European Theme Park Tips

[Inferno]

Hi guys,

 

Been a long time lurker on here, thought I would show myself!

 

Had a bit of a lull from theme parks over the last couple of years, but after following SW8 and going back to Fright Nights would like to start getting back in to it again, and thought maybe you guys could give me a hand to kick start it?  

 

So in the spring I'd like to go with Mrs Inferno on a theme park trip somewhere in Europe.

 

I have done the UK and various US parks, but never Europe

how ridiculous.

Was wondering if I could ask some advice?

 

Sooo...

 

- Where's good to go? What's the best European theme park for adults? 

- Are the various resort hotels worth the money?

- Where's the best places to stay for the best prices?

- When's the best time to go?

- ... any tips for a good europe theme park visit?

 

Quite tempted by Phantasialand and the Matamba hotel... Any good??

 

Thank you all so much for your help!

[Benin]

Depends really on your transport options, hiring a car makes things easier, but here's some parks which are simple to access sans car:

 

Phantasialand - Cologne

Heide Park - Hamburg

Europa Park - Basel/Stuttgart (this is the hardest public transport one really, mostly due to it being in the middle of a small village)

Efteling - Amsterdam/Rotterdam

Walibi Holland - Amsterdam

Walibi Belgium - Brussels

Disney Paris - Paris

Parc Asterix - Paris (shuttle from CDG airport)

Liseberg - Gothenburg

Grona Lund - Stockholm

Tivoli Gardens/Bakken - Copenhagen

Gardaland - Verona

Port Aventura - Barcelona

Warner Bros Madrid - Madrid

 

I highly recommend using http://coast2coaster.com/ for planning such trips.

 

I'd definitely recommend on-site for Phantasialand, Europa and Efteling. Everywhere else is a case of seeing what's nearby (Disney is a definite stay at Val D'Europe unless you want to take out a loan).

 

Times are similar to UK, though I did two weeks in August in Germany and most parks were manageable bar Heide and Legoland, both of which have Q-Bots anyway. Just keep an eye on any local holidays that would be worth avoiding.

[Inferno]

39 minutes ago, Benin said:

I'd definitely recommend on-site for Phantasialand, Europa and Efteling. Everywhere else is a case of seeing what's nearby (Disney is a definite stay at Val D'Europe unless you want to take out a loan).

Thank you so much

[Mega-Lite]

Probably just be easier to recount how I've done previous Europe trips.

 

Disneyland Paris was a cheap flight into the Worlds worst airport (CDG) then an awful but cheap coach ride to the park. On site hotel New York was reasonably priced. As a trip over all was fantastic.

 

We did Holiday Park, Europa Park, Tripsdrill and Schwaben Park all in 1 trip with a cheap hire car and a lovely hotel located just off Stuttgart. Europa Park would be a fantastic first Europe trip.

 

Did Tivoli Gardens (a must), Bakken (a miss), Liseberg (best coaster in the World), Skara (a meh) and Kolmarden (your local RMC). Starting with flight to Copenhagen, then a few trains and then a car hire. All hotels were selected for covenience and price.

 

I'll give you more options later but car hire and off site hotels is the best advice I can preach.

[Matt 236]

I guess it greatly depends whether you would want to visit a park purely for the rides or the whole experience? 

 

Efteling, Europa Park, Phantasialand, Liseberg and Disneyland Paris are some of the parks in Europe I would strongly suggest  visiting.

 

Liseberg is perhaps the easiest one to reach without car as you can reach the park simply by jumping on a shuttle bus to the city from Gothenburg Landvetter. British Airways, Norwegian and Ryanair all fly from London airports. The Gothia Towers hotel (opposite the park) is loverly and one of the most convenient locations I've seen for a hotel, although there are cheaper alternatives around if you prefer.  Two days is enough to tackle the park at a relaxed pace, but you could probably do the park in one intense day if preferred.

