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First time at Portaventura
- Thread starter cjbrandy
- Start date
cjbrandy
Hyper Poster
ThomVD said:
Its a fantastic park with lots of effort put into theming and a lovely medditerranean climate, only gripe is that the park is one giant circular loop and more shortcuts are needed! If you want to get to Mexico (Hurakan Condor, El Diablo etc) its an extremely long walk.
CookieCoasters
Giga Poster
Ha, I never ride the blue side of Stampida anymore <//3. I quite like the red side though. Have you done any water rides? If not, you should definitely do them as they're a great bunch.
cjbrandy
Hyper Poster
CookieCoasters said:
I rode all 3 yesterday in the space of an hour and a half thanks to our express wristbands, they were all very solid. The flume had a great and fairly sizable final drop, Tutiki Splash was refreshing and the rapids had decent rockwork and were really really fast.
cjbrandy
Hyper Poster
Part 2: More ride reviews and final opinions
Shambhala final opinion
Amazing coaster! Im missing it as much as I miss my girlfriend, you can ride it all day without feeling ill and thanks to our express wristbands we got over 30 rides in total, many at night when the airtime is at its strongest, its almost scary how strong it is near the front of the train as it crests the hills. Its my most ridden coaster for now and Im very intimate with the layout, Im really going to miss it
. Unlike The Swarm for example, it doesnt ever seem to get boring to whore! If I want to add some excitement to one of my re rides I simply have the bar so loose that I fly right out my seat on the hills. Most of our rides were at the back, we always ran there because it gives the best experience on the first drop as you are dragged down into the tunnel. There was only one ride I didnt like because it frightened the **** out of me. It was last night which was a special night because the park was open until 3am, I got stapled into my seat unfortunately and it was so tight that whilst going over the first hill, my restraint came up by a click. I wasnt in any danger but it gave me a heart attack!
Dragon Khan final opinion
Its one of the roughest steel coasters Ive rode and I never thought that would be a B&M. Despite this, I LOVED it and appreciated it the more I rode and familiarised myself with the layout. I got a total of 12 rides, the short express queue allowed me to run round for more everytime though I couldnt ride more than 3 or 4 times in a row without getting a headache from the intensity. Its such a long and forceful layout, the zero G roll is a highlight and the most intense part of the ride as the rotational speed of the inversion increases half way through. My brother absolutely hated it though because he didnt keep his head forward like I warned him to! He bashed his ears on the hard as concrete B&M OTSRs and said he'd "rather ride Stampida blue again". He simply didn't appreciate this classic B&M as much as myself and thats ok because its really not for everyone. Are there any B&M loopers or inverts you readers find more intense than Dragon Khan? Please let me know because I think it will be difficult to find any looper from any manufacturer more intense than this beast! I think thats part of the reason I liked it so much, when it comes to forcefulness I'm a bit of a sadomasochist and want as many Gs as possible hence why I think I'd really enjoy I305.
Furius Baco final opinion
I think Im the only person I know who has a neutral opinion of this, erm, questionable Intamin launched wing coaster. Most people I see here either think its complete **** because its so rough (a valid argument) or a totally awesome launch coaster because of the great sense of speed and lovely setting. I LOVE the beautiful medditerranean setting of the ride, I loved the launch because I found it ever so slightly more drawn out than Stealth's yet still very intense, I love the slow (and literal) barrel roll but at times, the rest of the coaster was almost unbearable! I had 4 rides in total, if the ride was smooth I would have rode a LOT more but most of the time I'd come off with a migraine and whenever I'd had a few drinks with dinner I'd be too scared to re ride because I knew I'd feel horrible afterwards. I must say that the recently added restraint padding is a very nice touch, it takes a lot of the sting out of the roughness but those turns are so nasty. I really wouldn't have wanted to ride this before they were added! Please PortAventura, sort this ride out! If they managed to make this smooth as a B&M IMO it would be the most enjoyable and re ridable launch coaster on the planet, it really frustrates me because it has so much potential. For now I would have to give it a 6/10.
