Troy at Toverland near Venlo in Holland is a landmark ride for both operator and manufacturer. Transforming the profile of a park that began life as an indoor attraction, the 1km-plus long wooden coaster is also one of the largest constructions ever for Great Coasters International (GCI), and only its second in Europe. A ride that might seem at odds with Toverland’s family focus has in fact been a long time dream for park owner Jean Gelissen. Here Jean’s sister, Toverland director Caroline Maessen, explains why Troy is helping the park provide a more balanced offering, putting it on course to smash the half-million attendance barrier for the first time.

Cedar Point, Sandusky, Ohio, has introduced Maverick, its 17th rollercoaster and the most at any single park in the world. Paul Ruben profiles one of the latest linear synchronous motor (LSM) launch coaster from Intamin.

The Flying Dutchman (Vliegende Hollander) is the Efteling’s largest, most expensive and complex attraction ever. A never before tried combination of dark ride, walk-through, water ride and coaster, the project took the park so long to perfect that it was delayed by a full season. But just as Captain Willem van der Decken was determined to sail the Flying Dutchman ship in the legend of the same name (“I will sail, storm or no storm, even if I have to sail to Judgment Day”), so Efteling officials were determined to get the ride right before it opened to the public this Easter.

Enjoying its first full season under the ownership of the Spanish-based, private equity-backed Parques Reunidos group, Mirabilandia remains one of Italy’s most popular amusement parks and has just opened Raratonga, a Polynesian-themed water ride (pictured) perfect for the summer. Park World called ahead of the big Assumption Day holiday in August.

Are you prepared to defend the actions of your ride operators and maintenance staff when an accident occurs? Having the proper documentation of all employees’ training is one of the most important aspects of defending your park.

My spring trips to China gave me a chance to ponder the current issues regarding copyrights and the attractions industry.

Back in the early '70s I began photographing and writing about amusement parks because I was concerned they would all soon disappear. Traditional amusement parks were being bulldozed, and shopping malls and condominiums were rising in their place. They're no fun.

Here’s an arresting sight from down under! Laservision spends much of its time creating multimedia shows and spectaculars, but recently installed a radical new safety warning system inside the Sydney Harbour Tunnel.

Making the most of its “Jurassic Coast” World Heritage Site surroundings, Crealy Adventure Park in Devon, England, added a temporary dinosaur attraction this summer. Open for the school holidays only, featured within Dina’s Lost World were a Dinosaur Extinction Maze, Dina's Climbing Wall and the Dizzy Dina Ride, a spinning cup-type ride chosen by Crealy’s board of young directors.

Blackpool is expected to get a new giant Ferris Wheel in time for its annual illuminations, due to start in September.

A recent survey of indoor waterpark resorts in the US and Canada by Hotel & Leisure Advisors LLC (H&LA) indicates that the number of indoor waterpark destination resorts has grown from 30 available properties as of year-end 2005 to 43 as of year-end 2006.

Ripley Publishing and Tim O’Brien’s newest amusement industry book is journey through the weird, wacky and absolutely factual world of amusement park oddities and trivia. With more than 350 Believe It or Nots! and 50-plus original illustrations by Ripley’s official cartoonist John Graziano, nearly half of the book is dedicated to the bizarre, colourful and entertaining world of amusement parks, rides and attractions.

Life size dinosaur skeletons now guard the entrance to the new Skeleton Garden at Dinosaur World in Plant City, Florida.

Tim Schwering has been appointed vice-president of architecture, engineering and design for Ripley Entertainment and will be responsible for the concept design and construction of new projects as well as the coordination of all Ripley’s remodelling and renovation projects.

Exactly one year after breaking ground on the world’s first rock ‘n’ roll theme park, Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, celebrated the topping off mid-July of its most anticipated attraction, Led Zeppelin – The Ride.

At Ocean World, part of Daemyung’s Vivaldi Park in Korea, a new outdoor wave pool by Whitewater West creates waves tall enough for stand-up surfing – just like the real thing. The Egyptian-themed waterpark features both indoor and outdoor attractions that also include a Whitewater’s Extreme River, custom-themed AquaPlay interactive play structure and several waterslides.

The UK’s West Midland Safari Park (pictured) held its first ever late night summer opening for 10 days in August.

A seasonal employee at Loudoun Castle theme park in Scotland died in July – just as the summer season was about to take off. Eighteen-year-old Mark Blackwood was working on The Rat (a Maurer Wild Mouse) on Sunday, July 15, but fell from the ride after grabbing hold of a car. He later died at Crosshouse Hospital in Kilmarnock. Park owner Henk Bembom told Park World he was devastated by the incident. “The staff here are very close,” he remarked. As a mark of respect, the park remained closed on the day of the funeral. The Health & Safety Executive is continuing its investigation.