 

Phantasialand and Efteling are a little harder to get to, but no difficult either. You can fly to Amsterdam or Eindhoven for Efteling and Cologne or Düsseldorf for Phantasialand. It's two buses a train to Efteling via Eindhoven and two trains and bus for Phantasialand through Cologne. However both are doable through European road trips too, where you may want to throw in Plopsaland and Toverland too. I know quite a few on here have been to them.

 

You have the Efteling hotel for Efteling, which is absolutely loverly to stay at or the NH Waalwijk a short'ish walk/taxi journey up the road if you prefer. I'm staying at Ling Bao at Phantasialand in a few weeks and can say the hotels at Phantasialand look strongly themed, but are also heavily convenient for a stay since there aren't that many hotels about. H+ hotel may be your best bet if you cannot stay on site for Phantasialand. Visit wise I would suggest 2 days for Phantasialand and 2-3 for Efteling depending when you visit. 

 

Europa Park is one of the more difficult ones to access. You can fly to Strousberg, Baden Baden or Bssel with numerous airlines such as Ryanair, EasyJet and Eurowings at London airports. Basel may be the best one to go, but I know public transport can be fiddly unless you get a hire car and drive to/from the park (75 minute drive) or get a shuttle (quite pricey). 

 

I haven't stayed onsite  here (yet), but from what I've seen the hotels are beautiful and stunning, which there are five in total. Not sure how expensive they are but you have plenty of guest houses and Bnb's within Rust which many are a maximum of 15 minutes walk away from the park. I would advise nothing less than 3 days visiting here and if you are visiting for 5 or more, it may evrn be worth getting an annual pass, which offers at least one free entry to all the parks above (and Port Aventura). 

 

Disneyland Paris is one the busiest but easiest ones to get to in any shape or form fullstop. You can drive it by getting the euro tunnel from Folkestone to Calais which is then a 2.5-3 hour drive (depending on service stops). You can also ferry it to Calais or Dunkirk if you prefer.  Or you can get the Eurostar from Kings Cross. Most involve a changeover at Lille but there limited direct routes there as well. There are also flights to Paris from Gatwick and Luton with EasyJet. You can then either get the TGV directly to the park or use the RER transport system to get to the resort too. The RER is cheaper but longer, but the TGV quicker and more expensive. I would choose the TGV personality as it takes you from the airport to the resort in 10 minutes or less.

 

Hotel wise, I stayed at Newport Bay recently and was loverly and would recommend if you want the full-on Disney experience. However there are plenty of cheaper options. If you want to slum it, Sejours in Val'D Europe is a good choice as though it's very cheap, it's really pleasant to stay at too. I'd say three days is enough to visit here, four if you take it relaxingly. 

 

 

[Inferno]

Thank you guys - car hire seems to be a good tip even if it’s just to get to and from the park from the airports etc 

 

Will check out the various hotel options  

 

Is Disneyland Paris easily doable from staying in a hotel in central Paris?

[Benin]

If you were to stay in central Paris I'd recommend staying within spitting distance of one of the train stations that goes to Marnee la Vallee, if only for sake of simplicity of travelling there and back... Trains run early and late (mostly filled with staff)...

[Mega-Lite]

Sorry for the slight delay in my replies.

 

Some more trips, if it ever helps anyone I'm happy.

 

Madrid, as said before, cheap flight to Madrid, cheap hotel somewhere in the area near the 2 parks, then trains and a bus will do you proud. Can't recommend this trip myself though, Parque Warner is fine and Batman (clone) and Superman are alright but meh, Parque De Atracciones however can f**k off.

 

A trip I do highly recommend is (and is nice and cheap), fly to Billund, find a cheap hotel in the middle of all the parks (Djurs Sommerland [fantastic], Farup Sommerland [very good], Tivoli Friheden [for the creds] and Legoland [if you're desperate]). Then if you are really feeling brave, haul ass down into Germany to hit Hansa Park and ride the monster that is Karnan.

 

Another one is fly into Amsterdam, rent a car and plan to stay cheaply in the middle of all the parks I'm about to name. Drievliet (Formule X is great), Toverland (TROY!), Phantasialand (Taron is awesome, but don't have high hopes for the park as a whole), Efteling (one of the best parks in the whole World) and Walibi Holland (Lost Gravity is fantastic). Once again if brave you could always drive into Belgium but I can't say I recommend this idea, f**k Belgium.

