# Touristy things you went to that don't exist any more **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 14, 2026, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073 "2026-05-14T17:32:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/201 "2026-05-18T13:04:22Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Bless your title-dropping heart! You’re perfectly welcome. Your contributions to the site are always exemplary. We live on the North Shore and thus drive by the Wonderland site (or use the Wonderland T stop) every time we go to Boston or points south. I knew about the place name from the movie, [_Next Stop Wonderland_](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119778/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_8_nm_0_in_0_q_next%20stop%20wo) (1998), long before we moved to the area, but I learned about the origin of the name from your posts here. The [sign for the dog racing track](https://maps.app.goo.gl/hKtJtQjAnEAQw8SJ8) is still there. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/202 "2026-05-18T13:37:20Z")
> [@commasense](#): > > You’re perfectly welcome. Your contributions to the site are always exemplary. > > We live on the North Shore and thus drive by the Wonderland site (or use the Wonderland T stop) every time we go to Boston or points south. I knew about the place name from the movie, _[Next Stop Wonderland](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119778/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_8_nm_0_in_0_q_next%20stop%20wo)_ (1998), long before we moved to the area, but I learned about the origin of the name from your posts here. > > The [sign for the dog racing track](https://maps.app.goo.gl/hKtJtQjAnEAQw8SJ8) is still there. The bulk of Wonderland Amusement Park was actually where the Wonderland Shopping Mall now sits, and its parking lot. Only a little of it extended into the area that later became the dog track. Also very interesting – the buildings of the main complex of the mall sit precisely where the original Wonderland buildings sat. I assume that’s because, although the site feels pretty dry and solid today, it was a tually a marsh when they built the amusement park. They drove a huge number of pilings into the ground to give them a solid foundation to build on (the connecting areas of the park were a boardwalk that st 2-3 feet above ground level). I guess when they built the mall, they couldn’t resist the already-existing pilings as foundations. Have a look at the sub-webpage about maps. At the very compare a map of the park with the modern mall: > **[Wonderland Maps](https://lost-wonderland.com/wonderland-maps/)** > > This map shows the section of Revere where Wonderland was built as it was originally laid out. None of these streets in the space between the train tracks — Brewster, Bath, Badger, Beaver, Ha… ---
**Author:** ![Larsedik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larsedik/32/19832_2.png) [@Larsedik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larsedik)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/203 "2026-05-18T16:02:32Z")
I used to go to the Tacky Tourist Tour in Seattle in the early 1980s, which was a gay cruise from Seattle harbor, through the locks, and into Lake Washington. It was created primarily for drag queens, and there were contests for things such as “Miss Palm Springs”, etc. Drag queens were encouraged to wear their tackiest drag, and it was a lot of fun and very entertaining. It also shocked some of the people on the lake, which was also funny. The boat had loud disco music and a drag queen with the hugest dress sitting at the very top of the boat with her dress spread out like a huge umbrella. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/204 "2026-05-18T17:13:19Z")
The Tiger’s Tale in Sheffield Tasmania. A funky but fun animatronic presentation formerly found in the “town of murals” on the way to Cradle Mountain National Park. [![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczNCNVlijxdPIDqcbwoRTWzamJ5YKwu6MMxYdD-o5XxKmnHEX7Z8DCKKBEm3TM-I6iphITSD7QYhuCGghv4GeHGcwAmNshaAu7htCFmt2ki1bo01kvMnCzVoJwmLC4tD6O7wF9Jq65ApgPJFROkEYyzpEA=w723-h771-s-no?authuser=0) ](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczNCNVlijxdPIDqcbwoRTWzamJ5YKwu6MMxYdD-o5XxKmnHEX7Z8DCKKBEm3TM-I6iphITSD7QYhuCGghv4GeHGcwAmNshaAu7htCFmt2ki1bo01kvMnCzVoJwmLC4tD6O7wF9Jq65ApgPJFROkEYyzpEA=w723-h771-s-no?authuser=0) [![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczMprbUXSAHEvx1j3F7OOs_YYZGdEFE-BQra7zVN3u9zWWtxlyCZ1Y150KMqbonAvON6ProJ50eMqd7ukhIFQ0-7_JC5BjhRvJUtPcZ3H2J-2L7bYD7EDgeGRGjO8TxsMGbK5bPrz285VtvKRDsHBF3xvw=w1115-h745-s-no?authuser=0) ](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczMprbUXSAHEvx1j3F7OOs_YYZGdEFE-BQra7zVN3u9zWWtxlyCZ1Y150KMqbonAvON6ProJ50eMqd7ukhIFQ0-7_JC5BjhRvJUtPcZ3H2J-2L7bYD7EDgeGRGjO8TxsMGbK5bPrz285VtvKRDsHBF3xvw=w1115-h745-s-no?authuser=0) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/205 "2026-05-18T17:59:21Z")
