Holyland Experience Florida Theme Park

[gustava]

holylandexperience.com/

So snarkable!!!! How has it escaped our attention?!?!?!?

[Mary C Doates]

holylandexperience.com/

So snarkable!!!! How has it escaped our attention?!?!?!?

It's Florida, where tacky is born (no offense to Floridians). I think places like this are taken for granted--another theme park for tourists to spend their money in.

Didn't the Duggars do some Holy Land Experience place in Arkansas or Tennessee or someplace? There was a Passion Play with a flying Jesus, as I recall.

[lilwriter85]

I think this was the theme park that was featured on Morgan Spurlock's documentary series 30 Days. There was an episode about an atheist woman who lived with an Evangelical type family for 30 days.

[Pam]

Soon as I saw the title of this post, I thought of the movie Fletch Lives, when televangelist Jimmy Lee Farnsworth is telling Fletch about his plans to expand his Bible Land theme park, complete with a Jump for Jesus trampoline center and a Noah's Ark ride with regular floods. I never thought it would actually be a reality.

[Khan]

Wow. I find this scary. I can picture the field trips visiting this place. "This is a sodomite burning." "These are fornicators being stoned yo death."

[Sumeri]

Is this real? Wasn't there an Onion article once about something similar?

[Rita]

It's real. My brother-in-law taught at a private school and had to take his students there. I think you can see the buildings from the interstate. I wonder if they are having financial problems, like the Creation Museum. Let me correct that - I hope they are having financial problems.

[lagenialester]

Definitely real, had an evangelical Christian friend spenda day there on their trip to Disney.

[GeoBQn]

Didn't the Duggars do some Holy Land Experience place in Arkansas or Tennessee or someplace? There was a Passion Play with a flying Jesus, as I recall.

They went to the passion play in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, an attraction that is vile for many reasons.

Holyland Experience sells Fake Jew tallitot in the gift shop.

[Mary C Doates]

Years and years ago, I came across Holy Land USA in Waterbury, CT. It was a long-abandoned park (overgrown trails next to a vacant lot) that had Bible-themed displays made out of (no joke) Playskool toys, wood scraps, foil, bottles, small appliances, and all sorts of junk, with hand-painted signs of different Bible verses. It appeared to have been put together by psychiatric patients and/or people who had taken a ton of hallucinogenics. It was vaguely reminiscent of Howard Finster's place in Georgia, only much, much, much cheaper.

It the most amazing thing I've ever seen. I had to break in, and took hundreds of photos. It was...incredible.

Sadly, it's probably been turned into a Costco and some condos.

[nelliebelle1197]

Actor Jesus is sorta hot.

[Incognito22]

It's very real. It's quite snark worthy. I live in the tourist trap that is Orlando but this one takes the cake. I will take a picture of it next time I pass it. It always makes me think of the WWJD bracelets people used to sell. I always figured Jesus probably wouldn't capitalize on crappy bracelets....

[Mary C Doates]

It's very real. It's quite snark worthy. I live in the tourist trap that is Orlando but this one takes the cake. I will take a picture of it next time I pass it. It always makes me think of the WWJD bracelets people used to sell. I always figured Jesus probably wouldn't capitalize on crappy bracelets....

Why can't they have places like this in the NE U.S.? I would so go (even though I'd be appalled to give them money). Southerners have all the tacky religious fun. No fair!

[PopRox]

I think this is the same Holyland park that was featured in 'Religilous.' Looks like it would be a fun place to visit if only for the snark factor.

[Wandering]

I've been there! My college Comparative Religions class took a day trip to the park last fall. It was really boring tbh, just a bunch of re creations of Biblical scenes, like a fake Jesus's tomb and what have you. The tour guide was super creepy though, one of my best friends is Muslim and he was making weird faces at her hijab the whole time among other things.

[salex]

holylandexperience.com/

So snarkable!!!! How has it escaped our attention?!?!?!?

This pretty much explains a lot

A Ministry of Trinity Broadcasting Network |

[Mary C Doates]

This pretty much explains a lot

A Ministry of Trinity Broadcasting Network |

Who remembers the religious theme park shilled by Jim and Tammy Fay Bakker? Whatever happened to it? I almost stopped in on a trip to Georgia, but wasn't stoned enough and sanity prevailed. It was in South Carolina, maybe?

[salex]

Who remembers the religious theme park shilled by Jim and Tammy Fay Bakker? Whatever happened to it? I almost stopped in on a trip to Georgia, but wasn't stoned enough and sanity prevailed. It was in South Carolina, maybe?

tommyandjames.net/heritageusa.html

[PennySycamore]

Years and years ago, I came across Holy Land USA in Waterbury, CT. It was a long-abandoned park (overgrown trails next to a vacant lot) that had Bible-themed displays made out of (no joke) Playskool toys, wood scraps, foil, bottles, small appliances, and all sorts of junk, with hand-painted signs of different Bible verses. It appeared to have been put together by psychiatric patients and/or people who had taken a ton of hallucinogenics. It was vaguely reminiscent of Howard Finster's place in Georgia, only much, much, much cheaper.

It the most amazing thing I've ever seen. I had to break in, and took hundreds of photos. It was...incredible.

Sadly, it's probably been turned into a Costco and some condos.

Here's the Roadside America article on Holy Land USA in Waterbury. It is closed now, but it doesn't say when it closed.

http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2731

and here's the page for The Holyland Experience

http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/11314

Nevermind. I see that the information about Heritage USA has already been posted.

[nokidsmom]

Who remembers the religious theme park shilled by Jim and Tammy Fay Bakker? Whatever happened to it? I almost stopped in on a trip to Georgia, but wasn't stoned enough and sanity prevailed. It was in South Carolina, maybe?

That theme park was Heritage USA, in Fort Mill, SC.

It's been abandoned for some time but remember when it was touted as the family-friendly place to go. I recently found some pics taken after it's abandonment by some urb-exers who went exploring in there.

ETA: crossposted but the link above was one of the websites I found showing how it is today.

[alchemy]

Jim & Tammy's thing was in Charlotte, NC if memory serves. Heritage USA, which I believe went under after it was revealed there was a Ponzi scheme way of funding it along with the fallout of Jim's sex scandal. ETA: sorry for the same info, everyone else pulled the trigger before I could.

Anyone remember when Ned Flanders started a Bible theme park called PraiseLand? Good times.

[Loveday]

:shock: I just scrolled through all four pages of pics of what Heritage USA looks like today. Creepy doesn't begin to describe it. I'm going to have nightmares tonight.

[crazyforkate]

Guys, GUYS. My students go there every year and the older one got baptized there (age 9 at the time, now 10). She claims that when she hit the water she had a vision of Jesus taking then-living Grandma to heaven (while her mom nodded approvingly in the background and I tried to look calm). Sigh.

[Ariel]

I drove past this place the other day. I wish I had some disposable cash-its cheaper than Disney!

They do a daily crucifixion!

[ShadowyOne]

Jim & Tammy's thing was in Charlotte, NC if memory serves. Heritage USA, which I believe went under after it was revealed there was a Ponzi scheme way of funding it along with the fallout of Jim's sex scandal. ETA: sorry for the same info, everyone else pulled the trigger before I could.

Anyone remember when Ned Flanders started a Bible theme park called PraiseLand? Good times.

Exactly what I kept thinking! His went under, too, if I remember correctly.