Yangon Amusement Park

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Built by the former military junta to distract an isolated population, the Yangon Amusement Park is shrouded in mystery. It closed after 15 or so years, and has quickly become engulfed in tropical flora. The park is quite popular across social media for its beautiful visuals and rapid decay.

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History of the Yangon Amusement Park

Myanmar, also called Burma, is located in Southeast Asia. For much of its history, Myanmar has faced violent civil wars and military dictatorships and isolationist policies. Yangon was for many years the capital city. However, the brutal military junta officially established Naypyidaw (200 miles north of Yangon) as the new capital in 2006, and moved governmental functions there. Rationale behind the move is, like most things in today’s story, unclear; The Guardian called it a “vanity project”. Climate considerations may also have been a significant factor. Located close to the coast, Yangon suffered terrible damages several years later during 2008’s Cyclone Nagis: 100,000 people killed and over ¾ of the industrial infrastructure wiped out. Much of Yangon today lacks basic services like 24-hour electrical service and regular garbage collection.

It is against this background that we begin to talk about the Yangon Amusement Park. If you think it’s odd that I keep saying “Yangon Amusement Park”, that’s because the park doesn’t clearly have a readily available name. Most sources refer to the place as the “abandoned Yangon Amusement Park”. Some sources call it “Game City”, which may or may not be accurate given that there is another “Game City” nearby. Coconuts, a major Asian multimedia company, produced a short documentary calling the site “Best Zone”, but it is the only source to do so. For the purposes of our story today, I’ll keep it simple and call it the “Yangon Amusement Park”.

Yangon Amusement Park

The Yangon Amusement Park was opened in 1997. As we’ve briefly mentioned, the government at the time was a brutal dictatorship constantly engaged in violence and civil war. The Yangon Amusement Park was likely built to serve as a flashy distraction from the evil things the military rulers were doing elsewhere in the country. It does seem the distraction from life under tyranny worked to some extent, with some locals remembering the park fondly from their childhoods.

Several big names from the Burmese government attended the opening ceremony for the park, as well as the Japanese ambassador. The park was heralded as a “world-class” amusement park with modern attractions. Reportedly, many of the rides came via Japan. The Yangon Amusement Park was notable for opening the first roller coaster in Myanmar (yes, in 1997).

Click here to view a series of images from the park in 2009 during the park’s operation.

Though the park is located next to the Yangon Zoo and were both reportedly meant to be one attraction originally, a dispute over ticketing meant that the companies in charge of each ran them separately.

Yangoon Amusement Park covers ten acres next to the Yangon Zoo. The zoo still operates, although the majority of its animals were moved to the new capital of Myanmar, Naypyidaw, around 2006. Today, hundreds of visitors walk past the park each day while visiting the zoo, unaware of the delights that once echoed just yards away.

Closure of the Yangon Amusement Park

As with the name of the park, the date and reasons for the closure of the Yangon Amusement Park are also shrouded in mystery. The park operated for about 15 years, reportedly closing in 2012 or 2013. No one is willing to say much about why the park closed, either. One source says that the director of the company leasing the land failed to renew the contract, apparently because he couldn’t attend a meeting with the Ministry of Forest due to being “out of town”.

Other rumors says the area around the karaoke bars at the park got too noisy, with gossip about authorities stepping in to break up fights and rumors about a murder or death in the park. Some locals say the park is haunted.

Abandonment of the Yangon Amusement Park

Due to the tropical climate, the park has fallen into decay quite rapidly, after being closed only 5 to 6 years. Think Jurassic Park, but with roller coasters instead of dinosaurs. No demolition was done; the park was simply closed, so all of the rides are still in place despite the years of abandonment.

Online, you’ll find that Yangon amusement park is popular for being friendly to those new to the urbex world. Why? It’s easy to enter, with several broken down fences or back doors through restaurants. There is little to no security, as local residents still live in the buildings in or adjacent to the park. The materials are primarily steel, and most rides are on ground level, so there is little worry of falling through floors. The main hazards are packs of roaming dogs (common to the city as a whole) and mosquitoes.

Monkeys and birds call noisily from overhead at times as visitors enter the park.

Even though the park has been abandoned for several years, it’s notable that there is little to no graffiti or vandalism in the park. A few minor tags exist, mostly in the arcade hall, and other incidents are harmless, such as moving the pirate around in the Viking boat. Had this park been left abandoned in the US, the images and video would paint a very different story.

Rides at the Yangon Amusement Park

Let’s talk about rides, babee.

