Top Ten Parks

[Sam]

Inspired by John's quote in the other topic about a new forum being an excuse to create some classic and fundamental topics!

So... what are your ten favourite parks? At least a sentence on each please, and nicely formatted so it's easy to read!

1: Europa Park
From my original review: "In my humble opinion, Europa Park is the greatest thing man-kind has ever achieved in the field of entertainment. It is simply awe-inspiring. I think no other thing (a film, a book, an opera) could ever compete with EP, purely because unlike almost any other form of entertainment, it's roots in a physical place has allowed it to be constantly expanded and improved at the highest level of quality anywhere in the world every year for decades. I don't think it's possible to find any built environment more fun, perfect or awe-inspiring anywhere on planet earth."

2: Disneyland Park, California
The original, and best. While EP is constantly expanding and growing, Disneyland is an absolutely perfect 'complete park'. Even more-so than in Florida, the magic is engrained in every attraction, every piece of scenery. It's idyllic, theme park paradise. Perfectly measured, perfectly proportioned, a masterpiece in miniature. And the two best rides in the park, Matterhorn Bobsleds and Indiana Jones dark rides, aren't even at any other Disney park.

3. Efteling
Ahh, my dear Efteling. The most beautiful park on my list, with its gorgeous landscapes being complimented by the beautiful built environments of stunningly themed rides, gorgeous street scenery (those lampposts!) and amazing architecture (the entrance!). Some pretty good rides too, though it needs more, but another park like EP where as AstroDan put it, it feels like they're rolling out the red carpet for every visitor.

4. Alton Towers
With all the negativity around Merlin, it's easy to forget how great Alton is. Imagine you're driving around Europe and your friend suggests a visit to a park you've never heard of. "Oh, what rides does it have?" "Oh, just an Intamin Accelerator, a B&M Flyer, an Intamin rapids, a B&M dive machine, a Maurer spinner, a HUSS Topspin, a Mack powered coaster, an experimental Intamin drop coaster, two Mack dark rides and the best regarded B&M Invert and Vekoma Madhouse in the world, respectively. Wanna go?" "Err... YES!"

5. Blackpool Pleasure Beach
An actual living museum. Compared to other historical amusement parks around the world, that may have one or two rides of interest, the amount of historical gems in this park is breathtaking. It's really an incredible treasure trove, an anthropological study in British leisure over the past century. And it's got two cracking coasters.

6. Phantasialand
Seriously lacking in atmosphere, magic and soul, but BOY do they have the hardware. And really stunning theming. RiverQuest, Mystery Castle, Mamba, Talocan, Winjas and Colorado are all amongst the world's greatest rides in their respective categories. The theming in the Chinese area at night is the most beautiful moment I've ever experienced in a park.

7. Islands of Adventure (pre-Potter)
What it lacks in quantity, it makes up for in quality! Seriously not enough to do for a major park, but what there is to do is amazing. Dueling Dragons and the first half of Hulk are great, Spiderman is good, and the rapids, log flume and Jurassic Park boat ride are all top-notch.

8. Magic Mountain
Absolutely no theming, soul or anything even approaching a heart. But do you know what? It's just a big load of bloody huge coasters plonked in the desert. Which is fine. Tatsu and X2 are amongst the most intense rides I've ever been on. Goliath, Terminator and Batman are all also brilliant coasters! Credit whores paradise.

9. EPCOT
Something completely different - less of a theme park and more the world's greatest visitor centre. The atmosphere around the World Showcase is electric. What I love about the park is it's such a... wait for it... cerebral and thought-provoking experience. It doesn't patronise or insult your intelligence, but helps you imagine other cultures on our planet, or other planets entirely.

10. Animal Kingdom (pre-Everest)
Not enough to do really, but still great. A totally different vibe, just so relaxed. Dinosaur! and Kali River Rapids are both brilliant in their fields. Great potential in this park. What Chessington should be.

