Theme Park Twinning

[Sandman]

I'm sure everybody here is aware of "twin towns" whereby two towns or cities from different provinces/states/countries partner together to promote cultural ties or form business/trade links. Well, I was deep in thought the other night about which theme parks I would twin together from different countries. There are quite a number of parks that bare many similarities despite being in faraway countries and whatnot.

So, which parks would you "twin" together and why? Have a think about it. What are the relations or even differences that would bring these 2 parks together? Perhaps it's the similarity in rides or park design. Could it come down to the park's location or target market?

A great example for me would be Alton Towers and Efteling. Both are fairly close to each other compared to other potential "twin parks". Both parks have some rich history, and are shrouded in themes of magic and myth which, in areas, ties into said history. They also share some resemblance in terms of design, with many areas surrounded by heavy woodland and natural landscaping. Ride-wise, there are also some non-linear similarities, with both home to B&M dive coasters (although the themes are starkly contrasted). When SW8 is complete, they will also both boast GCI family coasters. There could be further areas of similarity to explore but those judgements will have to be reserved for when I first visit Efteling in a few weeks time.

I am curious as to what other people's ideas may be. Perhaps some US parks are ripe for twinning with some European counterparts. What do you think?

Fun fact: The village of Dull in Perth & Kinross, Scotland is twinned with the community of Boring, Oregon, USA.

 

[GuyWithAStick]

I think it's obligatory to mention Holiday World and KK in a thread like this. Unless you go to somewhere like Orlando or Anaheim, there's really no other major parks this close in proximity to one another. Only an hour drive from each other(plus a 1-hour timezone difference), awesome collection of rides for both parks, and are some of the most enthusiast-friendly parks out there.

 

[Ben]

^That wasn't the question, at all. Those parks couldn't be less similar if they tried.

Nagashima Spaland could be twinned with every Cedar Fair park ever.

Busch Gardens Europe always reminds me of Alton, just with the valley setting and lots of greenery.

 

[CrashCoaster]

The first thing that came to mind when I saw the topic title:-

 

[Pink Cadillac]

Blackpool Pleasure Beach and Kennywood share lots of similarities in terms of ride line-up

 

[CrashCoaster]

^They will definitely when Icon opens.

 

[Sandman]

Blackpool Pleasure Beach and Kennywood share lots of similarities in terms of ride line-up

I reckon this one actually seems pretty reasonable. I can actually imagine these 2 parks doing this despite it not even being a thing.

 

[Jarrett]

Mount Olympus and Holiday World

The two parks are so similar and yet so different. Both feature a lineup of predominantly terrain wooden coasters (though Mount Olympus has yet to get a large steel like Thunderbird...probably good for our safety) that have rough lateral machines (Zeus and Legend), CCIs packed with airtime-filled drops (Cyclops and Raven), and balls to the wall insane Gravity Groups (Hades 360 and Voyage). Sure one of the parks is beautifully looked after and strives to provide a good experience while the other is sketchy and plagued with terrible operations, but it feels like different attitudes over very similar products.

I've actually held this opinion for a while so this was a good place to put it! Great topic!

 

[Pokemaniac]

TusenFryd and Liseberg, at least in the early 2000s.

For a start, they are both the primary park in a city with roughly half a million inhabitants. The E6 highway passes to the west of both parks.

They both built a large wooden coaster within a couple of years, on the side of the park bordering the motorway. A couple of years later, they followed it up with a blue-and-white Intamin launch coaster each. Although Kanonen was later scrapped, both parks still have a large, launched, multi-inverting coaster prominently displayed in the hillside by the park entrance. Both those coasters feature a Norwegian Loop and is primarily built with classic "tri-track" track structure.

Other than that, both parks feature a large Frisbee ride as their newest thrill attraction. They both have a log flume and a rapids ride. They both have a very small kiddie coaster (Den Aller Minste/Stampbanan) and a slightly larger family coaster (Rabalder/Western-Expressen). A somewhat old thrill-ish coaster is the third-largest coaster at both parks, they are also built within a year of another. Both parks have a carousel and a chair swing (at least until recently, in Liseberg's case). At some point, both had horror walkthrough attractions at the back of the park (only Liseberg's remains today, though). Both parks have large outdoor concert scenes, and feature some climbing up and down hills. At the very top of each park's hill lies a large shot/drop tower. Coincidentally, both parks struggle with noise complaints from neighbours on that side of the park, but space is at a premium on the side facing the motorway.

It's almost as if the parks were competing or something.

 

[Sandman]

^ Alright, you've convinced me that Tusenfryd is Liseberg stuck in an alternative reality (where things didn't go quite to plan )

 

[GuyWithAStick]

^That wasn't the question, at all. Those parks couldn't be less similar if they tried.

Nagashima Spaland could be twinned with every Cedar Fair park ever.

Busch Gardens Europe always reminds me of Alton, just with the valley setting and lots of greenery.

You're absolutely right, I completely misread the question. Sorry about that!

I guess for an 'actual' answer I'll say Beech Bend and Bay Beach. They're both very carnival-esque parks, they're both fairly old, and they both have some pretty awesome woodies. Wouldn't necessarily plan a whole trip around either of them though.