Canada’s Wonderland is buzzing with construction activity and when all is said and done, some areas will look completely new and transformed, while others will feature a nod to the theme park’s past.
The renovations begin at the front gate as the entrance to the park is being updated.
“For the first time in more than 40 years guests are going to enter the park a different way than they’re used to,” Grace Peacock, director of communications for Canada’s Wonderland told the Daily Commercial News.
The entryway will bring guests through new pathways and under timber frames under the Leviathan ride.
“We’re essentially stretching out the process into a wider space for the purpose of just creating efficiency with our entry process,” said Peacock.
“It’s really just this new entryway that we’re building because Leviathan, the edge of our roller coaster, it sort of comes out and then turns back around right on top of the front gate plaza. That area always used to be a lockout area where people couldn’t go. There was a fence because the coaster was right there. We’ve now added safety netting underneath Leviathan so that people can walk right under there. That’s where those pathways and those new queue lines have been created.”
There will be a dedicated entryway now in the middle and dedicated exits out the two sides of the plaza, Peacock added.
The flagship store in the front gate area is also being renovated and expanded.
“You used to only be able to access that store from inside the park but now we’re going to have an exit door into the plaza,” said Peacock, adding there will be all new lighting fixtures, flooring and wall units for displaying merchandise.
They’ve also removed a ride, Xtreme Skyflyer, which provided a bungee/skydiving experience.
“We had it for 26 years and it was removed and disassembled. The foundation was torn up and the ground has been flattened there,” said Peacock. “That’s all for future area development.”
One of the park’s main restaurant venues, Backlot Café, is being renovated with a new name and theme.
“This restaurant’s got a bit of a history because of the different ownership that we’ve had over the years,” Peacock explained. “When it was first built, it was called Ginza Gardens. It was a Japanese-themed restaurant and it’s this area of the park where we have themed areas.”
It’s located in the Grand World Expo area of the park.
“The concept was it was like the Grand World Expositions of like the late 1800s where people would go to these exhibitions in Chicago or Paris and they would get to experience different cultures from around the world. There would be different cultural pavilions, international food,” Peacock explained.
“The park is really leaning on its history now and we are sort of refocusing on those original themes and trying to bring them back to life.”
When Canada’s Wonderland was owned by Paramount, a lot of the themes got changed because it was all about movies and popular culture, Peacock noted.
“A lot of our rides got renamed to movie names and Ginza Gardens the restaurant there was renamed Backlot Café,” she said. “It just didn’t fit in the area for Grande World Expo, so we’re giving it a makeover. It’s getting a new front façade, an updated outdoor seating area, the interior, the servery has been completely dismantled and is being redesigned for better efficiency. We’re renaming it Grande World Eatery.”
A new attraction this year is Moosehorn Falls, a giant boomerang waterslide that is coming to Splash Works.
“To date, we’ve been just focusing on the earthworks and getting the area levelled and now we’re pouring foundations for the ride,” said Peacock.
“The fibreglass and steel have arrived, so we are finishing the foundation work there. Then we’re going to start assembling.
“It has a zero-gravity wall, so it’s a raft ride that can take up to six guests.”
It’s inspired by waterfalls on the Broad River along the Moosehorn Trail in Fundy National Park in New Brunswick.
“In addition to going back to our roots and some of our themed areas, we’re also trying to embrace the Canadiana…being Canada’s largest theme park, bringing in more references from the best parts of Canada,” said Peacock.
All’s Well Hall restaurant venue is also getting renovated and a prestige lounge is being built for prestige season’s pass holders.
“We’re going to be creating a VIP space at the back of it on the patio,” Peacock noted. “We have different tiers to our season’s passes. The top one is prestige passholders. This space will be there for their exclusive use. It’s going to have couches and TVs and food service. That’s something that we’ve never had that will be open this season.”
The biggest challenge to date has been the weather.
“Being an outdoor attraction, we got a lot of unexpected snow at the beginning of spring …but all the crews are out there,” Peacock said. “They’re working full-tilt. It’s very rare for the teams to not come through on a deadline here.”
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