The famous Luna Park at Coney Island has resumed operations after its annual winter hiatus. The Luna Park has become an iconic New York City landmark, enjoyed by thousands of families every season. Its history is a little rocky but today it operates like a well-oiled machine.
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Post Card from Luna Park at Coney Island from 1912.[/caption]
The Luna Park was originally built in 1903 and was a part of the three amusement parks on the South-East Brooklyn peninsula named Coney Island. The other two were the Steeplechase Park and Dreamland, neither of which is in existence today. The original Luna Park was a New York City favorite and brought joy and amusement to locals and visitors alike during difficult times like World War I, the Great Depression of the 1920s and World War II. Most of the premises were caught in a fire in 1944 resulting in destruction of the majority of the park. The park never re-opened.
That is until 2010, after an initiative by Mayor Michael Bloomberg to rebuild the largely desolate Coney Island. The year 2010 gave way to the new Luna Park at Coney Island, an amusement park built on the premises of Astroland, another local amusement park operating from 1962 to 2008.
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Aerial photograph of Coney Island by Jeffrey Millstein (www.jeffreymilstein.com)[/caption]
Today, the Luna Park at Coney Island is home to many iconic rides and sites. Perhaps the most famous, the grand Cyclone roller coaster, is made out of wood and was originally opened in 1927. The track of the Cyclone is 1640 feet long and 85 feet tall at its highest point It was awarded National Landmark status in 1988. In 2016, the Cyclone got a fresh coat of paint and was refurbished to welcome the new season.
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Thunderbolt[/caption] [caption id="attachment_473" align="alignright" width="385"]
The Tickler[/caption]
[spacer height="20px"]Apart from the famous Cyclone, the Luna Park is home to other iconic rides such as The Tickler, a crazy, funny spinning roller coaster that doesn't take itself too seriously, the scary Thunderbolt roller coaster with a nausea-inducing free-fall drop, or the kid friendly Tea Party. There are dozens of other rides, carousels, human sling-shots, as well as shops, beaches and the original Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs shop.
The Luna Park is now officially open for the 2016 season and will operate every weekend until Memorial Day (May 30th, 2016), after which it will be open every day until September 2016. For more information about rides, history and hours of operation, visit the Luna Park website.
