Due to “unruly and inappropriate” behaviour, young Wonderland guests will need a chaperone this summer
Reports of crime at and near the amusement park have increased in recent years
If you’re a Toronto teenager hoping to visit Canada’s Wonderland this year, you’ll have to convince a responsible adult to tag along.
Related: It’s hard out here for a 20-something
Management of the Vaughan amusement park confirmed its new chaperone policy today. It states that all guests under 15 must be joined by an adult who is at least 21. The policy takes effect as of 4 p.m. each day, as soon as the park opens for the season on May 3. The chaperone must stay with the group for the duration of the park visit.
Today’s announcement makes a previously implemented policy permanent. Last September, toward the end of its season, Wonderland began enforcing a similar rule, citing the “unruly and inappropriate” behaviour of some young visitors.
There have been serious reports of misbehaviour in recent years. In 2022, 12 teens were charged in connection to numerous “swarming-style” robberies near the park. In 2023, some participated in a social media trend known as “Wonderland Fight Club,” which resulted in arrests.
Now, teens, while you could theoretically still wreak havoc before the park’s daily chaperone hours kick in, be aware of the fine print in Wonderland’s code of conduct: “The park reserves the right to implement it earlier as operational needs require,” it says.
So ride the Leviathan and keep it moving.
Related: It looks like the Toronto Humber Yacht Club is being shut down
Carly Lewis is a journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Times and the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, Wired, Interview Magazine, Pitchfork, Elle, and Maclean’s, where she is a contributing editor. Her work has been recognized by the National Magazine Awards and the Digital Publishing Awards. She reports on city life, culture—including what people do online—politics, art and crime. She received the Dave Greber Freelance Writers Award for “The Murder of Ashley Wadsworth,” an investigative feature about a Canadian teenager who was killed by a man she met on social media, published by Maclean’s.
