Demons and killer Venus fly traps invade German park
Demons and killer Venus fly traps invade German park
New dark ride and re-themed coaster coming to Heide Park
Apparently, Heide Park, a theme park in northern Germany, discovered ancient catacombs under its property last year. Or at least, that’s the backstory the park is peddling for its new dark ride, Dämonen Gruft, that is scheduled to debut this spring. Heide Park hasn’t revealed a lot of details about the new attraction, but it is promising that it will be Germany’s scariest ride. (I’m not sure how that can be quantified, but hey, it’s theme park marketing, right?)
Going with the storyline, villagers have been taking visitors on “harmless” tours of the unearthed catacombs only to have some of them mysteriously disappear. It seems that a video has emerged warning that the catacombs are actually a dämonen gruft, or demon tomb, and that the tours are a trap to lure victims into the demon’s lair. So, of course, it only makes sense for Heide Park to build a ride and transport a bunch more guests down to the catacombs.
The dark ride, which will be located in the Transylvania area of the park, will be manufactured by Preston & Barbieri. The Italian company is known more for its roller coasters and flat rides than themed attractions. I don’t have anything else to share about Dämonen Gruft, but I must say that the ride’s key art (see above) looks promising. Heide Park also offers Ghostbusters 5D, an interactive dark ride based on the popular franchise.
Capitalizing on the new attraction, Heide Park Resort has Demon Rooms to book at its on-property Abenteuerhotel (Adventure Hotel). The tricked-out accommodations include light and multimedia effects. The hotel features rooms with other themes including Peppa Pig and Ghostbusters.
Also this season, Heide Park is reimagining its Limit coaster as Toxic Garden. The generic Vekoma SLC (suspended looping coaster), also located in the park’s Transylvania land, will include giant, carnivorous Venus flytraps that will threaten to devour passengers. As the park will have guests believe, riders will board “fully automatic jetpacks” so that they can become volunteer members of the plant squad and defeat the killer flytraps.
Vekoma SLC coasters, of which there are more than 40 worldwide, are notoriously rough. Over the last few years, the Dutch ride manufacturer has traded out the coasters’ punishing over-the-shoulder restraints for more accommodating vest-like restraints at some parks. There is no indication whether Heide Park’s SLC will get a similar upgrade, but it’s quite likely. Merlin Entertainments, which owns the park, does say that Vekoma is making “track corrections” to Toxic Garden. Between the track work, and (hopefully) new restraints, perhaps the SLC will deliver a much smoother ride experience.
Other rides at Heide Park include Flug der Dämonen, Germany's only wing coaster; Desert Race, an Intamin Accelerator hydraulic launch coaster; Krake, Germany’s first dive coaster; Colossos - Kampf der Giganten, a wooden coaster that drops 170 feet and hits 68 mph; Big Loop, a steel coaster that features two loops and a double corkscrew; and Scream, a 233-foot-tall drop tower that accelerates to over 60 mph.
There isn’t much to go on, but the Dämonen Gruft dark ride sounds promising, no? What do you make of the strange storyline for Toxic Garden? Have you been on any Vekoma SLCs that have been outfitted with the new, soft vest restraints?
Heide Park is actually the only overseas theme park I've ever visited! Way back in the summer of 1992 I went on a 3-week exchange student trip to Braunschweig, Germany, and my host family took me to Heide Park. Obviously it was much different back then, and I only remember 1 or 2 big coasters. I also remember the big Mountain-Rafting rapids ride was under construction at the time.
I've got an entire book of photos from that trip and I look back on that trip with really fond memories. Good to hear the park is still around and still thriving!
Random bit of trivia re: Venus fly-traps - they only grow naturally in a 90km area around Wilmington, NC where I live. They're highly endangered and you hear about arrests of poachers quite frequently. I've always been fascinated by them and did many a science project on them since they're such a localized rarity.