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Parque Warner Madrid: General Discussion

NuttySquirrel said:
Obviously this is just a joke to some people, bit actually it's a pretty serious issue if parks think it's OK to deny paying customers the right to consume their own food. Despite the medical exemption, I can see a lot of people with genuine need feeling unable to provide the necessary paperwork and being put off visiting as a result. In a lot of cases restricted diets are more psychological than medical and there wouldn't be any way to establish eligibility for an exception without a formal diagnosis. I got my coeliac diagnosis over 15 years ago, I don't have a copy of the letter confirming the diagnosis and I wouldn't know where to start trying to get one. I really don't think this is acceptable - nor is it helpful to make fun of people that take their own food into parks for entirely legitimate reasons.
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With the greatest respect, I am not making fun of people who take in their own food to theme parks for any reason whatsoever.

I am highlighting that whilst many people are happy to visit parks built by, or in, questionable regimes, where many people who aren't tourists are not safe or treated fairly, it's a self serving nature of not bringing in your own food that discourages visiting.
 
Jokes aside, I don’t think it’s particularly relevant that people will or will not visit parks in another country in regards to political reasons when this is a thread about a specific park in Spain and the matter at hand is their food policy, as doing so only serves to belittle people’s problems.

Back on track, has anyone got experience of the enforcement of this policy? Are they going to be literally searching bags and throwing food away or is it likely to be more of a soft ban? It’s a park we were hoping to visit in the not too distant future but not like this.
 
GooseOnTheLoose said:
With the greatest respect, I am not making fun of people who take in their own food to theme parks for any reason whatsoever.

I am highlighting that whilst many people are happy to visit parks built by, or in, questionable regimes, where many people who aren't tourists are not safe or treated fairly, it's a self serving nature of not bringing in your own food that discourages visiting.
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I don't think it is as back and white as that (and you're probably not saying that is is to be fair). People can be discouraged from visiting a theme park for many different reasons, and that will often align with their personal beliefs, preferences or any other barriers they may face (such as not being able to bring your own food if you require special dietary needs).

I suffer from a nut allergy but am fortunate enough that for parks in Europe and the US, it is relatively easy to know what I can or cannot have, and the laws in place make it easy to get the information I need. So this would not put me off visiting Parque Warner. However for other dietary needs ordering from in park outlets can be much more complicated and risky, so bringing your own food is a great alternative or backup plan. Not being able to do so would absolutely something that may make you question whether or not you want to visit, as you probably do want to eat something but may not feel safe to do so in the park.

Is there any merit in comparing this to people being prepared or not to visit theme parks in certain countries etc.? Not really. Those in this thread who have said they would question whether to visit or not because of this have genuine medical reasons. They may also not wish to visit parks in certain countries due to moral/ethical concerns, I obviously don't know, but that is up to them. It's not one or the other though!
 
Just to clarify to @GooseOnTheLoose that my comment wasn't primarily aimed at you although I do agree that comparing state-wide moral or political policies we don't support with dietary limitations is really not the same thing at all. There are places in the world I'll never visit because I don't agree with the politics, and there are other places I'll not visit because I'd be too anxious about getting a safe meal.

It's true that parks in Europe and the US are obligated to provide dietary information, however the rigour with which this is upheld is very inconsistent, and in many cases only confirmed verbally and not in writing. I've been unfortunate to be given incorrect information in Spain before and became extremely ill as a result (missing out on a long-anticipated trip to the Sagrada Famiglia). Furthermore, even if you are given correct information about allergens it seems there's no obligation to provide an acceptable safe alternative, so a lot of eateries especially at theme parks just have no viable options. It's also impossible to find detailed information about food choices in advance a lot of the time. It has got to the point now where it's such a source of anxiety that I often just don't eat park food at all and choose to live off my own snacks.

I've been to parks before where the policy has been to ban guest food except on medical grounds, however I have never before been required to provide evidence of medical eligibility. That really feels like going too far and is something I hope they don't choose to rigidly enforce.

In the worst case scenario, I guess you have the option of using a locker for your picnic food and leaving the park in order to consume it, but it's far from ideal.
 
I wonder if it will be like Seaworld/Busch where you are allowed to take in snacks and water but DEFINITELY not Pringles or coke (unless you are polite/smile nicely/unknown reason, then they will let you “this one time”) 🙈.

They had such a huge pile of confiscated Pringles!
 
Bowser said:
Jokes aside, I don’t think it’s particularly relevant that people will or will not visit parks in another country in regards to political reasons when this is a thread about a specific park in Spain and the matter at hand is their food policy, as doing so only serves to belittle people’s problems.

Back on track, has anyone got experience of the enforcement of this policy? Are they going to be literally searching bags and throwing food away or is it likely to be more of a soft ban? It’s a park we were hoping to visit in the not too distant future but not like this.
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Bag searches are in operation. You will be turned around if you have food on you.
 
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