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Best themed wooden coaster?

Matt N

Matt N

CF Legend
Hi guys. Sorry if we already have a thread like this, but my question to you is; what do you think is the best themed wooden roller coaster? Now, this is a bit of a strange one, in my opinion, as other than a couple of examples, wooden coasters don't often tend to have much theming, and I'm not entirely sure why. Here are the top 5 rides I would say are the main candidates (in no particular order):
  • Wicker Man (Alton Towers) = Has the cool theming structure, a well themed queue line and an awesome pre-show. Also looks awesome in the dark:
  • Wodan Timbur Coaster (Europa Park) = Has a really well-themed indoor queue line and some nice fire effects. However, there's not really a lot of on-ride theming other than the tunnels:
  • Apocalypse (Six Flags Magic Mountain) = Has a couple of great pre-shows and a great queue line, a great fire effect and it did have onboard sound when it first opened:
    Or at least it had all of these qualities when it was known as Terminator, anyway:
  • Joris en de Draak (Efteling) = There's not really a lot on this ride, but the queue looks to have some nice themed touches, the station looks nice and there's a cool-looking dragon animatronic that spurts out fire:
  • Mystic Timbers (Kings Island) = If it wasn't for the shed, this probably wouldn't be here:
    I suppose there's also some audio up the lift hill.
Out of these, I'm not sure which to pick, but I would probably go for either Wodan or Apocalypse. Tell me if I've missed any.
 
Wodan's queueline/station is super impressive but you're right, it lacks in on-ride theming. In terms of other woodies, Wicker Man is definitely up there and I think surprised a lot of people in its overall experience. When all the effects are working, it really is a stunning sight - I haven't ridden it yet, but I've heard really positive reviews on that front too. Joris & Draake definitely deserve an honourable mention for its station.

I feel like the difference with wooden coasters to steel is that they are generally quite aesthetically pleasing and the rides generally look 'fuller' because of the supports, therefore theming isn't used as frequently for them. Struggling to think of many woodies that have a lot of extensive theming to be honest. A lot of woodies rely on interaction with other rides/itself/terrain so usually gets a pass on the theming front.
 
Do the old original scenic railways count? Some of the theming on them was fantastic, check out some of the photos in the old rides topic for proof.

In terms of modern woodens, Wicker Man does deserve a mention here out of the few I've ridden. Same goes for Joris, love that dragon animatronic.
 
Pear said:
Heidi the Ride is very nicely themed IMO

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Oh yeah, forgot about Heidi. Thanks for reminding me. I did once hear someone say that they thought Heidi was a better themed experience than Wicker Man; would you guys agree with them, out of interest?
 
Matt N said:
Oh yeah, forgot about Heidi. Thanks for reminding me. I did once hear someone say that they thought Heidi was a better themed experience than Wicker Man; would you guys agree with them, out of interest?
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I just got back from Plopsaland (trip report on its way) and I wasn't wowed by the theming (especially compared with The Dragon next door). It's a wooden coaster themed to The Alps, it kinda themes itself.

My vote's for Wodan (abstaining on voting Wicker Dude until I've ridden it). Not much of the ride itself, but the queue, station and various scenery bits littered about are enough (love the torches on top of the lift hill).
 
you're all wrong.

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the fact you can't see any of Tivoli's scenic railways supports means its an automatic winner.

and it has a goat.
 
Thecoasterrus said:
I would say Wodan for all the details, such as the queue, station, ride area and the atmospheric soundtrack.

Sent from my G3221 using Tapatalk
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Urgh don't, you'll start @Climb fangirling again :D
This topic is kinda interesting because it turns out modern wooden coasters just don't have that much theming
 
No one's mentioned Mammut at Tripsdrill yet, which has a short but sweet dark ride/theming section before the main ride that I really liked. Lots of moving saws and pulleys and things you'd find in a timber yard. Plus, the queue is a huge, neverending museum of really random olden day things like washing machines and farm equipment.
 
Mysterious Sue said:
No one's mentioned Mammut at Tripsdrill yet, which has a short but sweet dark ride/theming section before the main ride that I really liked. Lots of moving saws and pulleys and things you'd find in a timber yard. Plus, the queue is a huge, neverending museum of really random olden day things like washing machines and farm equipment.
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Oh right! Sounds amazing!
 
Mysterious Sue said:
No one's mentioned Mammut at Tripsdrill yet, which has a short but sweet dark ride/theming section before the main ride that I really liked. Lots of moving saws and pulleys and things you'd find in a timber yard. Plus, the queue is a huge, neverending museum of really random olden day things like washing machines and farm equipment.
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It's just a shame the ride is totally lifeless. ;)
 
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