WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary James A. Baker III faced open hostility to the Reagan Administration’s tax revision proposal Tuesday as the Senate Finance Committee began what is expected to be at least three months of testimony on overhauling the current tax code.
“The best simplification this committee could do for the country would be just to adjourn,” Sen. Steven D. Symms (R-Ida.) complained.
Senate Republican leader Bob Dole of Kansas, a committee member, conceded that progress on tax revision could be slow. “Once the initial glow has faded,” Dole said, “there are a lot of questions this committee has to deal with.”
Warning of ‘Fiscal Disaster’
Meanwhile, Martin S. Feldstein, former chairman of President Reagan’s Council of Economic Advisers, warned that the Administration’s tax proposal could be a “fiscal disaster if tax reform became a deficit-enlarging tax cut.”
Feldstein, who left the White House last year after several disputes over Administration policy toward budget deficits, told the House Ways and Means Committee that the tax proposal “is at best revenue neutral and has a substantial risk of losing revenue.”
Other economists testifying before the House panel, which originates tax legislation, also expressed skepticism over the Administration’s contention that the tax plan would raise as much revenue as the current tax system. They contended that the package could exacerbate deficits that are now expected to remain larger than $170 billion annually well into the next decade, even if the package of spending cuts now working its way through Congress becomes law.
“I suspect that the President’s proposal is a revenue loser, particularly after 1990,” said John H. Makin, director of fiscal studies at the American Enterprise Institute.
But Baker, in defending the tax proposal to the Senate panel, insisted that Reagan’s plan would lose only $11.5 billion during the next five years, substantially less than 1% of the $4.7 trillion that the government estimates it will collect in total revenues during that period.
Contradictory Attacks
In grilling Baker, senators on the tax panel attacked the White House proposal on a wide variety of sometimes contradictory points.
Sen. William V. Roth Jr. (R-Del.) complained that the proposal “tends to soak the middle class,” but he worried also that the plan would be too generous to consumers at the expense of those who save.
Some senators argued that the plan would do little to help businesses facing the threat of foreign competition, but others suggested that individuals should receive a more generous tax break even if it means increasing taxes for corporations.
Most members of the Republican-controlled committee warned that they would attempt to restore certain tax breaks that would be eliminated by the White House package.
In particular, they criticized Reagan’s proposals to abolish the deductions for state and local taxes and for two-earner couples, to eliminate the investment tax credit and alternative energy tax credits and to tax growth in the cash value of insurance policies. But Sen. Bill Bradley (D-N. J.), author of a separate tax revision proposal, argued that the White House tax plan does not go far enough in eliminating special tax preferences. He told Baker that he would try to eliminate some tax breaks for the oil industry and wealthy investors.
Exemption Hike Opposed
Sen. George J. Mitchell (D-Me.) challenged Baker’s contention that the best way to help families living below the poverty line to escape income taxes is to increase the personal exemption from the current $1,040 to $2,000 next year.
Mitchell said that he would introduce a proposal to limit the increase in the personal exemption and grant a larger increase than Reagan recommended in the standard deduction, or zero-bracket amount, a proposal that would help only taxpayers who do not itemize their deductions. Mitchell said that his approach would concentrate tax relief more directly on middle-income and lower-income families than would the Administration’s plan.
Baker vigorously defended the Administration’s plan against the attacks. “We think our plan is very fair,” he said, pointing out that the majority of taxpayers at every income level would receive tax reductions and that the average tax cut would be 7%.
Johnson was Tottenham‘s leading Premier League goalscorer last season with 11, and etched his name in Spurs folklore by scoring the winner in their Europa League final triumph over Manchester United in Bilbao, ending the club’s 17-year wait for a trophy.
But the departure of Ange Postecoglou and arrival of Thomas Frank as new head coach has meant Johnson has played more of a peripheral role this season.
Johnson, 24, has made only six top-flight starts under Frank this season.
As a result, a number of clubs have been alerted to his potential availability before the January transfer window.
