Thrill-seeker Orson Bourne visited a theme park in Italy, but later outlined several complaints and branded it the ‘worst’ he’d visited – but people don’t agree with his assessment
A thrill-seeker has expressed his frustration by admitting he “felt so disappointed” after visiting one of the most popular theme parks in Europe. Orson Bourne travelled to Italy and headed to Gardaland – a park in Verona owned by Merlin Entertainments, which also operates Alton Towers, Legoland and dozens of other resorts and attractions.
The resort boasts numerous rides and ‘lands’ dedicated to a variety of well-known franchises, including Jumanji, Peppa Pig and Peter Pan – but Orson was clearly unimpressed as he revealed in a review shared to TikTok. “Gardaland takes the biscuit, it’s the worst theme park I’ve ever been to,” he said in a video.
Orson he had to “penetrate a wall of Italian policing” prior to entry, such is the high level of security enforced by Gardaland’s owners.
He continued to complain, claiming that ropes had “cut off” half of the park on his arrival owing to their later opening times.
Orson’s first port of call was the Jumanji ride, however, he was clearly less than impressed. “All it was was screens, pitch-black corridors and emergency exit signs,” he said.
Next was the rollercoaster, Sharman, which again didn’t live up to it’s billing, according to Orson. “I spent 20 minutes queuing up, but found it actually opens at 12 – not 11, or at 10 when the park actually opened.”
Orson moved on to the newly remodelled Dragon Empire only to discover the China-themed area was also closed until 12pm.
Like its UK cousin, Alton Towers, meanwhile, Gardaland is also home to an Oblivion ride, which sees guests plummet vertically through a black hole underground. “Only a 40-minute queue to get into the queue – where you have to then queue for another 80 minutes,” Orson alleged, pointing that the park’s app only stated a 60-minute waiting time.
He added that whilst it is longer than the Oblivion back home, the Italian ride “lacked any forces”.
Orson gave another coaster – Blue Tornado – “a miss” due to its 120-minute waiting time, before slating the park’s policy on drinks – alleging staff prevented him from refilling his bottle with water. “Coffee machines at other kiosks we broken so I gave up and bought a Coke instead,” he added.
Hoping to cool off on a water ride, Orson was again put off by a “two-hour queue” on the Fuga da Atlantide log flume, before his second attempt to ride Sharman proved futile as the ride broke down an hour after he joined the queue.
Orson continued, moving on to the ‘wing coaster’, Raptor. “I waited 20 minutes in the single-rider line and it’s advertised at 80 [minutes],” he said. “It’s only one train though. It’s diabolical… one train for your main coaster.”
He closed: “I hate to be a grouch, but I think I’m going to leave. The park’s getting busier and it’s open until nine and I’m just not having fun, so what’s the point?”
Orson couldn’t resist riding steel rollercoaster, Mammut on his way out though – something that left him pleasantly surprised. “Credit where it’s due,” he praised. “A fantastic family coaster, though not so fantastic with the operations – I was told ‘no single riders’, but luckily I was able to squeeze on.”
He summed the day up in a caption: “Never has a park been so disappointing. Jumanji was so high on my bucket list for dark rides but the ride just wasn’t in a good state, it felt old and uncared for, 0 immersion and broke done frequently. As did most of the park, Its a shame as the park has the infrastructure to be an amazing place. I struggle to find a positive.”
Writing in response, however, others detailed their positive Gardaland experiences. “Love Gardaland, I live close by and go there each summer with the ticket from 6pm,” one person said. “Last time I did 11 rides (Shaman twice, Raptor, Oblivion, Jungle Rapids, Prezzemolo Magic House). I think parks in US are better, but for Italy it’s fine.”
Another praised: “You were just unlucky to go on a crowded day. I’ve always gone in October during the week and the longest I’ve waited for any attraction has been ten minutes. I love Gardaland, but you have to go when you know that children are at school and many are working.”
And a third TikTok user added: “I went to Gardaland multiple times. You went on a busy day without express so that explains the queues. In my later visits the operation were awesome and they were running all trains and everything was good. Raptor is pretty forceful in my opinion.”
One individual who agreed with Orson, hit out: “Happens when there is no alternative. There are only 2-3 big theme parks in the whole country with actual coasters, all of them are always so busy at the point that it isn’t possible to have fun.”
A Gardaland spokesperson said: “We truly value all feedback from our guests, as it helps us improve and offer the best possible experience at Gardaland Resort. We appreciate that this visitor’s experience did not meet his expectations, and we’re always committed to learning from such feedback to continue enhancing our guests’ enjoyment. Every season, we welcome millions of visitors who share very positive experiences, and we always strive to ensure that each guest leaves with great memories.
“Gardaland Resort welcomes around 3 million visitors every year and, in over 50 years of operation, has hosted more than 100 million people from all over the world. Our daily commitment is to offer memorable experiences to families and visitors of all ages, thanks to the quality of our attractions, food and beverage offerings, and the many dedicated services available.
“We understand that the guest’s visit took place during Gardaland Oktoberfest, one of our most popular seasonal events which – together with Gardaland Magic Halloween (currently underway) and Gardaland Magic Winter – has been attracting thousands of visitors for over 20 years, consistently receiving extremely positive feedback. As is the case in all major theme parks, waiting times can vary depending on attendance levels and attraction opening hours. An unfortunate single occurrence does not represent the experience that thousands of families enjoy at Gardaland every day, and we would be delighted to welcome this guest back to rediscover the magic of the Park.
“Confident that we will continue to offer magical and memorable experiences for all our guests, we remain available should the visitor wish to provide us with further details, so that we may look into this further.”
