012 Author Share Posted May 27, 2012 (edited) The park advertised the "boat ride", caled Mississippi, as a terror ride, but I can't tell for sure whether this is accurate or not. I tried to find more information about this ride on the web, but the only thing that I could find out is that the ride is not operating anymore due to a lot of injures (which makes me think that it was indeed a Fun House). Apparently now they use the boat as a stage for some shows and contests. Edited May 27, 2012 by Mrenata Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrenata Posted May 27, 2012 Author Share Posted May 27, 2012 Super Park - Córdoba, Argentina Culture credit: If you travel from Chile do Argentina by bus, you will cross the Andes. The trip from Santiago to Mendoza takes aprox 8 hours, and the views are breathtaking! It's almost a Wild Mouse credit! The view is amazing all the way. The roads are very safe and the buses are double decker with free snacks and beverages all the way! The one way fare is around US. Seriously, this road is insanely beautiful! There are some Inca ruins all the way. Breathtaking! The mules ready to climb Aconcágua The first major city in Argentina coming from Chile is Mendoza. It's the base camp for anyone who's going to climb Aconcágua. From Mendoza you can choose to either take a bus or fly to Cordoba and Buenos Aires. I choose to fly, since the air fare was really cheap (around US). The Airline Companies in Argentina are really good (Andes, Austral (which belongs to Aerolineas Argentinas) and LAN. Cordoba is Argentina's second biggest city and is one of the nicest ones too! Super Park is a small park inside Parque Sarmiento. It looks like a small carnival that stood still on time. It's cute, though. There are no entrance fees, or wristbands for unlimited rides. You pay 5 pesos per ride, less than US. They still use the good old paper ticket Speedy Gonzales, the only credit there The park has around 20 rides, but they're all well taken care of. Their website, though, is a mess, http://www.super-park.com.ar/superpark.php Good, old flat rides Tagadas: For some inexplicable reason, they are SUPER popular in South America. I hate those rides, it doesn't make sense why one would spend money to end up with a stranger sitting on your lap. Or does it? A nice, small caroussel Another VERY popular ride in South America Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfc Posted May 27, 2012 Share Posted May 27, 2012 Tagadas: For some inexplicable reason, they are SUPER popular in South America. I hate those rides, it doesn't make sense why one would spend money to end up with a stranger sitting on your lap. Or does it? I guess that would depend on the stranger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noxegon Posted May 27, 2012 Share Posted May 27, 2012 ^ LOL! I'm looking forward to your views on the Lujan parks... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted May 27, 2012 Share Posted May 27, 2012 That Wild Mouse road is the sort of thing from my nightmares, I would never take it as I would be throwing up the entire drive! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle11 Posted May 27, 2012 Share Posted May 27, 2012 ^Too bad it's not a spinning mouse! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XYZ Posted May 27, 2012 Share Posted May 27, 2012 This picture looks so much like driving I-15 to Vegas. Your trip reports are always very good just like your Europe trip reports. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanic Posted May 27, 2012 Share Posted May 27, 2012 This picture is absolutely amazing. This is a great trip report. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrenata Posted May 27, 2012 Author Share Posted May 27, 2012 USA is blessed with 2 of the most amazing roads I've ever seen: I-15 to Vegas and Pacific Coast Highway. Those two, along with the route from Chile to Argentina are the holy trinity of amazing roads in the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shivtim Posted May 27, 2012 Share Posted May 27, 2012 Thanks for the pics/reports from these parks that we don't usually hear much about. I'm looking forward to the next set! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Johnson Posted May 28, 2012 Share Posted May 28, 2012 Wow! Please keep these going. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrenata Posted May 28, 2012 Author Share Posted May 28, 2012 Neverland - Buenos Aires, Argentina I decided to fly from Cordoba to Buenos Aires, since the ticket price was so cheap (around US0). Buenos Aires is one of the most beautiful cities I've visited, and I try to go there at least once a year. The architecture in Buenos Aires is amazing, the streets are large, people are very polite and helpful, the transportation system works perfectly and it's a very safe place to visit. It reminds me a lot of NYC (besides the polite people ) Neverland is a small indoor park inside Shopping Abasto. In South America is very common to see those small arcade/parks inside malls. Most of them, though, don't have rides for teens/adults, just some kiddie ones. Neverland