Given his lack of action and the prospect of a World Cup on the horizon with Wales, a move away from Tottenham may suit Johnson next month.
Johnson joined Tottenham from Nottingham Forest in a deal worth £47.5m in the summer of 2023 and has scored 27 goals for the club.
Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, was meant to be a pivotal civic exercise across Borno State, northeastern Nigeria, as residents were expected to elect chairpersons and councillors responsible for local development, basic services, and community representation. Instead, what unfolded across parts of the state bore little resemblance to a functioning democratic process.
Umar Ali, a resident of Gamboru in Maiduguri, stepped out that morning expecting to vote, but could not locate any polling unit nearby. “We thought it was just a delay, but there was no election activity at all,” he said.
His experience was replicated across the city and other neighbouring council wards. HumAngle observed that many polling units listed by the Borno State Independent Electoral Commission (BOSIEC) were deserted, with neither officials nor voters in sight. In locations where officials were present, there was only a handful of voters, often confined to near-empty compounds.
An exception was Ajari II polling unit in Mafa Ward, where Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum cast his vote, which recorded a higher turnout than most other locations observed.
In several neighbourhoods, residents watched the day pass from outside their homes or went about their chores. Conversations revealed frustration, distrust, and a widespread perception that the outcome had already been predetermined.
“This is not an election. It is a selection,” said Musa Ali, who declined to approach the polling unit closest to his house. He accused the government of determining the results in advance. “They already know what they are doing,” he argued.
For many residents, the only indication that an election was taking place was the restriction of movement imposed across the state. “If not for the ban, you would not even know voting is going on,” said 22-year-old Fatima Alai.
On some of the empty streets, children and even young adults turned it into football fields.
Borno State has over 2.5 million registered voters, with about 2.4 million Permanent Voter Cards collected, as of February 2023. Yet participation in local government elections remains low. It is unclear how many people voted in the Dec. 13 elections. However, this trend is not unique to Borno or even to the current election cycle.
Across Nigeria, turnout in local government elections is consistently lower than in national polls. Analysts and residents alike attribute this to weak service delivery at the council level, the routine imposition of candidates by political parties, and the limited credibility of state-run electoral commissions. For many citizens, local elections appear disconnected from accountability or tangible improvements in daily life.
Malpractice in plain sight
Beyond voter apathy, HumAngle observed troubling procedural violations at multiple polling units. At a polling unit in Bulama Kachallah II, in Maiduguri, HumAngle observed electoral officials stamping ballot papers and depositing them into the ballot box in the absence of voters. This continued between 9:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m., when we left the unit.
A similar scene played out at another polling unit in nearby Bulama Kachallah I. BOSIEC officials wearing identification tags, alongside unidentified individuals, openly filled out ballot papers and inserted them into the boxes.
When approached, a party agent who was present at the scene told HumAngle, “Ba ruwan ka,” meaning, “It is none of your business.”
A group of young men were seen stamping on ballot papers at a polling unit in Maiduguri. Photo: Abubakar Muktar Abba/HumAngle.
Despite these irregularities, BOSIEC Chairperson Tahiru Shettima maintained that the process met democratic standards. “I think the commission has done its best and the election was free, fair, inclusive, and transparent,” he said.
Two days after the exercise, BOSIEC announced that the ruling APC won all 27 chairpersonship seats in the state. The election was contested by six political parties, including the New Nigeria People’s Party, Social Democratic Party, Labour Party, and People’s Redemption Party.
Notably absent was the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), the state’s leading opposition force. In the days leading up to the election, the PDP formally boycotted the process, citing concerns about the legitimacy and fairness of the electoral process, the high costs associated with the expression-of-interest and nomination forms, and a lack of trust in BOSIEC’s capacity to conduct credible elections.
