Europa-Park: Germany's largest amusement park

Europe Park in Germany is considered the largest and most visited entertainment area in the country. In terms of the number of visitors, it is only inferior to Disneyland Paris, but this did not prevent him from becoming the best entertainment complex in the world. Moreover, already 5 times.

General information

If you don’t know where Europe Park is located in Germany, find on the map the small town of Rust, located in the south-west of the country

in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg. The founders of this amazing place, opened in 1975, were Franz Mack and his son Roland, who are the best creators of attractions of the time. At first it was a regular training ground, designed to demonstrate the latest inventions of the famous family. However, over time, it was not only converted, but also turned into one of the most famous sights in Germany, which is visited by up to 6 million people a year.

The name Europa-Park was given by the nearby lake of the same name, but it turned out to be justified not only from a geographical point of view. The fact is that, in addition to other entertainment, there are 17 thematic sectors on its territory, 14 of which are represented by large European countries. In addition to Germany itself, there are Italy and Holland, Russia and Austria, Spain and Portugal, France and Iceland, Switzerland and Greece, England, the Netherlands and a common zone for the countries of the Scandinavian region.

In each such sector, there is an attraction decorated in a national style, a cafe serving local cuisine, and miniature copies of iconic architectural monuments. In addition, you can see vibrant folk performances and buy something as a keepsake in the gift shop.

So, in the Italian zone they serve Neapolitan pizza and offer to swim on gondolas, in the Netherlands - try pancakes and ride the "Flying Dutchman", in Austria - eat apple strudel, explore the mysterious Gemstone Grotto and make a trip to Alpenexpress Enzian.

In Ireland, you will find delicious beer, a Rotating Dragons carousel and a playground for children. Limerick Castle, which is the largest gaming area in Europe Park. Spain will delight you with sweet Castilian pastries and passionate flamenco, and Switzerland with a balloon ride and mouth-watering fondue cooked in a mountain hut.

In Portugal, everyone can try on the role of a pioneer seaman and take to the sky on a huge ferris wheel. The main features of the Scandinavian sector are the Vindjammer swings and a small mountain river dotted with waterfalls and numerous rapids.

Iceland has a Viking island in the middle of which stands the Wodan-Timburcoaster, the highest wooden attraction of this complex. The Russian section is represented by sour cabbage soup, the Mir space station and a small Christian church. One of the latest innovations was the zone of France, created in 2018 and complemented by traditional cancan, night promenade and the legendary Moulin Rouge. At the center of all this diversity is Historama, a huge pyramidal museum whose exhibits tell about the Mack family and the history of creating the largest amusement park in Germany.

There are other theme zones in Europa-Park, among which deserve special attention:

• Abenteuerland or Adventure Country. The creators of the complex made sure that its guests could relax from the noisy crowd and stay alone with nature. Centuries-old trees, sweet floral aromas and lakes, on which you can swim on a boat, set in a pleasant mood and allow you to restore strength after an active holiday;

• Grimms Märchenwald or the Grimm Brothers Magic Forest. In the zone, chosen by young visitors to the park, the characters of famous German fairy tales come to life. While the children communicate with their beloved fairy-tale heroes, their parents recall their childhood. And in this zone there is a library of famous storytellers, which in addition to books houses an exhibition of antique dolls (there are about 200 of them);
• Arthur im Königreich der miniputen or Arthur and the kingdom of miniports. This part of the park will take you to a real cartoon world created from the work of the same name by Luc Besson. Here ants turn into elephants, and twigs into skyscrapers.

You can move around the complex not only on foot, but also by rail. In the latter case, you have 2 options at once: an old train making a sightseeing tour of the park and making stops in almost all countries, and a super fast monorail with the main stations in Spain, Greece and Germany.

Rides

On 90 hectares occupied by the Europa-Park amusement park in Germany, there are 12 roller coasters and more than 100 different attractions intended for both adults and children. Consider the most popular.

• Silver Star (France). Altitude - 732m, length of the route - 1600 m, maximum speed - 127 km / h, trip duration - 3 minutes.
• Blue Fire Megacoaster (Iceland). Height - 39 m, length of the route - 1055 m, turns - 360 degrees, the duration of the trip - 2 minutes. 20 sec It is famous for its incredible number of visitors - on a weekday, waiting in line can drag on for an entire hour. Blue Fire became the first roller coaster to have dead loops.
• Poseidon (Greece). It is a water attraction with a length of 850 m and a speed of at least 70 km / h.

• Wodan Timbur Coaster (Odin Roller Coaster). The length of the route is 1050 m, speed - up to 100 km / h.
• Euro-Mir (Russia). Roller coasters, the route of which stretches for 980 m, pass around five mirrored domes. Ascent in one of them takes place to a height of 30 m, after which the train flies down at a speed of 80 km / h.
• Euroset - CanCan Coaster (France). Height - 45 m, speed - 60 km / h. Inside the sphere, a person rises to the ceiling of a huge dome, and then descends down a spiral staircase. At the same time, stars, planets and laser installations surround him.

• Baa-A-A Express (Ireland). Imagine an exciting journey through the lush Green Island. The duration of the trip is 90 seconds.

