MAPS Ipoh

For this year’s company trip, we were treated with an all expense paid ticket to Movie Animation Park Studios (MAPS) in Ipoh, Perak. It’s no Pangkor resort trip but anything is better than nothing. We started very early in the morning, assembled at school by 6:30AM and left for Ipoh by 6:40AM. After a short break in Tapah, we arrived in MAPS about an hour and a half later. We were given goody bags and a bracelet to wear. You can bring in your bags/backpack but apart from a small water bottle, they will confiscate all of your food. Typical theme park capitalist bs.









First thing first, we were given a quick safety briefing. After that, it’s free and easy. We get to try almost every ride and attraction in the park. I said almost because some of them require separate coupons not included in the package that were paid for for us. On paper or brochure, there’s over a dozen attractions offered on the pack. However during our visit, some of the more appealing rides like Space X-Plorers and Hyperspin were ‘closed for maintenance’. Even the Boboiboy roller-coaster ride decided to break down while we were queuing to enter. The only memorable rides that I managed to try were Asteroid Attack, Stunt Legend Arena and the Sacred Riana Haunted House. Asteroid Attack is basically a giant swing which does 360 degrees spin which is sure to leave your heart in your mouth. Watch trained stuntmen do car and bike stunts in the custom-built Stunt Legend Arena. Sacred Riana Haunted House meanwhile is supposed to be scary and you can see the ladies screaming like a girl when they come out. As for me and much of the boys, it’s not that terrifying to be honest. I’d give it a 3 out of 5 stars. 

The rest of the rides and attractions are more suited to children below 12 so I did not try much of them. We were treated with lunch and high tea buffets throughout our stay. Overall I would recommend MAPS Ipoh only if your have school-going children. For adults like me, going there without your little ones is rather dull because the majority of the attractions are made for them. Entrance to the park is free but you’ll have to pay for each and every one of the rides/attractions which cost in average 3 coupons (up to 5 coupons per ride). One coupon is sold for 3 ringgit each and in average, your kids will want to try at least 10 rides in the park so do your maths. Food & souvenir are as always insanely expensive. 12 ringgit for a typical lunch meal not including drinks. Compared to Sunway Lagoon which is the benchmark, I would say the MAPS Ipoh is only slightly worse off in terms of attractions and facilities. I didn’t get to try all the attractions in the park because like I said, they were more for young children plus the fact that we were leaving by 4:30PM that day. If you wanna bring your family, go early in the morning before there’re too many crowd. The park closes at midnight every day.