The African Democratic Congress (ADC), a national opposition coalition, was also missing from the ballot. A member of the party, who asked not to be named, claimed that “the state government had been a big challenge”. He said that when the party attempted to launch its Borno State chapter in November, security operatives disrupted the event, alleging that the government had not been notified. According to him, this interference contributed to the ADC’s absence from the December local council election.
The electoral commission rejected these criticisms. Shettima said BOSIEC had consulted with stakeholders, including political parties, on logistics and nomination fees, and insisted that participation was voluntary. “We cannot force any political party to take part in the election,” he told journalists.
Public reactions on social media, meanwhile, suggested a contrasting reality to official claims. Tanko Wabba, a Facebook user, wrote: “We didn’t see the election [ballot] box in our street,” reflecting frustration over missing polling units and highlighting a gap between official claims and citizens’ experiences.
Weakened local governance
For more than a decade, local council elections were not held in Borno State due to the Boko Haram insurgency. During that period, councils were administered by caretaker committees appointed by the state government. Elections resumed in 2020, with another round held in January 2024.
While those elections were described by the media as largely peaceful, turnout was characterised as average at best. Analysts cited voter fatigue, lingering security concerns, and persistent doubts about the relevance and autonomy of local councils.
Under Nigeria’s Constitution, local governments constitute the third tier of government, operating under the state’s supervision. Democratically elected councils are mandated to manage basic services such as roads, markets, sanitation, health clinics, business and vehicle licensing, local fees, education, and support for agriculture and health in coordination with the state.
Executive authority at the local level rests with the chairperson and vice chairperson, who implement council policies through supervisory councillors and the civil service. In practice, however, councils often have limited autonomy. State governments frequently override their authority by appointing caretaker committees—often ruling party loyalists—and retaining control of local government finances through joint state–local government accounts.
Autonomy debates and unresolved tensions
In July 2024, Nigeria’s Supreme Court ordered that allocations from the federation account meant for local governments must be disbursed to them directly, rather than the joint account created by the state government. The court restrained governors from collecting, withholding, or tampering with these funds, declaring such actions unconstitutional, null, and void.
The Minister of State for Defence, Bello Mohammed Matawalle, welcomed the ruling, saying it would allow local governments to manage their own finances, strengthen accountability to voters, and improve service delivery and development.
However, the Nigerian Governors’ Forum opposed the decision. The governors argued that full local government autonomy does not align with Nigeria’s federal structure and said the ruling failed to address longstanding issues of weak administration and executive excesses at the council level.
“The desire for decentralisation must be backed by a commitment to delegate resources, power, and tasks to local-level governance structures that are democratic and largely independent of central government,” said Victor Adetula, a Professor of Political Science at the University of Jos.
Against this backdrop of contested authority and fragile credibility, the conduct of Borno’s local government elections raises deeper questions—not just about electoral integrity, but about whether local democracy in the state can meaningfully deliver the governance and development it promises.
If you’re bored of theme parks with long queues and greasy food, a new ‘luxury’ theme park will be opening in 2026 that promises a much more upmarket experience including “five-star hospitality”
BON – Beauty of Nature theme park is set to combine thrill rides with luxury holiday experiences(Image: VidantaWorld)
A day out at a theme park is hardly what you’d call a luxury experience. While it’s nice to enjoy a day of family-fun, having to queue for 30-second rides and fight the crowds isn’t exactly relaxing.
However, an upmarket resort chain now aims to elevate the average theme park experience. Billed as “the world’s first-ever luxury theme park”, BON (beauty of nature) is set to open in autumn of 2026 for guests of VidantaWorld Nuevo Vallarta in Mexico.
There are ambitious plans for this new theme park, which will eventually have multiple lands including 23 attractions, 25 restaurants, lounges, and shops across the site. It’ll feature both thrill rides and family-friendly options, as well as immersive experiences and playgrounds.
Guests of VidantaWorld Nuevo Vallarta, a resort featuring a 5-star hotel, golf course, and direct beach access, already have access to select attractions within the theme park. The park recently opened Cirque du Soleil LUDÕ, a spectacular water-based show that takes place in a custom-built theater costing $ 200 million (£ 148 million) for an immersive dinner experience. The theatre is surrounded by a wrap-around aquarium for a 360-degree undersea experience.
