On the last full day of vacation we headed to Lotte World late in the afternoon. Lotte World is an amusement park in Seoul.
Even though it is an indoor amusement park put on some sunblock because there’s an outdoor section as well. I didn’t put any on, expecting to be inside the entire day (the park closes at 11pm) but we ended up being outside for more than half the time we were there.
Lotte World has two main parts. The indoor section is called Adventure and the outdoor section is Magic Island.
Adventure is broken up into several sections; a kiddie zone, Underland and about 3 different floors of rides, attractions, and food. There is also a Folk Museum.
We stopped for lunch on the bridge between Adventure and Magic Island. I just wanted something quick and simple so when we saw chicken nuggets that came with a coke it was perfect. I like the way they sell it. They put the chicken nuggets in a little cup that fits in the larger cup of pepsi/coke (with a little hole for the straw). It makes it easier to carry both drink and food in one hand and easily access both. The sauce they poured on top had a very light kick to it and was messy.
When we got outside to Magic Island. The first thing we noticed was how big the lines were. We got in the shortest line we could find: Fantasy Dream. As a person who doesn’t understand a lot of Korean yet or know any context behind this ride except for the tagline in the brochure “A fantastic underground train tour full of cute animals” I found this ride a little disturbing.
At one point they do sing in English, something about eating candy. I understand how it could be cute, but it’s got that old fashioned style that is kinda creepy.
This is the Atlantis Adventure roller coaster. The wait to ride it was four hours.
I’m not really a huge fan of roller coasters and I definitely got a sunburn from waiting in line. Most amusement parks I’ve been to have a place for to hide away the lines, but I guess we went on a really busy day because this line wrapped around the park. The Atlantis Adventure doesn’t go upside down, or loop. It’s a very basic roller coaster that’s a bit fast (72 kilometers per hour/44mph) and it’s a rather short ride. If the line isn’t four hours and if you’re a fan of roller coasters then I suggest this ride.
One of my favorite things about amusement parks are Dippin’ dots, and I was really happy to see them at Lotte World. So when we got off the ride and back into the suddenly empty park I went straight over to get some, they had only the basic flavors we have in the US. (We got off the ride at after 9 pm and the park doesn’t close until 11 pm but Magic Island was a ghost town.) A lot of the rides outside had very small lines when we got off of the Atlantis Adventure, but the ones that had had the bigger lines earlier in the day had someone at the end of the line not allowing anyone else in. They had gone through, calculated how many people could go before the park or the ride had to close. They had done the same thing with the Atlantis Adventure ride.
We were only at Lotte World for about 7 hours, most of which we waited in lines. We didn’t realize that even though it was a Monday it was still a holiday weekend, so the park was packed. We rode only those two rides and went to check out one of the open exhibits: Fantasy Forest.
The animal exhibit was inside on the main level of Adventure with no line. There were ants, beetles, tortoises, rabbits, birds, guinea pigs, chipmunks, and a butterfly garden with only white butterflies in it behind glass. Even though it was somewhat empty there were still a lot of kids. Unlike the two rides I went on I would like to go back and spend more time in the animal exhibit.
There was a gift shop attached to the Fantasy Forest where you could catch fish and take them home. This girl was a pro filling her cup super fast and to the brim with fish.
One of the other things we did at Lotte World was play some of the games. Lotte World has a lot of cute prizes for their games. My friend played the balloon popping games, shooting games, and a pool game. We didn’t have time for a lot of other things, but I would like to go back and see the parades and shows, and ride some of the other rides and try more of the park food. I think we got there too late to beat the lines, the park opens at 9:30 am and we arrived well into the afternoon. The weather was nice and it was a holiday, all of which worked against us.
What’s the longest you’ve ever waited in line for a ride? Or have you waited even longer for something else?
One thought on “Lotte World”