Ferrari Theme Park underway

Not satisfied with your Ferrari branded hat, sunglasses, sports-binoculars, speaker system and carbon-fiber laptop? Fans of the famous marque will soon be able to visit the world’s first Ferrari Theme Park in Abu Dhabi. A Foundation Stone Ceremony was held on 3 November to signify the start of construction with the official opening of the park scheduled for 2009.

The Ferrari Theme Park will be located on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Once opened, the attraction will provide family amusement featuring multi-format high tech theaters, a variety of sophisticated driving schools (for both children and adults), Ferrari automotive displays and participatory learning centers as well as food and entertainment. Among the 24 attractions, the Park will offer a mix of high-octane and family rides with roller coasters jetting into the sky and dipping through the covered areas. At the heart of the park will be an advanced and sophisticated circuit offering driving courses, which will be the home of the first Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix in 2009.

Part of a joint project between Italian automotive manufacturer Ferrari and ALDAR properties PJSC, the 250,000 square meter (more than 2.6 million square feet) park (80,000 of them under cover) will be a unique oasis of discovery, hospitality and beauty that captures culture, flavor and the true spirit of Italian country, as well as the legendary automotive history, feeling and heritage of Ferrari cars and racing. A new Ferrari Store is also scheduled to open in Abu Dhabi's Marina Mall. It has been a successful year for Ferrari with the car maker taking out the Constructors and Drivers World Championships in this year’s F1 series.