 

That's all the easy to do ones I recall off the top of my head.

 

On 10/25/2017 at 11:57 AM, Inferno said:

Had a bit of a lull from theme parks over the last couple of years, but after following SW8 and going back to Fright Nights would like to start getting back in to it again

I don't mean to offend (but I might), Fright Nights and Pointless Weapon got you back into the game? You need this Europe trip more than you think man, get out there, see the good stuff, leave the shambles of Thorpe Park and the pointlessness of SW8 behind and never look back!

[JoshC.]

On 25/10/2017 at 11:57 AM, Inferno said:

Sooo...

 

- Where's good to go? What's the best European theme park for adults? 

- Are the various resort hotels worth the money?

- Where's the best places to stay for the best prices?

- When's the best time to go?

- ... any tips for a good europe theme park visit?

 

Quite tempted by Phantasialand and the Matamba hotel... Any good??

Go to Phantasialand.  Go to Phantasialand.  Go to Phantasialand.  You won't regret it.  

 

Spring time isn't too bad apparently (especially if you back during off peak time, it'll be dead).  You'll miss out on their new coaster (if it even ends up opening next year at all), but that's no big issue as there's still bucket loads of quality there.  

 

If you've got the extra cash available for a longer trip / more parks, and a hire car is also an option, Movie Park Germany, Toverland and Efteling are all reasonable driving distances, so consider one of them.

 

 

For a non-flight option, and if you're close enough to Dover, you could always get on a ferry to Calais or Dunkirk, and then you've got Plopsaland 30-40 minutes away.  Very accessible and good fun, though more a family park / one you do as part of a bigger trip.  And if driving is your thing, you could combine it with another park or two nearby (Walibi Belgium for example) and get a nice mix of creds, culture and travel all in one trip.  And then Phantasialand is only a 2 hour drive away...

 

But if that's not an option for now, just go to Phantasialand.  

[CharlieN]

I must recommend Europa Park, yes it’s the only mainland European park I’ve done, but god is it tremendous. Outdoes every theme park in the UK by a country mile.

 

And it seems fitting to go to a park that celebrates Europe on your first European trip too!

[Inferno]

On 26/10/2017 at 7:16 PM, Mega-Lite said:

I don't mean to offend (but I might), Fright Nights and Pointless Weapon got you back into the game? You need this Europe trip more than you think man, get out there, see the good stuff, leave the shambles of Thorpe Park and the pointlessness of SW8 behind and never look back!

? if I’m being honest I plan to spend as little time with Merlin as possible.... I am pretty sure it’s the lacklustre Merlin attitude of late that put me off theme parks for a while in the first place.

 

But actually having a couple of new coasters being built in the UK, and seeing the potential of Fright Nights it has sparked my interest again

 

———————

 

Guys seriously thank you so much for all the tips   This is all so useful to a novice like me.

 

It’s likely to be Phantasialand this time, then Perhaps a combined Disney / Paris city break trip later in the year.

 

Mixed thoughts on Phantasialand it seems though?! 

[Mega-Lite]

1 hour ago, Inferno said:

if I’m being honest I plan to spend as little time with Merlin as possible.... I am pretty sure it’s the lacklustre Merlin attitude of late that put me off theme parks for a while in the first place.

I second this fully.

1 hour ago, Inferno said:

Guys seriously thank you so much for all the tips

Glad I could help you at all, vicious (but well deserved) jabs against Merlin aside, once you start hitting the cream of Europe everything changes. In less than 2 years I've upped my count by 274 (who's counting?) and had some truly fantastic experiences and that's all thanks to taking the Euro leap.

1 hour ago, Inferno said:

Mixed thoughts on Phantasialand it seems though?! 

By my own admission I do go over the top sometimes but I'll keep this one fully informative.

