Pacific Park is an amusement park located on the Santa Monica pier that caters to guest of all ages. Like most boardwalk amusement parks, Pacific Park is small. It offers guests somewhere to go when they want a break from the sand and water. Along with rides, the park features boardwalk games and other attractions to keep families busy. There are twelve rides located within Pacific Park. Many of these rides lift visitors high into the air so they can overlook the Pacific Ocean. Since 1996, guests have been able to enjoy rides and games at this amusement park.
One of the most popular rides at this amusement park is the Pacific Wheel. Installed in 1996 when the park opened, the Pacific Wheel is the first solar-powered Ferris Wheel. For many years, it was also the world's only so solar-powered Ferris Wheel. The wheel carries passengers on 20 gondolas and is 85 feet wide. It made national news in 2008, when the park put the wheel on eBay so that they could replace it with a new solar-powered Ferris Wheel. The proceeds went to the Special Olympics, and the old wheel found a home in Oklahoma City.
Another popular ride at the Pacific Park is the West Coaster. This steel roller coaster runs along the perimeter of this 2-acre park, reaching speeds of 35 miles per hour. The coaster also goes high into the air at some points, giving riders a great view. Nearby, older guests can also enjoy the Sig Alert bumper cars, a 12-gondola scrambler, a rocking pirate ship ride known as Sea Dragon, the Pacific plunge drop tower, and the Gyro Loop, a ride that riders control as they're on it.
The park also has a number of rides for younger visitors. Bed Baron is a World War I themed ride where children can sit in biplane replicas to spin around the sky. At Ship Ahoy, younger riders can enjoy their own smaller version of Sea Dragon. There's also miniature scrambler and drop tower rides, the Pier Patrol train ride, and Eurobungy, a combination trampoline and bungee jump attraction for kids. Kids and adults alike can enjoy boardwalk games at the Pacific Park, including Wac-a-Mole, Roller Derby, Water Races, plate breaking, and basketball.
Rides and games aren't the only attractions at this amusement park. Guests who want to show off physically may enjoy the Pacific Peak Climbing Wall. There's also Pier Plank Plunge, which challenges guests to walk to the end of a swinging plank, and guests can try the X-treme Wave Jumper. At this attraction, visitors are attracted to multiple bungee cords so they can jump on a trampoline and attempt tricks.
Like most boardwalk parks, the Pacific Park is open seasonally, with limited hours of operation during the fall, winter, and early spring. Riders purchase tickets to go on individual rides or participate in other interactive attractions, rather than paying an admission fee, making it one of the few free amusement parks in the state. For more information, guests can call 310-260-8744.
Review, comment, or add new information about this topic: