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2010 Best Theme Park Attraction nominee: Dollywood's Mystery Mine

By Robert Niles
Published: January 6, 2010 at 3:42 PM
Dollywood's Mystery Mine joins the 2010 Best Theme Park Attraction Tournament field as the 13th seed in the Best Roller Coster bracket.

Dollywood's Mystery Mine

The Gerstlauer Euro-fighter coaster in the United States, Mystery Mine blends a next-generation roller coaster track with an old-school mine theme, including dark interior sections and fire elements. Featuring 90-degree lifts and multiple inversions, Mystery Mine feels less like a free-flying roller coaster and more like an intricate gymnastics routine ("Look at me nail the dismount from the top of the elevator shaft!")

Mystery Mine won raves when it opened in 2007, winning the Theme Park Insider Award for Best New Attraction that year. Since then, a few critics have knocked the ride for a rough start, but the consensus is that Mystery Mine delivers a uniquely enjoyable experience among roller coasters, standing out in a field where too many rides just seem to blend together.

So how good is Mystery Mine, compared with the best roller coasters in America? Theme Park Insider readers will get a chance to decide with their votes when the Best Theme Park Attraction Tournament begins in March. In the meantime, share your opinion about Dollywood's Mystery Mine, in the comments.

Readers' Opinions

From Michael Owen on January 6, 2010 at 3:46 PM
This ride has certainly been a successful addition for Dollywood, so much so that many other theme parks have built or are planning, Euro-fighters for their parks.

Whilst the attraction is great I think it's going to struggle in the competition. Mystery Mine offers a good coaster and a good themed section. However, neither one of the two elements of the attraction are great/world-class.

From Charles Reichley on January 8, 2010 at 5:25 PM
It's a fun ride, and it used to be one of my favorite "weird" rides, until we rode the exterminator at Kennywood, which is now our favorite weird ride of all time.

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