Theme park season is almost here, and if you look hard enough, your local park might be offering a sneak peek of the upcoming season any day now. No offense to Six Flags, but we’re thinking about planning something a little bigger for 2010. That’s why we are eager to see exactly what’s up with one of the world’s newest theme parks: Ferrari World. Sure, it doesn't yet have an official opening date and it’s a lot further away than Harry Potter’s new home, but driving a Ferrari around the United Arab Emirates sounds like a worthy alternative. Here are just a few things to look forward to when Ferrari World opens in Abu Dhabi later this year.
This coaster will bring guests one step closer to actually driving a Ferrari as crazy and quickly as can be imagined. There’s two competing tracks, so you’ll be racing your buddies while sitting in something that resembles the latest in Italian super car design. The cars are replicas of a Ferrari F430 Spider, but they could definitely pass as the real thing if they had an engine. Designers have even included different launch sections which they hope will simulate real racing conditions, but you’ll probably just be trying to hold on as you reach speeds of about 60 mph.
· Yas Hotel
Any above average theme park needs an on-site hotel where visitors can rest up and recharge after a day in the parks. Ferrari World takes it to the next level with their Yas Hotel. It’s a 500-room hotel that surrounds one of the newest Formula 1 race tracks in the world. There’s loads of connectivity options, and they’ll even bring you an Xbox if you ask for one. If there’s a downside to this hotel, it might be that it is just too fancy. We’re not used to five-star lodging after a day of corn dogs and soda, but we’ll probably get used to it even if the place does look like a giant penis.
This thing is going to be the park’s biggest attraction, and that might be why they’re keeping things hush-hush for the time being. We do know that this is going to be the fastest coaster in the world, and it will claim this record by hitting speeds between 125 and 150 mph. We haven’t been able to find a guaranteed top speed, so don’t be surprised to see that things creep a little higher as we approach opening day.
· The Roof
In total there will be about twenty rides and attractions featured at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, all dedicated to everything racing and performance. There’s one of those drop towers to simulate extreme g-forces, but the one here will go over 100 ft in the air and will drop you back through the roof. The whole park is inside a 21-acre, Ferrari-red roof, and it's is topped with the largest Ferrari logo in the world—just so you know how to find it from the sky, we guess.
