We’re back with the 3rd installment of our Throwback series, featuring our third and final Taiwanese park: Lihpao Land! Though the smallest of Taiwan parks we visited, their signature ride, the Vekoma Tilt Coaster Gravity Max, was the most our most sought-after credit of the trip.
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* These pictures were taken about six years ago and have been edited in attempt to remaster them, the quality is lower than what you’ve come to expect from us. *
January 2015
(You can tap the photos to enlarge them!)
After a nice breakfast at the Lihpao Land hotel, we began our day at the park, which is just a few paces away from the hotel lobby. 
Once again, its pretty much just myself and Kaitlin at the park today.
Despite being 13 years old by the time of our visit, Lihpao Land had seen very few changes since its opening season. The park seems to have been largely constructed as a “complete attraction” with no apparent intention of major growth plans or new major attractions. Even now, in its 20th season, the park hasn’t seen much more than just basic upkeep.
Obviously we’re here for Gravity Max, but the park has other attractions to enjoy as well. 
Okay, I forget what this even is but I needed to include a photo of it because it’s scary af. 
Lihpao Land’s only other coaster is a standard Vekoma family coaster. It looks pretty much identical to the one at nearby Leofoo Village, right down to the locomotive trains. 
The only other park patrons that day were groups of children on a school field trip. They were excited to talk to foreighners and practice their English with us (their English was very good).
Gravity Max was ready for passengers after we finished our initial lap around the park, so we headed over to get our rides in!
Getting ready for a back car ride! 
We also enjoyed a front seat ride that afforded us this pov from the station. 
BRAKE RUN SELFIE! 
So, how was Gravity Max?
Though the ride is hinged (no pun intended) on a single gimmick, it’s a very effective gimmick. No matter where you’re seated, the tilt sequence of Gravity Max is one of the most unique and thrilling experiences of any coaster.
Following a very satisfying vertical drop, Gravity Max plunges into an underground tunnel that makes a sharp U-turn under the midway. The ride then exits the tunnel into an almost circular vertical loop.
The loop is a good element, but feels like an afterthought after the amazing first drop and underground tunnel. 
Moreover, the helix at the end of the ride not only feels like an afterthought, but is also by far the least memorable moment of the ride.
But, like we said, the tilt gimmick is so satisfying that the rest of Gravity Max being steadily more forgettable as it goes on is easy to forgive. One interesting characteristic of the ride (which is evident in the photo above) is how much of the ride is elevated well off the ground. The station is so high that it’s already half way to the ride’s peak. Below we have some views enjoyed from near the ride’s entrance – the riders’ faces say it all.
With our Gravity Max rides and photos squared away, we did another lap around Lihpao Land to enjoy more of their ride collection.
The kids braved every ride at Lihpao Land, but they sometimes asked for encouragement. 
We love a good Top Spin.
From the park’s Ferris Wheel we can enjoy views of the resort and its surroundings. 
See that structure on the right? That’s a GIANT Ferris Wheel, mid-construction. As far as we know, it’s the only ride the park has added since opening. 
Of course we couldn’t leave without this – the sole piece of Gravity Max merch we could find. 
^ Above is the metro add featuring the park that we saw on our way into Taipei. We couldn’t not include it! Anyway, we hope you all enjoyed our throwback tour of Taiwan’s major parks – we look forward to bringing you more throwback reports in the future! Until next time!
