Canada's Wonderland is a 330-acre (130 ha) theme park located in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada, a suburb directly north of Toronto and owned by Cedar Fair. When Canada's Wonderland first opened in 1981 under Kings Entertainment Company ownership, there were 26 attractions. Today, there are 69, including the attractions inside Splash Works, a water park adjacent to the main theme park.[1] Since the opening of the amusement park, at least one attraction has been added every year except 2009 and 2013.[2] In addition, SkyRider closed permanently in 2014; it was the only roller coaster to close in the park's history and was relocated to Italy.[3] SkyHawk, a Sky Roller by Gerstlauer Rides, and Flying Eagles from Larson International opened in 2016. The 2017 additions include Soaring Timbers and Muskoka Plunge and the 2018 additions include Lumberjack and Flying Canoes; Soaring Timbers, Lumberjack, and Flying Canoes are flat rides, while Muskoka Plunge is a water ride.
Up until 1992, Canada's Wonderland did not have a water park. Eleven years after the park opened, Splash Works was constructed in the area surrounding the Mighty Canadian Minebuster.[2] Original plans and park maps during construction of the park show that the area that is now Splash Works and formerly White Water Canyon was originally planned to be a themed area called "Frontier Canada", a section of the park devoted to the Canadian wilderness.[4][5][6] Although this section became realized in 2019, albeit under Cedar Fair management, several of the elements that were to be included are scattered across the park before then.[4] Yukon Striker, a dive coaster from Bolliger & Mabillard, was added in 2019 in the Frontier Canada section to replace SkyRider.
For safety, Canada's Wonderland uses a ride rating system that classifies the attractions based on the intensity of the ride. The ratings vary from 1, for rides that are calm and gentle, to 5, for rides that have high speeds, aggressive forces, and rapid elevation changes. A separate set of ride ratings criteria is used for attractions inside Splash Works, though the rides are still rated on a scale from 1 to 5.[7]
- ^ "Canada's Wonderland History". Canada's Wonderland. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
- ^ a b "Canada's Wonderland Timeline". Canada's Wonderland. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
- ^ Karstens-Smith, Gemma (August 7, 2014). "After 29 years, SkyRider's ride comes to an end". The Toronto Star. Archived from the original on September 2, 2014. Retrieved September 1, 2014.
- ^ a b Dick Brown, Louis Cauz (ed.). "It's a great beginning but look what's ahead". Memories of Canada's Wonderland. Toronto ON: International Sports Properties (1980). pp. 46–47. Archived from the original on May 25, 2014. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
CWhistorywas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "1981 CW Souvenir Map". PCW Junkies. Archived from the original on June 17, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2012.
- ^ "Canada's Wonderland 2015 Guest Assistant Guide" (PDF). Canada's Wonderland. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2015.