Best rides I've been on in a while! I am coming from the Orlando area, and I've tried all of the…read moreparks there without leaving as happy as I was in this park. It had all of the whimsy I LOVE without feeling like you were being forced to consume merchandise the entire time. I am absolutely going back the next time in the NL. For reference, I am 31 years old, and went with a friend. We had a blast. This is truly fun for all ages!

I was quite surprised by how much I loved Efteling. I grew up with trips to Disneyland and in the…read morepast 20 years I've grown more and more disenchanted with it. Efteling, situated in a forested area, and with a non-commercial essence from old fairy tales, was magical. It brought out my inner child. it was clean, mostly uncrowded, relatively inexpensive and fun. A few rides were totally unexpected and inventive.

Even if you're visiting Efteling for the thrill rides it is still worth your time to check out…read moreGondoletta. The ride system was something I haven't seen before called a "tow boat ride". The boats for Gondoletta look like they're moving on their own around a big lake. There's a giant rotating disc that the boats automatically dock with for loading/unloading. At the front of each boat if you look closely you can see a tiny bit of the cable attached to the boat that is pulling it forward along a track. It's a well done system. Even though each boat can seat around six they were letting boats go out with only two people on them. I was quite surprised at how long this attraction lasted and how much distance was covered. The ride was twenty minutes long! The boats travel under bridges, down a canal, and out into the middle of the lake! You get great views of some rides such as Symbolica and Baron 1898 as well as seeing some of the beautifully maintained landscape of the park. You even get to go by a waterfall! Efteling is a large park and after so much walking it was wonderful to get a chance to relax and still be entertained.

This Efteling ride gets five stars for originality. I've read about this type of ride and I know…read morehow rare they are so it was a treat to be able to experience this. "Bob" simulates a bobsled ride. The track actually reminded me more of a large waterslide than a bobsled track. What makes it particularly interesting is that instead of being on a fixed track like a traditional roller coaster the vehicles can maneuver on their own most of the time, meaning each time you ride it the experience could be a little different. While this is a neat concept the execution of it wasn't something I was a fan of. The vehicles are so big and clunky that you never get to build up any significant speed. The ride was also quite jerky and bumpy. After I got off of Baron 1898 and Vogel Rok I couldn't wait to ride them again. With Bob once was enough for me.

Five stars for the wonderful music and the building exterior but two stars for the attraction…read moreitself. What a disappointment this was. I purposely read almost nothing about each Efteling attraction to avoid spoilers. The music from Spookslot is actually one of my favorite parts of the Efteling soundtrack (yes I bought the soundtrack for the park) so I was really looking forward to this. From the outside the building has been made to look like the decaying ruins of an old castle overgrown with vines. It's lovely and a nice photo opportunity. When you walk inside there was a little alcove with skeletons that was lit but otherwise it was pitch black. People were using their cell phone flashlights to get around. We hit what appeared to be a dead end wall with something that resembled a pentagram on it. It wasn't clear if we should turn around and go back or wait there for something to happen. A bunch of people started forming around us so we stayed. A nice Dutch girl heard us speaking English and was excited for a chance to practice her English and distract herself because she was legitimately terrified. After around ten minutes the wall moved and let us in. Normally being first in line is a huge plus at a theme park attraction but at Spookslot it is huge disadvantage. You go into a large standing-only theater where you view a scene behind glass in front of you. The problem is that since we were first we were at the far end and couldn't see over half of what was in front of us. It didn't help that the glass was reflective. When the wonderful music started I could see a tombstone shaking and a gargoyle on the side of the building move its mouth a little. Other than that is was ten minutes of "What's happening?" When it was over the nice girl that was so scared said, "That's it?" My thoughts exactly.

This is a very cool amusement park but really there needs to be something to tell you that there is…read morean actual attraction inside of this haunted ruin structure...I didn't grow up in the frigging Netherlands and like most places and things I do and visit I like to be surprised so I don't read about what the attraction is about...Anyways walking into this building you walk around a winding damn near pitch black inclave and hit a dead end with pentagram on wall...We stood there for like five minutes waiting for something to happen and we watched some other dumb tourists like ourselves walk up and turn around and leave as well...Come to find out if you wait long enough the wall opens and there is a walk thru show witch I watched back home in the USA...lol...WTF...No sign, no person at entrance to tell you about this...We stayed at the Efteling hotel and the folks there told us about the major attractions and didn't mention this at all...All around fail...Add to that seeing the horrible Monsieur Cannibal ride and being in the Netherlands during the Black Pete( black face )festival...You can have the Netherlands...After watching the you tube Spookslot I'm glad to see it was crap...Ugh

Easily the most unique roller coaster I've ever been on. Baron 1898 is a Bolliger & Mabillard dive…read morecoaster with unbelievable theming. I actually have a B&M dive coaster where I live (Sheikra at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay). Baron isn't as tall and only has one drop, but it makes up for that in theming and presentation. The lift hill is unlike anything I've ever seen before. It's a giant green rectangle with intricate scaffolding and giant rotating discs at the top. It's something pretty enough to be in a town square and shows the extra mile the designers went when constructing this ride. The ride building is designed inside and out to look like a functioning factory. When you first line up they give you paper tickets, which I was initially quite confused about. I think it's supposed to be a system to spread out the crowd into different rows. I just followed the people in front of me and handed my ticket back later because none of the instructions were in English. When you get inside there are a bunch of what looked to be raincoats hanging from the ceiling. Some projections of ghosts then become visible. They sounded really angry about something but I don't know what about since they were moaning in Dutch. The next room has a nice animatronic of what I assume was the Baron overhead. He taunts you as you get closer and closer to the ride area. What really shocked me was that once you're in the vehicle and you've left the station the ride stops for another part of the pre-show. I can't remember ever riding a roller coaster that does this. The angry ghosts were back again to yell at us in Dutch and in a very cool effect they "pry" open a grate and disappear into it. After that it's time for the lift hill! Since I don't like heights it feels like forever when you're waiting for a dive coaster to drop you. Once it does you get dropped underground through some mist. The ride was smooth as glass and I was laughing the whole time. The single rider line was much appreciated and got me on the ride fairly quickly. Baron 1898 is a must-do at Efteling!