is bigger than those small parks, and it occupies a large area of Shopping Abasto. On the first floor there's a huge arcade area with some coin operated rides. On the third floor there's a very, very cute ferris wheel And on the second floor you can find some bigger rides like this pirate ship More kiddie rides The rides reminded of Luna Park, at Coney Island Oh, of course, there's a credit there! A very cute zamperla powered coaster It's one of the best themings I've ever seen on a powered coaster A bad ass shark I'm usually ashamed of credit whoring like that, but this one was really worthy! weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gisco Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 I love these reports from places that most people have never visited. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrenata Posted May 30, 2012 Author Share Posted May 30, 2012 Argenpark and Parque Luján - Luján, Argentina Luján is a city 65km away from Buenos Aires. It's easily accessible by bus (Linea 57 at Plaza Italia) and it is know for 3 things: The petting zoo (Zoo de Luján), the cathedral (Basílica de Luján) and for it's amusement parks. The petting zoo is one of the few zoos in the world where you're allowed to enter the cages and actually pet tigers, lions and bears (with the company of a trainer, of course). I've only seen those zoos in Luján and Johannesburg. It's actually pretty safe, and there has never been an accident or injury in Luján. Luján has 2 known parks: Argenpark and Parque Luján. During my visit I found a third park, with no name and just a few creepy rides along the river. This map shows how the parks are arranged around Luján. If you are not from South America, you'll find those parks very, very creepy, but this is how all the small parks look like around here. Some vintage rides that are rare to find nowadays Ticket booth, called "boleteria" in spanish There are no unlimited rides wristbands. They use this token as the ticket, and the token colors may vary according to the ride's ticket price. The most expensive ones (the rollercoasters) cost around US. Some kiddie rides and a credit on the background! Luján's cathedral is HUGE! This picture almost reminded me of Magic Kingdom More vintage rides A pretty steep drop for such an old coaster In the past there was a huge amusement park in Argentina called Ital Park. After a girl's death on the matterhorn ride on the 90's the park was shut down and it's rides were either bought by Beto Carrero, or ended up in Luján. Super Tornado is a 60's coaster that came from Ital Park, where it was called Thunderbolt. You can tell it is at least 40 years old. It's manually operated and there's a sign saying that the car's ONLY capacity is two people. It means that I had to use all my spanish to bribe a dad into landing me his kid so I could ride Super Tornado. The seat belt is that bumper car style shoulder harness that both people have to share. Awkward. The car is too tall and too narrow for it's turns, so you feel like you're gonna derail any time soon. The first drop is pretty steep, and at the end there's a huge bunny hop that ejects you from your seat. From Parque Luján you can either walk or take the cable chair to Argenpark Argenpark Station That building on the left is Ital Park's old Ghost Train that Argenpark is trying to restore. More vintage rides Super 8, another coaster that came from Ital Park It has seen better days On my way back to the bus station I spoted a thid park. Well, it was more like a creepy carnival ride reunion along Luján's river. It would be just a regular creepy park if it wasn't for the ULTRA CREEPY pirate ship. This thing was insane. It was going really high, it was even hitting the trees. That thing was so messed up that I had to try it. The bars were all rusty and I swear to god that it almost made a loop at some point. Back to the bus station I found those old fortune teller birds. Even though Luján may seem a very unsafe place to visit, I had no problem getting around by myself. It's not a place that I would come back every year, but it's worthy a visit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattnz Posted May 31, 2012 Share Posted May 31, 2012 Wow, some of those vintage rides look hair-raising! Great TR so far - particularly looking forward to your Parque de La Ciudad update - a park that has always fascinated me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanic Posted May 31, 2012 Share Posted May 31, 2012 Those pictures of you with the lions and tigers are awesome, especially the one where you are kissing the lion. Even though I realize it is, for the most part, relatively safe, I would still be very apprehensive about being within paws and jaws reach of such powerful animals. I applaud your courage for getting those pictures and thank you for sharing them with us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatle11 Posted May 31, 2012 Share Posted May 31, 2012 Getting so close to Lions and Tigers is incredible! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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