Last month saw the announcement of three drive-thru attractions around the world, as parks and resorts are adapting to the ‘new normal’. The latest park to jump on the trend is Brazilian theme park ‘Hopi Hari’. The theme park runs an annual ‘Horror Hour’ event, although this year, guests will enjoy it from the safety of their own vehicle.
In this new format, guests to the attraction will live the experience entirely from their car, following a route full of scary creatures emerging from the darkness at any given moment. The park adapted the event to ensure the safety and wellbeing of visitors and employees, amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The attraction, named ‘Horror Drive Tour, officially opens its doors on September 4th. The president of the park, Alexandre Rodrigues, said that the proposal is similar to other drive-thru events that have popped up throughout Brazil, since the beginning of the pandemic. “We have probed a series of different events that have adapted well to the current reality. Musical shows, theatres, cinemas. The trend is certainly a great alternative for the market,” he said.
Hopi Hari’s content manager, Rogerio Barbatti, is keeping many features of the attraction a secret, but is anticipating that the new format will present a great opportunity to create a unique experience for visitors. “In a car, you have nowhere to escape, this allows us to provide a feeling different from everything we’ve done here,” he said.
The Horror Drive Tour is part of an even bigger project, the Teatro Arena Show, where guests can enjoy music from live DJs in the park’s car park, prior to entering the scare attraction. Plans at Hopi Hari include hosting more live shows at the same location in future, providing a source of entertainment throughout the pandemic.
For now, the park itself and its attractions will remain closed, as bosses follow the advice of the government of the Vinhedo region of Sao Paulo. In order to guarantee the safety of all visitors and staff, guests will be required to pre-book their trip online, and hours of visitation will be limited. The park sells a ‘Passaporti Relampago’ ticket, allowing guests to visit regularly throughout the season. Guests who have purchased this ticket will be able to visit the new attraction with one other guest at a time.
