Theme parks in Poland - typology and analysis of global commercial success

Abstract

There appears to be a considerable conceptual chaos as far as tourist attractions are concerned - including theme/amusement parks - which arises from a lack of research on the subject. The presented paper aims at systemizing and defining the meaning of amusement/theme parks. An attempt is made to present the functional typology of theme parks and indicate the reasons and effects of their establishment. The article constitutes a review. Based on the available literature and other sources, site visits and free-form interviews, to the authors pursued to comprehensively define theme parks and tackle various terms and meanings used freely and intuitively by a number of authors. Finally, the following types of theme parks have been distinguished: entertainment parks, education parks, historical parks, physical recreation parks and mixed parks. Every type of parks is characterized by its dominant function. Therefore, visitors intentionally decide to enjoy the attractions offered in a given park. The dominant function cannot be indicated only in the mixed group of parks, thus making them ambiguous and dangerous for visitors, who do not know what to expect and may well be disappointed after their visit. The subject of theme parks is discussed in an unusual context of cultural landscape.