At least it has a bad ass name and an awesome logo sign
Stampida Red final opinion
Im keeping this one short, the ride is ferocious but too rough, its barely passable. 3/10. The Kumbak trains suck, they are really uncomfortable. PortAventura REALLY need to retrack the ENTIRE ride, it would be so worth the money and time and if they did that I reckon it would be a solid 7/10 coaster that I would grab somd re rides on.
Stampida blue
Im going to use an infamous quote which I believe is from nadroj? Its **** ****! Much worse than Grand National imo because of the **** trains.
Tomahawk
Its a CCI kids/family woodie with the same name as an American CF member, I got the impression from Smithy that this was going to be a brutal ride but Im assuming he rode it before it got new trains because there was nothing particularly offensive about this ride whatsoever, in fact it was fairly fun. The sound leather upholstery made the strong laterals comfortable and whilst it wasnt smooth, it wasnt too rough either. Solid 5/10.
Tami Tami
A Vekoma rollerskater, it was simply an inoffensive +1 to the count.
Hurakan Condor
First drop tower and I'll be riding them all from now on! I suppose the drop isnt particularly intense but you can definitely feel it in the stomach, I liked how long it was too (some 283ft!). Unfortunately the lack of an express queue, popularity and poor operations (I noticed a trend: the coasters were ran fine but the flat rides weren't!) meant I couldn't whore this like I wanted to. Stand up floorless may be the more 'badass' and 'manly' way to do it but I personally prefer sit down because its more comfortable! I cannot wait to ride Apocalypse at Drayton now.
El Diablo
This 1995 Arrow Mine Train is fairly well themed and has some decent speed to it but damn you are in for a bumpy ride! I leaned forwards and held on to the handlebar to stop my ribs being bruised. I didnt hate the ride however, I thought it was alright, fairly well themed and I had a decent little night ride on it.
Overall thoughts on the park
Its absolutely fantastic and well themed! My only minor gripe is that the food prices are **** eyewateringly expensive (our we being cheapskates or do any of you agree?) so we went into Salou whenever we wanted a meal. Improvements I want but kind of doubt I'll see are the complete retracking of Stampida and MAJOR modifications to Furius Baco. I would also like to see the flat rides run more efficently, there is no excuse to run 2/5 gondolas on Hurakan Condor unless they are broken!
I couldn't resist treating myself to some merch so I got a Shambhala t shirt and bracelet, here is what my lovely girlfriend had to say about that:
Thanks for reading!
Shambhala final opinion
Amazing coaster! Im missing it as much as I miss my girlfriend, you can ride it all day without feeling ill and thanks to our express wristbands we got over 30 rides in total, many at night when the airtime is at its strongest, its almost scary how strong it is near the front of the train as it crests the hills. Its my most ridden coaster for now and Im very intimate with the layout, Im really going to miss it
. Unlike The Swarm for example, it doesnt ever seem to get boring to whore! If I want to add some excitement to one of my re rides I simply have the bar so loose that I fly right out my seat on the hills. Most of our rides were at the back, we always ran there because it gives the best experience on the first drop as you are dragged down into the tunnel. There was only one ride I didnt like because it frightened the **** out of me. It was last night which was a special night because the park was open until 3am, I got stapled into my seat unfortunately and it was so tight that whilst going over the first hill, my restraint came up by a click. I wasnt in any danger but it gave me a heart attack!
