Haunting theme park in morbid location forced to close after just four years

The sprawling park in rural Japan features an enormous 45-metre statue lying on the ground, with children able to clamber onto his hands to enjoy the view — all just moments from the notorious Aokigahara suicide forest.

A haunting theme park featuring a 45-metre tall statue of Gulliver has been left frozen in time after shutting its doors permanently following just four years.

The attraction was inspired by the characters from the 18th century British literary classic Gulliver’s Travels. The vast park in rural Japan boasts an enormous figure sprawled on the ground, allowing youngsters to scramble onto his hands to take in the panoramic views.

Disturbingly, these children were playing just minutes from the infamous suicide forest, where made people have made the heartbreaking choice to take their own lives.

After finally shutting down in 2001, the park appeared destined for failure from the beginning. The proximity to the suicide forest, known as Aokigahara forest, is mentioned as one of the factors behind its swift closure after merely four years, according to the Fall of Civilisations Podcast.

Remarkably, the venture received backing from the Japanese government, who instructed managers to make the attraction as lavish as conceivable, reports the Express.

The park centres around the fallen Gulliver who lies pinned to the earth with ropes, mirroring the novel.

Visitors would come and climb in the giant’s palm for photographs on top of him, creating the illusion they belonged to the Lilliputian tribe who captured Gulliver in the original tale.

At the foot of Mount Fuji, the legendary peak provides spectacular backdrop for the park. The park is also near the village of Kamikuishki and the former headquarters of Aum Shinrikyo.

Aum Shinrikyo, the cult responsible for the deaths of 13 people in the Tokyo sarin nerve gas attack of 1995, was based here.

Subsequently, the group was designated as a terrorist organisation by several countries, including the European Union.

It’s believed tourists were deterred from visiting the park due to its proximity to these ominous locations.

Moreover, the theme park suffered from a lack of actual attractions. It boasted just two rides; a bobsled track and a luge course, neither of which proved particularly popular with the Japanese public.

The remainder of the park consisted of pastel-coloured townhouses surrounding a moat lake, all inspired by an 18th-century novel. There were also some smaller characters from the book scattered around.

Since 2004, the park has been left untouched by investors and now stands as a frozen snapshot in time.

Today, the once majestic Gulliver statue is defaced with graffiti and the park signs are decaying in the elements.