Pacific Park is an oceanfront

amusement 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 ...

located in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...

. The park, located on the

Santa Monica Pier The Santa Monica Pier is a large double-jointed pier at the foot of Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica, California, United States. It contains a small amusement park, concession stands, and areas for views and fishing. Attractions Pacific Park T ...

, looks directly out on the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...

, in the direction of Catalina Island. It is the only amusement park directly located on the

West Coast of the United States The West Coast of the United States, also known as the Pacific Coast, Pacific states, and the western seaboard, is the coastline along which the Western United States meets the North Pacific Ocean. The term typically refers to the contiguous U.S ...

located on a pier and LA's only admission-free park. There are a total of twelve rides in Pacific Park, including the world's first and only solar powered

Ferris wheel A Ferris wheel (also called a Giant Wheel or an observation wheel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components (commonly referred to as passenger cars, cabins, tubs, gondolas, capsule ...

that provides a view of the Pacific Ocean and a

roller coaster A roller coaster, or rollercoaster, is a type of amusement ride that employs a form of elevated railroad track designed with tight turns, steep slopes, and sometimes inversions. Passengers ride along the track in open cars, and the rides are ...

that circles the majority of the park. Pacific Park is also home to 14 midway games and over-the-ocean food and retail outlets. It has appeared in over 500 movies and television shows such as '' Fat Albert'', ''

Hannah Montana ''Hannah Montana'' is an American teen sitcom created by Michael Poryes, Rich Correll and Barry O'Brien that aired on Disney Channel for four seasons between March2006 and January2011. The series centers on Miley Stewart (Miley Cyrus), a t ...

'', '' Hannah Montana: The Movie'', '' Kidsongs'', '' 90210'', ''

Bean A bean is the seed of several plants in the family Fabaceae, which are used as vegetables for human or animal food. They can be cooked in many different ways, including boiling, frying, and baking, and are used in many traditional dishes th ...

'', and ''

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'', as well as the popular video game ''

Grand Theft Auto V ''Grand Theft Auto V'' is a 2013 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the seventh main entry in the ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2008's ''Grand Theft Auto IV'', and the fifteenth in ...

''. In 2020, it featured in the opening ident for the sky television channel '' Sky Comedy''. It is operated by Premier Parks LLC.

History

Santa Monica Municipal Pier opened in 1909; it was primarily to carry sewer pipes out beyond the breakers and had no amenities. In 1916

Charles I. D. Looff Charles I. D. Looff was a German master carver and builder of hand-carved carousels and amusement rides, who immigrated to the United States of America in 1870. Looff built the first carousel at Coney Island in 1876. During his lifetime, he built ...

, who built Coney Island's first carousel, started construction on an adjacent pier known as the Pleasure Pier, also called Newcomb Pier, for use as an amusement park. The two piers are now both considered to be part of Santa Monica Pier. Attractions on the Pleasure Pier eventually included the Santa Monica Looff Hippodrome building (which now houses the current carousel and is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

), the Blue Streak Racer wooden roller coaster (which was purchased from the defunct

Wonderland Wonderland may refer to: Places Municipalities * Wonderland, California, a ghost town in Plumas County * Wonderland, Ohio, a ghost town in Columbus, Ohio, U.S. Roads, streets, and trails * Wonderland Avenue, a roadway in Laurel Canyon, Los A ...

amusement park in San Diego), the Whip, merry-go-rounds, Wurlitzer organs, and a funhouse. The Pleasure Pier thrived during the 1920s but faded during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. During the 1930s, the pier was mainly used as a ferry landing, while most of the pier was closed down and its attractions sold off. Over the next several decades the city of Santa Monica proposed various plans to tear down Newcomb Pier. The city council approved a plan to replace the pier with a resort island in

Santa Monica Bay Santa Monica Bay is a bight of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, United States. Its boundaries are slightly ambiguous, but it is generally considered to be the part of the Pacific within an imaginary line drawn between Point Dume, ...

. Local activists formed Save Santa Monica Bay and shot down that plan, and in 1973, the city formally revoked a standing order to demolish the pier. The city acquired ownership of the privately owned pier in summer 1974. In the 1980s, the pier was almost destroyed by winter storms. In 1983, the city formed a Pier Restoration and Development Task Force (now the Pier Restoration Corporation), tasked with returning the pier to its former glory. Summer music concerts were held on the pier. In 1989, the Pier Restoration Corporation decided to "make the pier a year-round commercial development with amusement rides, gift shops, nightclubs with live entertainment and restaurants" that would be "reminiscent of its heyday in the 1920s and 1930s". The current park opened in 1996 as a full-scale family amusement park.