A new amusement park being planned in New Zealand has met with predictable complaints from local residents. The Crystal Mountain theme park in Swanson, West Auckland, will be much smaller than the country’s existing and moderately-sized Rainbow’s End but has nevertheless received objections from 212 of 216 people that made submissions to Waitakere City Council. We can assume then that thousands of those that made no submission at all are happy to see the park built. Including a mini rollercoaster, rapid river and tea cup ride, the council insists the park's design minimises environmental impact and noise limits will not be breached.

Efteling, the famous Dutch park in Kaatsheuvel, hopes soon to begin adding more overnight accommodation. In 1992 the park opened the Efteling Hotel, but slow planning decisions have stopped it building anything else until now. However, “now we see that most of the traffic lights are on green and we hope to lay the first brick next year,” confirms the park’s Henk Groenen. The new development will comprise a series of bungalows to the south of the park, close to the wooden coaster Pegasus.

Merlin Entertainments has sold but will continue to operate some of its most famous UK attractions in a deal that will help the group relieve some of the debt it acquired when buying the properties earlier this year.

The largest indoor family theme park in the United States is to be re-branded as Nickelodeon Universe. The Mall of America in Blooington, Minnesota, has teamed up with the number-one entertainment brand for kids to give a fresh look to its former Camp Snoopy park, beginning March 2008.

DreamWorks Animation has hired Joel Ward (pictured) to find fresh uses for the company’s properties in theme parks, live shows and other forms of location-based entertainment.

Fun Spot USA, a new attraction on Highway 192 next to Old Town in Kissimmee, Florida, has opened with two patented multi-level go-kart tracks and a selection of family rides.

A former Dolphinarium at Holiday Park in Germany has been transformed into the auditorium for a new multimedia spectacular. Amaceon is the name of the new show, which combines layered video projections, lasers, water, fire and numerous special effects to take spectators on a 15-minute exploration into Mother Earth.

The UK’s newest Ferris Wheel opened this summer at the Bayside Pleasure Park in Bridlington, East Yorkshire. The 38-metre tall Eye on the Coast was built to order by Mondial in Holland and features 24 enclosed air-conditioned gondolas.

Europa-Park’s fourth hotel, the Portuguese-themed Santa Isabel, opened in July adding 290 beds to the park’s accommodation offer and consolidating its position as the largest hotel complex in Germany, now boasting a total of four hotels and 4,454 beds.

Land train specialist Tschu-Tschu has been sold to Bartholet Maschinenbau of Flums, Switzerland, the company that just a few years ago became the majority shareholder in Bear Rides, also from Switzerland.

Noida Entertainment City (E-City), phase I of which opened this spring, is one of the biggest Indian amusement developments in recent years. Spread over a 62-acre site outside the industrial city of Noida in North West Delhi, the development includes two main components – Metro Walk, a themed retail environment, and Adventure Island, a world-class amusement park.

River Battle, a US$5 million themed water raft ride with powerful soaker guns, will be introduced as a major new attraction for 2008 at Dollywood. The ride will be supplied to the Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, park by a well-known German manufacturer.

A number of options are currently under consideration for the former Sofia Land site in the Bulgarian capital of the same name. Whatever the outcome, a new amusement park looks unlikely.

The Danish institution Tivoli has abandoned plans to build a Norman Foster designed hotel after the project failed to win the support of the Copenhagen Conservative and Liberal parties within the City Hall.

England’s Flamingoland theme park and zoo unveiled a new water play area in July – unfortunately it was already pretty wet at the park, just as it had been across the country for most of the previous month.

Furius Baco is the first ‘winged’ launched coaster from Intamin. Now thrilling guests at Port Aventura, Salou, Spain, it has become the park’s new signature attraction, propelling riders fro 0-135kph in three seconds, as they sit in pairs suspended either side of the track.

Dutch Wonderland, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, introduced a package of new attractions for summer 2007, including Turtle Whirl (pictured), a themed Tilt-A-Whirl from Sellner Manufacturing (pictured).

Although a large proportion of the show is still given over to ‘other’ leisure outlets (sports clubs, fitness centres etc), this September’s Leisure Industry Week still offers plenty for parks and attractions operators.

Steve Cook, Gold Reef City, South Africa: The Occupational Health and Safety legislation in South Africa does apply to amusement parks and attractions, but is of general application. There is, however, no dedicated or specific legislation governing amusement rides and devices. We therefore comply with our obligations in terms of the health and safety regulations – but as a matter of course we also follow what is considered best practice in the industry globally, as these requirements are more focused and specific. Detailed and rigorous inspection is carried out by appropriately qualified independent experts on a regular basis.

An 18-hole adventure golf course has opened at Legoland Windsor near London. The £300,000 (€443,000) attraction is based on a woodland theme and features Lego models of creatures such as squirrels, foxes, moles, otters and dragonflies.