Efteling | The Incredible Fantasy Park
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- Опубликовано: 26 сен 2024
- Correction:
I made the claim in this video that the Netherlands lacked the diversity that is present in the United States and implied that this is a reason that problematic depictions in "Carnaval Festival" had remained in place for so long. As many from the Netherlands have pointed out to me, the country is in fact quite diverse and I was factually incorrect.
Fairy tales are, without a doubt, one of the most popular themes that can be found in entertainment. There’s something about this type of fantasy that is immersive in an uncanny way. Something that is at once magical and atmospheric, but could be unnerving to some. Join me today as we explore Efteling, of the Netherlands and see how a dedication to themed experiences has resulted in some of the best attractions that the world has ever seen.
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Correction:
I made the claim in this video that the Netherlands lacked the diversity that is present in the United States and implied that this is a reason that problematic depictions in "Carnaval Festival" had remained in place for so long. As many from the Netherlands have pointed out to me, the country is in fact quite diverse and I was factually incorrect.
You are a hero to admit you were wrong 👍 hope to welcome you to the Netherlands any time soon. By my guest. Literally
@Dutch Coasters Yeah, I didn't showcase it too much, but I did include a more recent ride-through in this video. It's at 14:15 for reference.
@@viderethevaccinatorfromhol7536 I would love to visit eventually. It's a park that continues to impress.
@Dutch Coasters hoi Ruben!
@@PoseidonEntertainment Also the Japanese section has been changed to make it less 'bad' stereotyping.
I went to this park 2 years ago and the worst thing about Efteling is leaving Efteling. The uniqueness of this park is constantly on your mind forever and leaves such a massive impact with it’s brilliant rides, shows, landscaping and theming where so many other parks have failed. Might genuinely be one of the greatest parks ever made, honestly everyone should have the opportunity to visit this place and see it for themselves
It seems like such a remarkable experience that I'd like to visit one day. It seems to put in a level of effort rarely seen anymore.
@@PoseidonEntertainment I actually visited for two nights in an onsite hotel and I highly recommend doing my experience. There’s so much to do and see there you probably would need 1 and a half to 2 days to see it all. Love the video man, keep up the good work!
@@dumbnerd7601 Thanks, I appreciate the advice! When I find myself planning to go, I'll definitely take that into consideration.
I have a year card.. so I can go everyday.. but I also need 3 days.. the Efteling is the best!
@@PoseidonEntertainment There is a personal shortlist of "most remarkable INDEPENDENT" theme parks in Europe.. By main theme :
a/ Efteling, for fairytales and similar storylines (> park developed & owned IP ! > The original Efteling IP is contained in television shows, something Americans cannot know, even when having visited the park.) ,
b/ Animal theme park : Pairi Daiza (Belgium) which is worldwide without any doubt the #2 in the world after Disney Animal Kingdom (and depassing DAK by far when it comes to the authenticity of the international culture themes, with the most authentic architecture possible ... > A at least 1.5 days park) ,
c/ History and legends based theatrical spectacles park: Puy du Fou (France) which is the world leader (NO doubt at all) in life + special effects shows. No rides in the park. ALL shows rank higher in qualily then anyhing Disney. The top evening show, is the biggest and most spectacular theme park show in the world. (Disney's Phantasmic in Orlando feels childish, compared to this park's 'Cinéscénie" .. I'm not exagerating anything... >> www.puydufou.com/france/en/la-cinescenie-0?language_content_entity=en
Also important to add is that the Efteling is owned by its own foundation instead of being an investment of some faceless mega corporation. That means that the park is in full control over what happens. One of the great things that causes is that sponsored elements such as advertising are very sparse and subtle, making the whole experience that much more immersive.
*Unoxtent Anton Pieckplein neemt nu deel aan de Chat*
@RunawayTrain2502 they said sparse not nonexistent 😅
@robinvogel5128 And Unox is, of course, from Oss, so it still is a sort of local Noord-Brabant brand and company making it less obnoxious.
When Euro Disney opened I couldn't wait to visit the park: finally us Europeans would have a chance to experience the wonderful world of Disney. Although it was a great visit in those days and Euro Disney was (and is) a very impressive park it just did not catch me the way I expected. I realized myself I was just very spoiled with a theme park in my own country: De Efteling: so much more genuine, so much more atmosphere, so much more welcoming. Since then my appreciation for de Efteling just has grown more and more. Especially the fact that most iconic older rides are maintained very well and are in perfect working order. In the eighties as a teenager I rode Python for the first time. A few year ago I rode it with my son. And I hope to be able to ride it again with a grandchild. Now that's what I call real magic!
I also remember my first time in Disneyland, about 16 years ago. It was fun, but even as a child I didn't understand the hype. It felt like a cheap knock-off of Efteling.
