Photography Blog

Every summer, millions of people all across the United States load up their cars with families, friends, and sun tan lotion and set off to visit their local theme parks. Roller coasters are ridden, Polish sausages are eaten, and shoulders are sunburned as people of all ages try to find thrills and excitement.

So why do people enjoy going to theme parks so much? Well, for one thing, in terms of vacations they are fairly inexpensive. A lot of activity can be packed into one day at an amusement park. Even taking the high-priced meals and souvenirs into account, it is still usually cheaper than spending several nights at a resort or going on an expensive vacation.

Of course, there are also the thrilling adventures that theme parks offer. In general, people are fairly thrill seekers. Why else would horror movies and haunted houses be so popular? When we are scared or excited, our bodies create adrenalin. Adrenalin, like endorphins, makes us happy. It’s a legal drug.

Nothing can be as stimulating as a super fast roller coaster with sheer drop offs and corkscrew turns. These fast paced rides usually start out with a tension building ride in which the riders slowly climb a very steep hill. At the top, the cars suddenly pick up speed and plunge the riders into a mass of tumbling freefalls.

Although the large rides, like the roller coasters, generally only last a couple of minutes, those few minutes are filled with excitement and are worth the sometimes vast amount of time that the riders must spend waiting in line to get on them.

Many theme parks cater to our other needs beyond excitement and thrill. Theses places play on our fantasies and dreams. At places like MGM Studios customers are able to get a peek at some of their favorite movie stars and enjoy looking over the sets of their favorite shows. Epcot center allows us to explore the world of the future and more specialty theme parks indulge our innocent vices, like the theme park dedicated to the Hershey chocolate bar.

With that in mind, there are some amusement parks that provide more than just rides. Although it has many rides and attractions itself, Dollywood in East Tennessee is also known for its folk art and traditional Appalachian crafts. They even have a blacksmith on site. Throughout the summer, you can find headliners performing country music concerts.

Another reason behind the popularity of theme parks is that adults are invited to once again remember what it was like to be a child. It’s not often in the day-to-day life of a hard working person that they are allowed to scream and cheer as they live out the new inventions of the same childhood dreams of thrill, adventure and amazement.

At the end of the day, the best thing about theme parks is that they are a good place to spend quality time with your family and friends. In today’s world, we are a very busy society and most of the time we have little time for interacting with our loved ones the way that we would like to. Yet, a day at an amusement park provides laughter, bonding, and silliness. It is well worth the price of admission.