Two of the theme park’s seven planned lands are also open for guests to preview. There’s Wonder Bay, which includes a lake show and seasonal celebrations. Until January 11, a Christmas theme is in effect, featuring decorations, live performances, and festive meet-and-greets.
Adventure Valley is also open, featuring the serene Carousel of Colors and the family-friendly Time Quest. There’s also Tempest Towers, a ride that takes you to new heights before plunging you down, and Kids Cove playground with plenty for them to explore. Some of the park’s shops and restaurants are also open, offering visitors a glimpse of what the park will be like.
Once fully open, visitors will be able to enjoy rides such as the Tecuani Beast, set to be Latin America’s only double-launch coaster. This will have top speeds of 65mph and more airtime than any other rollercoaster in the region. Another attraction will be the floral-themed Floresta Drop, which will be a family-friendly ride.
There will also be a variety of eateries offering an elevated experience compared to the typical theme park fare. This includes authentic Mexican cuisine offerings, sushi restaurants, and American-style grills.
The park will also feature numerous surprises around every corner, including costumed entertainers, light shows, fireworks, and much more. The company VidantaWorld, who already have two beach resorts in Mexico and a mega yacht, want to create a “multi-generational” experience, with something for all ages.
The news comes as a popular European theme park is set to get a new world based on the Harry Potter series. LEGOLAND Deutschland in Germany confirmed the creation of a new Wizarding World based on J.K. Rowling’s popular franchise. Details will be released in the next 12 months and are set to include Harry Potter themed accommodation.
Disneyland Paris is also set to get a brand new attraction, and has confirmed that the World of Frozen, based on the Frozen movies, will open on March 29, 2026. The area is set to include a brand new ride, character meet and greets, new shows, and exclusive food and drink.
Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com
A HUGE airport that is set to become a central hub in Poland in the next six years has been renamed.
Work is still yet to begin on the major airport that was originally called Centralny Port Komunikacyjny, or CPK.
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Poland’s huge airport hub set to open in 2032 has been renamedCredit: CPKThe airport once fully operational could see as many as 60million people each yearCredit: CPK/Foster + Partners
Last week, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that the previous name for the country’s upcoming airport, Centralny Port Komunikacyjny, will no longer be used.
He said: “We won’t be using a name that our predecessors discredited,” adding that the planned new airport is intended to serve as “the largest hub in this part of Europe.”
Instead, the airport will be referred to and renamed as Port Polska.
Mr Tusk added: “Everyone who lands there, everyone who uses this airport, everyone who shops there should know: yes—this is the heart of Europe, yes—this is Port Polska.”
The Polish government estimates put the total cost of the Port Polska project, including the airport and associated rail links, at around PLN 131 billion (£27billion).
The enormous hub will be built in Baranów which is about 25 miles from Warsaw where the current biggest airport in the country is; Warsaw Chopin Airport.
The 450,000sqm airport will have just two runways at first – a third will open by 2045, with plans for long-haul flights.
Inside, the passenger terminal will operate across three levels. On level two will be ticket and baggage check-in, security control, arrivals and departures for the Schengen zone.
Inside, the passenger terminal will be spread across three levelsCredit: CPK/Foster + Partners
Level one will be home to most of the arrivals and departures for the Non-Schengen zone, transfer centres, and passport control.
Level zero will have coach gates for both Schengen and non-Schengen zones, baggage reclaim and an arrivals hall.
It expects to welcome around 34million passengers in its first year, but will grow to as many as 60million.
Building work is set to startnextyear, and the airport has been designed by Foster + Partners – behindLondon‘s the Gherkin and the BatterseaRoof Gardens.
The new airport will be three times bigger than the one currently in WarsawCredit: CPK/Foster+Partners
The huge airport will have other transport links too like an underground train network which will connect it to Warsaw and Lodz.