Last summer I went again with friends, because we were in Paris for a week. Had a great time. The theming is still amazing, and with a love for Star Wars and Marvel, it was fun to see that as well. But the attractions felt janky, the entertainers felt forced, the decor felt as decor, because you could see the non-decorated backsides. It didn't have the magic. Also, the fact that Efteling has to have that much forest is a huge benefit to the atmosphere in the park. When we were in Disney it was 41°C. And there was hardly any shade.
Probably coz Disney now bases its attractions on films like Star Wars, Avatar, superhero stuff etc so you kind of know what to expect whereas here is more mystical coz not everyone is familiar with all the fairytales so it’s more of a surprise, just like Pirates, Haunted mansion, Thunder mountain were
As someone born in the Netherlands, and moved to the US, I’ve been to Disney in Florida….and while it was nice it just can’t compare to the Efteling no matter how much it can try
I absolutely love this park and actually started working here half a year ago. I can say with confidence that the time in the efteling is not only great for visitors, but also for employees.
Symbolica indeed uses the trackless aspect very well. We visited with my father who is wheelchair bound and the disabled entrance with it's dedicated boarding platform with the float joining in without disrupting the ride for the other guest is really wonderfull. Overall the park is very wheelchair friendly, my dad had a wonderfull time.
As a lifelong Disney fan.... I'm jealous! This is the quality of attractions Disney used to make and we have been handed nothing but crap for the last years :/
The art direction of Carnaval Festival is based on the floats you see during a Carnaval procession. It’s a Catholic party that is really typical for Brabant, the area Efteling is based in. Also the soundtrack of Carnaval Festival is based on typical Carnaval music. So in short, the ride is based on southern Dutch culture, now you know 😉
Interesting indeed. I just did a quick search for that and I see how much the attraction takes from it. I admit, I initially thought that the figures in the ride were cartoon renditions but I see how ignorant I was in the matter.
Both answers can be correct at the same time. The art design is heavily influenced by the Brabants/ Limburgs/Flemish/German type of carnival parades and costumes. The trouble is that these parades are not really highlights of great style and class (more lowbrow cheap drinking caricatures) and they frequently featured heavily racist stereotypes. One of the reasons a Carnival in Flanders which had been historically running since the Middle Ages was thrown out of a Unesco protected cultural list was that they (to his day) featured big nosed Jewish caricatures...and this is typical of the general tastelessness of these 'catholic' festivities. Same goes for the cheap music (usually played by a bunch of half drunk Oompah-bands) - Beethoven this ain't.
Nor does it have the imagination or style of say a Rio or Venice carnival. Worst of all in the years it opened the Efteling was (after losing their best art-director Anton Pieck- a true genius) - rather uninspired and frantically trying to come up with ways of keeping up with it's competitors. Most notably they try to keep up with "the Disney's". Carnival was a cheap knock off It's a Small World copy". They tried various thrill rides - the non themed Python, A somewhat themed giant swing-ship, (still basically a carnival ride). And some real unfortunate cheap Disney rip offs. The Disney charming spinning teacups became the real utterly tasteless Monsieur Cannibale (spinning cookingpots ) overseen by " uhm noble savages...".Space Mountain had it's own cheap knock off Vogel Roc.
And Pirates of the Carribean became Fata Morgana. Somehow along the line they figured even if knocking off Disney concepts they would have to come up with class as well. With Fata morgana they nearly succeeded. (even if music, styling, audio animatronics and breath of tableaux's still feels like sub disney. But only slightly below. After the opening of Euro Disney they did step up their game, focussing more on their own version of (Anton Pieck indebted style- ) old skool charm and European and Dutch flavored myths-legends-and fairy tales. (the flying dutchmen, the white witches, and the legacies of Perrault-Grimm-Andersen.
They firmly believe and know charm and style will trump flash and high thrills now, but are still heavily indebted to copying / adapting / translating Disney/American concepts. There's versions of Splash Mountain/ Mystic Manor/ a stunt show and the evening water and lights show.
Originally (and maybe still?) they had their original Dancing fountains show back in 1966 www.eftepedia.nl/lemma/Waterorgel - which of course had all the charm they lack now.
@@palmereldritch7777 Judging from how you're clearly having some Disney bias, calling Vogel Rok a "space mountain knock-off" (which doesn't make any sense as the only thing they share are being enclosed rollercoasters in total darkness) and calling the Monsieur Cannibale (which got replaced lol) a rip off of the "Disney charming spinning teacups" makes zero sense. Why are you so stuck up about a park sharing some similar concepts that the corporate mouse has in their parks? Stop sucking Disney's cock.
Stop comparing these rides. It's like comparing apples to oranges. They may look similar but there's literally zero reason to call rides like Fata Morgana, based on 1001 Nights a rip off of Pirates of the Carribean, based on pirates.
If you're going to hate on a park that isn't Disney, at least get some facts right instead of pulling some BS because your stupid Disney bias feels the need to do so instead of accepting the fact Disney isn't original either and has not pioneered any of these concepts at all.
