Need some help with inspiration about theme park influences for your creativity? Here are some ideas:
- Retired attractions, rides, shows, parks, etc,: something with a plane (Delta ride from Magic Kingdom), a Wizard of Oz card (the Wizard of Oz theme park in NC), someone enjoying an ice cream cone while standing by a black gas light (Old Chicago), Classic Movie (The Great Movie Ride, Hollywood Studios-Disney)
- Current attractions, rides, shows, etc.: Brer Rabbit handing the keys over to Tiana (Splash Mountain-ish), a coke-a-cola card (beverage sold at Schlitterbahn), something with the Peanuts Gang (Knotsberry Farm), something floral (Tafeti – Epcot), Wine (food and wine festival Epcot), Beer (the Edison), anything Polynesian (the Polynesian hotel)
- Defunct* attractions, rides, shows, parks etc.: a unicorn card (Beastly Kingdom), an American patriotic card (Disney’s America), an astronaut-inspired card (Apollo 13 ride at Universal Florida)
- Announced attractions, rides, shows, etc.: a dragon card (How to Train Your Dragon-Frisco, TX Universal Park), a pumpkin head card (Las Vegas-Universal Horror), a snowman (Frozen Land Disney Paris/Disney Hong Kong)
- If you need more ideas, here are a few more that are fairly obvious (to me, anyway): Cinderella(Disney, Magic Kingdom), Jurrasic Park(Universal), Harry Potter(Universal), Dr. Seus(Universal), Sesame Street(Sesame Place), Marvel(Universal, Disney), King Kong(Universal), Star Wars(Disney), Avatar(Disney), Jungle(Disney-Magic Kingdom; Animal Kingdom), Pirates(Disneyland), Space (Disneyland Paris), Toys(Hollywood Studios-Disney), Lego(Legoland), Mario(Universal), Nintendo(Universal), MIB(Universal), Simpson’s(Universal), Minions(Universal), Shrek(Universal), classic monsters(Universal), Scooby-Doo(Universal), carousel horse (pick a park), Morroco Inspired, Japan Inspired, Norway Inspired, France Inspired, UK Inspired, Mexico Inspired, China Inspired, Canada Inspired, German Inspired, Italy Inspired (all lands in Epcot)
- Slightly more obscure ideas: DC heroes (Six Flags), Warner Brothers cartoon characters (Six Flags), orca (Sea World), horse – Budweiser Clydesdales (Sea World), a cruise ship (SS Disney), chocolate (Hershey Park)
- Much more obscure ideas: model boat or a boat (model boat races at Centerville Amusement Park in Toronto), someone or something involving skiing (Mineral King Resort in Sequoia National Park – Disney), something sea-themed (Port Disney – Long Beach, CA)
*My definition of defunct is something announced but never built.
I live in the US and have limited knowledge of theme parks outside my country. I would love for you to email me (makira@parkhoppingmyhappyplace.com) or leave comments below so I can add more content.