Holidaymakers in Warsaw will be able to get to the airport in just 20 minutes by train – the airport will also open a bus station for travellers.
Once open, Port Polska will take on some of the world’s biggest transport hubs like London Heathrow which welcomed a record 83.9 million passengers in 2024.
The 22sqm airport will feature six runways – up from two – parallel to each other and will be built around the existing King Khalid International Airport.
It will approximately be the same size as Manhattan in New York – or twice the size of the city of Bath, in the UK.
And now the airport has moved into its construction phase. The airport will be designed by Foster + Partners, a UK firm which is behind London‘s famous Gherkin.
Inside, travellers will be able to explore 4.6sqm of shops. A lot of features in the airport are set to include high tech, such as climate-controlled lighted.
Travellers will have plenty of seating, indoor and outdoor spaces with greenery and vast glass windows, ideal for a bit of plane spotting.
Foster + Partner’s is also developing the Wadi Loop, which will connect the airport to other developments allowing travellers to access different sites more easily.
It will eventually accommodate up to 120million passengers each year, which is then expected to rise to 185million by 2050.
And the number of aircraft takeoffs will rise from 211,000 per year to over one million.
In total, the project is estimated to cost around $30billion (£22.5billion).
On December 3, Israel announced that the Rafah border crossing with Egypt would reopen “in the coming days”, allowing Palestinians to leave Gaza for the first time in months. The statement was, of course, framed as a humanitarian gesture that would allow those in urgent need to travel for medical care, education or family reunification to leave.
However, Israel’s announcement was met almost immediately with Egypt’s denial, followed by a firm rejection from several Arab and Muslim states.
To the rest of the world, this response may seem cruel. It may seem like Arab states want to forcibly keep in Gaza Palestinians desperate to evacuate to safety. This fits right into the Israeli narrative that neighbouring Arab countries are responsible for Palestinian suffering because they would not “let them in”.
This is a falsehood that has unfortunately made its way into Western media, even though it is easily disproved.
Let us be clear: No, Arab states are not keeping us against our will in Gaza, and neither is Hamas.
They want to make sure that when and if some of us evacuate temporarily, we are able to come back. We want the same – a guarantee of return. Yet, Israel refuses to grant it; it made clear in its December 3 announcement that the Rafah crossing would be open only one way – for Palestinians to leave.
So this was clearly a move meant to jump-start forced displacement of the Palestinian population from their homeland.
For Palestinians, this is not a new reality but part of a long and deliberate pattern. Since its inception, the Israeli state has focused on the dispossession, erasure, and forced displacement of the Palestinians. In 1948, 750,000 Palestinians were expelled from their homes and were not allowed to return. My 88-year-old grandfather was among them. He still keeps the Tabu (land registry document) for the dunams of land he owns in his village of Barqa, 37km (23 miles) north of Gaza, where we are still not allowed to return.
In 1967, when Israel occupied Gaza, it forbade Palestinians who were studying or working abroad from returning to their homes. In the occupied West Bank, where colonisation has not stopped for the past 58 years, Palestinians are regularly expelled from their homes and lands.
In the past two years alone, Israel has seized approximately 55,000 dunams of Palestinian land, displacing more than 2,800 Palestinians. In Jerusalem, Palestinians whose families had lived in the holy city for centuries risk losing their residency there if they cannot prove it is their “centre of life”. In the past 25 years, more than 10,000 Palestinian residencies have been revoked.
Since October 2023, Israel has repeatedly attempted to engineer forced mass displacement in Gaza – dividing the Strip into isolated zones separated by military corridors and “safe” axes and launching successive operations to push residents of the north towards the south. Each wave of mass bombing carried the same underlying objective: to uproot the people of Gaza from their homes and push them towards the border with Egypt. The most recent push occurred just before the latest ceasefire took effect.