Roller Coaster at the Yangon Amusement Park

Always a good first draw for an abandoned theme park, the decaying roller coaster is often the most visible symbol of a once-vibrant amusement park. In the Yangon Amusement Park as well, we have one. The rollercoaster now decays under a tangle of quickly-growing vines. The RCDB only gives the details that this was called “Roller Coaster” and is a steel coaster. Pictures from its operation show a track, already rusting, perched on support poles painted a brilliant yellow and blue. The cars were standard coaster cars, top half red, bottom half white.

Today, with the park abandoned, tattered advertising flags still hang from the fence surrounding the coaster, where the cars and track come alarmingly close (by modern safety standards) to fences and pedestrians.

Fast-growing vines and small trees are quickly engulfing the structure, but the view from the top does appear magnificent. Climbing to the top of the coaster is popular with explorers due to the excellent view of the park and city.

The Rocket at the Yangon Amusement Park

From the top of the roller coaster, you can see a strange oblong object peering up above the canopy. What could it be?

This ride, called The Rocket, is a classic Roll-o-plane or Dive Bomber type ride, where two capsules sit at the end of a long metal shaft, attached to a seemingly flimsy tower. The capsules spin as the shaft rotates, for extra thrills. According to Sam Aung Moon, who visited the park as a child, “people with heart conditions weren’t allowed to get on” that one.

In its abandoned state, the Rocket is incredibly eerie. One capsule rises high up in the air, like a rusting lookout peeking over the top of the green canopy of trees. The other capsule sits at ground level, doors falling open, tilting to one side. Lichen covers the once brilliant blue paint.

Viking Ship + Pirate at the Yangon Amusement Park

Another popular and fascinating ride is the Viking pirate ship. The designer of this ride, or perhaps just the designer of the park, certainly had a fun time. One sign for this ride indicates that the crew is seafaring pirate bandits, and the other promotes the idea that the crew is 10th-century Scandinavians with battle-axes.

The ride itself is a small, standard swinging pendulum ship. A lifesize figure of a pirate stands guard on the ship. The pirate is eerie, with a pale face and haunted-looking eyes, one hand reaching up empty towards the sky. He is not permanently attached to the ride, and does move around at the whims of explorers.

Not often mentioned or photographed is another pirate figure, up in the structure of the ride’s supports, looking out from a circus-like crows’ nest at nothing but the green, ever-encroaching trees.

Of course, there is the boat: covered in mildew, grime, and faded, peeling paint. A rather fearsome dragon face is on the prow, and Viking helms decorate the sides of the structure.

Adventurous visitors can push the ride back and forth, frighteningly enough. Tree branches have grown between the support struts, slowing the motion down.

The locals are said to enjoy relaxing on the ship and gently rocking back and forth after a game of ball.

UFO Cycle at the Yangon Amusement Park

The UFO Cycle is a unique ride from the perspective of an American audience. The attraction is still manufactured today by “Ali Brothers” ride company in China, and is primarily seen in small parks around India, China, and other countries in Asia.

The UFO Cycles ride is a large wheel sitting on end, with seats for two people inside. As the guests pedal, the wheel turns and pushes the “monorail” car along the elevated track. Multiple wheels move along on the same track, independently.

At Yangon Amusement Park, the pedal mechanisms have long been removed from the abandoned UFO Cycle cars. However, the cars themselves can still be pushed along the track by adventurous explorers without a fear of heights. Painted with faded stars in a classic primary color scheme, the UFO Cycle is my personal highlight from the images of the park. I would’ve enjoyed riding this ride in the park’s heyday, and find it particularly attractive in abandonment.

Bumper Cars at the Yangon Amusement Park

The Yangon park reportedly had not one but two classic bumper car halls. These are open air structures with half-height walls, and a classic Dodgem bumper car attraction is inside. In the current abandoned state of Yangon amusement park, the bumper cars lie piled in a corner of the open-air hall, as if a giant hand tossed them away in a fit of spite.

Today, the youth of Yangon use the bumper car halls as a free, shady area for playing football.

The Twister at the Yangon Amusement Park

This one is quite popular in the social media images these days, perhaps just for the questions it inspires. The Twister is a ride consisting of a series of round capsules, like giant tuna cans. Each capsule holds two riders, and the capsules rock back and forth. I’ve been unable to find a name for this type of ride – if you know, please comment or reach out on social media!

Yes, it’s possible to do a complete 360 on the ride, even now in the park’s abandonment. Back when the ride was operating, an engine spun all the capsules around simultaneously.