@@palmereldritch7777 exactly
@@palmereldritch7777Saying things like that the Efteling is indebted to Disney is crazy in itself. Monsieur cannibale was in it's time an acceptable attraction and was more impressively made then Disney's teacups. While we now all can agree that it's horrible depictioning really needed change which they gladly done, it can not be called a cheap copy. It especially makes no sense that the rides you do mention were not the ones that have helped the park in many ways with a possible exception of Vogelrok. Conveniently leaving out the existence of Droomvlucht, Villa volta, piraña and a special mention to the fairytale forest. These are all attractions that have helped the Efteling grow as a park significantly As for the Disney/American concepts you are talking about those are stolen aswell the beloved sleeping beauty and snow white were firstly introduced into the Efteling. All most all Disney's stories come from Germany and Denmark were they long existed before America even knew about them calling them American concepts is just dishonoring. Disney did a lot right in it's early days but being a park so fully based of marketing and cash crabbing some can say that it lost all it's magic it once had.
Just compare the Sleeping Beauty castles in both Efteling and Disney parks... The Disney park castles look like the paint has been applied 15 minutes ago, and you'd expect a ''caution, wet paint' sign somewhere... whereas the castle in the Efteling has been left to the elements from the get go. It was created looking worn and nearly 70 years of weathering did the rest. And I love it... Also, the little mermaid in the Efteling has boobs...
And she has a tail...
But you are correct! Disney looks like a candy store, even the old witches look like vamps!
Efteling is European culture with a big C.
A couple of years ago they added Pinoccio to the fairytale forest. when they build it, it looked like a new building. But three months before opening they sprayed the entire house with a mixture of Yoghurt, vinigar and salt. In three months time the house exterior changed and looked like it was in the forest for ages. They did the same to the exterior of Symbolica as well.
@@mr-simog4736 It honestly gives so much more atmosphere to these buildings
Yknow whats funny? Yelling “boobs” when you see the mermaid and just watch the parents with little children walking by in pure horror
@Dutch Man culture with a capital C
"This is Europe. They have lesbians with dildos in orange juice commercials!"
I love the 'Spookslot' part, because my father really loved it, we had to move in many times. It is very dear to me, because a couple of years later my father died too young on an age of 53. I was just 13 and always have this dear memory from the Efteling in mind, my dad, close to me and making me feel save in the 'Spookslot'. I miss you daddy, and I will always love you for the good memories.
He's still with you, and he loves you too.💕
@@MegaTaximan thank you my friend.
rip
due to end of spookslot
Sadly the attracton (opened in 1978) will close this summer :(
as a dutchman, i gotta say i'm ipressed by how well you've captured most of eftelings essence and history correctly and in a fun way. loved watching this video and i hope to see more efteling related content on your channel :)
Is there anything in particular from the park that you'd like to see covered?
Holograms take many attractions to the next level. Also the stories are told by (famous) Dutchies and use formal and old fashioned vocabulary. That makes it a learning experience as well. Okay, I admit, I am a huge Efteling fan!!
@@PoseidonEntertainment maybe you could do a more deep dive into the fairytale forest
@@PoseidonEntertainment the fairytale forrest will take you hours to do right on its own. That part is certainly lacking in this video (although some parts are shown). Also the water show aquanura and the new plans for extension of the park. What makes Efteling stand out even more are the wonderful resorts within walking distance that enhance the experience and also include entry during all days of your stay.
The Efteling is a national treasure and almost all Dutch children will visit it from early childhood. This ensures that even the attractions that would appear dated to adults are nostalgic to them because they first experienced them as children when you don't notice such things and it is all equally magical and wonderful. I love coming back to the Efteling and feeling like a child again. 😊
I think nostalgia plays a large part in developing an interest in theme parks, but I also think that Efteling excels in atmosphere as well. I think atmosphere can be incredibly important in allowing an attraction to feel worth your time, even if it may be a bit more dated.
@@PoseidonEntertainment Oh for sure, they do that extremely well. Am I right in saying that you haven't actually visited the park? I hope you will, and that you film it. 😊
@@captainchaos3667 I have not, but I would certainly like to do so. I anticipate it will be within a few years.
My family visited Efteling in 1986. Fata Morgana had just opened and the lines were massive. But my father, who worked in the travel industry, managed to get us VIP entrance. That ride blew my 13 year old mind! Since then I have wanted to go there again with my own children who love theme parks just as much as I do!
Since the video did a giant disservice to the story of “Joris and the Dragon” here is the real story: there once was a kingdom, it was terrorized by a dragon. He told that if they didnt bring a sheep to his swamp, he would burn the kingdom to the ground. But the sheep were running low, and they had to sacrifice humans. They put all names into a bin and grabbed a random name. But after months, the daughter of the king was chosen. He set a bounty on the dragon’s head. “Whoever could slay the dragon shall receive 1001 coins and may marry my daughter” all knights tried and were killed. When a farmboy (Joris) wanted to give it a shot. He was given armor for the fight, but didn’t accept. He jumped on his horse with his sword in hand and slayed the dragon. That is basically the tale
... "sheep were running low and they had to sacrifice humans" lol!!!
