Niagara Amusement Park & Splash World
Niagara Amusement Park & Splash World is an amusement park in Grand Island, New York near Niagara Falls. It features an amusement park and a water park. The park is owned by Store Capital and operated by IB Parks & Entertainment.
History
Fantasy Island, Inc. (1961–1981)
Fantasy Island was founded by real estate developer Lawrence Grant, and opened on July 1, 1961. It was planned by co-financier and local jeweler Gerald Birzon, with buildings designed by Milton Milstein & Associates. The ownership group was formed under the name Fantasy Land, Inc. before changing soon after to Fantasy Island, Inc. The group had originally planned to call the park Fantasy Land, but changed the name for legal reasons after discovering there was an area of Disneyland called Fantasyland.Upon opening, the park occupied only of land that was divided into five themed areas: Action Town, Animal Kingdom, Garden of Fables, Indian Village and Western Town. Action Town featured amusement rides, Animal Kingdom featured a petting zoo, Garden of Fables featured explorable recreations of fairy tale scenes, Indian Village featured Native American dancers, and Western Town featured a live Wild West show.
To promote the park, WGRz aired a live weekly television program on Saturday mornings from 1961 to 1962 titled Fantasy Island Show, featuring the park's characters and puppeteers performing for an all-children live studio audience. The show's host and protagonist was Buckskin Joe, portrayed by park general manager Clyde "Buddy" Farnan.
A 2,500-seat outdoor arena was constructed in 1965 for French lion tamer Jean "Tarzan" Zerbini's circus. Actor Jim Carrey grew up in nearby Ontario and would vacation at Fantasy Island, citing Zerbini's show as a fond memory.
The park was expanded to in 1974 to make room for more thrilling rides and to broaden the park's appeal.
Citing the 1979 oil crisis and rising cost of gasoline, the park reported a 62% drop in profits during the 1979 season. The park was put up for sale that same year.
After dwindling attendance stemming from Western New York's Rust Belt economic decline, Fantasy Island, Inc. declared bankruptcy and the park did not operate for the 1982 season.
Charles R. Wood Enterprises (1982–1989)
The park was acquired out of bankruptcy in November 1982 by Charles R. Wood Enterprises, headed by Charles Wood, founder of Six Flags Great Escape and Hurricane Harbor in Queensbury, New York.A water park called Water World was added in 1984. Wood also installed an 800-seat picnic pavilion that was previously used at the 1982 World's Fair.
Arto Monaco was commissioned to redesign Garden of Fables, constructing a castle with a moat that was encircled by a horse-drawn carriage he had previously built for Land of Makebelieve.
International Broadcasting Corporation (1989–1992)
Wood sold the park to International Broadcasting Corporation in April 1989 for $36 million. As part of the deal, Wood would remain the chief executive officer of the park, and his son-in-law, Tom Wages, was retained as general manager.Following the 1989 closure of nearby Crystal Beach Park, that park's famed The Comet roller coaster was purchased by Charles Wood at auction in October 1989 for $210,000, disassembled, and stored indefinitely at Fantasy Island.
In June 1990, Michael Murach was paralyzed from the head down while performing a high diving act at the park when he slipped on a diving board during a comedy act and fell 20 feet, hitting his head on the edge of the concrete pool. Years later, Murach was awarded damages of $58.6 million after a jury found International Broadcasting Corporation 100% liable for his injury. The end of the diving board was not installed at a proper distance away from the edge of the pool to prevent such an incident from occurring.
In August 1991, 14-year-old Kenneth Margerum fell to his death from the park's Ferris wheel after his seat dropped from its axle. It was revealed that the park operators routinely removed one or two seats from the ride each day to prevent the ride from moving around in high winds during off-hours. Each time the ride opened, the seats were bolted back onto the frame of the ride. Investigators found that only one side of the victim's seat had been bolted properly, causing Margerum's seat to drop from its axle, subsequently leading to his death.
