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Attractions: How Rides, Retail, Dining, and Entertainment Structure the Theme Park

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Key Concepts in Theme Park Studies

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Abstract

Attractions in theme parks are not just rides, but also include entertainment, retail, and food. This chapter traces the etymology of the term and uses case studies such as the long history of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride(s) at Disney theme parks or the Ice College show at Phantasialand. It also addresses the different types of attractions in the theme park, their various uses, and how they come together as a whole to (ideally) form one coherent, immersive narrative space. Furthermore, the chapter discusses the concept of an “attractions mix” as well as the role of attractions in marketing.

This work is contributed by Sabrina Mittermeier, Scott A. Lukas, Ariane Schwarz, Florian Freitag, Salvador Anton Clavé, Astrid Böger, Filippo Carlà-Uhink, Thibaut Clément, Céline Molter, Crispin Paine, Jean-François Staszak, Jan-Erik Steinkrüger, Torsten Widmann. The corresponding author is Sabrina Mittermeier, Fachgruppe Geschichte, Universität Kassel, Kassel, Germany.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departament de Geografia, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Vila-seca, Spain

    Salvador Anton Clavé

  2. Historisches Institut, Universität Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany

    Filippo Carlà-Uhink

  3. Institut für Anglophone Studien, Universität Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany

    Florian Freitag

Authors
  1. Salvador Anton Clavé
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  2. Filippo Carlà-Uhink
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  3. Florian Freitag
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Salvador Anton Clavé .

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Anton Clavé, S., Carlà-Uhink, F., Freitag, F. (2023). Attractions: How Rides, Retail, Dining, and Entertainment Structure the Theme Park. In: Key Concepts in Theme Park Studies. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-11132-7_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-11132-7_3

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-11131-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-11132-7

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