In the abandoned state of the Yangon amusement park, a family of wild dogs has made itself at home in the mechanical parts that once operated the ride. Adventurous explorers can still rotate themselves 360 degrees in the capsules, if they wish.

Carousel at the Yangon Amusement Park

You know I love a good abandoned carousel, right? The carousel in Yangon Amusement Park is delightful in its abandoned state. Paint is faded and chipping, and the classically carved horses look wistfully at the viewer, as if longing for better days. Faded banners flap nearby, and dried leaves collect underfoot.

A second, smaller carousel nearby features toddler-sized horses. They’re much more cutesy and cherubic and this mini-carousel stands next to several decaying photobooths.

Other Rides at the Yangon Amusement Park

Enterprise

Though not often photographed on social media, the park does have an “Enterprise” type ride – yes, named after the ship from Star Trek. The ride is manufactured by a Hungarian company, and can still be seen operating in 30-40 places around the world.

The Enterprise ride starts with the riders seated in one of 20 gondolas (space themed) on the ground. There are no seatbelts. The ride begins to spin clockwise, and then a hydraulic arm shifts the entire circle from the horizontal plane into a nearly vertical plane.

Though this ride looks like a basic flat ride in its abandoned state, this would’ve been quite impressive in action.

The ride at Yangon’s abandoned park will never operate again, covered in rust, slick algae and mold, and creeping vines from the trees nearby. The logo for the Japanese “Justmeet Corporation” is barely visible on the control panels, flaking away with the rain and the rust.

Astro Swinger

Another ride not often seen in urbex shots is the “Astro Swinger”. This is a chair swing ride with a bright yellow frame. Most chair swing rides have a circular top support and a solid central cylinder. This ride, however, has a very open upside down funnel shape for its support framework.

The cars of the Astro Swinger could very generously be said to have a car theme: they are boxlike with two small faux headlights for theming. Disneyland this is not (though there is a photo Disney stand underneath another of the rides).

Balloon Cycle

On social media, one of the most photogenic and popular rides is the hot air balloon ride. It is named the “Balloon Cycle”, and is located just a few feet from the carousel.

This ride appears to be similar to the Zamperla “Balloon Race” ride, and would raise guests and their balloons up in the air before tilting and spinning them.

Several of the canopies for the balloons at Yangon Amusement Park have collapsed, and a small tree appears to be growing through the center of the frame now. The classic rainbow color scheme on the balloons is now faded, adding more sad, picturesque beauty to the scene. Occasionally, music and laughter echo over from the neighboring zoo, making the scene even more surreal.

Happy Child World Arcade Hall

Don’t get confused with another local theme park called “Happy World”. This is the name for a small arcade hall at the Yangon Amusement Park. Inside, boxy, clunky video game consoles are piled up, covered in dust and grime.

There are also plenty of large animals and other cute figures. Each holds its own defunct game console, like one might find in a mall. A simple ride features two cars that once soared over the hall at ceiling height.

This is also where the “baby garden” is located. The baby garden is a small maze of nets and plastic ball pit balls with a few basic climbing structures.

This area can be the most eerie, with the sudden appearance of a grimacing plastic face from under a tumble of leaves.

The park had a bustling variety of other buildings, as well – shops, massage parlors, restaurants, karaoke halls. Most were independently owned. Some of the owners still live on the property. Diners, bars, and other small businesses back onto the property. Some residents (the younger ones, as a whole) enjoy the park in their backyard. Others don’t. “No one has driven the staff out of the shops, so they can stay here for now,” says resident Ko Soe.

The children in the area treat the park as their own personal playground. Some even call the abandoned park a “living museum” in the heart of Yangon. Images and video from the park show a serene place, set back away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Future of the Yangon Amusement Park

The park appears calm on the surface. However, things are not all that they seem. The company that built the park in conjunction with the Ministry of Forest (Doh Pyi Thar Enterprises) was dissolved in 2016. Their office near the park’s former entrance has been closed since 2016.

The land currently belongs to the Yangon authorities.

Around June 2017, rumors went out that the government was calling for the land to be “put out to tender”, or opened up for bids for redevelopment. Reports from the site “Myanmar Builders Hub” officially describe the park as being up for redevelopment as of November 2018. A design proposal was revealed in April 2019.

It appears that the park will be razed and rebuilt as a new Yangon amusement park, designed by the Amenity Design Group. Time will tell, but it seems that the days for this picturesque abandoned park may be numbered.

At least we’ll always have photos.

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References

I’ve included a complete list of references used while researching this topic. It’s hidden under the link for brevity.

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