

Dorney Park Unveils Berenstain Bear Country; $2.5 Million Children's Fantasy Village - April 3rd, 1995



Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom will unveil on Saturday, May 6, its all-new Berenstain Bear Country, a unique children's fantasy village that brings to life the much-loved "family's" family, the Berenstain Bears. Dorney Park's new fantasy village is taken directly from the pages of the best-selling Berenstain Bears children's book series created by Stan and Jan Berenstain of Bucks County, PA.



Dorney Park's $2.5 million Berenstain Bear Country features a variety of exciting play areas and stimulating, larger-than-life interactive attractions that allow children to learn while they play and meet Papa, Mama, Brother, and Sister Bear. Berenstain Bear Country is divided into eight special play areas that will fascinate and entertain youngsters, while also teaching them about science, physics, biology and computers.



Berenstain Bear Country at Dorney Park is the first major multi-purpose attraction, designed especially for children ages three to either, to open in the past decade at a major theme park in the Northeastern United States.



According to Bill Near, Dorney Park general manager, special emphasis was placed on planning a unique attraction that would both entertain and educate. "We knew that today's parents demand a fun, yet educational atmosphere for their youngsters during the summer months. We created Berenstain Bear Country not only as a place to learn about science, biology and computers, but also as a place where children can learn more about both personal and family values."



One of the most unique landmarks in Berenstain Bear Country is the Bear Museum, with a mix of educations and interactive attractions inside that will entertain parents and children alike with fascinating science, biology, and physics lessons.



The Bear Museum features the Actual Factual Mobile driven by the Actual Factual Bear. This gigantic "learning mobile" is the home of Jacob's Ladder that allows children to create electricity at the push of a button. Children can observe the power of gravity and centrifugal force through the Fascinating Funnel in the Bear Museum.



Families can also visit Dr. Grizzly's office inside the Bear Museum, where youngsters can measure their height, check their weight or measure their heart rate after riding on a stationary bicycle.



Bear Museum also features a Computer Cove, equipped with touch screen computers that are both fun and educational. The museum also has the Bear Library for visitors that want to relax, unwind and read books from the Berenstain Bear book series.



In addition to the museum, there are several other areas throughout Berenstain Bear Country that children can enjoy. One of those areas is the Boys Club. Taken from the pages of "No Girls Allowed", the Boys Club features a periscope, maze tilt-table, tic-tac-toe game, log roll and talk tubes.



There are several other attractions taken directly from the pages of Berenstain Bear stories that the entire family can enjoy. Children can watch the Spooky Old Tree come to life right before their eyes. This larger-than-life attraction with claw shaped limbs and glowing eyes, is a replica of the monster tree from the pages of "The Berenstain Bears and The Spooky Old Tree". Children can climb into this attraction and see a sleeping bear and alligator pit, then slide out a back door. This attraction is sure to thrill its visitors.



Children and parents can also visit a huge walk-through replica of the Berenstain Bear Family Tree House. Visitors can take a peek and see what the inside of the Berenstain Bear family treehouse looks like.



If adventure is what children have in mind when they visit Berenstain Bear Country, The Dinosaur Pit is designed especially for them. This attraction is equipped with excavating equipment and a giant dinosaur skeleton. Children can dig in the gravel for hours and hunt for prehistoric treasures.



Additional activities located throughout Berenstain Bear Country include musical hopscotch; phone booths where children can talk to Bear family members; a water play unit with paddle wheel and water pump; and various pieces of playground equipment including teeter-totters, slides, spring board, balance beam, and monkey bars.



In addition to all the attractions, there will be tree stumps throughout Berenstain Bear Country with Berenstain Bears books attached to them corresponding to the attraction nearest to it.



Dorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom is a 200 acre amusement and water park located in Allentown, PA.