Ferrari signs agreement to build branded theme park in China

Brief announcement says attraction will be in one of China’s ‘primary cities’, but gives no details of cost or timescale. Ferrari’s Abu Dhabi theme park was named Middle East’s top tourist attraction in 2015

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The Ferrari World theme park in Abu Dhabi, which opened in 2010 and boasted what the company said at the time was the world’s fastest roller coaster. Photo: AP

Published: 4:30pm, 18 Mar 2016Updated: 9:53pm, 3 Jul 2018

Italian sports car manufacturer Ferrari will build a Ferrari-branded theme park in China, the company announced on Friday.

A statement from the company’s headquarters in Maranello, Italy, said Ferrari had signed a non-binding agreement with China’s Beijing Automotive Group Co and BAIC Eternaland Property Co for licensing of the design, construction and operation of a Ferrari theme park, to be located in one of the “primary cities” in China. The park’s actual location was not announced, nor the cost of it or the time frame for the development. A Ferrari spokesman in Hong Kong could offer no further details.

The roller coaster at Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi, which has a top speed of 240 km/h. Photo: Corbis

The luxury-car maker opened its first branded theme park, covering 86,000 square metres, in Abu Dhabi in 2010. It was named the Middle East’s leading tourist attraction in the World Travel Awards in 2015.

The park features rides for children and adults, all in carriages shaped like the company’s coveted cars.