Magic and History: The oldest theme parks around the world

Amusement/theme parks have been entertaining families and thrillseekers for generations, evolving over the years to feature newer, smoother and better themed attractions. But some of these parks we know and love today are older than you’d expect- some even date back to the 1840s! Many of the world’s oldest theme parks elaborate histories with remnants spread throughout the park if you know where to look, so lets explore the stories of the world’s first theme parks!

Note: I won’t be covering every park that opened during the early age of theme parks, as there are so many- particularly during the 1930s! This list will only cover the parks that are most famous today.

Blackgang Chine, Isle of Wight, UK

Starting this list off at the UK’s ‘Land of Imagination’, Blackgang Chine has been clinging to the edge of Blackgang’s cliffs since 1843, over 175 years! Throughout its long life this classic UK park has experienced its share of landslides, due being on a cliff, so attractions are moved inland every 10 years or so to prevent them being swallowed up by the sea. Some lands and attractions have even had to close permanently due to no longer being safe, sometimes leaving set pieces abandoned on the edge of a cliff, which is pretty eerie.

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Throughout the Victorian era the tourism industry was growing and blooming, with more and more people wanting a real “get away” on the coast and in the countryside. Blackgang Chine, then an actual chine and ravine, was soon founded by Alexander Dabell, and Blackgang Chine Amusement Park was born. The park would continue to grow and new themed lands would open: the Model Village 100 years later, as well as the famous Water Gardens and Snakes and Ladders.

Many of Blackgang Chine’s most nostalgic attractions still remain at the park today, albeit in a slightly different position due to being moved back several times. You can now explore the cursed Rumpus Mansion, get up close and personal with dinosaurs, and even ride a rollercoaster on the edge of a cliff (aptly named Cliffhanger!) all in one day at this historic, family owned and oriented theme park hanging on to the Isle of Wight’s cliffs!

Indiana Beach, Indiana, USA

There’s more than just corn in Indiana! That’s the slogan for this classic Indiana amusement park opened in 1926, originally known as Ideal Beach. This small boardwalk park located on the Lake Shafer has brought joy to locals and tourists alike for almost 100 years, and today features rides such as Cornball Express, Lost Coaster of Superstition Mountain (awesome name!) and Steel Hawg.

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Sadly however, come February 2020, the future of Indiana’s major theme park looked rough. Indiana Beach’s latest owner, Apex Parks had announced that several of their parks would be forced to close, and while Indiana Beach was eventually saved by businessman and coaster enthusiast Gene Staples a few months after the announcement, some of Apex’s other properties weren’t so lucky.

Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagan, Denmark

When Tivoli Gardens opened in August 1843, it was largely inspired by Europe’s growing amusement and pleasure park industry. The park’s initial name was Tivoli and Vauxhall, Tivoli after Paris’ Jardin de Tivoli, and Vauxhall after London’s Vauxhall Gardens. Neither of these resorts are still operating today, but Tivoli Gardens was luckily able to survive the many factors that caused Jardin de Tivoli and Vauxhall Gardens to close. The story of how Tivoli Gardens came to be is kind of interesting- a businessman encouraged the king of Denmark, King Christian VIII to lease him some land by saying that if people are amusing themselves, they won’t be thinking about politics.

The entrepreneur was given the use of 15 acres of land, on which he began to the legacy that is Tivoli Gardens, beginning with various amusements including band stands, cafes, and even some small rides such as a scenic railway and a carousel.

Tivoli Gardens is a staple of the European theme park industry as well as having a lot of historical significance. It is considered one of the most famous parks in Europe, beside Disneyland Paris, Efteling and Europa Park. Throughout 1943 many of Tivoli’s buildings and attractions were burned as a result of the war, yet the park was able to make a remarkable recovery and reopened soon after. Today Tivoli Gardens continues to delight visitors from around the world with its classic atmosphere and evolving attractions!

Cedar Point, Ohio, USA

Cedar Point, looking over Sandusky’s famous Lake Erie, feels as if it has always been the rollercoaster capital of the world. However, just like Blackgang Chine, it was originally a fishing location! The area was known as the Cedar Point Peninsula, earning its name from the abundance of cedar trees up from the beach. Around the 1860s and 70s tourism was booming in the US, with an increasing demand for holidays around coasts and lakes. Cedar Point’s tourism history dates back to the 1870s, when holidaymakers would pay to take a ferry ride on the boat Young Reindeer across the Lake Erie.