Honourable mentions: Thorpe Park, Magic Kingdom Florida, Disney's Hollywood Studios, Knott's Berry Farm.

Go, go, go!

 

[Adam]

Sam, your park count makes mine seem rubbish! ;D

10) Fantasy Island
Because I'd ran out of parks. To be fair though, the place has a got a certain charm about it, and Jubilee Odyssey is immense. When it's not shut due to wind that is.

9) Lightwater Valley
Has a nice charm, a lovely setting and an amazing coaster.

8 ) Drayton Manor:
Apocalypse and Stormforce 10. That is all.

7) Gardaland:
Quite a nice park, although if it wasn't for Raptor the place would be further down my list. The other coasters are nothing to shout about but still good staff and food so it gets 7th place.

6) Thorpe Park:
Fair enough the place isn't exactly heaven on earth, but it does have the UK's best selection of flat rides, and some good coasters as well.

5)Walibi World Holland:
Lovely surroundings, great atmosphere, decent ride selection and the 2rd best Intamin I've ever been on.

4) Blackpool Pleasure Beach:
I'm a bit of a PBB fanboy tbh, although in my opinion no park in the country can beat the sense of fun you get on a busy day at the Pleasure Beach. The place is so British and charming, plus it's got my favourite water and dark rides. Well, their the same ride but still, Valhalla is amazing. Plus a great selection of coasters.

3) PortAventura:
Beautiful place, brilliant entertainment throughout the park and the food at the park is great in my opinion. Plus it has a great ride selection that now includes Europe's tallest coaster.

2) Alton Towers:
Regardless of M£rlin, regardless of the coasters needing cleaning, regardless of the upselling, Alton Towers is amazing. Best coaster selection of any park I've been to, plus loads of other amazing rides such as Hex, a truly amazing dark ride and the Rapids, the best of it's kind I've ever been on.

Plus it has the best fansite of any park in the world. ;D

1) Mirabilandia:
Home to two of my 3 favourite coasters, my favourite dark ride that doesn't get you wet, some kick ass theming, great staff, awesome food, need I go on?

 

[SLC]

Only been to 13 theme parks. One was PortAventura, but I was too young to remember and too small to ride on most things so it's not included.

10. Flamingo Land (shoot me )
9. Animal Kingdom
8. Sea World Orlando
7. Hollywood Studios Orlando
6. Thorpe Park
5. Universal Studios
4. Alton Towers
3. Magic Kingdom Orlando
2. Busch Gardens Tampa
1. Islands of Adventure

IoA just barely tips BGT.

 

[Nick]

1. Alton Towers!!!!
2. Busch Gardens Tampa.
3. Islands of Adventure.
4. Phantasialand (pre-changes)
5. Disney World Magic Kingdom
6. Thorpe Park
7. Disney World Animal Kingdom
8. Universal Studios
9. Lightwater Valley
10. Disney World MGM Studios

 

[AstroDan]

1. Europa-Park
2. Busch Gardens Africa
3. Alton Towers
4. Islands of Adventure
5. Phantasialand
6. Animal Kingdom
7. Disneyland Park (Paris)
8. Efteling
9. Magic Kingdom
10. PortAventura

 

[Rob]

Now this is a tricky one!

1. Busch Gardens Williamsburg
2. Europa Park
3. Alton Towers
4. Six Flags Great Adventure
5. Busch Gardens Tampa
6. Universal Islands of Adventure
7. Disney World Animal Kingdom
8. SeaWorld Orlando
9. Phantasialand
10. Disney World Hollywood Studios

BGW wins because I just fell in love with the place when I went last summer. It has some great coasters and other rides, some lovely theming, a fantastic atmosphere on park and the food is really nice! Europa is a better park than BGW but my very large soft spot does lie with Busch. Towers is still the park I care about and love the most but I do rate BGW and EP above it. A final point, I've put SFGA in fourth as it is a much nicer park than the Six Flags reputation gives off. There is some really nice theming in areas and it has some outstanding coasters; those two things are enough for me to rate the park highly.