Skill issue from the humans- Quoted from me, a dutchman.
You left out the part that Joris used water and fire to defeat the dragon. From there the 2 theme rides: water and fire.
I discovered Efteling through youtube ride-through videos of some of its dark rides, and man do I adore this park's theming. That antiquated classic fairy tale aesthetic that reminds you of old storybooks... it's all at once nostalgic and fantastical and charming as well as occasionally slightly unsettling. I love it. Hope to visit someday. And it's refreshing to see such immersive and atmospheric attractions that don't overly rely on screens.
I think it's telling that the park only offers one attraction that relies on screen tech. The U.S. parks are definitely losing touch with audiences in this respect.
I love your desciption of the old sorybook feel.
One of the first man involved in the park was Anton Pieck. He was, amoung other things involved in making picures for dutch fairytaill books.
So the sprookjesbos was for a lot of kids literaly seeing your fairytale book from home come to life
I love this post. through the pandemic, I discovered videos of dark rides, such as Droomvlucht, and it has stayed with me since. I am currently planning a trip to the Netherlands (from California) and this park is top on my list.
@@marcosavila1916 hope you book a stay at the resorts. You need at least 2 days to explore everything without rushing. I recommend staying in Loonsche Land or Bosrijk.
@@marcosavila1916 If you stay at bosrijk, you can also swim in a themed swimming pool. But then you would need at least 3 days there to explore the park and go for a swim. It's really fun.
What I love so much about Spookslot is how it presents all these scary things in such a whimsical way that even little kids enjoy it. It doesn’t feel like its primary intent is to scare you, but rather to celebrate everything creepy and spooky. I’m so sad that it’s gone, and I really really hope that it’s replacement lives up to its legacy
Efteling is my all time favorite theme park! I love it! It renewed my faith that a theme park can be successful without relying on pre existing IP and tv/movie franchises. This park is so great. It’s become a yearly tradition for me and my husband.
Living in Belgium, I have visited the Efteling several times in my life! It's brilliant and entirely worth a visit! I'm very glad to see you do a video on the Efteling!
I do hope I can get there one day. I'm enchanted by the incredible theming and detail.
@@PoseidonEntertainment I also live in Belgium, however a long time Year Pass holder. The distance is not great. Also, I'm involved with the attraction/theme park industry (concept developer). Therefore I understand perfectly the eternal development triangle : Budget level, creativity, customer/visitor psycholgy. Efteling plays the game at LOW budget level (Average 1/10 for similar type project compared to Disney) , HIGH creativity (all is designed and most built in their own offices and workshops, this is comparable to Disney), HIGHER THEN AVERAGE concerning psychology. Good to note, that most theme parks in the world invest zero, in visitor psychology study. (My personal approach is 'Maximising' visitor psychology triggers)
@@Wig4 Can you clarify what you mean by visitor psychology? Are you referring to market data on what theme park consumers would like to see/how they react to certain elements of theming and attractions?
@@PoseidonEntertainment Oh yes, for sure I can clarify that.
It's about the visitor perception, and that consists both knowledge coming from perception pyschology AND from emotion psychology. It's not relying on 'market data', it's relying on scientific driven knowledge.
Within the development of any 'real world environmental' designed product (for instance architecture in general) but especially within the visitor attraction environment, the knowledge of how the visitor perception works is a special dimension of the design process.
However, a quite rare one. MOST developers, alas, have not such skills, or fail to use the skill of a psychologist to be part of the team.
>
In case of the first developments in Efteling park, they had a briliant psychologist in the team : Peter Reijnders. This person is most often referred to as photographer and filmmaker, but it was not in that qualification he was attracted with the development of the park, it was his qualification as a creative psychologist. He always knew faultlessly which representation, effect or action would arouse the wanted perception with the visitor (the child, he always referred to "the psychology of the child", if it was right with the child, the parents would be happy too .. :-) ...).
He could direct behaviour and make believe at the same time by making the right choices, and that within literally 'crisis budget' limitations.
..
The essential concept triangle is alas left unattended with development in most theme parks, showing a big gap in this visitor psycholgy aspect.
Greetings.
(By the way, the concept development triangle, is the prior phase in the development process. In the execution design phase, other aspects come in, like visual design, constructive design, technology, safety etc etc etc, but at that moment it's allready too late to change the essence of the first triangle... )
@@Wig4 That is certainly enlightening, thank you for the taking the time to explain it. I've always believed that theme parks themselves can be analyzed as a form of art in an academic sense. Testaments to the relationship between design and audience reaction only works to reinforce that notion I think.
Growing up, I absolutely loved this park. We live close by, and have had annual passes for years, and currently, I'm actually working in the park. I absolutely agree that this park has some major problematic topics and areas (including Carnaval Fetival of course, but stuff like Monsieur Cannibale too), but recently the park's been working on removing and replacing most of these things!
To this day, the fairytale forest is one of my favourite places in the park, not just because of its theming, but because it always seems to peaceful, even on a busy day. The fairytales are spread far enough that there are places along the path where there is not a single diorama visible, and you're completely surrounded by the woods. There is such a sensation of immersion and attention to detail that I cannot even begin to explain, but do know that there are even hidden animatronic critters that stick their heads out from behind diorama's rooftops and such.
This place to me has always been an escape of sorts. A place of fantasy where people were allowed to be kids and allowed not to worry about the stuff going on in the real world, and I'm really glad to hear that other people experience this too
I heard about Efteling earlier this year and can't get enough of this park. I really want to go and visit it in person to soak up the theming. This is a THEME park done right! There's almost nothing Disney or Universal have made that are this in depth. A few things here or there for sure, but nothing so consistent.
Definitely agreed. It's a bucket list park that I'll hopefully find myself in over the next few years or so.
I have been to both Disneyland Paris and Efteling multiple times. As a kid I was more of a fan of Disney, but now as an adult I really appreciate the magical theme of the Efteling so much more. Disney is now just a trip to an amusement park while Efteling has become an experience.
I live about 20 min away from the Efteling and have been going there for more then 40 years. I love this park. It is always a pleasure to go there. You can also tell, like you said in the video that the people that work here really love the Efteling. The Efteling is always trying to innovate and come up with fantastic new Rides. They are always changing and upgrading rides.
If anyone has the change to visit I can highly recommend going
I'm an American fortunate enough to visit Efteling twice in the last 20 years. The park is absolutely superb with low key charm. I must admit, I don't think I've been in "Spookslot" so thanks to you, that will be tops on the list for my next visit!
I, m sorry to say that spookslot Will close in 2022
They changing Spookslot to Dance Macabre. It keeps the music and original theme and features, but will be a whole new experience
I love Disney, but i also love how you lowkey used this video to throw some shade at them. Fun fact: A lot of die-hard Eftelingfans absolutely hate it when people compare it to the Disneyparks. Mostly because they are so different. I'm sure they love how you've showed where de Efteling excels in comparison to Disney (i mean i do).
De Efteling recently had its expensionplans approved, so the park will be bigger by 2030 and will add even more rides.
No doubt the engineers and designers on both sides of the pond regularly have a peek into what their competitors have to offer, inspect what functions well in the other main parks around the world and what appeals to the crowds.
Of course Disney sprinkles their stuff with a Walt Disney sauce and the Efteling dips it in an Antoon Pieck one.
I, a HARDCORE efteling fan, loves it to compare the 2, bc i know the efteling is just better and i have a counter argument for almost every argument someone makes that disney land is better
The Efteling is way more original then Disney
This is so awesome! You’ve inspired me to go visit Efteling, as I had never even heard of it before! As a total fantasy nerd, I’m a huge sucker for stuff like this!
Im sure you will love it if ur just as much of a fantasy nerd as me!
The original fairy tales (Hans Christian Anderson, Brothers Grimm, etc) were pretty dark before being Disney-fied. I had a lot of their books as a child but don't see them on the shelves these days - probably deemed too frightening. PS Having read the Billy Goats Gruff, those characters actually look cute, so I guess it's a matter of perception. Maybe goats have bad press in the US :)
Have you seen The VVitch? I think that film has forever tainted my perception of goats as inherently unsettling.
@@PoseidonEntertainment No, I missed that one. Strangely, I'm very careful about what I put in my brain these days, possibly because of my early reading 😂 The Little Mermaid is heartbreakingly tragic (no spoilers) and Cinderella is gruesome in parts (an ugly sister cuts her heel off to try to get her foot to fit in the slipper). Great videos, btw. Good job!
@@PoseidonEntertainment great movie. As are The Lighthouse and the Northman. :)
I'm glad you mentioned Raveleijn ,but shame only in passing at the end, as it's more than simply one of the parks shows - it's a top staring attraction in it's own right, and is viewed as one! - and one of the many things that make Efteling wonderful, emotional and memorable.
Excellent job on this documentary! This theme park appears to be everything Disneyland started out to be but ended up not being. It does a great job immersing you and keeping you immersed in the fantasy and escape from everyday life. The other parks are a reminder of what movie has been released.
I LOVE dreamflight. I was there around closing hours, so there were almost no other people, we could do the attraction 4 times in a row, we could just sit in our cart and go again. It was amazing
This theme park kind of evokes the A24 fantasy films. Surpassing realism to the point of being “naturalistic” and noticeably eerie. Atmosphere and production is directly integrated into the natural elements.
The great thing about the Efteling is that it's both a good quality themepark with rides that even gives some Disney attractions a run for their money, and it's a tribute to the history of themeparks at the same time. The park is a collective childhood memory for almost every Dutchy (like literally 90% of the people been at least once in their lives) so the park is extremely keen on preserving and maintaining its attractions. The oldest ones are there since the start, so almost 70 years now. Think about that... that's as old as the opening of the original Disneyland in California, it opened 3 years before that park did!
