The holiday shopping season is upon us once again and if you’re on the hunt for that special gift for a friend or family member who happens to be a roller coaster enthusiast, you’ve come to the right place! The obvious gift is to buy a season pass to your local amusement park, zoo, or aquarium but if you want to give something a little bit different this time then check out our list below. Like last year, we’ve organized our gift ideas into several sub-categories.
Theme Park Books
Creating My Own Nemesis by John Wardley. The story follows John’s professional career beginning with how he got out of the boring family business and into the crazy world of theme parks. If by any degree you’re into magic, illusions, theater production, theme park design, or roller coasters I highly recommend you read this thoroughly entertaining book.Read our full review here.
Universal versus Disney: The Unofficial Guide to American Theme Parks’ Greatest Rivalry. Scheduled for release on December 2, seasoned Disney-author Sam Gennawey has thoroughly researched how Universal Studios shook up the multi-billion dollar theme park industry, one so long dominated by Walt Disney and his legacy.
American Coasters: A Thrilling Photographic Ride is by photographer Thomas Crymes. The pictures are large and crisp. The colors are vivid. The book’s simple design places more emphasis on the photographs. Nothing beats seeing pictures of roller coasters printed on a physical page (sorry, internet). See a few of the pictures and read our review.
Chippewa Lake Park: Gone, But Not Forgotten is by Coaster101 writer and photographer Kyle Lindner. This 64 page photo-book is a small effort to help preserve what is left of this once roaring park. Included are black and white film photographs, digital photographs and chromoskedasic prints.
Eighteen Roller Coasters is another book by Kyle Lindner. This photo-book includes prints of coasters like you’ve never seen before. The photographs were developed using the chromoskedasic process. Included are eighteen photographs of popular coasters and four bonus Banshee photographs. If you love roller coasters, you’ll love this one-of-a-kind book.
Roller Coaster Video Games
NoLimits 2 is the most realistic roller coaster simulation game that lets you create authentic coasters. This software is so good, it’s even used by real roller coaster design firms. They’re currently having a Black Friday sale where everything is 20% off!
Theme Park Studio gives those who want to build their own park a “powerful suite of tools that allows players to design, build, and experience stunning amusement parks of their own design.” Theme park designers can also upload their work to share with the online community.
While we’re all still waiting for RollerCoaster Tycoon World to be released, why not go back and play the classic and probably most popular among coaster enthusiasts, RollerCoaster Tycoon 2: Triple Thrill Pack.
Roller Coaster Toys and Models
The carnival is coming to town with this super cool new Fairground Mixer LEGO set. A portable spinning ride and several carnival games can be built with the more than 1,700 pieces.
The Roller Coaster Factory is the world’s first roller coaster system that is 100% compatible with the world’s leading building block system, LEGOS!
Want to bring a little piece of Walt Disney World into your home? Looking for an alternative to putting a train around your Christmas tree? Then check out the Walt Disney World Monorail Playset. This working monorail is inspired by the real thing and has sound and light effects.
Apparel
Cincy Amusement Park Shirts. From the early days of Chester Park to Americana and Kings Island, these vintage shirts will be a nice stroll down memory lane. This shop not only sells The Bat shirts, but also a few other defunct Kings Island coasters, including Son of Beast, Phantom Theater, and King Cobra!
Other Gift Suggestions
For less than $16, American Coaster Enthusiasts’ 2015 Roller Coaster Calendar features a broad variety of beautiful coaster photos. This year’s calendar includes new coasters such as Banshee at Kings Island and FireChaser Express at Dollywood along with classics like Demon at California’s Great America and Expedition GeForce at Holiday Park.
Theme Park Memorabilia
Have you ever wanted to give someone a unique, one of a kind gift from a Disney Park? Look no further than Theme Park Connection! They have all sorts of Disney-related Props, Costumes, Cast Member Exclusives and other Memorabilia on both their Online Store and eBay auctions! They also have a brick and mortar storefront. For more information, visit their website!
What about an entrance sign from a defunct roller coaster? An eBay user is selling the sign that hung above the entrance at Eagles: Life In The Fast Lane at Hard Rock Park.
The same seller has several other Hard Rock Park items, including the sign for “Alice’s Restaurant,” one of Hard Rock Park’s most unique eateries. Be sure to check out all of their items here!
For those who want hand-crafted gifts, CoasterConnection is a new online store where coaster enthusiasts can find original roller coaster and amusement park art.
Season Passes/Tickets
With so many great and unique attractions opening around the world in 2015, why not get the Coaster Enthusiast tickets or a season pass to their favorite park. Whether they want to ride Fury325 at Carowinds, Thunderbird at Holiday World, or Twisted Colossus at Six Flags Magic Mountain, there is a ticket or season pass option for them. Many Season Passes include perks like discounts inside the park, or admission to other parks. Be sure to check out your favorite park’s website for specific details.
Find more coaster-enthusiast gift ideas in our gift giving guides from 2011, 2012 and 2013.
What gifts are you getting your coaster enthusiast friends? Which coaster gifts are you hoping to find under the tree this year? Discuss in the comments section below.
I’ve gotta show this to my mom!