IAAPA Brass Ring Awards for dark and show ride

Volkanu ride scene brass ring awards
A scene of Volkanu: Quest for the Golden Idol (© Dark Ride Database)

The International Association Amusement Parks and Attractions, IAAPA, is the organizer of the Expos that are held around the world. Most famous is the yearly IAAPA Expo in Orlando. During this Expo, IAAPA also hands out awards for multiple categories: the Brass Ring Awards. This year, two attractions that are of particular interest of the Dark Ride Database have won a Brass Ring Award in the category ‘Major Ride/Attraction’.

One of the highlights of new dark rides this year was Volkanu: Quest for the Golden Idol at Lost Island Theme Park (Waterloo, IA – USA). The ride was rewarded with the Brass Ring Award for ‘Major Ride/Attraction, Product cost more than US$5 million’. Volkanu is the most recent dark ride designed by Sally Dark Ride, featuring trackless motion-based vehicles by ETF Ride Systems and interactivity by Alterface.

Visitors will go on a quest to defeat Volkanu, a creature of devestating fire and rage which emerged from his molten lair long ago. The creature was confined in the temple of fire by the power of the four friends, who forged a magical Ora Tika idol which imprisoned him. The Ora Tika however was stolen, setting Volkanu free once again.

We visited Volkanu: Quest for the Golden Idol on opening day, you can read our report here.

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Exterior of Volkanu: Quest for the Golden Idol (© Heartline Coaster)

The winner of the lower budget category ‘Major Ride/Attraction, Product cost more than US$2 to US$5 million’ is the Digital Park: Mission Moon-experience. This attraction, located inside the Çamlıca Tower in Istanbul (Türkiye), takes visitors on a 30/40 minute immersive journey through space.

Digital Park: Mission Moon was designed by DOF Robotics from Türkiye. In groups of six, visitors of the experience will go on a mission to the moon. The experience consists of multiple parts, including simulator experiences and interactive games.

Promotional video of Digital Park: Mission Moon (© DOF Robotics via YouTube)