Meli Park was a

theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

which was opened in 1935 in Adinkerke in the municipality of

De Panne De Panne (; french: La Panne ) is a town and a municipality located on the North Sea coast of the Belgian province of West Flanders. There it borders France, making it the westernmost town in Belgium. It is one of the most popular resort town dest ...

on the Belgian coast.

History

The bee-themed amusement park was initiated by Alberic-Joseph Florizoone, owner of a honey company. Its mascot was a bee. It was one of the first Belgian theme parks. Over the years some new attractions were added. The first ones were the labyrinth and the zoo. In the 1950s, a miniature golf course,

french formal garden The French formal garden, also called the (), is a style of garden based on symmetry and the principle of imposing order on nature. Its epitome is generally considered to be the Gardens of Versailles designed during the 17th century by the ...

s, a fairytale forest, water organ were introduced. Over the years, it became one of the biggest attractions in Belgium as Antwerp Zoo and

Caves of Han-sur-Lesse The Caves of Han-sur-Lesse (in French: Grottes de Han-sur-Lesse or simply Grottes de Han) refers to a natural complex of caves in Belgium. A major Belgian tourist attraction (around 250-300,000 visitors per year), the caves are located in Walloni ...

. Into the 1970s and the 1980s, with a growing variety of rides, Meli Park's visitor numbers reached 700,000 per annum. Its icon attraction was the Apirama dark ride, opened in 1979, featuring hundreds of animated bees. The park closed in 1999 because the park was sold to the Flemish children's television company

Studio 100 Studio 100 is a Belgian production company with four television channels, four animation studios and 8 theme parks around the world. The headquarters of the group is based in Schelle, with offices in Breda, Munich, Paris, New York, Sydney and Lo ...

and rethemed as

Plopsaland Plopsaland De Panne is a theme park located in Adinkerke, Belgium - part of the municipality De Panne - owned and operated by Plopsa. The park reopened on 20 April 2000, before that the park was known as Meli Park from 1935 until 1999. History ...

. In 1999 Alberic-Joseph Florizoone was inducted into the IAAPA Hall of Fame, an honor reserved for amusement industry innovators and pioneers.

Attractions

Roller coasters

File:Jubilé mélipark.jpg, Jubilé File:Viktor'sRace4.JPG, Marienkaferbahn File:RollerSkater10.JPG, RollerSkater

Thrill rides

File:De Piratenboot3.JPG, Piratenboot File:Plopsaland splash.jpg, Splash File:Herne - Cranger Kirmes 2012 021 ies.jpg, Vliegend Tapijt 1001 Nachts ride. File:Swings of the Century Canada's Wonderland.jpg, Chair-O-Planes ride.

References

External links