Dragon Khan final opinion
Its one of the roughest steel coasters Ive rode and I never thought that would be a B&M. Despite this, I LOVED it and appreciated it the more I rode and familiarised myself with the layout. I got a total of 12 rides, the short express queue allowed me to run round for more everytime though I couldnt ride more than 3 or 4 times in a row without getting a headache from the intensity. Its such a long and forceful layout, the zero G roll is a highlight and the most intense part of the ride as the rotational speed of the inversion increases half way through. My brother absolutely hated it though because he didnt keep his head forward like I warned him to! He bashed his ears on the hard as concrete B&M OTSRs and said he'd "rather ride Stampida blue again". He simply didn't appreciate this classic B&M as much as myself and thats ok because its really not for everyone. Are there any B&M loopers or inverts you readers find more intense than Dragon Khan? Please let me know because I think it will be difficult to find any looper from any manufacturer more intense than this beast! I think thats part of the reason I liked it so much, when it comes to forcefulness I'm a bit of a sadomasochist and want as many Gs as possible hence why I think I'd really enjoy I305.
Furius Baco final opinion
I think Im the only person I know who has a neutral opinion of this, erm, questionable Intamin launched wing coaster. Most people I see here either think its complete **** because its so rough (a valid argument) or a totally awesome launch coaster because of the great sense of speed and lovely setting. I LOVE the beautiful medditerranean setting of the ride, I loved the launch because I found it ever so slightly more drawn out than Stealth's yet still very intense, I love the slow (and literal) barrel roll but at times, the rest of the coaster was almost unbearable! I had 4 rides in total, if the ride was smooth I would have rode a LOT more but most of the time I'd come off with a migraine and whenever I'd had a few drinks with dinner I'd be too scared to re ride because I knew I'd feel horrible afterwards. I must say that the recently added restraint padding is a very nice touch, it takes a lot of the sting out of the roughness but those turns are so nasty. I really wouldn't have wanted to ride this before they were added! Please PortAventura, sort this ride out! If they managed to make this smooth as a B&M IMO it would be the most enjoyable and re ridable launch coaster on the planet, it really frustrates me because it has so much potential. For now I would have to give it a 6/10.
At least it has a bad ass name and an awesome logo sign
Stampida Red final opinion
Im keeping this one short, the ride is ferocious but too rough, its barely passable. 3/10. The Kumbak trains suck, they are really uncomfortable. PortAventura REALLY need to retrack the ENTIRE ride, it would be so worth the money and time and if they did that I reckon it would be a solid 7/10 coaster that I would grab somd re rides on.
Stampida blue
Im going to use an infamous quote which I believe is from nadroj? Its **** ****! Much worse than Grand National imo because of the **** trains.
Tomahawk
Its a CCI kids/family woodie with the same name as an American CF member, I got the impression from Smithy that this was going to be a brutal ride but Im assuming he rode it before it got new trains because there was nothing particularly offensive about this ride whatsoever, in fact it was fairly fun. The sound leather upholstery made the strong laterals comfortable and whilst it wasnt smooth, it wasnt too rough either. Solid 5/10.
Tami Tami
A Vekoma rollerskater, it was simply an inoffensive +1 to the count.
Hurakan Condor
First drop tower and I'll be riding them all from now on! I suppose the drop isnt particularly intense but you can definitely feel it in the stomach, I liked how long it was too (some 283ft!). Unfortunately the lack of an express queue, popularity and poor operations (I noticed a trend: the coasters were ran fine but the flat rides weren't!) meant I couldn't whore this like I wanted to. Stand up floorless may be the more 'badass' and 'manly' way to do it but I personally prefer sit down because its more comfortable! I cannot wait to ride Apocalypse at Drayton now.
El Diablo
This 1995 Arrow Mine Train is fairly well themed and has some decent speed to it but damn you are in for a bumpy ride! I leaned forwards and held on to the handlebar to stop my ribs being bruised. I didnt hate the ride however, I thought it was alright, fairly well themed and I had a decent little night ride on it.
Overall thoughts on the park
Its absolutely fantastic and well themed! My only minor gripe is that the food prices are **** eyewateringly expensive (our we being cheapskates or do any of you agree?) so we went into Salou whenever we wanted a meal. Improvements I want but kind of doubt I'll see are the complete retracking of Stampida and MAJOR modifications to Furius Baco. I would also like to see the flat rides run more efficently, there is no excuse to run 2/5 gondolas on Hurakan Condor unless they are broken!