 

[AstroDan]

Damnit! I was convinced you thought Europa was better!



Oh and Seaworld is rubbish

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[D4n]

1. Alton Towers
2. Islands of Adventure
3. Thorpe Park
4. Busch Gardens Africa
5. Disney World's Animal Kingdom
6. Flamingo Land
7. Universal Studios Orlando
8. Disney World's Magic Kingdom
9. Chessington World of Adventures
10. Oakwood Theme Park

 

[Rob]

Damnit! I was convinced you thought Europa was better!



Oh and Seaworld is rubbish

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Europa is a better park, I just prefer Busch that tiny tiny bit more. Probably down to the coasters and DarKastle. However much I love Blue Fire, Apollo's Chariot is better than Silver Star. Alpengiest and Griffon are also top class, and Verbolten in my eyes looks a winner. Sorry!

 

[James6]

1. IOA - Incredible theming and home to two of the best dark rides in the world, add some incredible coasters and water rides and you have yourself an amazing park.
2/3. Disneyland Parc
2/3. Magic Kingdom, couldn't decide between these two. Whilst DLP's individual rides are mostly better versions, the sheer quantity of rides at Magic Kingdom edges it up, plus the fact it has Splash Mountain and a good Space Mountain.
4. Phantasialand
5. Alton Towers
6. Busch Gardens Tampa
7. Hollywood Studios (WDW)
8. Universal Studios
9. Animal Kingdom
10. Seaworld Orlando

Other mentions go to Thorpe and Terra Mitica. Although I think I will have a new no.1 next month

 

[MattyH]

1. Duinrell
Nice park, nicely themed and i like it.
2. Pleasurewood Hills
My local theme park
3. Bellewarde,
Went a few years ago, from what i remember , was a good park, weather was horrible so didn't get to do all the rides wanted to
4. Future scope,
Love this park, no real rides as such but all the simulators make it fun.
5. Drayton Manor
Went before thomas land was introduced, enjoyed it quite a lot, need to go back.
6. Chestington World of adventures
Went before they got rid of beanotown, the rides they had were great, and want to go back
7.Disney Land Paris,
Enjoyed my visit there, was fun.
8. Legoland Windsor
Simply because of the memories i have there, and because its unique in this country, and one of only a few.
9. Alton Towers
Would be higher, but can't really remember much as haven't been in ages
10. Thorpe Park
I went back in 2010 but didn't really go on too much

 

[AstroDan]

What an... Odd ranking...

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[MattyH]

Yes, but hey , they were the best ones i've been to, plus whn went to thorpe park and alton towers i wasn't really tall enough to go on anything.

 

[John]

I've not really been to enough major parks to have a particularly meaningful top 10, but sod it...

1. Europa Park. No contest here, the European capital of coasters really is leagues ahead of everything else, with rides to suit everyone. Maybe not the best for someone only interested in thrill rides, but as an all-round park it's pretty much unbeatable.

2. Alton Towers. Maybe a bit of a fanboy vote, but it's the best in the UK for me, the range of rides puts it ahead of Thorpe and the surroundings lift it ahead of PBB

3. Pleasure Beach, Blackpool. PBB tends to be a bit underrated by a lot of UK enthusiasts. The park has improved massively over the past few years after becoming quite run down by the early-mid 2000s. Their steel coaster selection isn't amazing (though I love Rev), but Nash and Mouse make up for that. Could do with a new thrill ride or two now Bling has gone though...

4. Heide Park. A park that seems to be suffering from Merlinification recently. Lots of new stuff at the expense of their classic rides (they have an entire area closed off and have just removed the better of the 2 log flumes). Despite that they have some great rides: Colossos, Scream, Desert Race (way better than Rita) and my beloved Okti <3.

5. Phantasialand. A park of two halves. Mystery Castle, Colorado Adventure, River Quest, Black Mamba and Winjas are all amazing. Temple of the Night Hawk, Silbermine, Geista Rickshaw and Hollywood Tour are utter balls.

6. Thorpe Park. Probably the best park in Europe for thrill rides, but one of the worst for kids. Visiting this place with friends who aren't into thrill rides means that no-one really has a great time though.

7. Disneyland Parc. Yes I know it's amazing, but it's not really my kind of thing. I appreciate what they do though, which is why it makes my top 10.

8. Efteling. A stunning park that has really upped their game in the past 10 years or so. They don't have a huge number of rides though, and some of their older stuff is poor (Python I'm looking at you...).

9. Parc Asterix. It's been a while since my last and only visit, I'm ranking this based on my impressions then and not taking Oz Iris into account. Zeus is epic, and there is a good selection of supporting rides/flats, including a fantastic log flume and mad house. The older coasters range from average to poor, and prevent me from ranking this park any higher.

10. Hansa Park. TBH this is only really here because of Novgorod

I'm expecting this list to look very different at the end of the year...

 

[Sam]

I think the problem with Phantasialand is that I way over-estimated it before I went.

I had this misguided attempt that it was pretty much everyone's favourite park after EP, maybe after EP and DLP. I walked through the gates fully expecting it to instantly become my new number #2.

 

[zschris]

1 - Busch Gardens Africa. After what was probably my 14th visit to BGA last year with some other forum members, I have a lot of good memories of the park scaring the hell out of me as a child! Add in a wide array of world class coasters, an epic Halloween event and its ability to turn what should be a plot of concrete next to a freeway in ghetto Tampa into the African plains and its definitely onto a winner. (Plus it's the home of King Tuts Tomb - FTFW)

2 - Europa Park Its hard for me to give this park much more praise than it always receives (and deserves) here so I will simply say - Their "Is this enough vodka? No? Have some more." alcohol measure system holds a special place in my heart

3 - IOA Wish I could have put this higher, the immersion in the place is fantastic - A personal favourite would be the ridiculously moist Popeyes bilge rat barges, plus it has the 2 best dark rides I have been on.. for the record I hate Harry Potter but to say the area and ride aren't stunning would be an outright lie.

4 - SFMM Ok, so the place is a bit of a dive, but the sheer number of coasters makes it my No.4 - X2 - unbelievable, and at the end of the day I would prefer a shedloads of epic coasters instead of some nicely themed bins. However an upcoming trip to Cedar Point may lead to SFMM being removed from said list.

5 - Epcot I have always loved Epcot, especially in October for the food festival when you can drink your way round the countries! I don't really have a stand out ride, and Soarin' is just awful but for some reason I just love the place (My standout ride is actually Ellen's lesbian energy adventure )

6 - Universal Studios Loved the park since the moment I saw Doc Brown franticly running down a pathway shouting "Great Scott!" Revenge of the Mummy is by far my favourite indoor coaster and T2:3D is the only 4D show I'm ever bothered about going to more than once... Possibly because of my Terminator obsession, possibly because it's awesome!

Joint 7th -Alton Towers/Thorpe Park I always used to rank AT above Thorpe but Thorpe have really upped their game this year - I haven't had one bad trip plus I'm a big fan of The Swarm!

9 - Disney's Hollywood Studios - ToT. That is all. (Honourable mention to The Backlot Tour - Wilsy's favourite 'ride' in the whole of Florida)

10 -Efteling Visited last year and given all the hype I had read on here I was rather disappointed. The place it totally stunning, but there is literally nothing aimed at thrill seekers at all, other than the god awful Python. It makes it onto my list on how beautiful the place is and on nothing else.