There used to be a Chuck E. Cheese-like arcade and restaurant complex in Concord, NH called “Bear Right”. If you were coming south on Route 93 from northern NH you did, indeed, “bear right” to get there. There was a big sign on the side of the road directing you. Inside it had an audio-animatronic Bear Revue, kind of like a smaller, cheaper version of Disney’s Country Bear Musical Jamboree. There was also a tree with places for critters to pop out of. It disappeared about 25 years ago or so: > **[I'm from Concord, NH & remember when.... | Does anyone remember Bear Right |...](https://www.facebook.com/groups/202788856446493/posts/7594212620637376/)** > > Does anyone remember Bear Right? I’m in search of more photos of the restaurant and I’m also very curious if anyone knows the whereabouts of the “Cavern Critter Revue” animatronics after its closure This shirt has the logo that used to be on the sign you saw from I-93 > **[Bear Right Concord NH T-Shirt](https://reviewshirts.com/products/bear-right-concord-nh-t-shirt)** > > Bear Right Concord NH Shirt – A Wild Turn Toward the Granite State 🐻➡️ Whether it’s a GPS instruction or a cheeky nod to local wildlife, the “Bear Right Concord NH” Shirt blends geography with humor in true New England fashion. A playful pun that... > **[u local New Hampshire | Do you remember the arcade, "Bear Right" | Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/groups/uLocalNH/posts/1576080052783960/)** > > Do you remember the arcade, "Bear Right"? It was in Concord decades ago, and we'd love to see photos and videos from there if you have them. We'd like to use your imagery in an upcoming feature. Let... ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/206 "2026-05-18T18:26:26Z")
Yeah, the WTC is the big one. There’s also the part of the road in Denali National Park that went through Polychrome Pass. It was the victim of a landslide a couple of years ago. Now there’s a bridge there over the missing road. Yeah, it’s a stretch. The old Bird House bar on the Seward Highway burned down in 1996. It was mostly a hang for skiers and other bums like me. It was a log house half sunken into the muck, so you sat at a bar that was tilted 15-20 degrees. The bartender would slap your order on the bar and if you weren’t ready, it just slid down and splattered against the wall. The ceiling was adorned with women’s underwear, donated by past customers. They also had a phone that wasn’t connected to anything and provided a lot of laughs for regulars at the expense of visitors. Otherwise, all of the major touristy places around the world that I’ve visited are still there, AFAIK. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/207 "2026-05-18T18:29:44Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > **Petrified Creatures** in Warren, NY. At least that’s the location on the pennant I had as a kid. Apparently it was really in Richfield Springs, NY. It was a collection of incredibly bad life-sized plaster-and-chicken wire dinosaur figures that dated from the 1930s. They were painted in unlikely garish colors. My family and I went there when we went to Cooperstown. We had a choice between that and a boat tour of Otsego Lake, and my brother and I chose the dino museum. As a teenager it wasn’t that great, partly because it wasn’t real dinosaurs but mostly because it had so few displays compared to formal indoor museums. If given a choice between that or the boat tour today, if they still existed, even though the museum was pretty cheesy, my choice would depend on the menu for any food items on the boat tour, since while I prefer to _look_ at smaller lakes than Otsego from the shore, for a sitting-down tour, I’d prefer larger lakes since their sights would be more varied. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/208 "2026-05-18T18:42:54Z")
That Tazzy Tiger is just sad. ---
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/209 "2026-05-18T19:00:25Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > The circus acts under the hard top big tent are long gone Looks like they’re still there, if only four days a week. [Circus Circus Midway Shows](https://www.circuscircus.com/attractions/midway-circus-shows/) ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/210 "2026-05-18T19:05:18Z")
I used to go to the B & I Circus store when I was a kid, back when they had a real gorilla. [B&I Circus Store (Lakewood) - HistoryLink.org](https://www.historylink.org/File/20533) ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/211 "2026-05-18T19:23:29Z")
