Skip the Line: PortAventura World

Posted By : PGaryB
The park has some great theming and great shows. I'm afraid that's were the good points end. I went in May and avoided holidays but nevertheless the park was packed and wait times for rides 2-3 hours (see picture). Don't think one can buy an "express pass" to get around wait times. The "express pass" waits are only marginally shorter than standard lines. There is seemingly no control over the number of "express" passes sold and at busy times the wait with an "express pass" can be several hours. My worst experience was waiting three hours for "Red Force" despite having an "express pass" waiting over an hour was the norm. In addition it is often difficult to find which is the normal line and which is the "express" line. The sign posting is extremely poor and gets covered by the people queuing. There is zero staff around to ask or control/guide the lines. As a result the long lines were getting mixed up and it was chaotic. On my first day I went on two rides between 10 am and 4 pm and saw two shows each of less than half an hour. On the second day I managed to get on 5 rides between 10am and 7pm despite having an "unlimited express pass". The park simply doesn't have enough capacity for the number of entrance tickets sold. Rides themselves are temperamental and prone to being shut for long periods. Food is poor and often canteen, serve yourself, style. Even so, the queues are again long. I waited over 30 mins in line to get a late lunch. Should you want a coffee or ice cream - again be prepared for a long wait. There is too often only one member of staff at each outlet who has to take the orders, make the milkshakes, make the sundaes, serve the ice cream and take the money. All in all this park is incredibly expensive for what you end up getting and will leave you very frustrated. The "express pass" system is shocking.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-05-13

Posted By : Deeee55
We bought 4 tickets for two days Portaventura, one evening Ferrarri Land. On Tuesday, all queues in both parks were approx one hour long. Their crowd calendar that evening showed up as 12% capacity, green status. My husband and I couldn't face it again today so our two teenage sons went back to PA. They eventually left after going on nothing at all. Even express queues for some rides were 2hrs 20mins. Having been to Italy's Gardaland and Movieland this same week (off season) last year, there is absolutely no comparison. This park is an absolute sham!
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-05-10

Posted By : AaronOD78
Awful and expensive day. Thursday visit so hoping it won't be too busy. Queued for Tutuki Splash first ride, straight after opening, queued for about an hour then ride cancelled, back on, then canceled again. I suppose any park can have technical difficulties but zero communication until got near ride. Queue management is non existent with priority badly signed, many people running in and out of queues, skipping queues. They need someone at start of queues making sure people join correct queue. Food poor and expensive. App works poorly. Many big rides had 2.5 to 3 hour wait, loads of rides are 1.25 to 1.5 hour queue, even the smaller rides that said 20 minutes (eg bumper cars) are significantly longer in reality. Basically, kids got to do 4 rides in the space of 7.5 hours, not worth the money if this is the regular management, crowd control, numbers they admit. Tomahawk roller coaster great fun, got pictures at end. Stages in wild west town are well done Honestly, i couldn't recommend this place to my worst enemy.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-05-09

Posted By : ShellieBoreiko
This is our third year in a row coming to PortAventura and this year we had different circumstances. I had an injury to my knee which prevented me from climbing stairs, walking long distances or standing for very long. Which happened after we booked. My son was diagnosed with autism, so we had contacted the park previous to see what proof we needed to bring in order to access the disabilities pass and was told an official letter from the doctor should suffice. Upon arrival we made our way to the customer services area and while they allowed my son’s diagnosis be eligible they were refusing mine because it was a temporary condition. This made us very confused and I appreciate that if everyone who hurt their foot or broke their arm were to ask for disabled access then this would likely defeat the object for those with life long disabilities to enable them to enjoy the park to the full. It was the miscommunication that was very annoying. The second very annoying thing was that my autistic son had a wrist band on and after the first day it started to annoy him so we took it off so he could shower and sleep and then stuck it back together for the next day. The only ride we had an issue with was shambala where they were refusing our entry because we had tampered with the wrist band. I tried to explain that he couldn’t shower and sleep with it and the date on the band says it’s valid for the whole duration of our stay which was 6 days - he cannot be expected to wear it for 6 days? In this case are we to go to customer services every day to get a new one ? Which is very far by the way. (About 20 min walk from the other end of the park where we were staying). Then the girl told us that one of us should wear it instead and get the customer service people to write on the wrist band that he can’t wear it because it irritates him ?? At that point I said we were told that only he can wear it. And in any case we also have to sleep and shower. Confusion. The next thing was we arrived to go on a ride in the disabled queue and when we reached the ride my autistic son decides he doesn’t want to go on the ride and wanted to wait for us while we went on at which point the attendant says he has to go on or we will have to join the back of the queue for us to ride, so he felt pressured to go on a ride he didn’t want to go on because he didn’t want to disappoint us. This made absolutely no sense at all!! This was totally unacceptable if my son is with us we are all affected by his disability. We can’t just leave him while we wait 1 hour for a ride ?? This makes no sense. Please train your staff to be consistent around disabilities. Please don’t embarrass us or make my child feel pressured into riding if he changes his mind and don’t punish us. I have a younger child that was upset at the thought of not being able to go on that my autistic son had to go on. So this was the issue we had this year. Although there is excellent level of disability access I think consistent training for staff and a closer look at the overall affect of disability to those with the disability and their families who have chosen to visit your park and in our case every year. Lots of choices for lunch, it would be good to have some water fountains dotted about and the return policy for the cups is silly at times. To encourage people to recycle the plastic cups that they give you when you get drinks etc they return you €1 for each cup handed in. Because I pay with car this means I end up with loose euros which is rubbish so I collected my cups and the day before we left I handed them in but because I didn’t have my receipt the cashier refused them and she wouldn’t take them even to recycle so they went int the trash ! That’s definitely not very environmentally friendly and not zero waste as they advertise themselves at. 8 plastic cups in the trash. Unfortunately we probably will not come next year because of the overall stress caused. However we have made lots of wonderful memories.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-04-11

