Blue Anchor Leisure is spending £15m on “Europe’s largest looping coaster” – the 150ft-high Millennium rollercoaster – at its 11.3ha (28 acre) indoor theme park, The Magical World of Fantasy Island, at Ingoldmells near Skegness.
According to the developer, the rollercoaster is the largest privately-funded millennium project in the UK.
Construction has begun and thrill-seekers will be hurtling around the tracks at speeds of 50 mph by Easter.
Bob Suich, head of tourism at East Lindsey district council, is jubilant that the investment is taking place in Skegness. “There’s been huge national publicity – we’ve been in the national newspapers and on TV. It’s absolutely superb,” he says. “This is a massive investment in the district. We’re completely behind it.”
Since opening three years ago, the theme park has attracted more than 12m tourists. And in May this year, Blue Leisure opened another ride – the £2m Volcanic Eruption. The ride features a cut-out of the centre of a man-made volcano. Suich enthuses: “It’s great – it shoots you 200ft up into the air!”
Blue Anchor recently gained consent to open the park all year, helping to create 1,000 jobs. The park’s John Woodward says that gaining consent will be crucial in the next stage of the park’s development.
“This will bring an additional £30m of investment over the next three to five years and double the workforce in the main season,” he says.
The next phase will include the Fantasy Island Hotel, comprising 100 bedrooms, plus 200 self-catering family apartments, a pub, three restaurants, and an indoor Water World.
