Wonderland – The Ghost Theme Park of China revisited
Nestled outside of Beijing, China sits what was supposed to be one of the regions best theme parks – Wonderland Amusement Park. I first wrote about the Magic Kingdom Ghost Park back in August but it’s getting some attention again with a new story from Reuters.
Situated on an area of around 100 acres, and 45 minutes drive from the center of Beijing, are the ruins of ‘Wonderland’. Construction stopped more than a decade ago, with developers promoting it as ‘the largest amusement park in Asia’. Funds were withdrawn due to disagreements over property prices with the local government and farmers. So what is left are the skeletal remains of a palace, a castle, and the steel beams of what could have been an indoor playground in the middle of a corn field.
According to Reuters, it’s a sign of a decaying property bubble in China. Apparently it popped 10 years ago and no one noticed. With Disney building its own new Magic Kingdom outside Shanghai, you have to wonder about Shanghai Disneyland’s prospects for success if the Chinese bubble does finally collapse.
Check out the post from August to see an artsy video of Wonderland and even more links. Then click below the jump for a video from Trey Ratliff’s Stuck In Customs travel site:
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