This may be edited in a few weeks upon return from my first trip to Phannyland

 

[Mitch]

1. Busch Gardens Williamsburg: Definitely the most beautifully landscaped park I've been to. I loved EVERYTHING about it, wonderful architecture and theming, friendly staff, food was above-average for a theme park. It was just a lovely place to be. Not to mention their selection of rides is pretty much world-class. Alpengeist BLEW me away, Apollo's Chariot was fantastic and Griffon was fun! The supporting coasters, Loch Ness Monster and (then) Big Bad Wolf were also excellent rides for the family. Oh, and DarKastle is AMAZING as well. <3 The water rides are a little 'meh', but if I had the opportunity to go back I'd say yes in less than a second!

2. Islands of Adventure: Another absolutely stunning park with an excellent atmosphere, theming of the highest standard and it is a totally immersive experience the second you're through the turnstiles. Not to mention, it's home to arguably the best line-up of dark rides (Spiderman and Forbidden Journey) as well as water rides (Popeye, Jurassic Park and Dudley Do-Right). Wizarding World has only increased the quality, and if the area didn't get so damn crowded I could spend a whole day there. Also, Hulk. <3

3/4. Disneyland Park / WDW Magic Kingdom: Like IoA, the second you enter main street you completely forget where you actually are (and automatically feel your age drop by ten years ). Wonderful areas, wonderful family attractions, not necessarily massive on big thrills (although I thought California's Space Mountain packed one hell of a punch!), but, it's Disney! Where can you go wrong with that?

5. PortAventura: Beautiful park, the areas are all wonderfully crafted and offer a similar immersive experience to the Floridian parks. There are a few issues, such as a poor maintenance to said theming, graffiti and the fact that half the rides try to kill you. But nevertheless I really enjoyed the place and with Shambhala now there it's a perfect opportunity to go back. (For the record, Baco > Khan. )

6. Disneyland Parc Paris: I realise that this is placed below the American iterations of the park, but whilst it has all the wonderful aspects which make every Disney park "magical", there are a few drawbacks which put it below. Noticeably I found the staff to be less friendly, the park looked a bit more run down last time I went and because I much prefer the ride versions in the American parks. (Although I do think Paris has the upper-hand on Big Thunder Mountain and Pirates of the Caribbean.)

7. Animal Kingdom: Another absolutely stunning park. Expedition Everest is fabulous, Dinosaur is both crazy and fantastic, Primeval Whirl is vulgar. However, I feel the park is lacking in the attractions department, even with all the animal exhibits, you can finish the park in half a day (3/4 if you want to take EVERYTHING in). Simply needs more to do.

8. Alton Towers: Having yet to reach double figures in terms of number of visits here, I still get that buzz of excitement before every trip and the magic of the place hasn't been totally lost on me yet. Heck, I still haven't explored the place in its entirety!

9. Disney's California Adventure: I know the place gets some pretty mixed reviews but I really enjoyed my visit here back in 2006 and from what I've read the place is almost unrecognisable from then and has taken a turn for the better. Whilst far from Disney's best it still ranks head and shoulders above most other parks. I have much love for Tower of Terror, California Screamin' and the rapids here.

10. Busch Gardens Tampa Bay: This may seem like quite a low ranking, particularly in light of the fact that BGW if my favourite park. However I think this was mostly down to my experience on the two days I went (through no fault of the park I may add). We were forced out at around 1pm on Day One by a monsoon (only being able to nab Kumba, one side of Gwazi and Scorpion) and whilst I managed to get everything done on the second day the weather was still pretty foul. Operations were still pretty poor, even with the park being absolutely dead and the overall look of the park was less impressive than I had hoped. Maybe I had too high expectations from it's sister park in Virginia, but I'd love to visit again with "normal" Floridian weather. Kumba, Montu and SheiKra were still amazing though and there's no denying it's a good park. I just hope for a better experience next time I go.

Phew, that was a long post.

 

[Mattmash]

My current list would look something like...

