Nara Dreamland (奈良ドリームランド Nara Dorīmurando?) was a theme park near Nara, Japan which was built in 1961 and inspired by Disneyland in California. On August 31, 2006, Nara Dreamland closed permanently.
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Layout
The entrance to the park was designed to look almost identical to Disneyland, including the Train depot, a Main Street, U.S.A. and the familiar Sleeping Beauty Castle at the hub. It also had a Matterhorn-type mountain (with a Matterhorn Bobsleds-type ride), and the skyway running through it, as well as an Autopia-type ride and a monorail.
Attractions
The park contained several rides prior to closing, including
- Aska, a wooden roller coaster similar to Viper at Six Flags Great America
- Screw Coaster, an Arrow Dynamics designed double corkscrew steel roller coaster
- Bobsleigh, a steel roller coaster modeled after the Matterhorn Bobsleds
- Fantasy Coaster
- Kid's Coaster
Other rides included a carousel, a small powered coaster, a Jungle Cruise styled ride, and a log flume.
Disney connection
An urban legend states that land developers sought a partnership with Walt Disney but continued building the park after their efforts failed. This supposedly outraged Disney. Approximately 22 years later, Japan would get an official Disney park, Tokyo Disneyland.
Sources
External links
- Dreamland on Google Maps