I'd love a second video on Efteling, covering the rest of the park and the live show.
Perhaps a Part 2, is necessary in the future? I hadn't considered it, but why not?
@@PoseidonEntertainment please do
30.14 the dragon is sadly broken, and I heard it isn't worth it for efteling to fix it but a lot of fans of the park really want it to be fixed, so I hope efteling reconsiders fixing it since it looks amazing and adds a lot of atmosphere to the ride when it is working.
It’s a very complex animatronic. Repairs would be useless because it will break down after 2 weeks of functioning, therefore Efteling will indeed not fix the issue.
As a kid i was so scared of the dragon, since it breathed fire. I was scared that it would hit the coaster and burn it all
There has been a little bit of optism news of the park lately for looking at repairing Edna, as the dragon is called. If I'm not mistaken, the problem was already when they technically designed it. I think it uses oil - that's right - to animate it - while it breathes fire. As such if the pipe leaks.... So yeah, unless I'm wrong Edna has a foundational problem and as such... Repairing is not really the right word. It needs to be redesigned. Hence the huge cost.
So, all come to the park and celebrate the 70th anniversary - so Edna will spew fire again!
“You’ve never heard of” I was there last week! I’m so glad it’s starting to get more recognition in the international themepark fandom!
My apologies, I didn't realize how far the video would reach. My RUclips analytics show me that the majority of my audience is American and Canadian and Efteling is a rare mention since Disney and Universal dominate the themed industry over here. I can say that recognition of the park seems to have increased from over here though.
@@PoseidonEntertainment well is Dutchies like the Efteling a lot so if you make a video that has Efteling in the description than chances are it ends up in our recomended list....
Am I correct in understanding that you have not het had the pleasure of experiencing this park for yourself? You really schould! Video's don't give you the full picture.
The title is wrong, I've heard of this theme park.
And frankly, disney and universal need to step up their game and learn a lesson or two from this wonderful, extremely underrated theme park.
Haven't watched the video yet but it is a very very famous park, among the most famous non brand based parks. Every person in the Netherlands has been for a start. One of the best experiences I've ever had at a park, if not the best
Admittedly, I didn't really know what to title the video. I figured it would be obscure to the Disney and Universal crowd that I attract though.
@@PoseidonEntertainment yeah, that's fine, I was just trying to make a little joke, lol. I feel that people should at least give attention and respect to other theme/amusement parks than the two main titans.
@@PoseidonEntertainment fair enough, it probably would be little known to an American audience, I'm likely a bit biased!
When you cut to the planet room of Droomvlucht when you said "some of the best attractions the world has ever seen" I knew that you know what's up. It takes my breath away every single time I ride it.
thanks for your kind words about my favourite park! it's just a 15 min ride away from my home! i come here every week! you really captured the magic Efteling brings to us! thank you for that! in case you didnt know jet, Spookslot has been removed last year, and it will be replaced with a attraction called... danse macabre! if you havent seen the artwork allready you have to check it out! the building is standing as we speak and in real life it just looks insane and stunning! thanks again man! great channel :D
My home park. This video evokes pride.
The fairy tale forest is expansive, with many different fairy tales and different ways of portraying them (interactive, shows, heck, even a mini dark ride).
The park feels natural due to the greenery and the buildings.
(I do agree with you on Carnaval Festival, I'm not a fan of it either)
I love the storytelling and the music. The innovation and creativity. The many hidden details and huge showbuildings.
My favourite ride (though it's got very tough competition) is probably the Flying Dutchman. It was my first ever coaster. I love the story, the music and most of all, I love that this ride includes almost everything that can make a ride good into one ride. Great queue, which gives us glimpses of the story. It's partially a dark ride (people complain about it being short and that there's not much to see, which I sort of agree with, but I also love the minimalistic scene with the fog, in which you can barely see the person next to you. The scene where you meet with can Der Decken and he turns into a skull freaked me out as a kid. The coaster is tame, but building huge thrills isn't what the park is about. It's also got the splash, which is a nice climax.
I'm a bit afraid of coasters, and I got my first ride on Baron 1898 recently (not front row, unfortunately) the entire experience and story are great and they made me feel ever more scared when the train peeked over the edge. As a bystander, not riding the ride, it also looks wonderful. The mine shaft looks incredible as you can see the cogs pulling the train up. And you can also hear the Wailing Women sing occasionally, which is terrifying.
I also love Villa Volta, which, in my opinion, is quite underrated. Efteling was the first park to build a Vekoma madhouse attraction. And I love the story and I love the effect. But the reason I love this ride so much is the godlike music, which is mysterious, scary but also adventurous. The music makes you feel Hugo's curse.
I love the dark rides. No need to say more. They evoke whimsical feelings.
I hope that with the new expansion, Vogelrok's story will be explained better. The effects and music on the ride are great, but there's an entire story behind it which really falls into the background.
