Walibi Belgium

Walibi Belgium
Location Wavre, Walloon Brabant, Belgium
Coordinates 50°41′55″N 4°35′26″E / 50.69861°N 4.59056°E / 50.69861; 4.59056Coordinates: 50°41′55″N 4°35′26″E / 50.69861°N 4.59056°E / 50.69861; 4.59056
Owner Compagnie des Alpes
Opened July 26, 1975
Previous names
  • Walibi
  • Walibi Wavre
  • Six Flags Belgium
Rides
Total ±50
Roller coasters 7
Water rides 2
Website http://www.walibi.com/belgium/be-en

Walibi Belgium, formerly Walibi Wavre and then Six Flags Belgium, is a Belgian theme park located in Wavre, close to Brussels. During the 1998 to 2004 period, it was owned by Six Flags, Inc, an American theme park operator. It was later sold to Palamon Capital Partners. As of 2006, the park is owned and operated, along with Paris' Parc Astérix, by CDA Parks (a division of Compagnie des Alpes). The Walibi name comes from the mix of Wavre, Limal and Bièrges, three towns in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant, where the park is situated.

History

Entrance of Walibi Belgium

The park was founded in 1975 by Eddy Meeùs under the banner "Walibi Wavre". In its early years, it was known as a water-skiing area. About a decade after, in 1987, a waterpark, Aqualibi, opened next door. The park had some Tintin rides from 1975 to 1995, when it lost the rights to the franchise.

In 1998, the park was bought by Six Flags and, three years later, Walibi Wavre changed its name to Six Flags Belgium.

In 2004, Six Flags sold its European division to Palamon Capital Partners, a London-based investment company.

On November 7, 2004, Six Flags Belgium officially became part of the past. Any references to Looney Tunes and DC Comics characters had to be removed before the beginning of the 2005 season. The park reopened its gates on March 26, 2005, bearing the "Walibi Belgium" name.

In 2006, the park was taken over by CDA Parks, a French leisure group.

Rides

Present rides

The "Vampire" suspended rollercoaster at Walibi Belgium
The "Grande Roue" at Walibi Belgium.
"Inferno" ride at Walibi Belgium

Roller coasters

Name Type Year Opened Built By
Psyké Underground Launched roller coaster 1982 Schwarzkopf
Calamity Mine Mine Train roller coaster 1992 Vekoma
Coccinelle Steel roller coaster 1999 Zierer
Vampire Suspended Looping Coaster 1999 Vekoma
Cobra Boomerang 2001 Vekoma
Werewolf Wooden roller coaster 2001 Vekoma
Pulsar Steel roller coaster / Power Splash 2016 Mack Rides

Water rides

Name Type Year Opened Built By
Radja River River rafting ride 1988 Intamin
Flash Back Log flume 1995 MACK Rides

Thrill rides

Name Type Year Opened Built By
Dalton Terror Drop tower 1998 Intamin
Buzzsaw Top Spin 2001 Huss Rides

Family rides

Name Type Year Opened Built By
La Grande Roue Ferris wheel 1979 Vekoma
Music Xpress 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge[1] train ride 1995 Severn Lamb

Former rides

Roller coasters

Name Type Year Opened Year Closed Built By
Tornado Corkscrew with Bayerncurve 1979 2002 Vekoma
Vertigo Mountain Glider 2007 2008 Doppelmayr

Thrill rides

Name Type Year Opened Year Closed Built By
Bounty Looping Starship 1993 2002 Intamin
Inferno Enterprise 1975 2010 Huss Rides

Events

Summer Nights

During 5 Saturdays in a row in July and August, Walibi Belgium has their late night openings. During those nights, the park remains open until 11 PM and offers additional entertainment. Each night ends with a firework show around the lake, sometimes with a themed show.

Halloween

One of the events the park is known for is Halloween, traditionally during the last weekends of October and autumn holiday in Belgium. During Halloween, Walibi Belgium transforms into hell on earth with scary entertainment and other festivities. The park started celebrating Halloween in 2000 on a small scale, leading it to be one of the biggest Halloween events in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg.

Since 2008, Walibi Belgium introduced a storyline around the event which is still running in 2013. Every year, the story has an open ending, making visitors curious for the following year. This happens during a finale show, including special effects, music and actors. The park also creates scare-zones, zones in the park that get a Halloween theme. The park is also known for their number of haunted houses during Halloween. For 2012 and 2013, guests were welcomed in 6 different haunted houses spread over the park. The haunted houses the park offers are nowadays known for their often strange locations and aggressive and violent actors.

For 4 to 5 days, the park also has Halloween nights, with the park being opened till 9 PM.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Severn Lamb - Lincoln model Archived February 10, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/17/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.