 

Taron is a World Top 10 coaster for sure, Black Mamba is great, Winjas are brilliant, Chiapas is great, River Quest is insane and Maus is fantastic, so as ride line ups go, the park is a winner.

 

It's also fair to say IN PLACES the theming is incredible.

 

Now it goes downhill.

 

Both times I've been the staff have been f**king disgusting, hostile and just plain assholes and the clients are even worse (I've done Germany enough to know it's not a German problem but a Phantasia problem).

 

Once again both times, the park have closed major attractions far earlier than the official park closing time and on our first trip we were literally screamed at by a man on a golf buggy while trying to take pics of Mamba, the park had only officially closed 5 minutes ago. The shops also close before park close, so if you want merch or a coke for the drive back, forget about it.

 

This one isn't the park's fault as such but the raging hard on 90 percent of the enthusiast community has for this park damages it further in my eyes, they will defend the park to their graves. So imagine me in a 2 hour Taron queue, a coaster that I've just found out is closing THREE hours before advertised, surrounded by extremely rude guests, all of them trying to give me lung cancer and I'm there trying to think how they will defend this s**t. While we are at it, I was screamed at for 15 minutes by an angry staff member while in the toilet, defend that please?

 

I've left both times with a very sour taste in my mouth and I saw Mark say it about another park recently but it really makes Taron a chore when you have to put up with so much s**t just to ride it. The whole experience and atmosphere of the place screams to me, "we are one of the best parks in the World, so you WILL put up with our bulls**t and you'll like it". 

 

Maybe the thing that bothers me most is, if the park really wanted to, it could be up there with some of my favourite parks but nope silly avoidable crap is ruining it for me. I am actually slightly annoyed I have to revisit to get their coaster next year, now what does that say about the place?

[mrmonkey]

 

if you drive - car hire would give you more freedom - or even take your own car via ferry   

 

most people do 'cluster' trips - so I'd actually recommend doing a few smaller trips:-  Phantasialand, Toverland and Efteling (Tag on Walibi holland if you want) is one!

 

then theres Europa - which you REALLY NEED MORE THAN ONE DAY! - 2 days at Europa then one day at tripsdrill - that's another good pairing.

 

Then North Germany/Scandinavia is a good cluster - Hansa, Liseberg, Grona lund, Tivoli, 

 

If your going to do a long road trip - Then Efteling-Toverland-Phantasia-MovieParkGermany-Heide-Hansa would be a good one perhaps finishing with a ferry etc over to Sweden from North Germany! 

 

Then you have PortAdventura - Which I'd recommend just doing on its own with a Barcelona Trip - taking in Tibidabo city amusement park too! 

 

Then there's Disneyland Paris and Parc Asterix - easily clustered around Paris 

 

As for accom I've only stayed on-site at Hotel Matamba at Phantasialand and its SOO worth it! 

 

I would recommend May time mid-week for Visits (google the countries school holidays - and avoid) Also Sep/ Oct  time- mid oct you might get Halloween events which is a bonus - again - go midweek and avoid school holidays! 

 

Don't Miss:-

 

Phantasialand is Fabb.... but others are correct that its customer services aren't up there with others - also it's a small park in terms of area - so when its busy it feels horrible! so definitely go midweek out of school or public holidays.

 

Europa Park is my Fav! But some thrill seekers often booboo it as it has no 'best of its type' headliner coasters - but its just a very fun, friendly, MASSIVE park, loads of charming dark rides etc. Its the only one I'd say is Essential for more that one day - however if you just want to do the coasters, then one day is fine! If you don't stay at the onsite hotels - definitely check out their bars/restaurants...quality!! 

 

Efteling:- Again if your a thrill-seeker coaster enthusiast- and that's all that matters to you, you may be disappointed - However this is again a beautiful park with Disney-standard theming - The flying Dutchman is my fav ride in the whole world! 

 

Hansa Park - People often forget this Park - But don't - its beyond fabb and friendly and has two of the best and unique coasters in Europe! It's also beautiful and charming, has quality food - and lots of things to 'explore' such as a free high ropes course!