1. Europa Park - Whilst it's certainly not the thrill capital of the world, Europa is the one park where this matters to me not a jot. I could seriously spend weeks there just chilling out, riding rides at my leisure and taking in all of the atmosphere, attention to detail and culinary excellence. There is literally something for everyone at this park and the amount of investment that continues to be thrown at it is just astounding! Whilst Disney may have the edge in theming and certainly things like animatronics, there is an authenticity about EP's theming which appeals to me a lot more. To quote Sam, it's all quite cerebral! (Sorry Dave!). To back up my thoughts, I have spent the last 2 New Years at the resort, spending around 4 days each time with between 7 & 9 MAJOR rides closed and was still left wanting more! Although, to be fair, it wasn't until my 3rd visit (the 1st NYE trip) that I really fell in love with the place.

2. Phantasialand - If I could visit any park (that I've been to before) for just one day, it would undoubtedly be Phannyland. They may not have a massive amount of attractions but there are 6 or 7 rides which are absolutely top class. Mamba was immense on my first visit, a lot less so on my second, although front row is still incredible! Mystery Castle is my favourite non coaster ride by far and I'd say Talocan is arguably the most stunning flat ride in Europe. Add to that some GREAT family attractions in River Quest, Colorado Adventure, Winjas and Maus Au Chocolat and you have one hell of a ride line up! It saddens me to see the state of the park at the moment but hopefully what they install on the current building site will be up to par with their recent installations, exciting times! I'd say our day on the Road to Rust tour last Summer, despite the busyness, was my best single day at a park ever!

3. Alton Towers - Despite the fact that I have no interest in the park really at the moment and have no real desire to visit, there is no doubting Alton is a top class park! I'd put it down to the fact I get easily bored by most things and I've overdone it a bit in the last few seasons. I'm hoping that SW7 will rekindle my interest. There's no arguing that it's a beautiful setting and a great coaster line up in relative terms. The rapids are also great fun and Hex and the much improved Duel are top class dark rides. They could certainly do with improving their flat ride selection and general upkeep of the park though!

4. Efteling - A gorgeous park with some really great attractions, there just aren't enough of them unfortunately. Some top class dark rides but their coaster selection is sadly lacking, which is where my passion really lies. Saying that, JedD is great fun, DVH is amazing apart from the actual coaster and Vogel Rok is good fun for a vekoma. And although I'm not a massive dark ride fan, I absolutely love Fata Morgana. Special mention to the amazing music, my favourite of any park, and the stunning entrance.

5. Heide Park - Hasn't been completely merlinised as of yet, and still maintains a fair bit of charm! A great selection of rides from coasters to flats. Highlights include Colossos (of course), Scream, Desert Race, the rapids and willy lift the ride! Nice to see that Krake has had the theming added too, although I don't think it will improve a fairly average ride that much! Port Royal is also a really nice hotel, and all buffets should include alcohol! Main downsides...Limit is THE worst coaster I have had the misfortune to ride and they have recently closed their very extravagent log flume

6. Thorpe Park - Certainly my favourite UK park at the moment, I've had some really good visits this season. A cracking line up for the thrill seeker and surely one of the best flat ride line ups in this country, if not Europe! I adore Stealth and Rush, and also seemed to have gained a (somewhat disturbing) liking of Colossus :S Really improved over the last few seasons and I really can't wait for Fright Nights! Not a massive fan of The Swarm I must admit, it seems to get blander everytime I ride it! That I said, I do enjoy the good theming and it's certainly a solid addition to the park, just too tame for my liking.

7. Parc Asterix - Have had 2 visits to this park, one was REALLY good, the other was ok but nothing special. It has to be said that this was almost completely down to the busyness of the park and the absolutely dire operations. However, Zeus is a coaster I really like (although it was much better on my first visit), Defi de Cesar is the most 'fun' madhouse I've done and the log flume is also great. They also have their own willy lift ride, quantum on steroids and Oxygenarium, which looks a million times better than Storm Surge! I can't wait to visit again in August to give Zeus some loving and of course there is the small matter of the mighty Oz'Iris!

