A day in Efteling: Europe's most wonderful theme park
Europe’s coolest and most magical theme park is in the Netherlands.
So I am currently visiting the Netherlands and had the chance to visit the much hyped Efteling theme park. Without exaggerating in the slightest, I can say that this was the most fun I’ve had in a theme park. The following are the rides I went on and some quick thoughts on them:
Droomvlucht — Dreamflight
A relaxed trip around a magical forest with faeries, trolls, and elves. Probably fun to take your kid with, it is a fair choice for a first ride in the park. The final segment of the ride is a fairly speedy downwards spiral — watch out for that camera at the end!
Vogel Rok — Bird Roc
A fast ride in the dark, lighted only by lasers and fiber optic lights. Rocky and full of twists and turns, it can leave you a bit nauseated by the end — though it should be fine for most people. If you want to give your group a bit of an adrenaline shot before heading to the more extreme rides, this is the way to go!
Fata Morgana
Fata Morgana is a 1001 Arabian Nights-inspired water ride. The slow moving boat is towed along the many scenaries, showcasing many dozens of animatronics. The Arabian-inspired scenes could do with a facelift, as many of the props and animatronics look weird and out of date, but the ride is a good way to relax before or after more exciting ones. It is pretty enough to visit, but if you’re in a hurry and the queue is long, it’s not worth the trouble.
Max & Moritz
This double roller coaster is a fast-paced ride you can go with your friends and family. You choose one of two circuits to go on: the titular Max or Moritz. After going one lap around the coaster, the music and cart speed up, thus increasing the sense of chaotic fun around you. The fun stops abruptly on the second lap, but fear not, for you can get back on and try the other track.
Python
Python is tied with the next (and final) entry for the most adrenaline-filled ride on this list. Two loops and a barrel roll. That’s it. There isn’t any big thematic twist to the ride, but the experience of getting looped around twice and rolling over, feeling all the G-forces that entails, is amazingly fun, especially after the nerve-racking tension that is built up over the never ending first minute of slow climbing to the highest point. It’s good fun and physically demanding, but it is all worth it in the end for the badge of honour you’ll wear proudly around your friends who decided against going with you. Just pray that your fellow cart riders won’t understand the language in which you’ll throwing all those slurs at whoever convinced you to go.
Baron 1898
Most parks have an emblematic ride that everyone will instantly recognise when you speak of it. I don’t think the Efteling theme park has one singular emblematic ride, but if I were to choose one it would be the Baron 1898. The ride’s focal point resides in the massive dive from a mine shaft into a misty hole on the ground. It is nerve-racking, intense, and it will stop just moments before the drop in order to have you question every life decision that led you to that place. If you enjoy feeling weightless for a second or two only to be brutaly jolted around in a mechanical rail for the next minute, this will be your cup of tea. Just be sure not to drink one before getting on, as screams won’t be the only thing coming out of your mouth by the time you’re dropping.