Coasting With Culture Guides

Offering ideas of places and activities to enjoy with different theme parks and amusement parks.

A look at different places where you can go to an amusement park and ride a coaster, then head to a nearby baseball stadium for a ballgame.

Cultural Connections

A look at how different Amusement and Theme Parks are connected to local and popular culture!

This Cultural Connections video looks at South Africa's Gold Reef City, and how it sits on the site of a former gold mine, while offering a look back in time and a coaster that used to operate in North Carolina!

In this episode of Cultural Connections, we take a look at Japan's oldest amusement park, Hanayashiki, and share how the park serves as an example of Japan's density, is connected to several popular shows and video games, and offers a unique cultural experience for its guests.

In this episode of Cultural Connections, we take a look at Minnesota's Nickelodeon Universe, which is located at one of the world's largest shopping centers, Mall of America. We'll find out how this park was once themed to a beloved comic strip by a local artist, how it has a ride that still maintains the original theme that is connected to Minnesota, and how it was the location of the start of a television war.​

In this episode of Cultural Connections, we take a look at Parque Diversiones in Costa Rica. We'll find out how this park Was built to help fund a charitable cause, who it gives a look into the past of Costa Rica, and how it is home to a movie star.

This episode of Cultural Connections takes a look at the Washington State Fair in Puyallup and it's role in the rise of one of its popular treats from a prominent local citizen, a place of one of the darkest times in American History, and was a small detail in a hit movie.

Just The Coasters

A look at the ride experience of different coasters from around the world. Content Creators are also welcome to use these videos for their own projects. The only requirement is that credit be given to Coasting with Culture for the clip used.

Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars is a Vekoma designed coaster that offers a ride which feels like a mix of Big Thunder Mountain, Expedition Everest and Country Bears Jamboree. This coaster is part of Hong Kong Disneyland's Grizzly Gulch section of the park.

Boomerang is one of many Vekoma Boomerangs that can be found in the world, where it is pulled up one spike, dropped to run its course, and then goes through it again backwards. This particular one features the new version trains offered by the Dutch coaster company.

The Classic Coaster is a John Miller designed wooden coaster that operates for about a month a year between the Washington State Fair in September and Spring Fair in April. It opened in 1935 as a side friction coaster, and later received it's Prior & Church Trains from Happyland in Vancouver, BC in 1950.

Corkscrew is a custom designed looping coaster from Arrow Dynamics at Valleyfair in Shakopee, Minnesota. In many ways, this coaster feels like it was inspired by it's cousin of the same name at Valleyfair's sister park, Cedar Point. ​

Double Loop is a looping coaster from the French company Soquet, which previously operated in the French Fair Circuit before it went on to operate at Seabreeze in Rochester, NY, then to it's current home at Salitre Magico in Bogota, Colombia

Electro is a custom made family coaster from Mack that rides along the ceiling of the indoor amusement park, Méga Parc in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The ride features some close encounters with several other attractions, including the park's ice skating trail.

Kráter is a Gerstlauer Eurofighter that is modeled after the layout of Iron Shark at Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier. The coaster is found at Parque del Café in Montenegro, Colombia.

The Incredible Hulk Coaster is Bolliger & Mabillard's first launching coaster that can be found at the Universal Orlando Resort's Islands of Adventure Park. This is the refurbished version of the ride which opened in 2016​.

Intrépide is a Miler coaster that is larger than most of their other models, and offers a ride that can be a bit surprising if your only experience on their coasters is the smaller versions. This coaster is found at Pays des Merveilles in Quebec, Canada.

Leviathan at Canada's Wonderland is the first giga coaster ever designed by Bolliger & Mabillard, and stands as Canada's tallest coaster. It's known for the speed it gives throughout the course mixed in with some large airtime hills.

Monster was the first Gerstlauer Infinity model coaster built in the United States, and is found at Adventureland in Altoona, Iowa. This ride offers a ride that's like a Euro Fighter but larger with great moments of airtime and hang time!

Montaña Rusa is a Schwarzkopf Speed Racer coaster at Colombia's Parque Del Café. It previously ran at World's of Fun in Kansas City, Missouri as Zambezi Zinger before relocating to South America.

Montaña Rusa is a standard Arrow Dynamics Corkscrew coaster which previously operated at the Myrtle Beach Pavilion in South Carolina from 1978 to 1999. It was then relocated to Bogota, Colombia where it now operates at Salitre Magico.

Python Panique is a compact coaster from L&T Systems that operates at the Granby Zoo in Granby, Quebec, Canada. It was previously known as Anaconda from opening until 2015 when the zoo's amusement park rides were given names inspired by the Johnny Test animated television series.

Raptor is a Vekoma Suspended Looping Coaster (SLC) at Fantasilandia in Santiago, Chile. The ride opened in 2008 and coaster had previously operated in Japan at International Dream Exchange Fair.

Roller Coaster was a William Cobb designed Wooden Coaster at Upper Clements Park in Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia in Canada. This coaster had a unique setting as the first few drops were up higher on a hill, and it's largest drop came closer to the middle. The ride opened in 1988 as Tree Topper.

Rollin' Thunder can be found inside of the Park at OWA near the Gulf Coast in Foley, Alabama. This was Zamperla's second Thunderbolt Model Coaster, offering a vertical lift and 4 inversions.

Switchback is the first ever shuttle wooden coaster created by the Gravity Group. This ride offers quite the punch for a smaller coaster as it fits a tight layout while running through old warehouse and grocery store buildings of Seguin, Texas, but what really sets this wooden coaster apart from others is that you experience most of the layout again, but backwards!

Toronto Island Mine Coaster is a Miler Junior coaster with an outer helix that is found at Centreville Amusement Park, which is located on the Toronto Islands that provide a barrier to the city from Lake Ontario.

Vortex is a standard Arrow Dynamics corkscrew coaster found inside of Calgary's Calaway Park. It first opened in the year 1982 as Turn of the Century, then at one point was renamed Corkscrew before receiving its current name.

Vortex is an Arrow Dynamics suspended coaster found at Canada's Wonderland in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. It's one of the few suspended coasters made by arrow that remains in operation today.

Wildfire is a custom looping coaster from Bolliger & Mabillard with an incredible view of the Ozark Mountains, opening at Silver Dollar City in 2001.

Wonder Woman is one of the many S&S Freespin coasters that have become a staple of the Six Flags Chain, opening at Six Flags Mexico in 2018. This model is known for offering a unique ride each time as the seats rotate freely through the course.

Yippe is a Gerstlauer family launched coaster that is very similar to Dollywood's FireChaser Express. The coaster can be found at Parque Del Café in Montenegro, Colombia.

Yukon Striker is a B&M Dive Coaster that opened in 2019 as the world's tallest and fastest at Canada's Wonderland. It's the headline attraction of the new Frontier Canada section of the park.