Vacations Looked A Little Different Back Then
Yup, all of these places were welcoming visitors during the 80s, but the odds are you weren’t one of them. Honestly, how many of these spots did you actually visit?
Boardwalk And Baseball, Florida
Opening in 1987 on the former Circus World property, Boardwalk and Baseball combined roller coasters, carnival games and an enormous collection of baseball memorabilia. Visitors could also watch the Kansas City Royals during spring training. It closed unexpectedly in January 1990, giving it an incredibly short run.
Florida Memory, Wikimedia Commons, Enhanced
Penn Hills Resort, Pennsylvania
Heart-shaped tubs were only the beginning at this famously over-the-top Poconos resort. Penn Hills offered round beds, floor-to-ceiling carpeting and a swimming pool shaped like wedding bells. More than 100 rooms welcomed couples during the 80s, but the resort eventually closed in 2009.
Hanna-Barbera Land, Texas
Fred Flintstone, Yogi Bear and Scooby-Doo once had their own amusement park near Houston. Hanna-Barbera Land featured cartoon-themed rides, costumed characters and live stage shows. It opened in 1984 but lasted only two seasons before the property was converted into a water park.
Porpoise Island, Tennessee
Long before today’s enormous attractions took over Pigeon Forge, families visited a Hawaiian-themed park called Porpoise Island. It offered animal performances, tropical landscaping and Polynesian-style entertainment. The park opened in 1972 and welcomed its final visitors after the summer of 1984.
Marian Florinel Condruz, Pexels
Heritage USA, South Carolina
At its height, Heritage USA was one of America’s busiest attractions. The enormous Christian-themed resort included hotels, restaurants, shops, television studios, a water park and a recreation of ancient Jerusalem. Financial and legal troubles, followed by hurricane damage, led to its closing in 1989.
Toddbarwick, Wikimedia Commons, Enhanced
Magic World, Tennessee
A 100-foot volcano sitting beside the highway made Magic World difficult to ignore. The Pigeon Forge attraction also had an 80-foot freshwater aquarium, go-karts and fantasy-themed displays. It operated from 1971 until 1996, but plenty of visitors still remember seeing that volcano during the 80s.
Stars Hall Of Fame, Florida
This Kissimmee attraction filled its rooms with life-sized wax figures of Hollywood stars, historical figures and famous fictional characters. Bally acquired the attraction in the early 80s and later sold it. By October 1985, the building had reopened as a bookstore, and Stars Hall of Fame was gone.
Lake Dolores, California
Families traveling through the Mojave Desert once encountered an unlikely sight: a sprawling water park built around a man-made lake. Lake Dolores offered enormous slides, trapeze swings and high-speed rides. Its original popularity faded during the 80s, and the property was sold in 1990.
Mystery Fun House, Florida
This wonderfully strange Orlando attraction had secret passageways, unusual rooms, a moving bridge and a maze filled with mirrors. It was considerably smaller than the nearby theme parks, but that was part of its charm. Mystery Fun House opened in 1976 and remained until 2001.
Scottnj1966, Wikimedia Commons
Legend City, Arizona
Arizona once had its own Old West answer to Disneyland. Legend City featured rides, shops, costumed performers and elaborate Western scenery on the outskirts of Phoenix. Unfortunately, changing owners and continuing financial problems followed it for years. The park finally closed and was demolished in 1983.
The Nevele, New York
For generations of families, the Nevele was the classic Catskills vacation. Guests could spend their days ice skating, skiing, golfing, playing tennis or shooting hoops without leaving the resort. Its best years eventually passed, but the Nevele remained open until financial trouble forced it to close in 2009.
John Margolies, Wikimedia Commons
Sea-Arama Marineworld, Texas
Galveston families once spent their vacations watching dolphin and sea lion performances at Sea-Arama Marineworld. The park also featured marine exhibits and other animal attractions. It operated for more than two decades, including the entire 80s, before closing in January 1990.
Ghost Town In The Sky, North Carolina
Visitors rode a chairlift high above Maggie Valley to reach this Wild West town built on a mountaintop. During its busiest years, hundreds of thousands came for rides, shops and staged Western showdowns. The park has remained closed despite several attempted revivals under different owners.