And never forget that Villa Volta has one of the most iconic quotes in Efteling history: "Dit huis, dit vervloekte huis. Het is met een hel gelijk" (Translation for English speakers: "This house, this cursed house. It is hell" (just so you know, the Dutch version just sounds way better))
And don't forget the music, it is so great
Efteling is my dream theme park! The way it straddles the border between whimsy and horror lands just perfectly
Great video, i enjoyed watching it as an Efteling fan! However the Fata Morgana was NOT made by Intamin, it was completely built by the Efteling itself! It took them 6 years, there is even a documentary about it, it is super fascinating. It is made by 'De Vijf Zintuigen'. And that translates to 'The Five Senses'.
Their are also 4 Fairy tales based on it
It's always so interesting to hear about theme parks you would've never stumbled across before, and the theming in these attractions is so amazing. All of those practical sets are absolutely stunning
Europe has a nice handful of parks with fantastic theming. I'd highly recommend checking of Phantasialand if you haven't seen anything about it.
@@PoseidonEntertainment I'll definitely look into it!
There are almost no screans in the rides only practical sets
@@ryanleeuwis1602 I live close to Universal Orlando. I know the plight.
@@PoseidonEntertainment man universal is so high on my bucket list but the screans are so sad bc i beleve universal has the money but comcast just dont want to spend it
The atmosphere in this park comes across more authentically old world European than fantasyland in either of America's Disney Resorts.
dude... my parents took me here when i was 2 years old. TWENTY years ago. ive had this memory completely erased for my entire life until i saw this video. thank you for covering this! love your videos
As much as I think Gaelic fairy tales are underappreciated, I still have a lot of love for Germanic fairy tales and the more modern(-ish) stories of a kind with "Beauty and the Beast." I would love to visit this place; it's just the right combination of whimsical and eerie.
I frequently visit the Efteling and it’s a place where I will always go. You are right about carnaval festival being racist. Luckily Efteling know that now and they have changed it. I really love the changes and I like that a company like this holds itself accountable.
What I truly love about the part is that they have to keep a certain amount of the parc green. Like trees and all that stuff. I really like that part about it. Your video is pretty good for someone who had not been able to visit! Thanks for giving me another view (as we live on very different sides of the world).
Wonderful video. I've heard of Efteling on occasion but didn't know what it's deal was until now. Almost everything in this video was gorgeous, and while it's unlikely I'll ever get to visit I'm sure going to try my best. I wish them park RUclips had a lot more non-Disney non-Universal content like this. Keep up the good work!
I was a bit unsure if I should have moved away from Disney and/or Universal content, but people definitely seem to share an appreciation for the park.
That trackless ride is SO MAGICAL! Disney needs to TAKE NOTES!! 📝
They do! Fun fact: Disney is based on the efteling :)
@@tygojoosen2314 That's not really true. Both parks are a bit based on each other. Efteling has rides that clearly have inspiration from Disney parks and Disney has some things in the park that you can relate to things inside Efteling. But 'based on' isn't the right term.
If they do than I would say it is Ratatouille (but without 3d)
Full video on Rock City? Yes please!!!
I go to school on Lookout Mountain and was so surprised to discover their fairy tale themed attractions. A little slice of European-style magic in the southeastern US. Super cool especially as a US-based theme park fan longing for the day I can visit de Efteling…
The dragon At George and the Dragon has been leaking hydrolic fluid multiple times into the lake, meaning they had to clean everything (The dragon, plants, electronics and mechanics etc.) Great video btw!
My favourite story is The little match girl. I lost my dad in 2008 and when i heard they story it hit a heartstring.
Great video! Keep it up! I'm from Belgium so i live very close to Efteling. I went there loads of times and every time i catch myself getting so lost and immersed, its truly amazing. It never gets old. If you'd ever be able to go, i truly recommend you doing so.
It's a definite bucket-list park for me. I imagine it'll only just continue to get better before I can make my way there.
as a person who lives 10 minutes away from this park, i love it so much and i cant get enough of it even after 17 years of living so close to it and visiting it 1 or 2 times a year. its incredible and if ur a person who wants to go but ur not from the netherlands i reccomend going 2 days to fully experience it because u can do everything in one day but it will be a rush and not enjoy the park in peace and amaze. so id reccomend going 2 days. if ur not capable of paying for the expensive hotel or houses there are alot of hotels or motels in the town the park is (kaatsheuvel) its much cheaper and super close :) hope this helps some ppl
I’m so thankful you didn’t forget our smaller Efteling wonders. Volk van Laaf often gets forgotten so hearing you talk about it was really amazing❤❤
Carnaval Festival was the best attraction when I was a kid 😂. But I understand why people dislike it
As a kid I was scared of the dragon in the China area and the big Bowler Hat Monkey. So I almost never went in here. It is still a good attraction though, and I appreciate it more over the years
As Dutch person that is going to this park at least once a year, I loved to see what you highlighted.
So yes I know the park. im kinda surprised that its not that known since it won national awards in which they even won from disney parks.
