Emerald Park (), known from 2010 to 2022 as Tayto Park, is an amusement park in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, originally themed based on the Irish

potato crisp A potato chip (North American English; often just chip) or crisp (British and Irish English) is a thin slice of potato that has been either deep fried, baked, or air fried until crunchy. They are commonly served as a snack, side dish, or ap ...

brand Tayto. It is located in the

townland A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic orig ...

of Kilbrew, in

County Meath County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the ...

and was founded by farmer-turned-entrepreneur Raymond Coyle (d. 2022).

History

The park opened on 24 November 2010. It was designed by Stewart and Sinnott Architects, landscaper Anthony Ryan and designer Milo Fitzgerald, with an €8.5 million investment from Ray Coyle, the potato farmer who established Largo Foods, and bought out the Tayto brand. The park developed 22 hectares of County Meath farmland into and includes Ireland's only wooden roller coaster, a Maxi Dance Party 360, adventure playgrounds and an exotic zoo. It is the sixth most popular paid-for attraction in

, with 750,000 visitors in 2015. In February 2022, it was announced that the park would be rebranded in 2023 after Tayto Snacks confirmed they would not be renewing their sponsorship agreement. On 29 September 2022, it was announced that the park would be renamed "Emerald Park" from 1 January 2023, with reference to Ireland's nickname of the "Emerald Isle."

General attractions

Emerald Park has attractions for all ages, including playgrounds, mazes,

vortex tunnel Spinning tunnels—which are also known as vortex tunnels or rotating tunnels—are devices used at haunted attractions and amusement parks. When people walk through the center of a spinning tunnel they can experience vertigo and a loss of equil ...

s, a 5D cinema, zip lining, arts and crafts, magic shows and face painting.

Zones

Eagle Sky Adventure Zone

Junior Zone

The Junior Zone features a 10-metre shot tower manufactured by

Zamperla Antonio Zamperla S.p.A. is an Italian design and manufacturing company founded in 1966. It is best known for creating family rides, thrill rides and roller coasters worldwide. The company also makes smaller coin-operated rides commonly found in ...

, a

steam train A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

ride, a car driving experience manufactured by Nissan, a spinning roller coaster manufactured by

Visa Visa most commonly refers to: *Visa Inc., a US multinational financial and payment cards company ** Visa Debit card issued by the above company ** Visa Electron, a debit card ** Visa Plus, an interbank network *Travel visa, a document that allows ...

, a spinning boat non-water ride and a leaping ride manufactured by Zamperla.

The Zoo

Emerald Park is an accredited zoo with

BIAZA The British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) (formerly the Federation of Zoological Gardens of Great Britain and Ireland) is a registered charity and the professional body representing over 100 zoos and aquariums in Britain and ...

and

EAZA The European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA), is an organisation for the European zoo and aquarium community that links over 340 member organisations in 41 countries. EAZA membership is open to all zoos and aquaria across Europe that compl ...

, it is home to a diverse zoo animal collection which home to many conservation dependent species. Access to the zoo is included in the entry to Emerald park. The award-winning zoo is committed to conservation education and research. The collection features animals including

big cats The term "big cat" is typically used to refer to any of the five living members of the genus ''Panthera'', namely the tiger, lion, jaguar, leopard, and snow leopard. Despite enormous differences in size, various cat species are quite similar ...

, primates, exotic birds, rare breeds of farm animals as well as native Irish

birds of prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predat ...

. As well as three visitor experiences, the "Petting farm", "World of Raptors" a free flying bird of prey display and "Lemur walk". The mission of Emerald Park is dedicated to creating adventure, passing on knowledge, conserving nature, and serving the community.

Incidents

A number of minor incidents have occurred within Emerald Park. In June 2012 a former employee who was working as a tour guide broke her ankle after she went down a 60-foot slide. The slide was not open to the public at the time but she, along with other employees, were told to try it so that they could "get a feel of it". She sued Ashbourne Visitor Centre Ltd, trading as Tayto Park, as a result of the accident. She also sued Hags Aneby AB of Sweden and Spraoi Linn Ltd, the manufacturer and supplier of the slide respectively. The case was settled out of court. Following the accident, the ride was altered in relation to how steep it was and at the turns. In October 2016, a wooden staircase in one of the park's Halloween attractions, "House of Horrors" suddenly collapsed, injuring nine people.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official website
Amusement parks in Ireland Tourist attractions in the Republic of Ireland Tourist attractions in County Meath Zoos in the Republic of Ireland