Andy Keeling, the park manager of the world’s biggest indoor theme park, is sitting with Time Out Abu Dhabi in the back room of the Yas Links clubhouse. He’s a little bit dusty, having just given us an extensive tour of the construction site that will soon become Ferrari World, and he’s extremely excited. ‘We’re on track to open on October 28,’ he grins, ‘and we’ve already got one of the attractions completed and signed off.’ As he talks us through the various rides being constructed beneath the vast shell that dominates Yas Island, we can see what he’s so thrilled about, and we can’t wait either…
Rapids with a twist
‘One of our rides is a V-12 engine. You get into a boat with 10 other guests and it takes you into a rapids-type river. You shrink to the size of an air molecule and you go in through a massive grill (from a Ferrari 599 GTB), then through the engine. You go into this enormous engine, then get shot out through the exhaust pipe at the end of it.’
Mini Italy
‘The photos you’ve taken today are mainly of Bella Italia, a ride which gives you the chance to have some fun getting into a scale model of one of the original California 250 Ferrari two-seater Spiders. Then it allows you to partially steer this car through a mini-version of Italy.’
Ferrari simulators
‘Our simulator is from the same supplier as the one in the Ferrari garage – arguably the most advanced test simulator out there. When you get into the Ferrari 430 Scuderia (which is track-prepared), it’s actually a real car. So you open a real door, you put on a real harness, use a real Ferrari steering wheel…it’s really as authentic as it gets.’
Dinner time
‘We’ll have an Italian food court and fine-dining restaurant. We’ll have Italian chefs and we’ll import real Italian ingredients. We’ll also have a restaurant dedicated to the food of the GCC. We’ll have something for everybody.’
Edutainment
‘The museum contains some of the most significant race cars and road cars ever made. Each was owned and driven by someone, and therefore has a story to tell. We’ll be doing a lot of story-telling.’
Thrill rides
‘We have three main thrill rides. We’ll have the Freefall Tower, and we’ll have the world’s fastest rollercoaster (Formula Rosso), and a beautiful duelling rollercoaster. Our rollercoasters won’t have loops. What makes them special is the experience. With Formula Rosso, it’ll be about the emotion of getting into a Formula One car, closing your harness, and having that moment of fear or excitement – the experience of driving on a GP track in a F1 car.
‘The other rollercoaster is extremely different. You accelerate and brake, twist and turn, and the tracks overlap each other. As operators, it’ll be fun guessing which car will get back first, because once we’ve launched each race, it’s out of our hands. They’ll be affected by the weight of the passengers, the temperature…we just won’t know.’
Family fun
‘I’m a family man and father, so for me Ferrari World has a different meaning. We have the driving school – maybe the only thing that’s crazy about it is that I’ll be able to give my five-year-old daughter the keys to a 430 Spider! Then there’s a beautiful carousel that I’ll be able to get on and ride with her. She’ll also be able to get into a miniature Formula One car and drive one of the longest self-drive children’s experiences in the world.’
