Winter time is often full of lights, and joy, sipping a hot chocolate (with a bit of baileys) by the fire on a dark cold night. Unfortunately this means the one thing theme park fans dread the most: Closed season. The time of year where (at least in the UK) theme parks shut their gates to enthusiastic guests until the spring when the weather is safe again to resume operations. Of course the parks put on awesome events, for example Alton towers mind blowing ‘lightopia’ but it’s just not the same without the roaring of a massive steel machine flying overhead. So, this brings me onto today’s topic: what on earth are we supposed to do to get that coaster fix over the winter. Well my friends, look no further, because I have done the research for you and compressed it into this one post.
Fair grounds
whilst not quite the same as theme parks, Christmas time especially is a massive magnet for fairgrounds, very notably, London’s Winter Wonderland which is absolutely worth a visit if you can. Home to some amazing attractions such as the worlds largest portable looping coaster, the worlds largest portable wild mouse coaster, as well as drop towers, a ferris wheel, a dark ride and multiple interesting activities and stalls. However there are many fairs scattered all over the country, especially at Christmas light switch ons with a variety of flat rides to get that fix of adrenaline we all crave.
2. Games
Hopping over to something we can enjoy from home now, one of the marvels of living in this age is technology, and a personal favorite use of this for me is Planet Coaster. Whilst not quite the same as going to a theme park, planet coaster is a great way to enjoy park related things, such as trying to run your own virtual park, or if you are feeling creative, building your own digital coaster from scratch. The best thing about planet coaster is the accuracy involved, it calculates G force, speed and height as well as tells you how well your ride would fare in the real world with enjoyment, fear and nausea levels. You can also create all sorts of theming and landscapes to really bring your coaster to life. Of course there is a variety of games to choose from such as rollercoaster tycoon, and even Minecraft to bring your ideas to life. Definitely a interactive and fun way to get that park related enjoyment over closed season.
3. Content Creators
One if my absolute favorite ways to enjoy theme parks over closed season is to dig into some good YouTube videos made by people in the thoosie community. From blogs to top 10s to games, there are many talented and funny creators in the community to keep you entertained over winter. The wide variety of videos to choose from makes this a great and binge worthy experience to pass the time until the long awaited open season. Below are some of my favorite creators - in no particular order - that I totally recommend checking out if you are looking for some great videos to feed all your theme park cravings.
Digital Dan- Dan is a youtuber, vlogger and streamer who’s funny and relatable personality can keep you entertained for hours, weather it’s in a video, or if you hop in on one of his livestreams, this creator is always bringing a good laugh to the community. You can even get involved and join one of his planet coaster competitions, where a challenge is set and you can join in by building a coaster that fits the rules laid down. I recommend Dan to anyone looking for a giggle and some light hearted fun.
Screwy Loops - next up we have Dudley based creator screwyloops, entertaining us with fun and often informative videos about all things rollercoaster. My favorite series of his has to be the must-watch ‘did you know’ videos, which dive into some fun and interesting facts about our most beloved parks. From vlogs to ranking theme parks, screwyloops is granted to have something to entertain absolutely everyone in the community
first.drop - Over to Instagram now, fellow photographer first.drop is one of my favorite accounts visually to scroll through, full of great photos all year round you will see all your favorite attractions through the creative mind of a brilliant photographer. I love the unique angels this creator captures in their images, and throwbacks to old and gone rides. This creator is always a pleasure to come across online and a totally recommend giving them a follow for some of the most awesome theme park photos to grace your phone screens.
Coasterbot - Last but not least on the list is youtube creator Coaster bot. If you are like me and enjoy learning about the whys and hows of rollercoaster mechanics, Coasterbot has you covered. With videos that vary from general explanations about parts of coasters to more in depth looks at specific coaster manufacturers, there's something in his haul of videos that is bound to interest even the most knowledgeable fan. With geeky filled videos and a generous sprinkling of vlogs, I recommend this creator to anyone looking for some informational and interesting content.
4. Social Media
Social media is full of fellow thoosies who are in the same boat as you. Websites like twitter are full of people to interact with, and places like discord and telegram are a great place to chat with the community. On top of this there are blogs, like this one you are reading right now! Instagram photographers post all year round, as well as groups on Facebook for people who prefer that. Some groups and servers have game nights, kahoot quizzes, you name it, to bring the community together and keep you entertained whilst you cant be in the parks over the winter months.
So, be it kicking back and watching youtube, or testing out your inner creator, there is something to entertain every theme park fan over this winter, be it included in this list, or something not even I know about, theres always something to do in this community
Until next time -
The Travel Toast