By Kristen Poland
Contributing Writer

Cruising to the top of “Led Zeppelin: The Ride” is quite peaceful; the cloudless, blue sky drawing nearer, a soft breeze blowing off the Hard Rock Park lagoon, Robert Plant’s nasally, tenor crooning suggestively.

Then, Jimmie Page’s guitar begins to grind and squeal, the car reaches the coaster’s apex and hell breaks loose. Twisted metal loops and curls defiantly suspend howling riders above the ground. “Shake for me, girl,” Plant demands.

Wind rips, stealing voices from open mouths, hands tightly clench their harnesses, others flail about, unafraid and excited. “Ya need a whole lotta’ love. Hay! Oh!” Plant screams. The ride slows, stops. Exhilarated riders, welcomed by congratulatory whoops and hollers from crew members and on-deck riders, feel as though they’ve triumphed. 

“We’re trying to recreate the adrenaline rush of a Led Zeppelin concert,” said Jon Binkowski, chief creative officer of the Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach. The company invested $400 million to create the 55-acre amusement park, which held its grand opening June 2-3.

Stumbling (dizzy from the loops) down the exit ramp, “Led Zeppelin” riders are greeted by photos, available for purchase, of themselves careening down the coaster’s major slope. Then, they are deposited into an air-conditioned gift shop where they are greeted by Led Zeppelin shot glasses with the color and sheen of mercury, T-shirts bearing the band’s logo, bags, posters, CDs and other souvenirs that not only serve as reminders of their Hard Rock Park adventure, but also of their favorite rock ‘n’ roll bands — past and present.

It’s Disney World for the big kids
If you can’t leave Disney World without mouse ears and a sack full of stuffed cartoon characters, you certainly can’t leave Hard Rock Park without a concert T-shirt, an inflatable toy guitar and a fake tattoo (park officials hope to offer real ink in the future). Just as children squeal with delight at Cinderella’s Castle, adults will shiver in awe at the sight of the 70-foot Gibson Les Paul Sunburst, the world’s largest guitar icon, towering over the park. Guests wandering over to examine the magnificent instrument may go home with a genuine Gibson available for purchase in the gift shop below the giant guitar.
A general admission ticket to Hard Rock Park costs $50. That’s slightly lower than some of the country’s high-end theme parks, including Disney World, which charges $71 for an adult ticket. Carowinds, a theme park on the South Carolina/North Carolina border, charges $45.99 for a one-day ticket.

“We consider ourselves to be the quality of a Florida theme park,” Binkowski said. “For the majority of people who live in the U.S., we are closer than Orlando. If they choose to come here, they save 500 miles
in gasoline.”

And money not spent on gasoline translates into money spent at Hard Rock Park.