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Amusement Parks : Loudoun Castle – a Potted History


Loudoun Castle is a popular amusement park which is situated around the ruins of a 19th century castle. The amusement park  is located in Galston which is around 5 miles from Kilmarnock in southwest Scotland.

The amusement park was opened in 1995 and has been through a couple of changes of ownership since it began through to its current owner, Henk Bembom’s Parkware Ltd. This company took over the running of the park in 2002 and quickly invested £5 million in the first year, followed by an additional £2m in the second. The amusement park has benefited from further investment over subsequent years bringing new rides and attractions to the park continuously.

It has four main ‘thrill’ rides – the Barnstormer, which launches you 120 feet vertically into the air and which affords you a great view of the entire amusement park at its peak. There’s also the hairpin twists and turns of The Rat, a ghostly galleon ride called The Black Pearl and the inverted loop of the Twist N Shout rollercoaster.

For younger kids, you can fly around the amusement park on the Sea Patrol jet using the controls to gain and lower your height and there’s the Junior Pirate Ship and Junior Twist to also enjoy in the amusement park.

In addition to all of the exciting rides at the amusement park, you can also visit Dougal McDougal’s farm which gives you the opportunity to feed and pet some of Scotland’s domestic and rare breed animals. You can even experience a llama eating out of your hands!

The amusement park’s Big Top Circus is another popular attraction for all of the family and there are two shows per day, featuring gymnasts, acrobats, magicians and trapeze artists. There’s a magnificent Birds of Prey spectacular at the amusement park and no amusement park would be complete without a show featuring its resident mascot – Rory the Lion where children are encouraged to sing along and dance with Rory himself.

Food and drink is well catered for at this amusement park – it even has its own fully licensed pub and restaurant – the Coach House! In addition to this establishment, the amusement park also boasts a BBQ hut, the Ship’s Wheel café and there’s even the Chocolate Fountain Heaven.

See also:
Amusement Parks: Camelot Theme Park – a Potted History

Amusement Parks : Diggerland – a Potted History
Amusement Parks : Fantasy Island – a Potted History
Amusement parks: Gulliver’s World – a Potted History
Amusement Parks: Lightwater Valley – a Potted History
Amusement Parks : Legoland Windsor – a Potted History 

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