In 1882, two businessmen saw the success of the Cedar Point Peninsula as a tourist destination and purchased some land around the area, on which a ballroom and several bathhouses were built. Each year the resort would continue to expand, with picnic tables and a baseball court. A few years later, design and construction would begin on the Grand Pavilion, featuring two floors with a photo studio and grand ballroom among other things. The Grand Pavilion remains at Cedar Point even now, as one of the oldest structures at the park!

Cedar Point’s first ride, a sort of water toboggan that launched brave riders into Lake Erie, opened to visitors in 1890. The installation of electricity at the resort in the 1890s created new exciting opportunities for the park, and the first ever rollercoaster at the park, Switchback Railway, made its debut in 1892. Switchback Railway may have only been a family coaster, but it paved the way for the groundbreaking and thrilling rollercoasters that tower intimidatingly over the lake today!

Efteling, North Brabant, Netherlands

When you think of European theme parks, Efteling, located in the Netherlands, is likely one that comes to mind. Since opening as a children’s play area in 1935, the park has evolved and grown into the incredible theme park it is today, but Efteling wasn’t put on the map as a theme park until the 1950s. The magical play area became Efteling Nature Park Foundation, founded by the mayor of a nearby town, and planning soon began on a new area that would entertain locals and tourists young and old.

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Fairy Tale Forest opened to visitors in May 1952, with immersive sets and bright storylines, combined with genius lighting techniques and special effects. The enchanting walkthrough was made all the more magical by its location in a forest, meaning lighting could be manipulated even more to really immerse visitors in their favourite fairytales.

Twenty six years after the opening of Fairy Tale Forest, Efteling began to expand even further. Early that year the Haunted Castle opened to mostly positive reviews, securing the park’s future as one of Europe’s favourite family theme parks. Python opened in 1981 as the park’s first rollercoaster, a double loop-corkscrew manufactured by Vekoma.

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Efteling is actually a very significant part of European theme park history. When Euro Disneyland (now Disneyland Paris) was being designed in the 1990s, several Imagineers visited Efteling to find out which theme park features would appeal to a European audience in order to implement them into Europe’s first Disney park, and the Netherlands theme park would eventually go on to win the prestigious Thea Classic Award in 2004, nominated by well-known Imagineer Tony Baxter!

Disneyland, California, USA

Where better to finish this list than at the US’s first true theme park?

During the 1950s something big was brewing in the city of Anaheim, California. Walt Disney had purchased a significant amount of farmland on the outskirts of the city, and construction soon began on a castle, a railroad and much more. The project was soon announced as Disneyland, with a new TV series debuting that gave a preview of Disneyland’s many themed areas: Fantasyland, Tomorrowland, Adventureland, Frontierland and of course Main Street USA.

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Disneyland was constructed in just a year and a day, and this quick construction time led to many problems on opening day. In order to meet deadlines some parts of the park had to be scaled right down, especially Tomorrowland, which ended up being more like a permanent (and much smaller) World’s Fair than a world of the future in its earliest years. But on July 17th, 1955, the day Disneyland opened its doors, there were much more pressing issues at hand. Counterfeit tickets, a lack of water fountains due to a plumber’s strike, a gas leak and parents literally throwing their kids onto rides- so much that the opening day is now referred to as ‘Black Sunday’ by fans and even the company itself.

Despite the rocky opening, Disneyland was able to quickly recover from its initial, well, disaster, and paved the way for many other theme parks around the world, including over ten other Disney parks from Florida to Shanghai!

Have you visited any of the parks on this list? Which is your favourite? Let me know below!

1. 

   Thank you so much! I’m so glad you enjoy them. Sorry about the late reply -Lily 🙂

2. 

   Your articles are amazing. Thank you for your hard work.

3. 

   It’s definitely worth a visit! 🙂

4. 

   Interesting! Never heard of that park before

5. 

   Love this Lily

If you enjoyed this article, you’ll love my other posts from theme parks around the world! Check out just some of them here!

Photo credits:

@ky_coaster_club on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/ky_coaster_club/

@efteling_tycho on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/efteling._tycho/

@coasterbengel on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/coasterbengel/

@disneyland.brunette on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/disneyland.brunette/

Thanks for your help!

You are all clear… and outta here! Thanks for reading!

-Lily