Adventureland: Your ultimate guide to Iowa's largest amusement park
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Riders on "The Monster" at Adventureland. Photo courtesy of Adventureland
This is the first summer Adventureland is under new ownership after the Krantz family opened the amusement park almost 50 years ago.
- Since Palace Entertainment, an international amusement park company, purchased the property in 2021, they have made some major changes — both visible and not to park visitors.
Of note: Palace Entertainment inherited the Altoona-based park at a tumultuous time, following the death of a child on the water ride Raging River.
- The family filed a wrongful death lawsuit Thursday against the park's former owners.
Yes, but: Bill Lentz, the current general manager of the park, said Palace has already made some major changes and they'll continue to invest "tens of millions" of dollars over the next several years.
- "That's probably one of the benefits of being a large part of a larger company. You've got a lot more resources to be able to ensure you're following best practices," Lentz said.
🎢 What's new: There are nine new rides this year, including the Rockin' Rainbow, Leap Frogs and Circus Balloons. Most of the new rides are geared towards younger kids.
- If you walk into the Main Street area, everything is repainted. There are plans to repaint the rest of the park next year.
💵 Cost: Purchasing tickets online ranges $50 to $60 depending on the day you plan to visit the park. They're more expensive at the gates.
- The park is also cashless now, but there are machines installed to convert cash into Visa cards.
🍗 New food: Buffalo cheese curds, "Beyond" chicken tenders and a barbecue mac and cheese made their debuts this year.
🎵 Concert series: There are concerts from local and regional artists every Friday as the park tries to focus on more experiential events to go along with the rides.
What's next: Expect a major new attraction to open in 2023, as well as added amenities at the water park. Plus — there are plans to upgrade the hotel.
- The future of Raging River is still being decided as engineers analyze its safety.