PortAventura World is a sprawling theme park resort on Spain’s Costa Daurada, straddling the towns of Salou and Vila-seca in Catalonia. It opened as PortAventura Park on May 1, 1995, and has since grown into a three-park destination alongside six themed on-site hotels, making it consistently the most-visited theme park in Spain.
The resort’s expansion accelerated in 2017 with the addition of Ferrari Land, home to Red Force, a launch coaster that briefly held the title of the world’s tallest roller coaster. Combined with the original PortAventura Park and the Caribe Aquatic Park water park, the resort now covers roughly 119 hectares (294 acres) of themed lands, rides, and water attractions.
Stats at a Glance
- Location: Salou & Vila-seca, Catalonia, Spain
- Opened: May 1, 1995
- Operator: Investindustrial (co-owned with KKR)
- Area: About 119 hectares (294 acres)
- Theme Parks: 3 — PortAventura Park, Ferrari Land, Caribe Aquatic Park
- Annual Visitors: About 5.2 million (2019)
- Tallest Ride: Red Force, 112 m (367 ft), Intamin
The Ride Experience
PortAventura Park’s five themed lands — Mediterrània, Far West, México, China, and Polynesia — hold some of Europe’s most respected coasters. Dragon Khan, a Bolliger & Mabillard looping coaster reaching about 45 m (148 ft) and 105 km/h (65 mph), opened with the park in 1995 and remains a signature ride. Shambhala, also from Bolliger & Mabillard, arrived in 2012 as Europe’s tallest coaster at 76 m (249 ft) with a top speed of 134 km/h (83 mph) and no inversions, relying instead on camelback airtime hills.
Next door at Ferrari Land, Red Force takes the intensity further. Opened in 2017, the Intamin launch coaster accelerates riders from 0 to 180 km/h (112 mph) in about five seconds before rocketing up a 112 m top hat tower, briefly holding the record as the world’s tallest roller coaster between late 2024 and mid-2025.
A Resort Beyond the Coasters
PortAventura World is built as a full vacation destination rather than a single-day park. Six on-site hotels, themed to the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Mexican, and American West aesthetics, sit alongside the parks, and the Caribe Aquatic Park adds roughly 50,000 square meters of slides and pools themed to a Caribbean beach setting.
The resort’s scale and consistent investment in headline attractions, from Dragon Khan in 1995 to Red Force in 2017, have kept it Spain’s top-attended theme park and a fixture on European coaster enthusiasts’ must-visit lists.
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PortAventura World FAQs
Is PortAventura World near Barcelona?
It’s about 100 km (62 miles) southwest of Barcelona, near the coastal towns of Salou and Vila-seca in Catalonia, Spain.
How many parks does PortAventura World include?
Three: PortAventura Park (the original 1995 park), Ferrari Land (opened 2017), and the Caribe Aquatic Park water park.
What is the tallest ride at PortAventura World?
Red Force at Ferrari Land, an Intamin launch coaster standing about 112 m (367 ft) tall and reaching 180 km/h (112 mph).
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