Charlesberg Posted April 17, 2017 Report Share Posted April 17, 2017 If anyone is interested (I certainly was), Ferrari Land does have an Express Pass (details about prices,etc. are not given on the website). From what PA told me, there is one pass that lets you access each ride once (obviously through the express queue). The price is €30. Seeing as there are only about 6 rides, I'll probably just stick with not buying one (if I go this year). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobF Posted June 6, 2017 Report Share Posted June 6, 2017 I'm off to portaventura in a couple of weeks, Anyone got any tips on how to make the most of the day ect best places to eat either locally or on park. We're staying onsite at portaventura for one night. With 1.5 days on park Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerfuffle Posted June 8, 2017 Report Share Posted June 8, 2017 On 6/6/2017 at 1:17 PM, RobF said: I'm off to portaventura in a couple of weeks, Anyone got any tips on how to make the most of the day ect best places to eat either locally or on park. So far I have no experience from the restaurants there but ride-wise I suggest working your way around the park. Start with Furius Baco for this reason. Or, if you're that paranoid about queues then it'll probably be best to just get Shambhala out the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Posted June 8, 2017 Report Share Posted June 8, 2017 On 2017-6-6 at 1:17 PM, RobF said: I'm off to portaventura in a couple of weeks, Anyone got any tips on how to make the most of the day ect best places to eat either locally or on park. We're staying onsite at portaventura for one night. With 1.5 days on park I remember the food on park not being very great at all, regarding evening food it depends which hotel you're staying in as each one has it's own restaurants. As you're staying onsite I'd highly recommend getting the unlimited fast pass which is discounted to hotel guests. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted June 8, 2017 Report Share Posted June 8, 2017 Just buy the unlimited hotel Fastpass, it'll make the day so much better... Like, it's a complete no brainer... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobF Posted June 24, 2017 Report Share Posted June 24, 2017 Had an amazing time at Port Aventura last week, Key points I have to say never have I visited a park with such poor operations in terms of speed and efficiency The fast pass system is 10x worse than fasttrack at merlin parks. We stayed in the gold river hotel with 2 days on park and 1 night accommodation for £35 each which was a bargin. In terms of the rides we did most of them, however I have to say I prefer silver star to shambala. Furious baco is so rough for its age, any ideas why its so bad? I think Dragon Khan is the strongest coaster at the park. we also did ferrari land, red force seemed to be having lots of issues, I dont think for the ride line up it warrents the extra €25, its a shame red force doesnt utilise a hydrolic launch as its not very forceful but the views are brilliant. Given I feel I have been generally quite negetive in this post, we had a amazing time at the park and local area, I just didnt feel the overall wow factor that made me think I have to come back here I had when I visited Europa park and Phantasia Land Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TarinMaria Posted October 17, 2017 Report Share Posted October 17, 2017 PortAventura has really disappointed me this weekend just gone.It's the kind of place that could be amazing, but isn't. It makes Thorpe's operations look like Europa's, queue jumping is terrible, most of the rides are painful, the staff range from okay to appalling, and the guests, urgh.The lady in guest services was incredibly rude when she refused to give me a disabled pass, as a letter from a consultant isn't enough, she didn't even look, I imagine assuming I was trying to play the system. It was taking them 5 minutes to dispatch trains on Baco. Baco is one of the worst rides I've ever been on. And no one gets out the way of mobility scooters, which I'm sure is something to do with anyone being able to hire them.The scare mazes were an organisational nightmare, no time slots and ticket booths opening around the same time as the maze, rather than an hour before. The mazes also weren't open for long enough. Although, REC was being batched and operated better than any of the rides. The free maze had a 2 and a half hour long queue when we wanted to go on, but guess what, they sold fast tracks for that too!I mean, sure, the place looks nice, and it has Shambhala, but when put next to Efteling, Europa or even Phantasialand, it pales in comparison. I've heard the phrase 'it's missing something' a fair amount over this weekend, but I think it's missing quite a few things. MattyMoo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt 236 Posted October 17, 2017 Report Share Posted October 17, 2017 Unfortunately I can relate that Port Av is certainly nothing more than somewhat of a disappointment. At least from my experience. Poor operations, unfriendky and unhelpful staff and some of the worst theme park food I have ever tasted. Never before have I struggled so much consuming food which is somewhat inedible. Shambhala is great, along with it's show line up and water rides. There is also something I somewhat like about Baco despite it's roughness. Theming is generally nice, but not quite to the standard of Phantasialand and Efteling in several areas. Ferrari Land feels modern, airy and decently landscaped, but doesn't have much going for it other than Red Force. It generally feels like a walk-in advert for Ferrari. El Paso Hotel was somewhat disappointing, as service was slow and staff not overly helpful either. They took ages to sort and repair the broken door in our room (which was at ground floor level). I now have a strong grudge against staying at ground floor level in hotels, as a result. Whilst there were things I actually liked about the place, I have no intention to return to PA for sometime in the future, which is a pity due to being home of my third favourite coaster (whilst in present writing). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Project LC Posted October 17, 2017 Report Share Posted October 17, 2017 I have pretty much the exact same complaints. The food in the park is dreadful, having tried pretty much everything they had to offer I can confirm that every restaurant there serves inedible food. The staff are completely incompetent and rude. The lady in guest services was also rude to us but compared to the ride hosts she was the best service we had at any point while there. I have no intention to ever return to the park and seeing as you 2 have the exact same complaints id advise others not to bother visiting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TarinMaria Posted October 17, 2017 Report Share Posted October 17, 2017 I was planning on sending a strongly worded email, especially given the way I was treated by the guest services staff member. It was suggested that it might be a culture or law thing (like in Germany), but we visited Tibidabo and the staff members there couldn't do enough to help me out... I'd expect the larger park to be more helpful, but the staff were terrible for the most part. Is it a lack of planned management? It felt that way to me, ride hosts and ops left to do as they wish, rather than having rules set in place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobF Posted October 17, 2017 Report Share Posted October 17, 2017 14 minutes ago, TarinMaria said: I was planning on sending a strongly worded email, especially given the way I was treated by the guest services staff member. It was suggested that it might be a culture or law thing (like in Germany), but we visited Tibidabo and the staff members there couldn't do enough to help me out... I'd expect the larger park to be more helpful, but the staff were terrible for the most part. Is it a lack of planned management? It felt that way to me, ride hosts and ops left to do as they wish, rather than having rules set in place. We had no issues at all with disabled access at Portaventura, and we at at the noodle bar next to dragon khan on both days and the food was good. Cant comment on the rest of the park. But I do agree ride ops are shocking and fast track sales are worse than merlin! The park doesnt flow well in terms of theme and certainly feels like something is missing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TarinMaria Posted October 17, 2017 Report Share Posted October 17, 2017 We had no issues at all with disabled access at Portaventura, and we at at the noodle bar next to dragon khan on both days and the food was good. Cant comment on the rest of the park. But I do agree ride ops are shocking and fast track sales are worse than merlin! The park doesnt flow well in terms of theme and certainly feels like something is missing. She said I needed a higher rate benefit letter, and they wouldn't accept a letter from my consultant... I don't get any benefits because I can walk further than 10 metres unaided most days. However, if she'd looked at the letter, she'd have seen 'Tarin has Multiple Sclerosis and cannot queue'. I'm sure the access was fine, but she wouldn't give me it, and was so rude about it! The food was average, but really expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted October 17, 2017 Report Share Posted October 17, 2017 PA is a bit of a weird one for me - I think as a resort they are pretty spot on, ride wise i think the park has a great offering, Shambarla and Khan are great and I admit I love baco (dont ask!!) Really enjoyed Ferrari land too - although feel this could do with more over time. Ive stayed in Hotel PA, El Paso twice, and Gold River and have never had a single issue on any of my stays. The food offerings are a bit limited i would agree, id say the food on park was generally quite good, but the hotels offer little more other than the expensive buffet options although the Italian place at Hotel PA is really nice. Never personally had an issue with the staff being rude or unhelpful, but realize this can all be down to luck, on my last trip after a few rides on Baco the ride staff were actually really nice talking to be (probably wondering why I wanted to keep riding it!) but yes, there operations are poor, they are slow and very understaffed, i'd never visit the place without getting the express pass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted October 17, 2017 Report Share Posted October 17, 2017 Agree with all the sentiments above Marc's post, when one of the best things you can say about a park is the express pass system, you know its got problems. Shambhala and Dragon Khan are great rides but if you have to encounter so much rubbish to get to them, it really isn't worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted January 18, 2018 Report Share Posted January 18, 2018 Ferrari Land is getting 5 new kids rides this year, including a Zamperla family coaster (called Junior Red Force for the lolz). Other rides include a couple of spinning things and a little drop tower thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt 236 Posted January 18, 2018 Report Share Posted January 18, 2018 Glad they chose a name for their junior that’s about original as the whole park. They did need some more rides though,especially for kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattgwise Posted January 18, 2018 Report Share Posted January 18, 2018 And the coaster is yellow! (well red supports in fairness) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zappomatic Posted February 