 

I've yet to do Liseberg - but this seems to be one not to miss! 

 

PortAdventura - I've yet to do - but the world seems to compare everything to Shambala - so I'd say its not to be missed! (I'm hoping to go early next year).

 

 

[JoshC.]

Just to say, during my visits to Phantasialand, I've never had any issues with customer service.  It's not perfect, but never negatively affected my day.  Smoking in queue lines is a huge issue though. 

 

The park operates so that the advertised closing time is when everything is finished.  Queue lines are cleared, rides closed, shops shut, etc.  That's why ride queues shut early.  Visitors seem fine with that (it's largely a European thing it seems); it's eerie just how quiet the park was at 6:05pm on a 6pm close day that was fairly lively.  So yeah, something to keep in mind for any Phantasialand goers..

[TPC]

Don't waste your time at PortAventura or Ferrari Land. None of the coasters are world class (including shambahla which is very overrated). The way express works makes people without it feel like idiots and not important. The theming is good but I won't rate the resort higher than Gardaland. If you do go to Gardaland, you also have Movie Land closeby.

[CharlieN]

I’ve never been to Phantasia so I have absolutely no right to have an opinion on it - but from various vlogs and reviews I never really get why it is so raved about. The theming looks good but personally the chosen themes don’t really appeal as they don’t have a sense of grandeur/charm - which to me is what makes Europa so good.

 

The Park always appears busy and rushed - and due to the clientele and staffing issues I always get Thorpe Park vibes from the place.

 

I would definitely like to visit as the rides look very special - Taron being the stand out. The selection of rides is widely considered better than both that of Europa or Efteling. However, it’s the tranquility and beauty of the latter 2 parks which is why I’ve always dreamed of visiting them. 

 

I managed to do Europa in April and hopefully Efteling very soon!

 

I’ve really got to push Europa Park tho, it surpassed my expectations and even my ride-hating-dad had a brilliant time.

 

You won’t regret visiting if you do...

 

(As I say, I’ve never been to Phantasia, so you should really just ignore everything I’ve said about the place!)

[Benin]

Getting Thorpe vibes from Phantasialand? Yeah, definitely not worth listening to that nonsense...

 

Operations are pretty standard, just because a park might run one train when empty doesn't mean that they'll do a Thorpe and not add one when necessary... I've seen 2 blokes at Mirabilandia add a second train to Katun without even noticing they'd left the platform...

[CharlieN]

The definition of Vibe is the “atmosphere of a place as communicated by others”.

 

As vibe only refers to atmosphere, my prior comment did not take into account ride quality, theming or any other factors. Therefore there is nothing wrong with it as a comment. The atmosphere of Phantasialand that has been communicated to me is a rushed, busy, unfriendly one. This is also how I view Thorpe Park.

 

Therefore I get Thorpe Park vibes of Phantasialand.

[Benin]

But you cannot judge an atmosphere of a park without actually having been there, so.....

 

I've never felt rushed or unfriendly there, probably because I've always treated it as a two day park...

[JoshC.]

I've done it as a one day park (granted, usually with extended opening hours), and, like Benin, never had any issues with feeling rushed. 

 

There's a couple of people who have had bad experiences there, sure, but there's also plenty of people who have had good experiences; in this thread alone it's an equal split.  I'd be willing to bet the number of people here having good experiences far outweighs the number have bad.

 

Phantasialand is a park which really shines once you're actually there (and not being screamed at by staff in a toilet for 15 minutes...which seems excessively long might I add ).  If you're put off by the sound of some parts on paper, just give it a chance and you'll be surprised. 

[CharlieN]

Read the definition which preambled my argument again.

 

“As communicated by others”

 

Therefore, I’m not judging the atmosphere, simply establishing a sense of it from vlogs, reviews and personal conversations I’ve had with people. And the sense I get from the park (as communicated to by others) is unfriendly and rushed. If it isn’t then my vibes are wrong, but it’s not nonsense.