According to Diaa Rashwan, chairman of the Egyptian State Information Service, Cairo rejected Israel’s proposal because it was an attempt to shun its commitments outlined in the second phase of the ceasefire. That phase requires Israel to withdraw from Gaza, support the reconstruction process, allow the Strip to be administered by a Palestinian committee, and facilitate the deployment of a security force to stabilise the situation. By announcing Rafah’s reopening, Israel sought to bypass these obligations and redirect the political conversation towards depopulation rather than reconstruction and recovery.
That Israel wants to create the conditions to make our expulsion inevitable is clear from other policies as well. It continues to bombard the Strip, killing hundreds of civilians and terrorising hundreds of thousands.
It continues to prevent adequate amounts of food and medicines from getting in. It is allowing no reconstruction materials or temporary housing. It is doing everything to maximise the suffering of the Palestinian people.
This reality is made even more brutal by the harsh winter. Cold winds tear through overcrowded camps filled with exhausted people who have endured every form of trauma imaginable. Yet despite hunger, exhaustion, and despair, we continue to cling to our land and reject any Israeli efforts to displace and erase us.
We also reject any form of external guardianship or control over our fate. We demand full Palestinian sovereignty over our land, our resources, and our crossings. Our position is clear: the Rafah crossing must be opened in both directions; not as a tool of displacement, but as a right to free movement.
Rafah must be accessible for those who wish to return, and for those who need to leave temporarily: students seeking to continue their education abroad, patients in urgent need of medical treatment unavailable in Gaza, and families who have been separated and long to be reunited. Thousands of critically ill Palestinians have been denied life-saving care due to the siege, while hundreds of students holding offers and scholarships from prestigious universities around the world have been unable to travel to pursue their education.
Rafah should also be open to those who simply need rest after years of trauma – to step outside Gaza briefly and return with dignity. Mobility is not a privilege; it is a basic human right.
What we demand is simple: the right to determine our future, without coercion, without bargaining over our existence, and without being pushed into forced displacement disguised as a humanitarian project.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.
GUINNESS has opened a £75million brewery in London offering exiting new beers and even the chance to take a stout selfie – stoutie.
The new Open Gate Brewery will instead brew a range of new experimental beers alongside tours, a gift shop and plenty of chances to try a pint of the famous stout.
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The new Guinness brewery opened on ThursdayCredit: Guinness GatesThe new attraction will offer tours, food courts and a merchandise shopCredit: Guinness
The Covent Garden site cost just under £75 million and spans several Victorian warehouse-style buildings where four core beers will be brewed on site – a London porter, lager, IPA and pale ale.
There will be seven more beers which will be exclusive to the new brewery including the Winter Warmer and Apricot Sour.
The beer made on site is exclusively available in the tasting room, restaurants and bars on site and the drinks are named in honour of the local area – Convent Classic IPA, Old Brewer’s Yard Porter and Piazza Pale Ale.
Dublin-brewed Guinness will still be on tap of course, and visitors can even have their selfies or “stouties” printed on the head of their beers for a truly personal pint.
The site itself has been used for brewing on and off for three centuries and will be the first UK-based Guinness brewery open to the public.
Previously, the stout was brewed at Park Royal in West London until 2005 but the Open Gate location is both a micro-brewery and attraction.
The new location will
Barry O’Sullivan, the managing director of Diageo Great Britain, said: “London has played a critical role in Guinness’s success throughout its history, and two centuries after the black stuff arrived in the UK capital, one in seven pints poured in the city is now a Guinness.”
He added that he expects to see half a million punters walk through the gates in the first year and that the venture is a “vote of confidence” in London’s hospitality industry.
Mr O’Sullivan said the new brewery will create 250 jobs.
Heading up the restaurants is executive chef Pip Lacey – who previously worked under Gordan Ramsay.
Her debut restaurant won rave reviews and she will be at the helm of three different food stops – a seafood restaurant on the fifth floor, “grilled feasting” on the ground floor and a casual pie place on in the courtyard.