I couldn't resist treating myself to some merch so I got a Shambhala t shirt and bracelet, here is what my lovely girlfriend had to say about that:
Thanks for reading!
Pink Cadillac
Giga Poster
cjbrandy said:
This happened to me on the Florida multi-loopers. </3
Nice report though. Didn't realise you were going. Glad you had a great time!
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Smithy
Strata Poster
haha she just doesn't understand, my gf came away from our first trip with a dragon khan mini dress so I knew I was on to a winner there.
Nah wasn't mentioning Tomahawk for it's roughness, it's actually a gem of a little coaster imo (at least it was when I've ridden it pre new trains I believe), it's nothing outstanding but it's the least rough woodie there and most people overlook it which is a shame as it's a great little woodie.
Khan's zero-g is immense.
Shambhala is immense as the sun is setting, view over Salou, front row so you're cresting slowly and float over the hills, back row so you get dragged over. I missed it as you've started to haha, it's such an experience.
Didn't really notice the food was expensive but then we only got fast food, hot dogs and burgers, rather than any of the sit down places.
Nah wasn't mentioning Tomahawk for it's roughness, it's actually a gem of a little coaster imo (at least it was when I've ridden it pre new trains I believe), it's nothing outstanding but it's the least rough woodie there and most people overlook it which is a shame as it's a great little woodie.
Khan's zero-g is immense.
Shambhala is immense as the sun is setting, view over Salou, front row so you're cresting slowly and float over the hills, back row so you get dragged over. I missed it as you've started to haha, it's such an experience.
Didn't really notice the food was expensive but then we only got fast food, hot dogs and burgers, rather than any of the sit down places.
CookieCoasters
Giga Poster
cjbrandy said:
I'm going to go out on a limb and say DK is the most intense *non-inverted* B&M Multi-looper. People go on and on AND ON about how intense Kumba is, but I didn't really notice any significant difference between the forces on that and those on most B&M Floorless coasters.
As for inverts, I'd say Batman Clones, Katun and Monster are perhaps a little more intense than Khan, but not much. Montu and Nemesis would be on a par IMO. I agree with you about the roughness; it's the only thing that spoils Khan a bit for me. If it was smoother, it would be one of the best B&Ms. As Pink Panther mentioned, the sit-downs in Florida suffer the same issue, which I find interesting.
caffeine_demon
Strata Poster
Monster at walygator is easily the most intense B&M..
cjbrandy
Hyper Poster
^ Monster looks fab, it appears to be a smooth version of Raptor which has a fantastic forceful layout but I hear is as rough as an aging Vekoma SLC. Im sure I'll get myself there one day but I would have to go alone, Walygator is hardly a European destination park from what I've heard!
CookieCoasters
Giga Poster
^ Monster is AMAZING <3, but yeah, Walygator is vile. You'd probably be better off ticking off the major European parks and then downgrading to parks like Walygator afterwards 
cjbrandy
Hyper Poster
^Europa Park is next on the hitlist! It was close between PA and Europa Park for this year, I picked PA because I fancied the warm medditerranean climate and because whilst Silver Star is said to be a fairly good B&M hyper, everyone was banging on about how incredible Shambhala was and now I understand why <3
cjbrandy
Hyper Poster
ThomVD said:
Ah yes Liseberg is a great shout, Helix looks like it could take Shambhala's spot as my number 1, Balder looks great and Kanonen plus the Schwarzkopf with the hard to spell name look like good fun too. Since I do drop towers now, Im sure I'd love Intamin's AtmosFear, one of the worlds tallest drop towers.
ThomVD
Giga Poster
Liseberg also has high quality water rides and flats, while Europa lacks severely in both departments. If you don't go for the theming and overall park feel, you'll deffo prefer Liseberg. Europa has two amazing coasters and two really good coasters, aside from that the rides are more quantity over quality. Plus, Liseberg has later opening times so you can get night rides. Helix at night is a must.