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Europe 2024 Trip Report So Far: Back from 18-day Europe Trip, Review: Iberia Business Class DFW to MAD, Hits and Misses from my First MSC Cruise, DoubleTree by Hilton Amsterdam Centraal Station Review, Two Days in Amsterdam
When I was researching things to do in the Netherlands, I came across Efteling theme park. I showed the site to my 13-year-old daughter, and we both agreed it would be fun to visit. I booked a hotel in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, for a few nights for a closer commute to Efteling theme park.
Getting There
When we landed at AMS Amsterdam Schipol Airport, we took a 1-hour train directly to ‘s-Hertogenbosch. The next morning, at the bus station at ‘s-Hertogenbosch (which is next door to the train station), I entered this bus station office to purchase bus tickets to Efteling.
Thankfully, the agent spoke a little English, and we were able to easily purchase round-trip bus tickets for around 7.50 Euros each. We rode on Bus 300 for about 35 minutes until the Efteling stop. Note: On Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, you can take a Flix Bus from Amsterdam to Efteling for $5-6 each way, but the ride is 1 hour and 20 minutes to 1 hour and 50 minutes long.
The walk from the bus stop to the park entrance wasn’t very long, and we just followed the path under the parking lot to get to the entrance.
Entering Efteling
The entrance to Efteling reminded us of the sorting hat in Harry Potter.
Efteling’s mascot, Pardoes, was there to greet guests each morning.
We walked through a metal detector and entered a very short line to scan our online tickets. After we entered the park, I attempted to grab a park map since they were available in several different languages. Unfortunately, English wasn’t one of those languages! I did have the park’s app downloaded, but it was still a bit confusing. So, we decided to wing it.
Rides at Efteling
Efteling has some unique rides. Our favorite ride was Symbolica, a dark ride inside a castle.
This ride features a king and Pardoes, the mascot.
Toward the end of the queue, you can choose from 3 different versions of the ride: Music, Heroes, or Treasure.
Our first time riding, we chose Treasure because it was the shortest line. The ride splits into these paths for just two small rooms, and the rest of the ride is together. We rode Symbolica 4 times because of course we had to ride all of the paths and then repeat Treasure. My daughter’s favorite path was Treasure, but mine was Music.
We also really enjoyed Droomvlucht dark ride, which is a flying ride similar to Peter Pan but with a surprise ending. Carnaval Festival reminded us a lot of It’s a Small World. And, the Fata Morgana ride gave us Pirates of the Caribbean vibes.
My daughter doesn’t like roller coasters, but I did ride the De Vliegende Hollander water coaster by myself, and it was awesome! You can see all of Efteling’s rides here.
Fairytale Forest
Efteling has an extensive Fairytale Forest that covers 30 fairytales! We didn’t explore the Fairytale Forest until our second day at the park, and it took us 3 hours to get through.
We were honestly surprised at the detail that went into all 30 fairytales. Many had their own castles you could go inside.
One even had a small boat ride:
Some of the fairytales were new to me:
And yes, there is a donkey that spits coins out of his butt! I wasn’t familiar with that fairytale either.
Character Appearances
We found Pardoes in front of Symbolica ride one afternoon and there was hardly anyone in line to take a photo with him.
We also saw Red Riding Hood and a few other characters walking around, but we did not stop for photos.
Holle Bolle Gijs Paper Gobblers
Throwing out trash at Efteling was fun with the 11 Holle Belle Gijs (or Paper Gobblers) scatted throughout the park. Just hold the trash close to the mouths and they suck it right up. Check out this video about these sucking rubbish bins:
Food at Efteling
If you like carbs, you will love the food offerings at Efteling. My daughter and I ate lunch at the whimsical Polles Keuken pancake restaurant with an enchanted kitchen:
The second day, we ate traditional dutch mini pancakes at ‘t Poffertje:
And take a look at these snack offerings:
I was a bit surprised at how affordable the food was at Efteling. That plate of mini-pancakes pictured above was 6.75 Euros at a sit-down restaurant. Definitely not typical US theme park prices.
Many families and school field trip students brought their own food and ate at the many picnic tables scattered throughout the park.
Quirks and Perks of Efteling
The biggest thing I noticed when comparing Efteling to other major theme parks (like Disney and Universal) is what I perceived to be lower safety standards. For example, on the Fata Morgana boat ride, the boat did not touch the entry/exit platform in all rows. The back row was almost a foot away from the platform, the platform was in constant motion, and there was no railing. I was so nervous that I was going to fall in!
On the other hand, Efteling was super family-friendly. There were small and large playgrounds scattered throughout the park. And, I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw covered stroller parking to keep the strollers dry when it rains.
While Efteling did have a few small gift shops attached to some rides, they were very small. Efteling doesn’t seem to be as commercialized as Disney/Universal. I didn’t see any kids walking around with these toy Pardoes:
And in fact, when my daughter and I went looking for a souvenir, we had a hard time finding anything we liked.
Final Thoughts on Efteling
My daughter and I enjoyed two days at Efteling theme park. It was interesting to experience the different rides, food and culture of the park compared to other parks we’ve been to. However, I’m not going to suggest that you rearrange a European trip to hit up Efteling unless you are real theme park aficionados.
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