A Nuevo theme park
The focus will be on nature and luxury as much as coasters at Mexico’s BON
Happy holidays to all! I’ll be taking a break during New Year’s Day week, but I’ll be back with the theme park and attractions news you love the following week and continue my coverage of what’s new for 2026.
Sure, there will be roller coasters at BON, which is now under development in Mexico. There will also be immersive dark ride attractions, water rides, spinning rides, shows, characters, and other elements you’d expect to find at a theme park. But BON, which is scheduled to soft open in fall 2026 near Puerto Vallarta on the country’s west coast, is taking an intriguing approach.
It’s there in the name. Officially known as BON Luxury Theme Park, it will be as much about pampering guests as it will be about immersing them in stories and delivering thrills. “BON” is an acronym for Beauty of Nature, and its designers are taking great care to showcase the ocean, rivers, mountains, and tropical splendor of the park’s locale as well.
Grupo Vidanta, which is one of Mexico’s leading vacation resort operators, is developing the theme park at one of its existing properties. It has rebranded the 2,500-acre coastal destination as VidantaWorld Nuevo Vallarta. A theme park might seem like a curious addition to the high-end resort. How will G-force-induced screams reverberate in a place where hushed spa treatments and margarita-enhanced respites at the beach are de rigeur?
Just fine, according to Iván Chávez, executive vice president of Grupo Vidanta. That’s because the comfort and sumptuousness that is the resort’s hallmark will extend to BON.
“We are planning it all for low density,” Chávez explains. Instead of expansive midways designed for masses of people, the park will feature “thin, wooden walkways that will take you through the jungle and then you’ll discover an attraction,” he explains.
Essentially, BON is aspiring to Disney- and Universal-level lands and attractions but without the crowds, long lines, onerous need to make advance plans, imperative to slog through a packed itinerary, and other hassles that are often associated with parks.
“We want to ensure that when people come to this park, they know they’re going to have a wonderful experience,” adds Chávez.
Details are sparse about what exactly is on the way, but among the 23 attractions planned for lands such as Fantasy Gardens, Empire of Light, and Land of Legends will be Eternity, a boat-based dark ride; Vista Wheel, a Ferris wheel with swinging cars (think: the Wonder Wheel at Coney Island); and Beat It, an interactive flume ride from Vekoma.
There are also five roller coasters in the works, including Delia’s Adventure, a family inverted coaster from Mack Rides that will include show scenes. It will likely be similar to Arthur, a charming attraction at Europa Park. Ashara: Goddess of Fire will be a switchback mine coaster that, based on a rendering released by the park (see below), appears to include a wild element in which the namesake goddess will send passengers racing backwards with a massive fireball. BON’s most thrilling ride will likely be Tecuani Beast, a double-launch Vekoma coaster that will deliver six inversions.
Chávez also shares that there will be a flying theater attraction from Brogent that will send guests soaring over Mexico. They’ll get a bird’s-eye view of many of the country’s sights such as Copper Canyon, which at 25,000 square miles dwarfs the Grand Canyon.
While there haven’t been any movie or other intellectual property tie-ins announced, Cirque du Soleil will be represented at BON. The popular troupe is staging Ludo (Latin for “I play”), a water-based production that recently opened as the first phase of the theme park. The dinner show is presented in a 696-seat venue that incorporates fine dining along with Cirque du Soleil’s avant-garde-style feats of acrobatic agility.
As guests make their way around the park, they will be enveloped in lush landscaping that will accentuate the nature theme. While the architecture and decor will take inspiration from Mexican culture, it will be based on original, whimsical stories and characters, the details of which have yet to be revealed.
“You’ll find a fantastical version of nature with oversized flowers and buildings that will seem almost seem dreamlike,” Chávez hints.
And, he promises, there will be plenty of opportunities to decompress after a thrilling ride with lots of shaded seating and doting staff members who will provide exceptional service. There will be 25 restaurants, many of which will be full-service eateries with elevated menus. Should guests want to get away altogether from the park, admission will include access to the resort’s beach. To get there, they’ll be able to hop aboard the SkyDream Parks Gondola. The four-mile tram system connects the entire resort. (By the way, they won’t be able to make the journey by car, since the resort bans autos from the property to help maintain its away-from-it-all vibe).
So, how much will it cost to forego long lines and bask in all this luxury? While ticket prices have not been announced, Chávez says that they will be in line with what the major parks in Orlando charge. That would make it quite expensive for a park in Mexico, but competitive when considered on the world stage and the global market that Grupo Vidanta hopes to attract.
For a truly intimate and especially luxurious experience, folks may want to consider visiting the park during its soft opening period in 2026. That’s because initially, admission will be exclusively limited to Nuevo Vallarta resort guests, such as those staying at the new BON Hotel. (The general public will be invited to enjoy the park after its official grand opening, likely in 2027.) Opened in December, the 79-room hotel overlooks BON and will provide easy access to the theme park. Altogether, there are some 3,000 rooms across multiple hotels at the resort. According to Chávez, the resort is considering adding up to another 1,000 rooms with BON serving as a “reservations engine.”
VidantaWorld Nuevo Vallarta is also hoping to expand interest and room bookings with a new concert series, which kicked off in December with Lionel Richie. In May 2026, Michael Bublé will perform at the resort.
Grupo Vidanta is marketing BON as the “world’s first luxury theme park.” That is not entirely true. It could be argued, for example, that boutique parks, such as Discovery Cove at SeaWorld Orlando and Atlantis Aquaventure, already fit the bill. I had the opportunity to visit Katmandu Park, which was part of the oceanside Falcon’s Resort by Meliá in Punta Cana during the short window it was open. The failed park was similar to BON in some ways, although at a mere four acres and with a handful of attractions (none of which were roller coasters), it was considerably smaller in size and scope than the more grand park planned for VidantaWorld.
On the other side of Mexico, the company has rebranded another one of its resorts as VidantaWorld Riviera Maya. It features the already existing Jungala water park, the Jungala Hotel, and Cirque du Soleil Joya, a dinner show experience that has been delighting audiences since 2014.
With BON as its centerpiece VidantaWorld Nuevo Vallarta is making a bold play as a major theme park destination resort. It represents a unique and ambitious vision.
“Visitors will have access to the best of all worlds,” Chávez contends, describing the reimagined resort. “The best beach, the best vacation, the best entertainment, the best food, the best service. You know, that’s what we’re after.”
What’s your reaction to VidantaWorld’s concept of a “luxury” theme park? Would you want too visit BON?