Tour Europe in 50 Rides (Leg 4) Quiz

Answer: Yes

Unfortunately the Mack-built version of the teacups ride shares this characteristic with most rides of this type: Nine of the twelve cups are mounted on the smaller platforms providing the full ride experience while the last three are stationary, mounted directly on the big platform. While the lesser experience is good for small children, sometimes you're just among the last riders to get on and have no choice but to ride in one of those much less wild cups.

Tip: If you do have a choice of cups, take a good look at the ride's floor. You'll easily be able to spot which of the cups provide the full and which only the reduced experience. If you can't make it out, head for one parked near the hub of the ride - the stationary ones are all on the edge.

Answer: The pattern is constant for each car, but varies between cars and trains

Each car on the ride has a fixed spinning pattern, but with four cars per train and at least four (I think it's five) trains on the ride, you will need a really good memory to remember them all. Regardless of what train and car you are in, the cars will spin several times while on the enclosed lift hill, then rotate continuously during the first slow section, lock for the first drop and ascent, then switch 180 degrees and remain locked for the rest of the ride so you'll always get to enjoy a scenic view of the park and some forward and backward coaster segments.

Tip: Ride on the last car - if you are lucky or skilled enough to catch the right rotation, you'll get to have an unobstructed backward view on the final segment of the ride where it is really fun to face backwards. If there's a line, watch the trains as they cycle through and try to remember which cars come in facing the same way they left and which do the opposite. Of course if there's no line, you can just ride more than once and enjoy all variants!

Answer: The Firebird

The Firebird is also an important character in Russian mythology. In this story, it merely represents an obstacle which Snegurochka needs to pass to return to the stars after she realizes she can't stay on Earth once spring comes.

All characters in the ride are represented by traditional Russian wooden dolls manufactured in the park itself by some of the Russian craftspeople running their workshops in the area - you can watch them work during the day and of course purchase some of the finished works in the park. You didn't expect anything else, did you?

Answer: Shoot some water at riders along with a maniacal laugh

In spite of the outhouse-like design, there is no bathroom humor involved and the lifted cover will only reveal the guy's head. He'll laugh and then slightly drench a few riders. Whether this is considered lucky or unlucky is up to the weather; in winter, the figure will rise up and laugh, but there will be no water if temperatures don't make it fun to get a little wet.

Tip: Don't miss the ice skating show in Greece, located right next to Icarus. It's quite spectacular.

Answer: YoungSTAR coaster

Which of these four options would you want to be strapped into as a four year old? I guess being a young star isn't the worst thing, so we'll go with that one. In 2017, there were five YoungSTAR coasters in operation around the world; probably the most famous of them is the "Harry Potter"-themed Flight of the Hippogriff at Universal Studios Hollywood. (The ride of the same name in Orlando is a re-theming of an older Vekoma coaster).

Answer: Boats actually float freely during the water sections

The world's first steel roller coaster, Disney's Matterhorn Bobsleds, opened in 1959, already included a water section towards the end of the ride, both for the effect and to aid braking. However a true water coaster requires that the water section is actually free-floating like in a log flume ride instead of the boats continuing on a coaster track, possibly pulled by a chain mechanism (which is what Efteling's ride uses).

As of 2017, none of the water coasters in operation - nine, if one does not count the Supersplash rides that have a coaster track but no turns - feature any inversions and it would probably be very difficult to build one given that, due to the constant changes between track-guided and floating operation, the boats do not run as smoothly in the track as a well maintained pure steel coaster - the ride experience is somewhat bumpy, similar to that of a wooden coaster.

Answer: Madhouse

Madhouses exist in many European parks with some of them being much better done than others - the better ones manage to convince riders' senses they are actually doing a complete loop while others' ride patterns just break the illusion. Cassandra makes use of lighting including some stroboscopic effects and a custom soundtrack for a pretty convincing ride.

Both Loop the Loop and Inverter rides turn riders upside down in a circular pattern; the difference is that an Inverter is mounted on an arm and has a central hub while Loop the Loop rides - which are getting very difficult to find - run on a coaster-like track. Topspin rides consist of a platform suspended between two rotating arms; by locking and unlocking the platform against the arms, very wild ride patterns with multiple quick somersaults can be realized.

Answer: You can score each red only once per game

The seven red dots in the game are a necessity for a high score; together they are worth 95,000 points. The most valuable one is the one on the anchor just before the halfway point - easy to spot, but very hard to hit. It is worth 30,000. Blue and green dots can be scored over and over (there is about a second of cooldown between hits), so they can add up quite considerably as well.

Tip: If you have the time and want to practice for a good score, spend a round or two just looking for the red dots. Three of them are near the ground, one is above you (and facing backwards), the other three should be quite easily spotted. Apart from hunting reds, pick blues that are static or move only slowly and keep hitting them as long as you can - it's much more efficient to farm one dot than to constantly look for new targets. Really high scores are achieved only when riding alone, preferably with an empty vehicle or two both in front and back of you. On a quiet day, you'll easily be able to get that - in spite of a high replay value, the ride is not usually busy.

You might have noticed I say "if you have the time" quite often during my tips. Europa-Park can be enjoyed as a one-day visit if you prioritize, but, depending on the level of your theme park addiction, two, three, or even five days are not unreasonable durations for a visit.

Answer: Nothing - it's truly freewheeling

Bobsled coasters rely on their halfpipe track design with ample space to keep the trains going smoothly even if their balance and speed vary considerably between individual runs. The low guiderails you see in the picture are just an additional precaution in case of a stalled train or blocking wheel causing a deviation from the ride's normal path - in normal operation, the train will stay way clear of them.

Eight of the nine existing installations of this ride type were either by Mack Rides or by Intamin and in spite of the general principle being the same, the ride layout and overall feeling of the two designs are considerably different. The ninth and final operating bobsled coaster, at Knoebels Amusement Park in Pennsylvania, is a wooden design recreating the classic "Flying Turns" bobsled coasters of the 1930s.

Tip: This coaster can seat two persons per car, with the front rider sitting between the rear rider's legs similar to the arrangement seen in many log flumes. If you're traveling with a child or friend and wish to board as a pair, the taller or heavier rider should board first and sit in the rear - line up this way at the gates for quick boarding.

Answer: Jungfrau

I hope your Geography knowledge helped you out here - Zugspitze is in Germany, Brenner in Austria and Vatnajökull is the huge glacier covering most of Iceland.

While the ride uses a similar rotational pattern to a teacup ride, the relative speed of the secondary rotation is much slower, resulting in a gentle ride with some up and down movement. The ride's movement would make it suitable for parenzs with smaller children, but the seating and restraint system restrict to a minimum of 120 cm (48"), resulting in it being one of the least popular rides of the park in spite of some beautiful details is the theming.