As promised, here is a rundown of some of the new things at Adventureland this season…
New Website
The first thing to note is that, sometime last year, the park got a new website:
https://www.adventurelandresort.com
It is worth noting that this is a new domain name (though it is a domain name they have had for awhile). Previously, you would see AdventurelandPark.com used.
Bernie’s Barnyard
Last year, the park announced that a new children’s area would be coming in 2018. Bernie’s Barnyard will be located where the corporate picnic area was, between the Tornado and behind the Storm Chaser.
During last year’s Oktoberfest, they had a banner announcing it:
It is already on the in-park maps, too.
The area is supposed to open in June. Currently, it looks like they have just begun working on the ground:
Doc and Leone’s Diner
It was recently announced that the Iowa Cafe was being replaced with a new facility called Doc and Leone’s Diner.
The new sign, shown above, may seem a bit out of place in the “early 1900s” of Main Street, but if you visit many older main streets in Iowa, you will see a mixture of classic architecture and modern upgrades (like finding a Subway or Starbucks there).
The remodel looks huge. According to my “park source,” the location will still be a counter service location, but the whole area is being remodeled.
And the new menu is very intriguing:
Collard greens? Count me in! Those were easy to find back in my home state of Texas, but not so common here in Iowa. I look forward to eating through this menu.
During the remodel, the famous adventureland fried chicken is available at the newly repainted Fun Foods next door.
Oh, and if you already miss the inside bench seating that Iowa Cafe had, take a stroll over to Dragon Island and you might find something familiar…
Goodbye, Inverter
Several folks posted in my Adventureland Iowa Fans (Unofficial) Facebook group that the Inverter was no longer listed on the website. There were also posts showing a photo of it on a “for sale” site for amusement park rides. We now know it has been removed from the in-park maps as well:
And everything is gone from the site, as well:
Although they reused the queue building from Super Screamer when The Inverter was first installed, you can see that it has been completely removed.
Food, Glorious Food
There are some major food updates this year. New colorful menu boards have been added, and they clearly mark items that are “New for 2018“:
And just like we got “fancier’ items like baklava last year, the trend continues. There are some interesting (and delicious) new items, including Fiesta Street Corn.
Over at Coca-Cola Cafe, be sure to check out this Monster Burger:
There area also Loaded Nachos, a BBQ Sundae, Sriracha Chicken Waffle Cone, gluten free Mac and Cheese, Chicken and Waffle Sliders, a new Outlaw Burger, Speciality Pizzas (like a Gyro Pizza) and Cereal Shakes, among many other new items. There’s even Little Smokies in a cone at Petunia Pig! I’ll try to split out these food offerings in future posts, but for now, suffice it to say that the new chefs brought on last year seem to have had a quite busy off season coming up with these items.
And someone please try this Funnel Cake Bacon Cheeseburger and let me know what you think:
The food locations also show operational improvements. The serving counter at Rathskeller has glass doors covering up the food now, for instance.
Games, Games, Games
My favorite Lucky Puck game has moved a bit, to make way for an upcoming huge crane game:
Side note… If you want bottled water, just play Lucky Puck. It costs $5 to buy two bottles of water, and if you play the game, you get two plays, and each one is guaranteed to win at least a small prize, which is currently a bottle of water. You might win $5 in arcade credits, or $5 in game play… or even an Adventureland ticket.
The bowling game is missing in action, but Dee/Anna in the Facebook group reports they saw it installed near the Skee Ball.
Meet me on Main Street
Back on Main Street, Airbrush Avenue has departed…
The clearance store, which used to be next door, is now in the “post office” building:
And the corner store now contains items that used to be at the post office:
The fire house, which used to rent strollers and sell some items, is closed…
The Adventureland Store in the school room is also gone, and the stroller rentals have been moved there:
I need to find out where the Adventureland Store has moved. That was the place I spent the most money, outside of food and drink…
Speaking of Drinks
And speaking of drinks… the Bier Garten has new beer offerings this year, and Iowa Beer and Wine has added more beer taps, and is now a full bar!
Many types of alcohol, including Iowa brandys and whiskeys, are available. You can even get a “flight” of the good stuff.
They even have something I had never seen before. Many restaurants, and most bars, have a single dispensing hose that has buttons on it that let them select Coke, Sprite, etc. Adventureland has racks of liquor bottles that are all hooked up to a similar hose that lets them quickly dispense the “good stuff” without having to deal with individual bottles. This will no doubt greatly speed up drink service on the busy days!
There is also a new selection of cocktails, and a new frozen drink: The Blue Lagoon. While the original frozen green Monster drink will always hold a special spot in my heart (and belly), I think I like the Blue Lagoon even better.
Adventureland has always been an “all ages” park, but with so many of the rides focusing on younger kids, it’s really nice to see the adults getting more and more things to keep them occupied.
General Upkeep
There are so many other things going on, including many buildings getting fresh paint. Notice the newly repainted black windows near Icee Mix-It-Up:
And it is just me, or did they repaint (or replace) the remote controlled boat “island”?
Those might have been updated last year, but with so much getting “refreshed” it now starts making the whole park look better.
Lady Luck
Lady Luck has a new computer-controller multi-color LED light show:
I can’t wait for the park to be open past sunset to see what it looks like at night.
And much more!
There are so many more items I’d like to mention, but I’ll save those for a future update. With all the new food, tasty adult beverages, game and attraction improvements this year, “reporting” on them should keep me really busy this season.
I won’t be able to get to the park until Memorial Day Weekend (at the earliest), so please comment on this post and let me know what I have missed.
Until next time …