Mr O’Sullivan and Diageo’s global director for beer, vodka, liqueurs and convenience, Gráinne Wafer, hope for the brewery will have a ripple effect for hospitality across the city.
Iconic London pubs like Soho’s the Devonshire are already in talks with the team to get something in the pipeline.
O’Sullivan said: “I live in Soho, and there’s a really special relationship with everything we do.”
Whilst this is London’s first public Guinness brewery, Open Gate sites have opened up in Baltimore and Chicago and both report uplift across the city, in Guinness sales and the wider hospitality sector.
The new brewery will allow punters to print a selfie onto their pintsCredit: Getty
For a look inside the factory, visitors can take a £30 tour of the brewery or for something more special a £95 “Guinness masterclass”.
The “Open Gate Experience” at £30 includes a behind-the-scenes look at the micro-brewery and promises to be a “tasting adventure never experienced before”. The tour is 90 minutes and incudes a tasting flight.
The £95 “Guinness Masterclass” includes a complementary engraved glass as well as a masterclass and trip into the brewery’s archives. The experience allows punters to “get closer to Guinness than you’ve even been before”.
The masterclass is available on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 3pm only, starting in February.
Visitors can pour their own pint and sip it – or split it – in Bar 232, named in honour of the temperature that the barley is roasted at for the iconic stout.
The gift shop at the end of the tour offers G-branded glasses, football shirts, beer towels, golf balls, chocolates and for those short feeling festive, Guinness Christmas jumpers.
The brewery officially opened its gates on December 11 and looking ahead it seems it will be a lovely day for a Guinness.
Other Open Gate locations have opened up in Chicago and BaltimoreCredit: GettyGuinness is now the UK’s most sold beerCredit: Getty
A HUGE new €1billion (£875million) attraction is launching in Europe and it includes a theme park based on DRACULA.
Dracula Land is set to open in Bucharest in Romania, one of the cheapest cities in Europe.
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A massive new attraction with a Dracula theme park set across six zones is opening in EuropeCredit: Dracula LandNew AI images have revealed what the huge complex could look like
It hopes to become “the largest entertainment, retail, and technology destination on the continent, transforming the country into a new global entertainment hub”.
Being dubbed the Transylvanian Disneyland by local media, it includes a theme park, waterpark, thermal spa, shopping district, entertainment arena and a tech hub.
The main theme park will be set over 780,000sqm, with AI images suggesting what it could look like.
This will include six themed zones, with 40 attractions throughout – here is what we know about each land.
Inside will be 30 water attractions, and claims it will even have one of Europe‘s biggest wave pools.
Guests will be able to choose from three kinds of accommodation, – the four-star Dracula Grand Hotel, as well as the three star Dracula Family Hotel and Dracula Inn.
Between the three of them there will be around 1,200 rooms.
A luxury fashion and home shopping outlet as well as a ‘multi-functional arena’ for concerts and festivals are also part of the plans.
A racing track and motor park as well as a tech hub have been confirmed as well.
Dracula Land will also have its own “metaverse” with DraculaCoin native tokens, so people can visit from anywhere in the world.
Events arenas and shopping districts are also part of the plansCredit: Dracula LandIt will be just 20 minutes from Bucharest AirportCredit: Dracula Land
It hopes to welcome three million guests a year.
Dragoș Dobrescu, founder of Dracula Land, said: “Dracula Land brings together everything I’ve learned in real estate: discipline, rigor, vision, and the ability to keep complex teams with very different specializations together.
“But more importantly, it adds a story that gives meaning to every square meter built.
“For me, Dracula Land is a national project—a symbol that Romania can and must build landmarks, not just buildings or simple real estate projects.”
An official opening date is yet to be confirmed, nor ticket prices but the first phase could launch by 2027.
However, it will be easy to get to for Brits, being just 20 minutes from Bucharest Airport.
Ryanair currently has £15 flights to the Romanian city from the UK.
The first phase hopes to open in 2027Credit: Dracula Land
