Paramount Canada's Wonderland

The Logo of Paramount Canada's Wonderland
Interactive map of Paramount Canada's Wonderland
Location	Vaughan, Ontario
Opened	May 23, 1981
Owner	Cedar Fair, L.P.
Slogan	The best of Hollywood Entertainment
Operating season	May – October
Area	330 acres (1.3 km²)
Attractions
Total	60 Thrill Rides & 200 Attractions
Roller coasters	14
Water rides	20 Acre (81,000 m²) Waterpark – Waterpark, Outdoor Wavepool, 16 Water Slides
Website	[1]

Paramount Canada's Wonderland, located near Vaughan, Ontario, Canada, is one of North America's premier amusement parks, featuring more than 200 attractions. Situated just north of Toronto, Ontario, the park attracts 3 million visitors a year from May through October.

Wonderland is on the east side of Highway 400 between Rutherford Road (exit 33) and Major Mackenzie Drive (exit 35), 13 km (8 miles) north of Highway 401, 6 km (3 miles) from Highway 407 and 64 km (41 miles) south of Barrie. It is bounded by Highway 400 to the west, Jane Street to the east and has three entrances. Regular transit access is provided by York Region Transit, while GO Transit, Brampton Transit, and Mississauga Transit all run special services, as does YRT from Newmarket and Markham.

It was as far back as 1972 when the Taft Broadcasting Company first proposed to build a 1.50 km² (370 acre) theme park in the small village of Maple which is now part of Vaughan, Ontario. Several other possible locations had been considered, including: Niagara Falls, Ontario and Milton, Ontario, but the site in Maple was finally selected because of its proximity to the City of Toronto and the 400-series of highways.

Taft wasn't the first company to pinpoint Toronto as being a potential home to a theme park. Other companies including the Conklin family (who's Conklin Shows ran various midways around North America) had their own plans for a park in the Toronto area. Even Walt Disney investigated the idea of a park in Ontario, but decided the climate too cold and the operating season too short to be sustainable (Walt Disney World would become the desired expansion site).

The construction of the park was fought on multiple fronts. Many cultural institutions in Toronto felt that the new theme park would put them out of business. Many of the institutions included Ontario Place, the Royal Ontario Museum and the operators of the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) who felt that the Toronto market wasn't large enough to support more competition. Other groups that fought the building of Wonderland included a Vaughan residential association (called 'SAVE') who felt the increased traffic would reduce property values. Some of the concessions from the company included the building of a landscaped berm around the park as to reduce noise, and the visual sight of the large parking lot. Taft was concerned about opposition, to go so far as to fly a group of opponents and regional councilors out to Cincinnati as to show residents and town councilors the impact of one of their theme parks on the local community (It should be noted that up until the 1970s, Amusement Parks had the reputation of being poorly designed and 'unsavory'). People in the region were concerned that the new park would be similar and aesthetic to that of a carnival and midway like the CNE.

Wonderland is also responsible for changing of the master development plan for the Province of Ontario. The government had wanted to increase residential and commercial development to the east of Toronto - in the Oshawa/Pickering region - as to have the lands to the North of Toronto to remain agricultural. Wonderland was able to convince the province to amend the planning policy for the region, and secured infrastructure improvements (including a highway overpass, and sewage systems) to be expanded and built out to the site. The subsequent improvements paved the way for increased developments throughout the region.

Concerns were also raised about the cultural implications of allowing an American theme park to open in Canada. Many felt that it would be a "Trojan Horse" for American culture. To offset the criticism Taft planned to open Frontier Canada, a part of the park devoted to Canada's history. Early park maps show the area (encompassing what is now Splashworks, White Water Canyon, Paramount F/X Theatre and the southern part of Kidzville), as well as proposed attractions (including a steam passenger train). While Frontier Canada was never built, several elemental themes remain in the area, including White Water Canyon, the "Frontier-style" theming of the walkways and path railings, The Mighty Canadian Minebuster roller coaster, as well as the area's "Deep in the Forest" setting.

Other never realized elements to the park include a hotel and conference centre (to have built north of the park).

An episode of The Littlest Hobo was set at Canada's Wonderland in the very early days of the park.

The initial construction of the park began in April of 1979. During construction, Canadian companies partnered on the preliminary design and engineering of the project. Two years later, on May 23, 1981, Canada's Wonderland was officially opened by then Premier of Ontario William Davis. The spectacular opening ceremony included 10,000 helium balloons, 13 parachutists, 350 white doves, and a pipe band. Four children representing the Arctic, Pacific, Atlantic, and Great Lakes regions of Canada each poured a vial of water from their home regions into the park's spectacular fountain. Hockey superstar Wayne Gretzky also appeared as a special guest, helping to raise the Canadian flag.

The park's former connection to Hanna-Barbera productions was reduced after Paramount purchased the park in a successful attempt to bring families back to the park by providing children with Nickelodeon cartoon characters that were familiar to a new generation. While the Nickelodeon channel is not available in Canada, many of the network's shows air on YTV, making this decision logical. YTV had previously been involved in numerous projects at the park, including the 1992 direct-to-video Festival of Friends concert, raising money for Kids Help Phone.

