Zip Line Into the Mouth of Godzilla at This Japanese Theme Park
Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty
A “life-size” Godzilla is striking fear into the hearts of visitors at a Japanese theme park.
Making its mark at Nijigen no Mori Park on Awaji Island at its debut last week, the “Godzilla Interception Operation Awaji” is a massive zip line attraction letting followers experience something out of a horror movie.
Visitors start out on a platform and zip line directly into the glowing belly of the beast. After zipping down, there is a shooting game, where visitors try to stop Godzilla cells from growing.
"As far as we know, this is the only life-size Godzilla statue ever built," a spokesperson for Pasona Group, the recruitment company operating the theme park, told The BBC. "We would like Godzilla fans, including those abroad, to come and appreciate the massiveness of the monster they only know of through movie screens."
This Godzilla is 75 feet tall, 82 feet wide and about 180 feet long, according to The Japan Times.
Critics have said that the attraction’s stature doesn’t quite measure up to what a real Godzilla would be. In last year’s “Godzilla: King of the Monsters” movie, Godzilla was almost 400 feet long. But at Nijigen no Mori Park, Godzilla appears with half his body buried beneath the ground.
Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty
Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty
Visitors will be able to view figurines and dioramas in a Godzilla museum, located near the attraction. The museum will also offer themed food like a “Godzilla curry,” made using the signature onions of Awaji Island, and a Godzilla ice cream puff with strawberries.
The attraction was scheduled to open during the summer but the opening was pushed back due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Entrance to the park is about $36 for those aged 12 and older (￥3,800), $20 for children aged five to 11 (￥2,200), and free for children younger than four.
Cailey Rizzo is a contributing writer for Travel + Leisure, currently based in Brooklyn. When in a new city, she's usually out to discover under-the-radar art, culture, and secondhand stores. No matter her location, you can find her on Twitter, on Instagram or at caileyrizzo.com.