 

Anyway, back on topic, I would like to go to Phantasialand, because their attraction line up looks tremendous - and god I’d love to ride Taron. Both the quality and quantity of rides mean that I’ll probably visit within the next 5 years. So I will give the place a go and I’ll try to enter the park open minded and limit my judgement. 

 

[Mega-Lite]

21 hours ago, mrmonkey said:

one day at tripsdrill

2 hours is enough and too much at the same time, awful park.

19 hours ago, BaronC. said:

Visitors seem fine with that

Germans were shouting abuse and jumping ropes at the closing 3 hours early queueline for Taron, it's hard to tell whether that's just Phantasialand guests or indeed they were not fine with it.

19 hours ago, BaronC. said:

largely a European thing

Can't recall another park that does it off the top of my head, certainty not 3 hours early and herding you out like sheep, maybe I need to go to Port Av to experience this?

19 hours ago, CharlieN said:

The Park always appears busy and rushed - and due to the clientele and staffing issues I always get Thorpe Park vibes from the place.

You sir have balls, for on park atmosphere and hostility, it probably isn't far off Thorpe Park, ride line up wise, destroys it.

2 hours ago, BaronC. said:

Phantasialand is a park which really shines once you're actually there

I'm not sure about that, 2 trips in a row being left annoyed by the place, when in reality shouldn't your first trip to the park be enough of a judgement? I'll give her another go when the new thing opens, I'm not expecting anything to have changed though.

2 hours ago, BaronC. said:

and not being screamed at by staff in a toilet for 15 minutes...which seems excessively long might I add

From the second I sat down, then while washing and drying my hands, then while I was trying to work out why the hell she was shouting at me, there's certainly something about their staff members. Just been reminded the man selling drinks in the Taron area was a t**t too.

 

Leave Charlie alone guys, of course you are allowed to form an opinion based on other peoples experiences, good OR bad. Christ I've been reading forums for YEARS for that sole purpose. Go into your first trip to a park with at least a little knowledge of what you may come to find, Taron being offensively good and the park attitude being a joke. I for one, after YEARS of reading Port Av is a shambles will be visiting that park for the first time with that very much in my mind and if I find out it's false then more power to me.

[Charlesberg]

38 minutes ago, Mega-Lite said:

I for one, after YEARS of reading Port Av is a shambles will be visiting that park for the first time with that very much in my mind and if I find out it's false then more power to me.

Generally with PA (and I can’t help but bring this up again), the people that enjoy the park are the ones that buy the express pass and the people that hate it don’t but it.

 

But it is completely understandable why, both times I went I didn’t see Shambhala with a queue shorter than 2hrs.

[Matt 236]

From past experience I don't ever recall the recall the staff at Phantasialand to have that many issues, intact I found the people in Rutmoores pretty friendly from what I remember. The only time I ever recall getting told off by staff was on the Hollywood ride, and to be fair the reasons were quite understandable. 

 

Efteling & Liseberg from recent experience have shown to feature the best staff, but Disneyland Paris is very much up their now. The cast members on my previous visit were amazing.

 

Port Aventura has some of the worst theme park staff I have experienced. Unfriendly, rude, unhelpful and responding to any query or concern as if you've just insulted their family. I don't think any Park I have been to have featured staff anywhere near as bad as Port Avs.

 

closing queue lines before closing does seem a more common thing in European parks, as I've witnessed this in PA, Efteling and Phantasialand. At least Phantasialand actually advertise the initial closing time around the entrance of each ride. 

[TPC]

Let me say my PA problems. The staff have a huge issue with you being happy enough to wait a bit, in order to get front row. None of the coasters are that good (even shambhala). Without express, I honestly felt like the park didn't at all care about me, with express people getting front row seats to shows, when I was there waiting for almost an hour. They always took priority on even single ride, with the only exception being on El Diablo. Operations are abysmal. On a peak August day, for red force, there was a 1 train service, which meant the advertised 50 minute queue took over 2 hours (working out 2.5 times more than advertised time). For me, the park just didn't live up to any of the hype, although I do have to admit the theming is rather good, except for Angkor's falling apart polystyrene foam theming.