Rides and attractions

The park is "non-gated" and there is no charge for admission; individual rides charge a fee. There are a dozen rides as well as midway games, food outlets, and shopping. A Seaside Pavilion event space opened in 2009 for corporate and private events. This is a list of rides in operation at Pacific Park as of 2016.''The Rides'' (Pacpark.com)

Rollercoaster

* Santa Monica West Coaster – A

steel roller coaster A steel roller coaster is a roller coaster that is defined by having a track made of steel. Steel coasters have earned immense popularity in the past 50 years throughout the world. Incorporating tubular steel track and polyurethane-coated whee ...

running around the perimeter of Pacific Park. West Coaster's maximum height is , and the single train reaches speeds of 35 miles per hour.

Thrill rides

*Inkie's Scrambler – A 12-car Scrambler, refurbished in 2013 *Sea Dragon – A pirate ship with a 180° swing. *Pacific Plunge – A

drop tower A drop tower or big drop is a type of amusement ride incorporating a central structure or tower. Drop towers vary in height, passenger capacity, lift type, and brake type. Many are custom-made, although there are some mass-produced designs. T ...

built by Moser Rides. Carries 10 seated people in two gondolas. Refurbished in 2012 *Shark Frenzy - A custom built shark-themed twist on a

Tilt-a-whirl Tilt-A-Whirl is a flat ride similar to the Waltzer in Europe, designed for commercial use at amusement parks, fairs, and carnivals, in which it is commonly found. The rides are manufactured by Larson International of Plainview, Texas. Descri ...

ride. Each seated shark "head" represents a different species of shark including the Blue, Bull, Great White, Lemon, Mako, Sand Tiger and Tiger species.

Family rides

*Pacific Wheel – The original Pacific Wheel was listed on

eBay eBay Inc. ( ) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995 and became ...

with half the proceeds from the sale donated to the

Special Olympics Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities and physical disabilities, providing year-round training and activities to 5 million participants and Unified Sports partners in ...

. It had 20 gondolas and was featured in the

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Sp ...

film ''

1941 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January–August – 10,072 men, women and children with mental and physical disabilities are asphyxiated with carbon monoxide in a gas chamber, at Hadamar E ...

''. The current Pacific Wheel measures , and the vantage point at the top is more than above the pier. Pacific Park claims that the Pacific Wheel is the world's first and only solar-powered Ferris wheel.Pacific Park - the Rides
*Sig Alert EV – A bumper car ride named for the traffic alert unique to California.

Children's rides

*Inkie's Frog Hopper – A scaled-down 'bouncing' drop tower reaching *Inkie's Wave Jumper *Inkie's Sea Planes *Inkie's Air Lift *Seaside Swing - Seats up to 16 guests on a two-sided bench that sways back and forth in a 45 degree arc. *Inkie's Sig Alert - Kiddie version of bumper cars.

Attractions, additional and no fee

*Gyro Loop - Players use a joystick to control their speed and RPM while circling and rotating, in an attempt to win a prize. *Playland Arcade - A traditional video arcade, prices vary between games. This attraction has been featured in various movies and music videos. The arcade was among the first in the United States to feature Dance Dance Revolution, helping it gain notoriety and popularity.

Past rides and attractions

*Chaos: removed and replaced by Inkie's Scrambler *Rock and Roll: removed for Chaos and later replaced by Inkie's Scrambler *Swing Ride: removed for Pirates Pier Mini-Golf and later replaced by Sig Alert EV *Inkie's Pirate Ship - Last day was in Q1 of 2017; removed and replaced by Shark Frenzy *Pier Patrol – A 'train' of cars propelled around a beach-themed track. Removed and replaced by Seaside Swing *Pirates Pier Mini-Golf: removed and replaced by Sig Alert EV *Bumper Cars: removed and replaced by Inkie's Sea Planes and Inkie's Air Lift *Mini Pirate Ship *Lil' Scrambler *Baron Planes: removed and replaced by Inkie's Wave Jumper *Balloon Race *Turtles *Crazy Submarine: removed and replaced by Seaside Swing *Mini Swing Ride *Rock Climber *Bungee Jumper *Extraordinary Bike: removed and replaced by Gyro Loop

Gallery

Image:Pacific Park.jpg, Close up of Pacific Plunge as viewed from southwest Image:Santa Monica Pier P4060289.jpg, Profile of Pacific Plunge as viewed from the south Image:Ferris wheel in Santa Monica CA boardwalk 2009.jpg, The solar-powered ferris wheel in 2009. Image:Solar panel for the ferris wheel in Santa Monica 2009.jpg, The solar panel powering the wheel, 2009. Image:Santa Monica Pier Riesenrad P4060278.jpg, Pacific Plunge as seen from the end of

Filming Films

*''

'' (1997) (Amusement Simulator: It's Frightening!: Ride Of Doom – Volcano Mine Ride.)

References

* * (Pacpark.com)

Notes

External links

Official Site of Pacific Park
* {{Amusement Parks & Theme Parks of California Amusement parks in California Parks in Los Angeles County, California 1996 establishments in California Buildings and structures in Santa Monica, California Tourist attractions in Santa Monica, California Amusement parks opened in 1996 Premier Parks, LLC