Xanadu, Florida
This futuristic foam house looked like something dropped beside the highway by visitors from another planet. The Kissimmee attraction opened in 1983 and reportedly welcomed more than 1,000 visitors a day at its peak. People toured its unusual rooms until the attraction closed in 1996.
Dogpatch USA, Arkansas
Based on Al Capp’s Li’l Abner comic strip, Dogpatch USA mixed rides and live entertainment with historic log buildings collected from around Arkansas. The comic ended in 1977, and its fading popularity did not help the park. Dogpatch remained open until 1993.
kenzie campbell from springfield, mo, Wikimedia Commons
Lion Country Safari, California
Long before drive-through animal attractions became familiar, visitors near Irvine drove their own cars past lions, elephants and zebras roaming in large open areas. More than one million people reportedly visited during its first year. The California park operated from 1970 until 1984.
Santa’s Village, California
Christmas lasted all year at this storybook attraction in the San Bernardino Mountains. Families met Santa, visited reindeer and rode attractions including a monorail and bobsled ride. The original Santa’s Village opened in 1955 and lasted until 1998. The property later returned as SkyPark.
Holy Land USA, Connecticut
A glowing cross once guided travelers toward this unusual religious attraction overlooking Waterbury. Holy Land USA contained miniature recreations of biblical locations, catacombs and more than 100 structures. The original attraction closed in 1984, although restoration efforts eventually allowed the property to reopen for limited visits.
postcard, Wikimedia Commons, Enhanced
Gaslight Village, New York
Lake George once had an amusement park built around old-fashioned American entertainment. Gaslight Village offered melodramas, vaudeville-style performances, an opera house, an ice show and amusement rides. It opened in 1959 and remained a regional vacation favorite until closing in 1989.
The Enchanted Forest, Maryland
Children could walk through storybook scenes, explore fairy-tale buildings and meet familiar nursery-rhyme characters at this roadside park outside Baltimore. The original Enchanted Forest closed in 1989, briefly reopened for limited events in 1994 and then closed permanently in 1995. Many figures were later preserved elsewhere.
MEdwords Mary Murchison-Edwords, Wikimedia Commons
Buckskin Joe, Colorado
This recreated Western town near Cañon City had a saloon, jail, stagecoach, train and buildings rescued from old Colorado settlements. The town even had a donkey serving as mayor. Buckskin Joe continued welcoming tourists throughout the 80s before finally closing in 2010.
Plazak, Wikimedia Commons, Enhanced
Land Of Oz, North Carolina
High atop Beech Mountain, visitors followed a Yellow Brick Road made from approximately 44,000 bricks. Land of Oz opened in 1970 with Dorothy, the Scarecrow and other familiar characters. Regular operations ended in 1980, but limited special events eventually began bringing visitors back.
Lake Shawnee Amusement Park, West Virginia
This little lakeside park had a Ferris wheel, swings, a swimming pool and vacation cabins during its original years. After sitting closed for two decades, Lake Shawnee briefly reopened during the summers of 1987 and 1988. Rising insurance costs ended the comeback, and the park closed again.
Forsaken Fotos from, Maryland, Wikimedia Commons
Frontier Town, New York
Families visiting the Adirondacks once stepped into a recreated Western settlement filled with stagecoaches, a railroad, rodeos and costumed performers. Frontier Town opened in 1952 and remained a recognizable roadside destination during the 80s. Falling attendance eventually caught up with it, and operations ended in the late 90s.
John Margolies, Wikimedia Commons
Whalom Park, Massachusetts
Generations of New England families visited Whalom Park for its wooden Flyer Comet roller coaster, carousel and enormous slide. The lakeside park had already been operating for nearly a century by the 80s. It remained open until September 2000, and apartments now occupy much of the former property.
Redfive05, Wikimedia Commons, Enhanced
And That’s 25...
Some lasted barely two years. Others survived for more than a century. But every one of these places was still part of the American vacation landscape during at least some of the 80s. Be honest: did you actually visit one, or had you never even heard of any of them?
Matthew Filipowicz, Wikimedia Commons
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