Jean Baudrillard thought of theme parks as places which define reality, at least in America, by exclusion. As long as we have Disneyland to point to and say "THAT is fantasy" we can believe in the reality of our ordinary lives in absurd places like Los Angeles. This is why we see such a proliferation of theme parks in Southern California in his view--they function as reality anchors.

Theme park metanode and unofficial quest

There are hundreds of theme parks around the world, but remarkably few have been noded. I am not a god or editor-type-person, but I will promise to C! any good theme park nodes that are written here on E2. What we want? Well: When did it open? Where is it? How do you get there? What is its theme? How much does it cost to get in? When is it open? What age group is it aimed at? What kind of rides does it have? If you have been to the park: What was it like?
Send me a /msg with a hardlink to the park, and I will add it to this node and shower it in love

Stuff you can find in amusement parks (and on E2)

• Ferris Wheel
• Musée Mécanique (largest slotmachine museum)
• Rollercoaster (see also suspended coaster, inverted coaster, heartline coaster, multielement coaster, freeform coaster)

Computer games involving amusement parks

• Rollercoaster tycoon
• Roller Coaster Factory
• Sim Theme Park

Stuff that relates to amusement parks:

• Death at Disney Theme Parks
• an amusement park ride we make for ourselves
• The Watergate Hotel is really a haunted amusement park.
• all the great themes have been used up and turned into theme parks

Theme Parks

United Kingdom

• Alton Towers (1980) (see also tales from Alton Towers)
• # Chessington world of adventure
• Drayton Manor Theme Park
• Legoland Windsor (LEGO, 1996, Windsor)
• # Thorpe Park

United States of America

• American Adventures (Georgia)
• # Busch Gardens
• Cedar Point (Sandusky, Ohio)
• Disneyland (disney theme, 1955, Anaheim, California)
• Dollywood (Dolly Parton, 1960s, Pigeon Forge, Tennessee)
• Disney World (disney, Florida)
• Great America Amusement Park (America, 1976 , Santa Clara)
• Kennywood (1899, Pittsburgh, PA)
• * Legoland (California)
• Six Flags (no theme, 37 parks all over the world)]
• * Splendid China
• # Universal Studios

Australia

• # Adventure World
• # Australia's Wonderland
• Dreamworld (Queensland)
• # Fox Studios
• # Sea World
• # Warner Bros. Movieworld
• # Wet n' Wild

Canada

• La Ronde (1967, Montreal, Quebec, now owned by Six Flags)
• Canada's Wonderland (owned by Paramount)

China

• # Chinese Ethnic Culture Park
• # Splendid China
• # Window of the World

Denmark

• # Bakken
• # Bon Bon Land
• * LEGOland
• # Tivoli

Finland

• Moomin World (The Moomins, 1993)

India

• # Appu Ghar (New Delhi)
• # Electraworld (Meerut)
• # Esselworld (Bombay)
• # Fantasy Land (Bombay)
• # Kishkinta (Chennai)
• # Water Kingdom (right next to Esselworld)

Netherlands

• # Dolfinarium Harderwijk (more a zoo than a theme park, but themed around dolphins)
• * Efteling (faery-tale theme, 1952, Kaatsheuvel)

New Zealand

• # Rainbow's End

Norway

• # Bø Sommerland (Waterland)
• # Hunderfossen familiepark (multi theme)
• # Tusenfryd (no real theme)

Persian Gulf

• Aladdin's Kingdom (1001 night, 1994, Quatar)

South Africa

• # Ratanga Junction (Cape Town)

Sweden

• # Astrid Lindgrens varld (see also: Astrid Lindgren)
• # Liseberg (Gothenburg)

*) could do with a more extensive writeup
#) has no writeup on E2 yet

Obviously, this is work in progress. I like theme parks, but I don't like hundreds of people standing in lines, which is what theme parks usually are. Besides, I have not been to all the world's countries, and there are probably hundreds of parks I have not even heard about. And that is where you come in! Node a park, and send me a /msg, so I can add it here :) All other suggestions are also welcome.