Charles R. Wood Enterprises (1992–1994)
Charles Wood reacquired the park in October 1992 for $14 million when International Broadcasting Corporation went bankrupt. In his second stint of ownership, Wood changed the park's name to Two Flags Over Niagara Fun Park.Martin's Shows (1994–2016)
Martin DiPietro, owner of Martin's Shows, purchased the park and renamed it Martin's Fantasy Island in January 1994. Charles Wood took the stored The Comet roller coaster and reassembled it at Six Flags Great Escape and Hurricane Harbor later that year. DiPietro would install his own roller coaster named Silver Comet in 1999, inspired by the original.Store Capital (2016–2021)
Apex Parks Group
Martin DiPietro sold the park's land to Store Capital in May 2016, and Apex Parks Group began leasing the property from Store Capital that same month. The park returned to its original name of Fantasy Island.Reports surfaced in 2018 and 2019 that the general condition of the park had deteriorated, with many attractions not operational due to mechanical failure and understaffing.
On February 19, 2020, following reports that Apex Parks Group had put the park's rides up for sale, the company confirmed that the park had permanently closed. A settlement was reached with the Attorney General's office to refund customers that had purchased 2020 season passes.
IB Parks & Entertainment (2021–present)
Gene Staples, owner of IB Parks & Entertainment, entered a long-term agreement to lease the property from Store Capital in May 2021. Staples also owns and operates Clementon Park and Splash World and Indiana Beach. The park was renamed Niagara Amusement Park & Splash World, and reopened in August 2021. The 2021 season featured only the water park, as rides were refurbished and reinstalled in the dry park. The full park reopened for the 2022 season.Rides and attractions
Roller coasters
| Name | Picture | Opened | Manufacturer | Notes |
| Silver Comet | May 1, 1999 | Custom Coasters International | A hybrid wooden roller coaster inspired by The Comet. | |
| The Serpent | August 27, 2024 | S.D.C. | A Galaxi coaster that previously operated at Noble Park Funland, LeSourdsville Lake Amusement Park, and Kokomo's Family Fun Center. The Serpent arrived in pieces to the park in 2022. It didn't open to the public until 2024. |
Flat rides
| Name | Opened | Manufacturer | Type | Notes |
| Amazing Flying Machine | 2022 | Majestic Manufacturing | Flying Scooters | Previously traveled with Wade Shows. Replaced Mind Warp before being relocated to the former Flight site for the 2024 season. |
| Antique Autos | 1961 | Arrow Huss, Gould Manufacturing | Antique cars | Formerly known as Antique Cars and Crankshaft Cruisers. |
| Auto Carousel | 1963 | Hennecke | Carousel | A children's carousel with automobile-themed rider vehicles. |
| Balloons | Unknown | Zamperla | Balloon Race | |
| Circus | 2008 | Sartori Rides | Spinning children's ride | |
| Dodgem Bumper Cars | 1989 | Majestic Manufacturing | Bumper cars | |
| Drop Zone | 2015 | SBF Visa Group | Drop tower | A 20 foot children's drop tower that replaced Jack and the Beanstalk. Formerly known as Rapunzel! Rapunzel!. |
| The Flying Witch | 2025 | Pinfari | Dark ride | A multi-story tracked dark ride through haunted house scenes with old-school props and scene displays. It previously operated at Playland from 1971 to 2021. |
| Grand Ole Carousel | 1961 | Theel | Carousel | Formerly known as Grande Carousel. |
| Giant Wheel | 1994 | Chance Rides | Ferris wheel | Replaced the Astro Wheel and was formerly known as Gondola Wheel. |
| Gunslinger | 2022 | Eli Bridge Company | Scrambler | Formerly known as Baltidora at La Feria de Chapultepec. |
| Hot Rod Crusin | 1961 | Allan Herschell Company | Miniature car ride | Spinning children's ride featuring hot rod-inspired ride vehicles. |
| Iron Horse Train | 1961 | Allan Herschell Company | Miniature railway | Utilizes a train which previously operated at Beaver Island State Park for a spare engine and cars. |
| Niagara Helicopter Tours | 1961 | Allan Herschell Company | Red Baron | Spinning children's ride featuring helicopter-shaped ride vehicles. |
