Photo: Castle Fun Park

It all started in 1979 when a Kelowna man named Hank Wiebe literally started building castles on the lawn in his backyard.

As a young father with a background in construction, Wiebe was determined to become his own boss. He and his wife Doreen eventually decided to build their own amusement park.

It was a gamble that definitely paid off.

In 1981, with the help of friends and business partners, they finally opened up Scandia in Kelowna. After many years of running the business, they decided to sell their shares and open another, this time in Abbotsford.

Photo: Castle Fun Park

In 1989, Wonderland was born. They started out small by offering 50 arcade games and an outdoor golf course.

Photo: Castle Fun Park

Photo: Castle Fun Park

The name was changed in 1998 when they received a fax from an Ontario amusement park saying that they were infringing on their park’s naming rights.

Wonderland had provincial rights to the name but the other park in Ontario had secured national rights to it. They were given only 24-hours to change its name, and then Castle Fun Park was created.

It was originally going to be called Castle Park but the family’s 7-year-old granddaughter said it didn’t describe how “fun” it is.

To this day, the park has been run by the same family for over 25 years.

They have expanded on their attractions which now include a driving range, target hockey, remote control boats, bowling, and bumper cars—just to name a few.

Source: 604 Now