8. Pleasure Beach Blackpool - A really good selection of rides and some real classics. I always have a good day at Blackpool. From the insanity of Wild Mouse to the brutal Nash, this isn't a park for lightweights Not a fan of their steel coasters but the two woodies mentioned previously added with rides such as Valhalla and classics such as River Caves always make for a fun day out It doesn't half annoy me how much wasted potential there is with PMBO though...we could have our own i305 there!

9. Walibi Holland - A clean park and a solid ride line up, including 3 good (1 excellent, if a little overated) coasters. Some decent flats (madhouse, crazy wet topspin, huss magic) and fun water rides (very dodgy rapids and some of Roland's airtime logs) too. A park I will happily visit again some day, I would especially like to properly whore Goliath as we only got 2 goes on our visit.

10. Movie Park Germany - Just squeezes into my top ten, the surprise park of our roadtrip last summer. Although the coaster line up isn't great overall, VHF is top class for what it is. Mystery River is also my favourite rapids ride ever (and I do like a good rapids!), it's simply stunning Alien Adventure was also surprisingly good and the drop tower is just completely insane! Had a really good day out there and I'm excited by their possible plans for the future! Also worth adding that the park was probably the cleanest I've ever been to, everything was spotless!

Just missing out would be both Disneyland Paris Parks, although they would be included if I counted the resort as one. There just isn't enough at either park on it's own to make it in, despite how much I love ToT. Disney's just not really my thing...

Also special mention to Hansa, a tiny park that is doing great things with the likes of Fluch von Novgorod, a truly top class attraction!

Hopefully there will be a couple of new additions in there come August

Wow, seems I wrote an essay.....

 

[Sam]

Interesting to see so many people rating the Busch parks so highly, with three #1 spots. I knew people like them, but I didn't realise they were that popular!

Mitch, if you went to Europa Park, I'd be interested to see if your updated list reflected Rob's and still ranked BGW higher than EP.

Also, why do you combine California DL and WDW Magic Kingdom? They're two very very different parks (California has Indiana Jones dark ride and the Matterhorn!) and I rank them very far apart from each other!

 

[smudge]

10) thorpe - the fact that it is in the uk is the main reason this has scraped in.

9) magic kingdom (FL) - it just really is 'magic'. Staff second to none. Sone great attractions just lacks any big thrill, now alien has gone.

8) busch gardens (FL) - the big 5 are awesome, but I feel the park as a whole doesn't live up to standards compared to other Florida parks. also I found staff unfriendly.

7) Disney Hollywood studios (FL) - my second favourite Disney theme park, Tot being one of the main reasons.

6) Sea world (FL) - a good solid park. Great shows &amp; lovely surroundings Kraken &amp; manta two of my top 10 coasters too.

5) universal Studios (FL) - I am a big universal fan. Staff excellent. Food excellent, settings excellent. Dislike rrr though &amp; the removal of jaws. Love the mummy.

4) IOA (FL) - HULK - nuff' said. Although I love hulk, the park as a whole is excellent for me, so many world class attractions. And hp area is impeccable. (although dislike hp in general)

3) Animal Kingdom (FL) - just love the place. I feel relaxed which is rare in a theme park. love dino, love everest. Never too busy either.

2) Alton Towers (uk) - call it fanboy-ism or whatever, but I absolutely adore this place. There is not many places I would rather be infact. The history, the setting, the location, the crap weather, it all is part of the experience. I have always been in love with the place. Do you know what? It also has two of the best rollercoasters in the world???

1) Wicksteed Park (uk) - I am probably there at some point every day. Afternoon / evening jogs round the lake, picnics & socials, drinking, bbq's, pirate ships, shed loads of geese, train rides, water chutes, 2 COASTERs :/ It would feel dirty if this wasn't my no.1...

I have no doubt Europa & other European parks would get into this list, but unfortunately, I am still yet to visit ANY

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