On June 30, 2006, Cedar Fair, L.P. announced it completed the acquisition of Paramount Parks, which includes Paramount's Canada's Wonderland. [2] Canada's Wonderland is Cedar Fair's first park located outside of the United States.

Today, Wonderland has over 200 attractions, including over 60 thrill rides. The park has North America's 3rd greatest number of roller coasters with 14 in total, and North America's greatest variety. The park features eight themed areas on 330 acres (1.3 km²) of land which includes a 20 acre (81,000 m²) waterpark called Splash Works. Splash Works has over 2 million gallons (8,000 m²) of heated water, Canada's largest outdoor wave pool measuring 36,000 square feet (3,300 m²), a lazy river, and 16 water slides.

In 1983, Wonderland built the Kingswood Music Theatre, a state of the art 15,000 seat amphitheatre that used to play host to many "big-name" concerts. In recent years, the number of these concerts has dwindled to none at all, as many major artists have chosen to play at the Molson Amphitheatre at Ontario Place in downtown Toronto. For the past few years, Kingswood has played host mainly to cultural events. The SplashWorks waterpark is featured in the southwest quadrant; a small artificial mountain forms the park's central feature.

The park's themed areas are as follows:

• International Street
• Medieval Faire
• International Festival
• Nickelodeon Central, a new attraction to the Wonderland.
• Hanna-Barbera Land
• Kidzville
• White Water Canyon
• Splash Works
• Grande World Exposition of 1890, a section with exciting and new rides. Includes the Action Zone.

• Black Hole
• The Plunge
• Super Soaker
• Body Blast
• Riptide Racer

• The Bat - Steel shuttle Coaster with two loops and a cobra roll, built by Vekoma
• Dragon Fire - Steel double-loop, double-corkscrew with a downwards helix, built by Arrow
• The Fly - Wild Mouse roller coaster built by Mack Gmbh
• Italian Job: Stunt Track (Opened 2005) - steel, powered launch, built by Premier Rides
• Mighty Canadian Minebuster - Wooden coaster with modified out-and-back layout, built by Philadelphia Toboggan Company
• Scooby's Gasping Ghoster Coaster - Wooden, children's coaster, double out and back layout, built by Philadelphia Toboggan Company
• Silver Streak - Inverted steel family coaster, built by Vekoma
• SkyRider - steel stand-up, with one loop and a downward helix, built by Togo
• Taxi Jam - Steel children's coaster, built by Miller
• Thunder Run - Steel mine train coaster with no lift, built by Mack Gmbh
• Tomb Raider: The Ride - Steel flying roller coaster, built by Zamperla
• Top Gun - Steel suspended looping coaster, 5 inversions of various types, built by Vekoma
• Vortex - Steel suspended coaster, built by Arrow Dynamics
• Wild Beast - Wooden, modified Bearcat/Wildcat, built by Philadelphia Toboggan Company

• Antique Carousel - Philadelphia Toboggan Company Carousel #84, built originally in 1928. This is the oldest ride in the park, and comes to Paramount Canada's Wonderland by way of Happyland Hastings Park (Vancouver, BC: 1928-1934), Palace Playland (Old Orchard Beach, ME: 1934-1945), Palisades Amusement Park (New Jersey: 1948-1971). It was purchased by Taft Broadcasting, who were 50% owners in Canada's Wonderland when it was built, and was moved to Wonderland in time for the 1981 opening.

• CliffHanger - built by Mondial - Splash over top spin built in 2000. This was one of many flat ride additions to Wonderland. In 2000 Cliffhanger was introduced and in the next two years flat rides were added. The ride features a water fountain to give guests a special treat! This ride features two programs, a 'dry' and a 'wet' cycle. The wet cycles are only run on hot days, at the duty manager's discretion.

• Shockwave - Single arm holding several passenger gondolas. This ride suffers from chronic PLC programming issues, resulting in at least 1 maintenance call per hour due to the ride not being able to find it's zero point on the 'Z' axis when returning to it's load position.

• Drop Zone - Tower that sends riders up with legs dangling from seats, then drops them from over 230 feet in the air. The drop achieves speeds of over 100km/h.

• Jet Scream - A ride in which people are seated in a starship which begins using gravity as a force to push it forward and back.

• The Zumba Flume (1981-1994) a classic 'water log ride', was removed to make way for new rides. It was located where the current 'Top Gun' ride is situated.

• Wonder Mountain Walkway (1981-19??) Prior to the construction of 'Thunder Run' visitors could walk a pathway that led to an observation deck on the top of the mountain. It was closed to make way for relocated mechanical equipment that was taken from the inside of the 'mountain' and placed in the public areas. The portion of the walkway which went behind Victoria Falls remained open for a number of years afterwards, finally being closed in the mid-1990's due to safety concerns after a person drowned in the main pool area.

