Rides galore for Funland's opening

Funland Jamaica is set to officially open its doors to patrons come tomorrow through to the end of the summer.

The attraction, which is based at Hope Botanic Gardens in St Andrew, was once the home of Coconut Park, which closed 15 years ago. It will offer dilly-dolly rides, puppet shows, trampoline, two different train rides, water slides, splash pad, ferris wheels, among other attractions.

"This is really phase one of reopening the park, where we are going to have temporary rides in the space," Paula Pinnock, managing director of FYI Consultancy Group, the company behind the project, told THE STAR.

However, before Friday's opening, there will be an official media launch today.

"What we will be revealing is our future plans for Funland to what the actual permanent site will look like," she said.

She said the feedback from Jamaicans living at home and abroad have been extremely overwhelming.

"We have a lot of persons from the diaspora who have reached out to us to say that this is amazing and they can't wait to come back to Jamaica for the summer holidays and for Christmas," she said.

Parents delighted

Even eager individuals have been visiting the location to view the work that has been done ahead of the park's opening.

"Parents, especially, are delighted that, finally, they can have somewhere they can look forward to bringing their children and make plans around. We also have a lot of churches and schools reaching out to us," Pinnock told THE STAR.

To get the park to a state where patrons can come to enjoy rides, she noted that it took a great deal of work and money to get it to where it is in a short period of time.

"We didn't break ground until May, so where we are now, we will continue to do minor work, but the park will be fully operational for the summer," she said.

Pinnock said the last couple of months were spent clearing the property, putting up buildings and bathroom facilities, as well as plumbing and electricity.

Particularly tedious was the process to remove all the old material left behind from the old Coconut Park.

Nonetheless, Pinnock believes that Funland will be a great boost not just for Kingston, but for the wider Jamaica, while providing persons with an affordable option to enjoy themselves. Entrance fee for children up to the age of 11 is $300, while persons 12 and over will pay $500.

While the park will be operational during the summer, Pinnock noted that international rides of a high calibre are currently being acquired for the permanent opening.