Gardaland

Gardaland is an Italian park located in Castelnuovo del Garda in Veneto. It is very close to Lake Garda, from which it gets its name.

History of the Gardaland amusement park

The original idea for an amusement park on the shores of Lake Garda was conceived in the early 70s by Livio Furini, a Veronese entrepreneur inspired by a recent visit to Disneyland in California... Thanks to his spirit of initiative, Livio Furini finally, a few years later, on July 19, 1975, inaugurated an amusement park destined to become the number 1 attraction destination in Italy: Gardaland!

After the success of the first few years, Gardaland began to significantly accelerate its growth path in 1984, which would lead it to become, over the years, one of the main amusement parks in Europe, thanks to the introduction of many new attractions, impressive in terms of their size and visual impact.

After consolidating its position among the "greats" not only at a European level but also globally, Gardaland was ranked in 2005 as the fifth best amusement park in the world by the prestigious Forbes magazine!

But the most important novelty of recent years was undoubtedly the arrival, in 2004, of the fantastic Gardaland Hotel! Gardaland is therefore the first Italian amusement park to boast its own themed hotel, opening a strategic path that would lead it to become, in a very short time, THE Italian resort, a holiday destination where you can spend several days immersed in fun and fantasy!

2006 is an extremely important year in the history of Gardaland: it's the year the company was acquired by the Merlin Entertainments group, which is home to many other major names in the entertainment sector, world-renowned brands like Madame Tussauds, LEGOLAND parks, and the London Eye.

2008 is the year of another fantastic new addition, which strengthens the notion of Gardaland as a Resort of Fun: the park and hotel are joined by a brand new, fascinating, entirely themed aquarium, Gardaland SEA LIFE Aquarium - the first entirely themed aquarium in Italy!

To further enrich the Resort's offering, Gardaland inaugurated Gardaland Adventure Hotel in 2016, a new structure themed down to the smallest detail, capable of allowing guests to relive the most epic adventures... from the wild west, arctic glaciers, a mysterious jungle, and Arabian "thousand and one nights" atmospheres.

Gardaland amusement park

The entire Resort covers an area of 45 hectares.

Within the park, there are many themed areas. Some themes are Burma, Atlantis, Hawaii, Egypt, the Middle East, China, the Wild West, the Middle Ages, space, cartoons, and pirates. In each area, you will find attractions, shops, and restaurants. The park also benefits from its proximity to Lake Garda to make the most of water elements.

In 2020, the park had 37 operational attractions.

Among the main attractions, we can mention Raptor, a B&M Wingcoaster, Blue Tornado, a Vekoma Inverted Coaster, Mammut, a Vekoma Mine Train, Oblivion: The Black Hole, a B&M Dive Coaster, Sequoia Magic Loop, formerly Sequoia Adventure by S&S Worldwide. For water attractions, we can mention Fuga da Atlantide, an Intamin Aquacoaster, Jungle Rapids, a raft ride, Colorado Boats, a flume. For thrill rides, we can highlight the Space Vertigo drop tower.

There is also a children's area based on the Peppa Pig universe.

The Gardaland Hotel

Opened in 2004 as the park's first hotel, it is built in the New England style, with gardens, lakes, outdoor fountains, and themed rooms. Inside there are restaurants, conference rooms, and the Blue Lagoon water area, open in summer.

The Gardaland Adventure Hotel

In 2016, a second hotel was inaugurated, the Gardaland Adventure Hotel, with a themed restaurant called Tutankhamon Restaurant and themed rooms.

The Gardaland Magic Hotel

In 2019, a third hotel structure was inaugurated, the Gardaland Magic Hotel, dedicated to a world populated by magical creatures, with an internal themed coffee bar, the Quercia Magica Coffee Bar.

The Gardaland SEA LIFE Aquarium

The Gardaland SEA LIFE Aquarium is the first Sea Life created in Italy by Merlin and the 28th in the world. Inaugurated on June 1, 2008, it is located next to Gardaland park and shares the same car park. The construction cost was 15 million euros and the complex covers an area of 19,000 m². It is built on two floors and is almost entirely covered (except for the sea lion pool), it consists of 37 pools that recreate natural environments and habitats in which it is possible to observe more than 5000 specimens, from the most well-known species also present in Lake Garda to the most exotic ones. The aquarium has three types of pools:

- A cold freshwater system composed of 6 pools that reproduce three different environments: mountain waters, Lake Garda, and the Po Delta.

- A tropical saltwater system composed of 31 pools that reproduce different habitats; from tropical coastal areas to the deep blue waters of the ocean.

- A system dedicated to sea lions with an external tank of approximately 130 m².

There are also interactive tanks that allow you to see animals up close, a tropical lagoon, and the coral cave with gorgonians, jellyfish, scorpionfish, and other animals. There is also a restaurant overlooking the shark tank and a merchandise shop.

The Legoland Waterpark Gardaland

It will open in 2021 and will be the first Lego water park in Europe.