Worlds of Fun, is a 235 acre theme park located in Kansas City, Missouri, United States. Owned and operated by Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, it was founded by American businessmen Lamar Hunt and Jack Steadman under the ownership of Hunt's company, Mid-America Enterprises in 1973. Oceans of Fun is a water park that opened in 1982 and is next to the amusement park. Admission to Oceans of Fun is included with the price of admission to Worlds of Fun. Mid-America Enterprises sold both parks to Cedar Fair (now Six Flags) in 1995 for $40 million.

History

Texas and Arkansas native Lamar Hunt brought the Dallas Texans NFL team, which he owned, to Kansas City, Missouri, in 1963, renaming the franchise the Kansas City Chiefs. He founded an operating company in the region called Mid-America Enterprises, which focused on real estate, mining, and entertainment. Worlds of Fun was conceptualized and developed by Hunt, his business partner Jack Steadman, and theme park designer Randall Duell. Construction on the park began in November 1971 and was completed over 17 months at an estimated cost of $20 million. The park opened on May 26, 1973. It is located at the northern edge of a vast industrial complex in the bluffs above the Missouri River in Clay County, Missouri. At the time it opened, numerous projects across Kansas City were being built, including Kansas City International Airport, Kemper Arena (now called Hy-Vee Arena), and the Truman Sports Complex. The park was originally planned to complement a 500 acre hotel and entertainment complex, but a lagging economy during the park's early years derailed the idea. In 1974, the first addition to Worlds of Fun was the 4,000-seat Forum Amphitheater, which opened in the Europa section of the park. In 1976, a new section opened in honor of the United States Bicentennial – the 200th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence–and was named Bicentennial Square. The new section included the debut of Screamroller from Arrow Dynamics, which was a replica of the first modern looping roller coaster, Corkscrew, that opened a year earlier at Knott's Berry Farm. In 1982, Oceans of Fun opened next door as the largest water park in the world. In the same year, a sub-world named "River City" was opened in Americana, adjacent to the East Asia section (then referred to as the Orient section). Screamroller was transformed into Extremeroller the following year, which featured stand-up trains instead of the original sit-down models, making it the first looping, stand-up roller coaster in North America. Several years later, in 1989, Worlds of Fun ended the decade with the addition of Timber Wolf, a wooden roller coaster that initially ranked high in several national polls. Cedar Fair LP purchased Worlds of Fun in 1995 for $40 million. The new owners invested $10 million with the addition of Mamba, a D.H. Morgan Manufacturing steel hypercoaster, to the park's attraction lineup in 1998. On July 1, 2024, a merger of equals between Cedar Fair and Six Flags was completed, creating Six Flags Entertainment Corporation.

Other notable additions

Areas and attractions

The park takes its theme from the Jules Verne book, Around the World in Eighty Days. Worlds of Fun is divided into eight major sections (Gateway Gardens, East Asia, Americana, Wild West, Europa, Africa, Scandinavia, and Planet Snoopy). Rides, attractions, shops, shows, and restaurants are named according to the area theme. Guests enter the park at International Plaza. In 1997, the Americana "main entrance" was closed for the creation of Grand Prix, so the "back gate" has been the "main gate" ever since. The next world to the left is Scandinavia, then Africa, continuing in a clockwise rotation, guests would then enter the Wild West section, then the Americana section, followed by East Asia. The Europa section is located in the approximate center of the circle. Behind the Wild West section lies the section of Planet Snoopy (the area of the park specifically for young children). Originally added in 1978 as an expansion of Americana, over the years the grounds have changed its identity several times. Initially it was called "Aerodrome" (1978–86) with futuristic rides for adults, it then became a children's area called "Pandamonium!" (1987–97), then "Berenstain Bear Country" (1997–2000), and "Camp Snoopy" (2001–2010), and is currently "Planet Snoopy", new to the 2011 season. Past sub-sections have also included Bicentennial Square, River City, and Beat Street, which have all been absorbed back into Americana. Although there is no Australian/Oceanic section in the park, there is an Australian-themed Boomerang roller coaster in the Africa section.

Roller coasters

Africa

Americana

Europa

Gateway Gardens

East Asia

Planet Snoopy

Scandinavia

Wild West

Former rides and attractions

Roller coasters

Flat rides/attractions

Oceans of Fun

Oceans of Fun is Worlds of Fun's water park. It opened in 1982 as the world's largest water park. It is included with admission to Worlds of Fun, beginning in the 2013 season.

Fast Lane

Fast Lane is Worlds of Fun's "two line" system introduced in 2012. For an increased cost (in addition to normal admission charges), visitors receive a wrist band that enables them to bypass the standby line and enter the "Fast Lane" line to significantly reduce their wait time. Fast Lane Plus gets access to select rides not included in basic Fast Lane. During Halloween Haunt, a similar system named "Fright Lane" is sold. Serving the same purpose as Fast Lane, it significantly reduces the wait times at select haunted attractions. "Fright Lane+" includes a "Skeleton Key", a key that grants holders special access to secret, intense rooms in six of the eight haunted houses. In addition, holders receive special seating for Ed Alonzo's Psycho Circus of Magic and Mayhem. "Fright Lane Max" is a VIP system that allows holders seating at Overlord's Awakening, a meal, and limited edition Haunt T-shirts, in addition to all the perks listed above.

Worlds of Fun Village

In 2005, Worlds of Fun opened the first on-site resort. The campground is adjacent to the park, and is located "behind" Mamba. The Village has 22 cabins, 20 cottages, and 82 RV sites, complete with electric and TV cable hookups. Each cabin or cottage can fit 6–8 people.

Snoopy's Hot Summer Lights

"Snoopy's Hot Summer Lights", which debuted in 2010, was an immersive light and sound experience starring the Peanuts characters. Snoopy's Hot Summer Lights features over 2 million LED lights and a variety of audio soundtracks through the Africa and Europa sections of the park. Along the walkway there were replicas of Snoopy and other characters for guests to view. Snoopy's Hot Summer Lights was a one million dollar investment that used special effects and sound design, custom designed for Worlds of Fun by Emmy Award-Winning RWS and Associates. Snoopy's Hot Summer Lights opened for its original run on June 4 and ran through September 5, 2010.

Halloween Haunt

Halloween Haunt is a Halloween event that takes place during the Halloween season. It is included in the price of admission.

Current attractions

, it features 9 Extreme Haunts, including seven mazes and two scare zones, along with four live shows.

Former Haunt attractions

Games

Cole Lindbergh, former manager of the park's games department, was featured in a 2011 episode of Public Radio International's This American Life, "Amusement Park." In the nine-minute prologue, host Ira Glass interviews Lindbergh about his management philosophy and plays segments from several YouTube videos he made to promote the park's games.

Gallery

Incidents

Barnstormer

Oceans of Fun

Orient Express

Screamroller

Timber Wolf

In popular culture

Worlds of Fun was used as the setting for a skit in a 2021 episode of Saturday Night Live. The skit opens with a still photo of the park's iconic hot-air balloon sign and then cuts to the cast getting ready to ride Viking Voyager. The park's logo can be seen in the sketch and other rides such as Mamba and Zulu are referenced as well. It also appears in the HBO series The Last of Us.