| Pony Carts | 2024 | Allan Herschell Company | Spinning children's ride | |
| Planes and Copters | 2022 | Unknown | Spinning children's ride | |
| Scooter | 2023 | Majestic Manufacturing | Bumper cars | Previously traveled with Bates Brothers Amusement Company. |
| Ships Ahoy | 1961 | Allan Herschell Company | Spinning children's boat ride | |
| Steel Colt | 1983 | Zamperla | Miniature train ride | |
| Sea Dragon | 2024 | Chance Rides | Pirate ship | Previously operated at Santa's Village Amusement & Water Park from 2011 to 2022. |
| Tilt-A-Whirl | 2024 | Sellner Manufacturing | Tilt-A-Whirl | Replacing the park's previous Tilt-A-Whirl that operated from 1992 to 2019. This Tilt-A-Whirl was acquired from Joyland Amusement Park. |
| Whirly Swings | 2025 | Zamperla | Miniature swing ride |
Unopened attractions
Niagara Amusement Park & Splash World owns a large collection of attractions that are in varying states of construction or storage. Listed below are rides that have not been opened to the public since the park reopened. The reopening timeline for all rides listed is vague and unclear. The Comet, a kiddie coaster named Miner Mike, and a drop tower named Strike-U-Up were briefly in storage at the park as well, but have since been removed and were never constructed.| Name | Opened | Status | Manufacturer | Notes |
| Black Buccaneer | HUSS Park Attractions | A pirate ship that was brought to the park in 2021, having previously operated at Chessington World of Adventures from 1988 to 2018. The ride has since been deemed to be in critical condition and likely will never be assembled. | ||
| Cascabel | Anton Schwarzkopf | A Shuttle Loop coaster that first operated as Laser Loop at Kennywood from 1980 to 1990. It was then sold to La Feria de Chapultepec, where it operated as Cascabel from 1994 to 2019. Cascabel was dismantled and sold online at a starting price of $490,000. In April 2021, prior to the purchase of Fantasy Island by IB Parks & Entertainment, the Cascabel train and track pieces were spotted in storage at Indiana Beach. Other track pieces appeared in the parking lot of Niagara Amusement Park & Splash World in February 2022, and the ride was stated to be a planned installation at the park at some point in the future. | ||
| Caterpillar | Mack Rides | A Caterpillar that previously operated at Myrtle Beach Pavilion until 2006, and at Broadway at the Beach at some point before it was brought to the park. | ||
| Dillen | HUSS Park Attractions | An airboat that previously operated at BonBon-Land from 1999 to 2013. | ||
| Flying Falcon | HUSS Park Attractions | A Condor that previously operated at Hersheypark from 1990 to 2016. | ||
| Kraken | An Octopus ride that was installed on the former Devil's Hole site. | |||
| Mardi Gras Hangover | Larson International | A Fire Ball ride that previously operated at Six Flags Great America from 2018 to 2023. The attraction was brought to the park in February 2024. | ||
| Magic Ring | 1961 | Zamperla | A spinning children's ride. | |
| Midway Mayhem | HUSS Park Attractions | A Frisbee ride that operated at Six Flags Great Adventure as Pendulum from 1999 to 2003 and at Six Flags Great America from 2004 to 2023 as Revolution. The attraction was brought to the park in February 2024, and in May of that year it was set up on the site that previously held Amazing Flying Machine, Mind Warp, and Sizzler. | ||
| Wave Pool | 1995–2019 | Unknown | A derelict wave pool that replaced Kid Wash. It has since been abandoned. | |
| Hully Gully | Chance Rides | A Trabant ride that previously operated with German showman Röper from 1968 to 1981, German showman Franke from 1982 to 1984, and at Heide Park Resort from 1985 to 2009. It remained at Heide Park Resort out of operation until 2017, when it was sold. It was brought to the park in 2022. | ||
| Montezuma's Revenge | HUSS Park Attractions | A Top Spin ride that previously operated at Avonturenpark Hellendoorn in the Netherlands from 1998 to 2020. It was brought to the park in 2022. |