AMUSEMENT PARKS: Lost in the Wooz Zone

• Share

"It's funny, but people like the feeling of being lost. They say it helps them cope with stress," says architect Henry Yanaga. He should know. Yanaga has designed Wooz, an amusement park featuring a giant labyrinth. A Japanese firm, Sun Creative Systems U.S.A., has launched a $2 million marketing campaign to sell 60 Wooz franchises in the U.S. Its main attraction: a tortuous 5,000-ft.-long maze formed of 7-ft.-high redwood walls.

A pastime that the Japanese learned from the English by way of New Zealand, the maze craze shows signs of catching on in the U.S. Since August, thousands of visitors have paid $7 apiece to get lost in the first American Wooz, which stands for Wild and Original Object with Zoom. The $13 million park in Vacaville, Calif., offers two degrees of difficulty. Claustrophobes need not fear, because three escape routes are provided. Price of a franchise: $45,000 plus construction costs.