The Land of Make Believe is a family

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

and

water park A water park (also waterpark, water world, or aquapark) is an amusement park that features water play areas such as swimming pools, water slides, splash pads, water playgrounds, and lazy rivers, as well as areas for floating, bathing, swimming ...

catering mostly to families and children under 13 years of age. It is designed specifically for parents to participate with their children. Opened in 1954, it is in Hope Township, in

Warren County, New Jersey Warren County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. According to the 2020 census, the county was the state's 19th-most populous county,County Route 611, from exit 12 off of

Interstate 80 Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one of the ori ...

. It centers itself around "Safe and wholesome recreation", with entertaining rides and attractions that are most appropriate for children under the age of thirteen, but also has many attractions for people of all ages.

Ride styles

Some of its most prominent attractions are the civil war train (which loops around most of the park), the Pirate's Wading Pool, largest in America with life size Pirate Ship and the Pirates Escape & Pirates revenge dual racing slides. The Land of Make Believe has many of the standard amusement park rides like a junior sized

roller coaster A roller coaster is a type of list of amusement rides, amusement ride employing a form of elevated Railway track, railroad track that carries passengers on a roller coaster train, train through tight turns, steep slopes, and other elements, usua ...

, a

Tilt-A-Whirl Tilt-A-Whirl is a flat ride designed for commercial use at amusement parks, fairs, and carnivals. The ride consists of a number of cars which rotate freely while moving in a circle. As the cars revolve, the floor of the ride undulates so that th ...

, Drop & Twist, Tornado, Scream Machine 360, and Pirate's Fury as well as more specialized attractions like an Off Road Safari Adventure and a

petting zoo A petting zoo (also called a children's zoo, children's farm, or petting farm) features a combination of domesticated animals and some wild species that are docile enough to touch and feed. In addition to independent petting zoos, many general ...

. Some more of the water attractions include the Pirates Plunge, Blackbeard's Pirate Fort, The Sidewinder, Blackbeard's Action River Ride, and eight waterslides. Train at the Land of Make Believe

Initially, the park featured only attractions for small children, adding some water attractions for children in the late 1980s. Beginning in the first decade of the 2000s, the park has begun to add rides that adults can enjoy but yet are not too extreme for children. These included standard intermediate adult flat rides found in carnivals and amusement parks as well as larger waterslides found in major waterparks.

Rides and attractions

Water rides and attractions

Former rides and attractions

Scandals/lawsuits/crimes

In August 2012, police arrested Patrick Deck of

Watchung, New Jersey Watchung () is a borough in Somerset County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located approximately west of New York City. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 6,449, an increase of 648 (+11.2%) from the 2010 ce ...

. Deck was an employee of the Land of Make Believe. Deck pleaded guilty with two counts of transporting

child pornography Child pornography (also abbreviated as CP, also called child porn or kiddie porn, and child sexual abuse material, known by the acronym CSAM (underscoring that children can not be deemed willing participants under law)), is Eroticism, erotic ma ...

. He filmed a child urinating in the restrooms. Some footage was dated between 2002 and 2005. He was previously convicted in 1988 for endangering the welfare of a child. Because of the previous conviction, he faces a minimum of 15 years in state prison. In 2011, Land of Make Believe was cited for lack of bathrooms and changing stations. In 2012, former employee Jeremy Carrington sued amusement park director Walter Martowicz III for alleged sexual harassment. He mentioned the director would slap his buttocks, squeeze or push up against him.Former Land of Make Believe employee sues amusement park, director over alleged sexual harassment
''LeighValleyLive.com''. Accessed December 25, 2019 In 2016, an ex-employee stole $49,000. The theft began with small purchases and snowballed from there. Tracey Husarenko of

East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania East Stroudsburg is a borough in Monroe County, Pennsylvania, and part of the Pocono Mountains region of the state. Originally known as Dansbury, East Stroudsburg was renamed for geographic reasons when the Delaware, Lackawanna, and Western Railr ...

was charged with eight counts of theft and six counts of fraud. She turned herself in that week. In January 2019, James Bolan, an employee of LOMB, sent illicit pictures of himself to someone he thought was a 14-year-old female. He sent them to a

Bergen County Bergen County is the List of counties in New Jersey, most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Official site
*{{RCDB, 4673, Land of Make Believe 1954 establishments in New Jersey Amusement parks in New Jersey Buildings and structures in Warren County, New Jersey Hope Township, New Jersey Tourist attractions in Warren County, New Jersey Amusement parks opened in 1954