A wiser man than I warned readers to “pack some spare underwear for Monday’s final journey into the twisted world of the ETPCA – we’ve some surprises in store”.

This man was Ben Mills of Theme Park Insider. While I am quick to sing his praises, I would like to argue that not one of the award winners was a true surprise. This isn’t to say they were unexpected, but every single winner of every single category was as deserving of award status as the other.

And that includes Walt Disney Studios, winner of the award that credits a park as being a fading star in the face of adversity.

The first winner was featured in five of the eleven categories – the Disneyland Resort. Specifically, Disneyland Parc, was awarded by being the favourite theme park for panellists.

While Theme Park Insider notes that this park hasn’t added a single ride for a decade, it is worth remembering that this is one of a few that balance the art of story telling with the ability to offer a host of exciting rides and attractions.

Of course, Europa Park is as worthy of this compliment as any park, and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed that with this same philosophy, as well as their recent unwavering investment, they didn’t win this category.

Pleasure Beach Blackpool triumphed in the Best Amusement Park category almost unanimously. With over a hundred years of rides and attractions and a real family backbone that is often forgotten while rides like the Pepsi Max Big One dominate the skyline, it really was the clear winner over other parks like the massive Wailibi World, Italy’s Miribilandia and Alton Towers.

Disneyland’s dominance continues in a further four categories. While the resort’s Manhattan Restaurant (Hotel New York) is credited with being the finest eatery at a European theme park, Pirates of the Caribbean was the obvious choice for best dark ride with a level of detail only Hex (Alton Towers) and Temple Del Fuego (PortAventura) could compete with.

Perhaps enforcing one of the reasons Disneyland Parc was voted the best theme park in Europe, their quality of customer service was also rewarded. It is probably safe to say that no other park in Europe invests as much in staff Disneyland Paris so it would have been a genuine surprise to see another park walk away with the prize that had Disney’s name all over it.

Another award with Disney’s name all over it was the Road to Nowhere category. Enter Walt Disney Studios. Since opening, the park has not only disappointed Disneyana fans (much like California Adventure), but coaster enthusiasts and attendance to the ailing park has helped plunge Euro Disney into even deeper debt.

In reality, the only other park that comes close is American Adventure, although lacking the financial gusto of Disney, it is easy to see why it is on the road to nowhere, while Walt Disney Studios by rights should never really have happened.

While to the panellists these parks face a bleak future, others look poised to embrace the future. Both Phantasia Land and Thorpe Park impressed panellists – Thorpe Park’s much-publicised Medium Term Development Plan offering promise of numerous coasters and support rides, and Phantasia Land’s future inverted roller coaster surely being something worthy of celebration.

The Hidden Gem category rewards parks that escape the gaze of enthusiasts. Our suggestion was Düsseldorf Kermis, yet even more surprising was the suggestion PortAventura was a hidden gem. As one of the most popular theme parks in Europe, I personally cannot understand why this gem of a theme park fits the criteria of being hidden – it is certainly one of the most popular pilgrimages European enthusiasts make and is undoubtedly as highly regarded as they come.

Nevertheless, Tivoli Gardens was victor. While the ETPCAs no doubt highlight this wonderful park, Dæmonen has done an excellent job of bringing this park to the attention of hundreds of thousands of people in a single year alone.

And speaking of coasters doing wonders for parks, Nemesis wins the title of being Best Roller Coaster. Up against Superman (Movie World Madrid) and even Alton’s glorified freefall, Oblivion, this punchy and well-paced B&M masterpiece is a deserving winner even eleven years on. It was surprising not to see Expedition Ge-Force nominated, though.

As parks trip over themselves to become resorts, PortAventura’s Caribe Aquatic Park wins over Miribilandia Beach and the popular Spanish waterpark, Aqualandia. With regards to resorts, while both Alton’s hotels were up for nomination, against Phantasia Land and Europa Park – the eventual victors – there simply was no competition.

MS 2 April 2005

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Articles marked with an asterisk (*) are on Theme Park Insider. Tabs will appear at the top of the page so you can return to Coaster Kingdom. 

▪ Our Votes
▪ Making Our Mind Up - how we decided
▪ The Winners*
▪ The Nominations*