The Thrills & Chills of Efteling
Welcome back to Efteling! In our second (vlogged) day at this park, we are checking out some of the rides and areas we did not have time for on our first day. This time we headed for the front of the park (near the Aquanura fountains) for an early morning ride on Fata Morgana, a slow-moving boat dark ride. Thanks to early park entry, the ride was a walk-on - and we even secured a private boat! This ride was another masterpiece from Efteling with beautiful sights, sounds, smells and one of the biggest animatronics we have ever seen! After exiting the ride, we noticed that the gigantic Djinn from the ride was taking a stroll around the Fata Morgana plein. Powered by at least three puppeteers, this massive puppet is quite friendly and happy to converse and take photos with guests.
Our next mission for the day was one that Tim was really excited for (NOT!); back-to-back rides on Efteling’s water attractions. After storing our valuables in the lockers by Baron 1898, we donned ponchos and faced down Piraña, a water rapids ride with South American flair, located in the Anderrijk area. We were seated with a lovely local family and had a fun time (despite what Tim would say) and really enjoyed the scenery and soundtrack, though the ponchos definitely came in handy.
Piraña is an amazing river rapids ride - but it is an absolute soaker!
However, we took a gamble with the next attraction and ditched the ponchos to get on De Vliegende Hollander (The Flying Dutchman), a dark ride/water coaster hybrid. Featuring an impressive stone work facade and an even more impressive interior queue, De Vliegende Hollander quickly became one of our favorites in the whole park! The newly revamped ride features some brilliant dark ride scenes and a terrifying drop in the dark to catch the lift hill track. With a stern warning from the Dutchman himself, riders are thrust outside onto an intense but fun coaster track that finishes with a rather gentle touchdown into a splash zone. In the front row we were simply “misted”, but further rides later in our trip proved that the level of “splash” from this ride is rather inconsistent.
Our next stop took us further into the Ruigrijk area for an easy-going and scenic ride on the Stoomtrein, which circles almost the entire circumference of Efteling. The train does make one stop at the Mareijk area (Villa Volta, Droomvlucht) but you can choose to stay on for the complete circuit. We made it back to our original station just in time to bust out some dance moves with DJ Dizzy and then headed to Pagode, a “flying temple” observation tower designed by Intamin, which gave us some fantastic views of the park and surrounding area. Right across from Pagode, we noticed the Gondoletta outdoor boat ride had a relatively short wait. Within a few minutes, we were enjoying the gorgeous sights and greeting the waterfowl from our own little boat!
Eventually it was time for lunch, and we knew we had to check out the Fabula restaurant which lies between Symbolica and the main entrance. Despite it being normal dinner hours, this quick service restaurant was not busy at all and we had plenty of time and space to roam freely. Themed after the 4D film of the same name, the Fabula restaurant features several meals, snacks and beverages tied to the Jungle, the Savanna, and the Ocean. We ordered from an automated kiosk and within a few minutes received our respective meals, both which were delicious. The real charm of Fabula, however, is the fantastic play area featuring tunnels, slides, climbing ropes, animatronics and more! We definitely embraced our inner child and had a great time exploring this hidden gem of Efteling.
After a quick peak at the construction for Danse Macabre (new ride expected in 2024) and a photo with Pardoes, we made for the Ruigrijk area again to claim our final coaster credit for this park. Joris en de Draak is a dueling wooden coaster that unfortunately was experiencing some unanticipated downtime during our visit. The Fire Dragon (Red) side did open eventually, so we took advantage of the single rider queue so that we could both experience at least one ride on this coaster. We are hopeful that - the next time we make it out - the Ice Dragon is “feeling better”, so that we can experience the intensity and fun of the dueling mechanism as intended!
Joris en de Draak is an amazing wooden racing coaster with a massive animatronic at its center!
Our final dark ride to experience was Carnival Festival, an Omni-mover style attraction with an incredibly catchy instrumental soundtrack that definitely does not get stuck in your head for hours and hours later. We couldn’t help but think of Disney’s “it’s a small world” when looking at the small doll-like animatronics representing many countries and cultures around the world.
We wrapped up our second full day at Efteling enjoying a rather empty Volk van Laaf play area. Featuring a small playground, gardens, animatronic vignettes, and a monorail (or “Monosnail”, as Katie likes to call it) this area perfectly captures the essence and charm of Efteling. We enjoyed exploring the hidden treasures and literally being children again on the slides and see-saws. We packed so much into this day at Efteling but somehow managed to still take an easy pace and soak it all in. Be sure to check out our vlog via the link below to follow along with our experience at one of our favorite parks we have ever visited!
