YOUR FRIENDS' ACTIVITY

    9 strangely fascinating theme parks around the world

    Legoland or Sesame Place seem too everyday? Here's where to go, at home and abroad.

    Dickens World

    Street urchins and a Great Expectations boat cruise that slogs through the "sewers" and ends, magically, amid the rooftops brings Victorian London alive in Chatham, England (dickensworld.co.uk).

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    Tropical Islands
    A picture-perfect South Seas fantasy sealed within the world's largest dome...in Germany (pictured). Boasts a beach, a rain forest, a gigantic water slide, and more. Open year-round, 24 hours a day (tropical-islands.de).

    Suoi Tien Park

    Attractions like the Party of Four Supernatural Creatures, where you ride in boats around an enormous dragon, give this Vietnamese amusement park a fairy-tale vibe (suoitien.com).

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    Gatorland
    Get your fill of alligators and crocodiles, some weighing in at more than 1,000 pounds, at this 110-acre island park in Florida (gatorland.com).

    BonBon Land
    Rambling and slightly bizarre, this Danish amusement park (pictured) is based on candy. The names of its cartoony rides are silly (if not blatantly scatological, like Seagull Droppings), but the roller coasters pack a serious thrill (bonbonland.dk).

    See More: 10 Superlative Family Vacation Destination Ideas

    Stuart Landsborough's Puzzling World

    More than 35 years old, this theme park in New Zealand mixes reality and illusion, with a giant maze, a tilted house, and a hologram hall (puzzlingworld.co.nz).

    Wisconsin Dells
    You'll find more than 21 water parks-like Great Wolf Lodge, shown here-within almost 20 miles of one another, and you can ride some of America's longest, tallest, and fastest water roller coasters (wisdells.com).

    See More: 9 Entertaining Outdoor Games

    Haw Par Villa
    Chinese legends and ancient folktales are depicted in hundreds of figurines and statues throughout this Singapore theme park. Go to yoursingapore.com for more information.

    Diggerland
    Who knew racing dump trucks and swinging around in a huge shovel 25 feet above ground could be so much fun? Several locations in England (diggerland.com).

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