• Big-Bobby-Car Circuit (Ireland). Covered area where young riders can test their skills and compete with each other in driving.
• Cinderella (The Grimm Brothers Magic Forest). It is more suitable for girls, it makes you feel like a real Cinderella and participate in the fitting of a crystal shoe.
• Crazy Taxis (England). It is a huge fleet located in a closed garage. The duration of the trip is 2 minutes. Suitable for the whole family.
• Jim Knopf (Germany). The train traveling through the German part of Europa-Park is driven by the driver Lucas and his friend Jim Pugovka, the main characters of famous German fairy tales. The duration of the trip is 3 minutes.
• Atlantis Adventure (Greece). It involves a virtual dive to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. The spectacle is accompanied by special infrared lasers, allowing you to consider all the details of the underwater world. Duration - 6 minutes.

Shows and performances

Looking through the photo of Europa-Park in Germany, you can see that it is famous not only for its cool attractions, but also for its rich cultural and entertainment program. The latter is represented by costumed parades, circus performances, music shows, Venetian carnivals, historical reconstructions and other events that amaze with their beauty and scale (150 people from 22 countries took part in one of these shows).

In addition, the complex operates a puppet theater, a circus, the Coliseum, in which the famous fights of gladiators take place, and a cinema hall showing 20-minute 4D videos. With the advent of winter, in the middle of the park they put up a huge decorated Christmas tree, fill the rink and organize a New Year's fair with various performances.

As you can see, life here is in full swing at any time of the year - not only during the day, but also at night. With the onset of darkness, discos, concerts and incendiary show programs are held in the halls and on the park’s grounds, the most famous of which is considered to be “Musical Night”.

Where to eat

On the vast territory of the amusement park there are many different places where you can eat. These are themed children's cafes, restaurants serving national cuisine, all kinds of fast foods, beer gardens, bars and wine cellars. Among them there are both expensive fashionable establishments and snack bars of the middle price category, so you definitely will not stay hungry here.

How to get there

Many are interested in how to get to Europe Park in Germany, not only from other parts of this country, but also from neighboring France and Switzerland. There are several ways to do this. Let's consider each of them.

• From Freiburg (the closest German settlement) to Rust, take the Flixbus bus and then transfer Europe-Park to your destination. Travel time is about 40 minutes;
• From Munich - by train of the national operator Deutsche Bahn. The road will take a little more than 2 hours;
• Charter flights go from Colmar, Celeste, Strasbourg, Altkirch, Gebwiller, Belfort, Mulhouse and other French cities to Europa-Park;
• From Karlsruhe and Basel (the nearest metropolis of Switzerland) - by train. In the first case, the road takes about 5 hours, in the second - no more than 2.

If you decide to use your personal or rented transport, stick to the A5 Autobahn. If traveling from the north, follow in the direction of Basel, if from the south - towards Frankfurt.

At the entrance to Europa-Park there is a large paid parking:

• Club Card Holders - 24 €;
• People with disabilities - free;
• Visit the park - 7 € per day;
• Guests of the hotel located in the park are free of charge;
• Reserved space at the main entrance - 20 € for online purchases.

Despite the high cost, this method is considered the most convenient. There are many taxi services in Germany, but most tourists prefer to book a car through the Uber mobile app.
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Practical information

The amusement park Europe-Park in Germany is open every day:

• Summer (06.04 - 03.11): from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Winter (11/23 - 01/06): from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

December 24 and 25 are weekends. The roller coaster is closed in winter.

The cost of visiting starts from 19 € and depends on the tariff zone. Moreover, children under 4 years old and those under 12 years old who came to the park on their birthday can pass without a ticket (if there is an appropriate document).

Look for detailed information on the official website - //www.europapark.de/en.

Prices on the page are for July 2019.

Useful Tips

Having decided to visit Europa-Park in Germany, listen to the advice of those who have already managed to visit this place.

1. For riding on rides, you should choose the most comfortable shoes that will keep well on your feet.
2. The park has many water slides. In order not to pay 1 € for a drying cabinet, take a set of replaceable clothes with you.

3. Want to ride a roller coaster for adults, but don’t know where to put a small child? Notify the employee of Europe-Park that you want to use the "Baby-Switch" service. Under the terms of this option, only one parent will have to queue for the attraction - then they simply switch places without wasting time waiting again.
4. Carrying a lot of cash with you is not necessary - almost everything can be paid by credit card.
5. On weekends, holidays and holidays, there is simply no crowding here. To avoid huge queues, check to see if holidays fall on your chosen dates at schools in Germany, France and Switzerland.
6. Most tourists run to those attractions that are located near the entrance. To enjoy your vacation before the park is filled with people, start exploring it from the most remote areas

7. If you have no other choice, come on Sunday - there are a little less people on this day than on Saturday.
8. Visiting such popular attractions as Silverstar and Eurosat is better to postpone for lunch and afternoon hours - from 13:30 to 15:30, the queue for them is much shorter than at other times of the day.
9. To use the entrance ticket to the maximum, come straight to the opening.
10. Before riding on a roller coaster try not to binge - it is better to do a light snack.
11. Toward evening, the bulk of people rush to the rides, which opened recently. Take this opportunity to ride the Schweizer Bobbahn and Matterhorn Blitz - they will be almost empty.
12. Arriving at the Amusement Park in Germany with your children, do not forget to buy special stickers that are sold at all ticket offices. They need to be written not only the name of the child and his phone number, but also the language he speaks. This will help to find the baby if he suddenly gets lost.

Tips before visiting Europe Park in Germany: