General info
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Park
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Category
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TypeBoat Ride
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Opened
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Closed
Description
Apirama was the flagship ride of Meli Park, owned by the Belgium Meli, known for their honey products. On Apirama (a combination of the Latin ''Apis'' meaning bee, and the suffix ''-rama'', Ancient Greek for seeing or observing), guests travelled in a boat through an oversized beehive and could learn how bees live. Scenes included the construction of honeycombs and the arrival of the queen bee. In total, 256 cartoony bees could be seen in and around the ride.
History
Apirama was inspired by walk-through ''De Wonderbare Bijenkorf'' (The Amazing Beehive) on Expo ’58 in Brussels, which was also made by Meli. In it, guests walked past oversized bees. After the expo ended, the walkthrough was relocated to Meli Park, that already opened in 1935. Following the rise of competitor parks in the region, for the 1979 season it was decided to completely redesign the concept as a dark ride.
Meli Park was sold to Studio 100 in 2000, who transformed it into Plopsaland De Panne during which Apirama also was rethemed. Not far from where Apirama once stood, a small Meli Park Museum can be found, which includes some figures that were created for the ride. The image featured on this page is that of the queen bee as found at the museum.
Rethemed versions:
- Apirama (1979-1999)
- Bos van Plop (2000-present)
Statistics
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Ride duration8 minutes
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Number of vehicles17 vehicles
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Seats (per vehicle/theatre)9 seats
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Ride length145 m