13, 2018 Report Share Posted February 13, 2018 Just a heads up that British Airways have some cheap off-season deals for PortAventura at the moment: flights from Heathrow to Barcelona including luggage, and 3 nights half board at the Hotel PortAventura with park access and 1 day Ferrari Land ticket for £245 based on 2 sharing or £229 based on 4, departing 1 October. Adding a day adds about £60. I've managed to book so that I fly out to Barcelona on the Friday before and stay 3 nights before heading to PortAventura for 3 nights there, total cost £385 per person (plus €8.80 train fare to get from Barcelona to PortAventura, and €16 coach from PortAventura to Barcelona airport). Marc and pluk 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshuaA Posted March 4, 2018 Report Share Posted March 4, 2018 It seems like I'll be off to PA this year due to cheap flights. For those who have experienced Ferrari land, how good is Red Force and Ferrari land in general? Honestly though even if Ferrari Land is shi** Shambhala is worth the horrible staff and expenses. I also would be lying if I said I haven't missed Baco Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobF Posted March 4, 2018 Report Share Posted March 4, 2018 2 hours ago, JoshuaA said: It seems like I'll be off to PA this year due to cheap flights. For those who have experienced Ferrari land, how good is Red Force and Ferrari land in general? Honestly though even if Ferrari Land is shi** Shambhala is worth the horrible staff and expenses. I also would be lying if I said I haven't missed Baco Dragon kahn on a good day beats them both.... shambala lacked any force when I went last year. Red force is good but dont expect an amazing launch. As much as I enjoyed portaventura I wont be back in a hurry, you can tell the park is ex tussauds, from the management and fast pass organisation and honestly not many rides had the wow factor with many rough and dated rides. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPC Posted March 4, 2018 Report Share Posted March 4, 2018 I mean if you love awful operations, red force is for you. Running 1 train in peak summer is shocking for such a major resort. Ferrari Land generally is rather disappointing, except Flying Dreams. DON'T waste your time on Racing Legends. SUCH a waste of 45 minutes. JoshuaA 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt 236 Posted March 4, 2018 Report Share Posted March 4, 2018 Coming from someone who didn’t have the best PA experience, I’ll say this Shambhala is by far the best thing about PA (although it’s shows, water rides and hours are of acceptable level). Baco I have surprising love for but it’s a very marmite ride. Red Force is alright and is definitely best at the front. It’s probably still the best thing about the Ferrari Land as the drop towersand other rides were either average or general let downs IMO. Try and avoid eating food from the parks as when I was there it was awful. I’ve never struggled so much consuming oily tasteless pizza. The small cafe place near Baco serves some of the more edible food. Buy express pass if you can (unless you are staying onsite). I rarely condone this but the queues and operations there leave lots to be desired. On my previous visit I found amongst the worst I’ve seen at a theme park environment. Rude, unhelpful and respond to any query or complaint as if you’ve just offended them. Hopefully you will have a more enjoyable visit. The park could be something special if it was run correctly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mega-Lite Posted March 4, 2018 Report Share Posted March 4, 2018 I will be taking my first (and hopefully last) trip to PA later this month, what have I got myself in for... Funny really this park was going to be my first ever outside of the UK trip, but just kept getting put off, that alone I think sums it up nicely. Oh well, should make for a good trip report if nothing else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshuaA Posted March 4, 2018 Report Share Posted March 4, 2018 2 hours ago, RobF said: Dragon kahn on a good day beats them both.... shambala lacked any force when I went last year. Red force is good but dont expect an amazing launch. As much as I enjoyed portaventura I wont be back in a hurry, you can tell the park is ex tussauds, from the management and fast pass organisation and honestly not many rides had the wow factor with many rough and dated rides. Tbf when I last visited I found Dragons Khan actually a bit too rough/intense. Its a good ride and it has nice forces, but it induced quite a few headaches from me after the ride which kind of stopped me from loving it.. (and I'm the guy who loves Baco) I do have to admit I am massive Shambhala fan so that's enough reason for me to return lol. Yeah I have been to PA tons of times (the operations make Merlin look good).. 1 hour ago, Timber Creek said: The park could be something special if it was run correctly. Ditto. After my last visit I overall thought the theming, the rides, and the shows+the fireworks were all very strong (despite the odd piece of garbage.. cough* Ice age* cough) But the place is run so badly it kind of ruins any form of enjoyment to be had.. I do have to say though that despite the terrible way its ran- I have to applaud the theming and the landscaping, it looks beautiful in most areas. Anyway for my visit I think I might just run to Ferrari Land to ride the rides that are worth it then I'll get my a** over to ShammyB and wh*** it until the park closes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPC Posted March 4, 2018 Report Share Posted March 4, 2018 Tip of the day. Don't let a worldwide theme park vlogger overhype you about PA, especially for shambahla. Mega-Lite 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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