Posted By : chrisa9393
We have just returned from our holiday to Salou that included a 3 day ticket for Protaventura World. 2 days in the main park and one in Ferrari World. Overall this time was a great experience. We came a couple of years ago and had a not so great experience with slow and rude operations staff but so was cautious this year however can say this visit was great. From collection the 3 day ticket our disability fast passes for the 3 days were sorted within a few mins with little to no issues with our documents. We used our UK nimbus cards and no other information was asked for. Passes were given for Encharted for the 3 days along with dated wrist band. On entering the park the already great themed areas were all set up for Easter with eggs and signage around the park making for great photo opportunities. Operations in the rides were quick but we were in the disability queues but we never waited more that one ride before we were seated. Easter Sunday was a quieter day in the park due to weather but from an operational point of view all rides were running without issue apart from Tomahawk but that's been down since opening day. Food options are ok there is something for everyone we used the Mexican Buffett one day and ate from a stall the other day all was nice warm and not too overpriced for a theme park Digital photo passes have doubled in price since we were last year. These are now 45 euros and you get 2 wrist bands. However for 10 people that didn't allow us to use to get photos for everyone in the party, as they would only download pics for the person wearing the band. Meaning lots of our party couldn't get ride photos. Overall a group of 10 of us had a great time over the 3 days we were there and would return again.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-04-09

Posted By : christinejohns9
Easter family holiday with two teens 15 and 17, and they absolutely loved Portaventura and Ferrari Land. The 2 day passes are a must to get to enjoy everything. Queues can be long at busy times and the food/drinks expensive, but it's a theme park!!] Excellent 2 days, lots of laughter and two happy exhausted teens (and parents 😴). The Ferrari experience is amazing 👏 and the roller coaster 🎢 wow ❤️ definitely worth it when you're in Salou. Thanks for a fantastic experience.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-04-08

Posted By : DanielAkalis
Worst experience at any amusement park that I have been to. Long lines at the fun rides. 2 of the 5 which you have to be taller on, my daughter and I were told the ride was broke down. Wasted over 1 1/2 hours waiting for broken rides only to have to leave the line. The food is terrible. It will satisfy your kid but an adult it is nasty.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-04-01

Posted By : Ukulele T
PortAventura Salou in Costa Dorada, Spain offers a vibrant and diverse amusement park experience suitable for families and thrill-seekers alike. The park boasts a range of thrilling rides, immersive themed areas, and live entertainment options. From adrenaline-pumping roller coasters to charming family attractions, there's something for everyone. However, crowds can be significant, particularly during peak seasons, leading to long wait times for popular rides. Additionally, some areas of the park may benefit from refurbishment to maintain their appeal. Overall, PortAventura Salou provides an enjoyable day out, but visitors should be prepared for queues and consider visiting during quieter periods for a more relaxed experience.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-03-05

Posted By : jovanag310
great time with kids... fast past is a must if u want to have most of the rides... The rides are great for small and bigger children...and for adults also... a bit expencive at the restaurants and coffe shops but thats it...
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-01-22

Posted By : SwannieHooper
This is an amazing fun park. We had the best time, no queues nd so many rides we didn't have time to go back and do any of them twice. If you are in the area for longer than a day I would get a 2 day pass. We had so much fun, all the rides were excellent.
Rating :
Posted On : 2023-10-26