The Easter holidays typically mark the reopening of theme parks in Belgium and after two years of Covid-19, mandatory closures, limited capacity and mask requirements, the parks are hoping for a “normal” 2022 season.
At Mont Mosan in Huy, about 40 people work during the peak season, with around ten people who look after the animals in winter, RTFB reports.
Marine animal caretaker Olivia has been keeping the sea lions, seals, and penguins trained for their shows.
Photo from Mont Mosan.
“It's good to make them work in winter too, the sea lions feel valued when they do the show and then there are more individual training sessions to learn new tricks,” she said, expressing excitement for the start of the season. “The pools have been cleaned, repainted, the water changed, everything is ready.”
The park welcomes nearly 100,000 visitors a year in a good season, but owner Jean Marc Vanberg said it’s been difficult since 2020.
“That year, with Covid and the closures, we only had one-fifth of the season,” Vanberg said, explaining that this is why there will be no new attractions this year. “We'll try to get back on track to reinvest next year.”
Plopsa prepares for visitors
At Plopsa Coo, a theme park in Wallonia near the waterfalls of Coo in Stavelot, heavy landscaping is being done to prepare for the season.
John, who is the technical manager, says “the attractions have been checked by an independent body but before that, we had to refurbish, changing small parts that don't like humidity for example.”
Photo from Plopsa Coo.
Moisture and mud also had to be cleared, as part of the park was underwater during last July’s deadly flooding: “We had 1.5 metres of water here,” John recalls.
Manager Jean Luc Bertrand says repairing the water damage cost at least €2 million.
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“There was nothing left, the shop was bare,” Bertrand recalled. “In a fortnight, we worked on a brand new shop, repainted and with new tiles.”
Every year, the amusement park invests in new attractions to delight its 300,000 visitors: “we hope for 400,000 this year with the new attraction whose construction will be completed by the beginning of July.”
That new attraction is a rollercoaster completely dedicated to the Smurfs.