Love this place. I went there yesterday with my family and it was amazing i recommend that you go…read morethere because its awsome, but if u have children the lowest ball is 8 and its heavy for them.

From the owner: 't Bourgondisch Hof in Waalwijk; Restaurant, Bowling, Partycentre & Catering…read more Restaurant 't Bourgondisch Hof biedt dé mogelijkheid om in een gezellige, bourgondische ambiance te genieten van heerlijke gerechten en een goed glas wijn. En dat voor verrassend scherpe prijzen. In een bijzonder sfeervol restaurant is het goed toeven: gezellig en intiem met z'n tweetjes of met een groter gezelschap. Een toegankelijke kaart met uitsluitend dagverse producten, waarbij herkenbare gerechten op Brabantse & Bourgondische wijze bereid worden. Bij grote gezelschappen bestaat de mogelijkheid om het restaurant exclusief voor uw feest, reunie, zakelijke diners, etc. te reserveren. LED's go showbowling. De witte bowlingbanen zorgen ervoor dat het licht van honderden LED lampjes wordt gereflecteerd waardoor er een prachtig kleurenpalet ontstaat. De speciale LED light- & lasershows in combinatie met videoclips op breedbeeld geprojecteerd, zorgen voor een spectaculair effect waardoor bowlen een geheel nieuwe betekenis krijgt. Het partycentre van 't Bourgondisch Hof biedt de mogelijkheid om aan ieder feest de juiste invulling te geven, of dat nu is voor privéfeesten zoals huwelijksfeest, reünie, verjaardag, familiediner of voor bedrijfsfeesten zoals personeelsfeest, productpresentatie, vergadering, bedrijfsborrel: met meer dan 30 jaar ervaring zorgen wij voor een professionele invulling van ieder feest...

This is Efteling's new signature attraction and it was number one on my "must do" list for my first…read morevisit to the park. I have to say that it did not disappoint. The pre-show introduction to the ride was very clever and unexpected. Once that's over when you progress further into the line you have to pick one of three colors to get in line for. Each color has a slightly different experience for the riders. We picked red because that had the longest line so we assumed it was the best. When you ride as a single rider you can't pick your color. When I rode a second time as a single rider I was hoping to get assigned to another color and I got red of course. I did notice the other colors going to different rooms on my second ride. I had never been on a trackless ride before and always assumed that I would first ride one at a Disney park, but Symbolica was my introduction. With a trackless ride system you don't see the track on the floor and your vehicle can do so many more interesting maneuvers such as go into a cubby hole and back out. The effect is best used in the finale when you twirl around on a dance floor during a banquet with other ride vehicles and characters. I think what impressed me the most was that everything in the ride that you look at outside of your vehicle is a practical effect. It seems nowadays with parks like Universal all you do is stare at screens from your vehicle. Here at Symbolica everything is real and moving in front of you. Besides the ballroom I mentioned there's an absolutely gorgeous planetarium/library as well as a "garden" that gets an unexpected visitor. The show building is wonderfully themed inside and out. The flat roof isn't visible from the ground but it is from the observation tower ride. What really impressed me was how they arranged the solar panels with symbols and patterns to make it look nice even though most people won't ever see this. The back of the building has a waterfall built into it so that it looks nice for people walking through that section of the park. It all fits into the park seamlessly and was so well done. This is a great addition to Efteling!

This is absolutely one of the most unique and entertaining rides I have been on, which includes…read moreover twenty world class parks spanning three continents. Despite the fact that it is most recent addition to a park older than the original Disneyland, the external design and central location inside the park make it feel like the everything else was built around it. The queue was only around 30 minutes on a weekday in July, and a fair bit of it was either shaded or inside. They make minimal use of the dreaded switchbacks, avoiding them almost entirely outside of peak times. They also have a special entrance for hotel guests who get there at least 10 minutes before the regular park opening time. There is another magical surprise awaiting guests once they enter the castle. At the front of the line, you get to switch between three similar but different themes before embarking on your magical voyage. The ride employs the latest the trackless technology for even more excitement. The rest of the journey is best experienced first-hand to maximize the thrill factor. Dark rides are by far my favorite type of ride, and this ride provides an excellent addition to a park already full of very good attractions. The ride is similar to Mystic Manor in HK Disney, but I will need to wait until I return to HK next month before I can pick a favorite. Tokyo DisneySea has been my favorite park since my first visit, but this addition to Efteling is definitely giving me cause to reconsider my ranking.

I think that Aquanura needs to be seen at night to be fully appreciated. Aquanura is a fountain…read moreshow (the largest in Europe) that is performed in Efteling's lake that has the park entrance and Fata Morgana on opposite sides. I thought it was great that they scheduled the show for 6:15pm. The park closed at 6pm, which meant you could spend more time riding attractions instead of having to devote some of the that time to this. The fountains reminded me of the ones at Bellagio in Las Vegas, but Efteling incorporates fire into their show. I've seen video of this show being performed at night and it looks magical. The giant streams are lit up and there are colored lights under the water that light up in interesting patterns. The problem is that you don't see any of that in the daytime. The show went on for fifteen minutes and it really started to feel redundant. I want to come back to Efteling and hopefully I'll be able to see Aquanura at night when I do.