• HotRock Raceway (1981-2002) was closed in 2002 due to difficulty in maintaining the ride and increasing downtime. As of 2005, nothing has replaced this ride, and it remains open for future development of Nickelodeon Central.

• Bedrock Dock (19??-2002), a small boat ride, was removed in 2002 to make way for Scooby Doo's Haunted Mansion, as well as the ongoing removal of everything Flintstones-releated from the park.

• Wipe Out (1992-2004) was closed by the end of the 2004 season, however the slides remained in place as of August 2004.

• The Fury (1981-2003) It was removed at the end of the 2003 season to make way for Tomb Raider: The Ride.

• The Great Whale of China (1981-2003) It was removed at the end of the 2003 season to make way for Tomb Raider: The Ride.

• Bedrock Aquarium (19??-2004) a marine show tent, was closed in 2004 when Nickelodeon Central replaced the northern section of Hanna Barbara Land. Around 2002-2003 it was renamed the "Bedrock Event Tent", but was shut down after the last of the Flintstones-themed elements were eliminated from the park. As of 2006, the tent and aquarium facilities remain, although in a rather dismal state of disrepair.

• Bayern's Curve (1981-2001), a 16 car attraction that ran in a circle many times, situated next to Wonder Mountain, closed in 2001. This ride was most famous for the massive horn as part of the set and the blast the horn sounded as the ride started. Klockwerks replaced Bayern's Curve, as it was moved 'across the street' to accomodate Shockwave.

• Smurf Forest (1984-19??) A funhouse-like building that featured scenes of smurfs in their "natural" habitat.

• Orbiter This ride, formerly known as Sol Loco, was closed down during the 2005 season due to ongoing maintenance problems and low ridership. This ride will be re-opened as of July 10th 2006.

A number of rides and attractions have been renamed to correspond with area theme changes.

• Spinovator in Med was called Quixote's Kettles. It was renamed during the 1998 season.

• Klockwerks in Alpen was called Klockwurker.

• The Rage in Med was called Viking's Rage. It was renamed during the 1998 season.

• Nightmares in Med was called Wilde Night Mares. It was renamed during the 1998 season.

• Oribitor in Expo was called Sol Loco. It was re-named in 2000. The ride is currently closed, but will be re-opened by the end of the 2006 season.

• Wild Beast in Med was called The Wilde Beast. It was renamed during the 1998 season.

• Dragon Fire in Med was called The Dragon Fyre. It was renamed during the 1998 season.

• Thunder Run in Alpen was called Blauer Enzian, and was located elsewhere in the park. It was moved into Wonder Mountain and renamed Thunder Run in 1986.

• The Courtyard group catering facility in Med was called The King's Courtyarde. The date of the name change is unknown.

• The Paramount Theatre in Med was called The Canterbury Theatre. The date of the name change is unknown.

• The Backlot Cafe restaurant in Expo was formerly called Southside Grill. Southside Grill was totally renovated in 2005 and was re-opened as The Backlot Cafe, featuring large screen TVs, gourmet food stations and an improved decor. As a result of the name change, the Wonderland staff cafeteria (which used to be called The Backlot Cafe) was re-named Oscar's.

• Traveller's Roadside Cafe restaurant between the Vortex and White Water Canyon used to be Tucker's Roadside Cafe. The name was changed in 1997 to prevent confusion due the opening of the "Tucker's Marketplace" buffet restaurants across Ontario.

• You Go Grill restaurant in Expo used to be called.... I think it was called Dutch Treat or something..? Anyone remember?

• International Street Pizza Pizza used to be called Ristorante, an italian-themed restaurant. Wonderland Food Services stopped serving it's own pizza and italian food after the introduction of Pizza Pizza into the park.

• International Street Starbucks used to be La Cantina, a mexican-themed restaurant. La Cantina closed down in 2005.

• Arthur's Pizza Pizza used to be called Arthur's Pub & Grille. This restaurant stil features a licensed patio bar overlooking Arthur's Baye.

• SuperStars Recording Studios were removed from the park between 2000 and 2005 due to removal of the concession from the park. The video studio in Expo was replaced with a Hot Press tee-shirt stand, and the audio recording studio in Aplen was renovated and replaced with a prayer room.

The following rides have had their names changed, but the previous names are not known:

• Jokey's Jalopies (Hanna Barbara Land)
• Kidzville Station (Kidzville)

Transportation to the park has improved with more options:

• Toronto Transit Commission 165D Weston North--Extended north of Steeles to Major Mackenzie; seasonal extensions to Wonderland
• Mississauga Transit 288 Wonderland Express (formerly Route 88 seasonal Wonderland Express)provides service to and from the Mississauga City Centre Transit Centre
• GO Transit seasonal route from York Mills subway station

• Paramount Canada's Wonderland official site
• Roller Coaster Database
• PCW Online - unofficial Canada's Wonderland guide
• PCW Junkies - Canada's Wonderland fan site
• Google Satellite Image