[Pinnacle Peak Patio](https://www.facebook.com/pinnaclepeakpatio/) ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/212 "2026-05-18T23:09:23Z")
Gettysburg, PA, had **Fantasyland** ; closed 1980, demolished soon after. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/213 "2026-05-18T23:31:49Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Sounds like the U-505 in Chicago! It’s no longer in the water and they’ve made modifications to make it easier for small tour groups to move around inside it, but it’s still very small and cramped. It’s been 70 years since it last went to sea and the engine room STILL reeks of diesel. Hard to imagine 60 men packed in there for months at a time with no showers. The ship’s kitchen was so tiny that having to cook three meals a day in there for that many people ought to have earned you a medal in and of itself. I went through 505 once with my dad, some time in the Seventies. That was enough! ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/214 "2026-05-18T23:41:48Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Goats playing guitars- imagine that! 🤪 And then the pirates threw the goats to the shark filled Lagoon. But they were nurse sharks so all theatre ah twas great to be alive ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/215 "2026-05-18T23:47:22Z")
I was trying to remember a new park built in the 80’s had batting cages and a giant slide maybe never seen before big arcade. Possibly Boomers. Teenage hangout for mixing it up with kids from other areas.🐫 💔 ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/216 "2026-05-18T23:52:51Z")
The Arizona roadside attraction [The Thing?](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thing_(roadside_attraction)) still exists, but it’s nothing like the one that existed prior to 2018. The original was a kind of boring collection of dusty vehicles and artifacts. The new attraction is a completely different theme that espouses the “What If?” theory that ancient aliens came to earth, had a war with dinosaurs and continued their influence throughout history. The namesake [Homer Tate](https://horror.land/the-odyssey-of-homer-tate-the-man-behind-americas-greatest-hoaxes/) creation is still there at the end of the tour in all it’s fake glory. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/217 "2026-05-18T23:59:38Z")
I’ve been to the location of The Thing? but didn’t experience the exhibit itself. While I’d seen the highway signs, all I wanted was some gas, and I’m not even sure I knew that the station I was pulling into was the actual location of The Thing? until I went inside and saw the exhibit entrance. The description of it was too vague to pique my interest since it could be anything from fairly amazing to a complete ripoff. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/218 "2026-05-19T00:08:33Z")
@chela … If you don’t mind saying, where in SoFL did you grow up? My GF is a Miami native as were both her parents & 2 of her 4 grandparents. That goes back a long ways. A very long ways. I asked, and she spent a lot of time as a teen at Pirate World. By then her parents lived in Miramar. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/219 "2026-05-19T03:02:47Z")
> [@sciurophobic](#): > > Looks like they’re still there, if only four days a week. Huh. I peered into the space, saw it was full of arcade machines, and made an assumption. ---
**Author:** ![Die\_Capacitrix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/die_capacitrix/32/9_2.png) [@Die\_Capacitrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Die_Capacitrix)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073/220 "2026-05-19T04:01:36Z")
I’ve been to Mt. Rainier many times, but never climbed to the top. I’m glad that I got to see the Paradise Ice Caves before they melted. > **[Paradise Glacier - Visit Rainier](https://visitrainier.com/paradise-glacier-2/)** > > Paradise Glacier is a 5.6-mile roundtrip hike in Paradise at Mount Rainier National Park. Learn more at VisitRainier.com. There are still ice caves, but they are no way as accessible as the ones that melted in the 1990s. > **[Science and discovery in Mount Rainier's deadly ice caves](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/article/mount-rainier-washington-ice-cave-exploration-danger-discovery)** > > This team crossed invisible lakes of noxious gas to map the mountain's mysterious caves and search for clues to life on Mars. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/touristy-things-you-went-to-that-dont-exist-any-more/1030073.md?page=12)