I admit Carnival Festival is a bit questionable. For that same reason they changed monsieur cannibal as well an replaced it by the theme of Sinbad.
btw, Spook slot is closing for good after September 4 this year. a lot of fans of the park protested against it without results. The team that made this decision said spook slot was out dated and there for had to be replaced. There will be a new attraction with a similar theme at that same spot and with a few elements or so from spookslot.
The great thing about this park is that you really forget everything in your life and the fantasy of this park comes to mind before you even enter the park. With another beautiful water show. See you tube.
I’m English and my family have been here several times. The theming is so good and the landscaping is so pretty. We prefer it to Disneyland Paris. It’s supposed to be the inspiration for Disneyland ( you probably mention that but I haven’t watched the whole video yet).
I'm not entirely sure if Efteling had an influence on the development of Disneyland. Walt certainly visited the Netherlands, but there doesn't seem to be any documentation of him visiting or ever mentioning it. Conceptual plans for Disneyland date back to 1948, and Efteling didn't evolve beyond recreation space until the introduction of the Fairytale Forest in 1952. I think the fairytale theme shared between the two institutions is just a coincidence. While the idea isn't impossible, I'm on the side of thinking that it's highly unlikely.
@@PoseidonEntertainment It's an urban myth. Walt Disney never visited Efteling, Never met (did not even know) Anton Pieck etc etc. Mr. Eisner visited Efteling indeed, prior to building and opening Disneyland Paris, but that's another story. It's safer to admit Walt Disney was not even aware of the existence of Efteling. As matter of fact, however, Walt visited Madorodam model city park (Den Haag, in the Netherlands). He effectively borrowed important design features from that park, when creating Disneyland. For instance the idea that the park should be completely surrounded by a high DAM to prevent to ability to look out or in. It's the Madorodam essential concept. Walt applied it for the whole park, and again with Storybook land, which has a double reference to Madurodam (the miniature world, with trains and boats in it...). The other main source of inspiration was Tivoli Kopenhagen (a complete array of elements !!), and of course, closer by, Knotts.
By the way, Efteling introduced the fairy tale forest as it prooved to be a successfull draw at another Dutch park which existed earlier : Sprookjesbos Valkenburg, Opened in 1950.
Remember: there is a predecessor for everything on earth.... :-)
@@PoseidonEntertainment fairy tale themed parks have been around in germany since the 20s and fairy tale themed fairs are much older.
he got most of his movie ideas from one book, so the idea that disneyland is inspired by some fairytale fair flyer isnt sooo out of the world.
also can we get a video about europa park. its the no1 european rival to Efteling-
@@Edwin-pq6dg This is URBAN MYTH as I said. Fake, hoax. The story was invented (!!!) by mr. Reinoud van Assendelft de Coningh , a past PR man of Efteling. It has been debunked a 1000 times, and espacially by the guy himself who invented it it the middle of an interview, then reproduced endlessly, ommitting the word "Perhaps" from the interview. It was meant as a practical joke....
The best part of the Efteling is the music! It's really good and adds so much to the experience. I'm a bit sad there was very little of it in this video
I am so so proud to be a dutch efteling fan. Next to Phantasialand, this is my home park and the one i love the absolute most (i cant wait to finally get my year pass to it this year!!) It would take literal hours for someone to fully capture the magic and enchantment that the efteling holds, so i feel like you did an amazing job of capturing it as an outsider in just over 40 minutes.
while you had a lot of really good explanations and points, i have a couple remarks:
1) Like someone said before, Carnaval festival is indeed inspired by a dutch tradition called "carnaval" and the art style that the parade floats there have, although efteling chose for a more stylized and "childish" art style. While it still has some massive stereotypes, the 2019 redo did indeed improve it a lot, it is still definitely not the most offensive attraction in the parks history. as of today (the exact date in which im writing this, 26-01-2022, the efteling opened a new attraction in the same storyline and style as the vogel rok, which replaced the maze and monsieur cannibale. monsieur cannibale was an extremely offensive teacup-like ride with a massive racist statue in the middle, and the storyline talking about cannibals (its kinds hard to explain, google it if you wanna know more)
2) Although you slightly mentioned him while talking about the diorama, Anton Pieck is thé man who made the efteling what it is today. he was responsible for the stylisation of the park when it first opened; he designed the first 10 fairytales and was responsible for the strange fairytale wonder the park holds today. (Pieck was followed up by Ton van den Ven, an incredible "imagineer" who was responsible for most of the iconic rides throughout the 80s and 90s)
3) The swiss bob was indeed a huge icon and its sad to see it go, the ride was one of the last of its kind, which made it really hard to keep it operating, and eventually resulted in its breakdown and replacement of the ride.
At the moment, the efteling is switching out a lot of its major rides, and im really exited to see where it leads to next. Thank you so much for this video, and i hope youre able to visit the park someday!! I truly recommend it to anybody :)
I loved that you did Efteling as something different! It’s definitely one of the finest parks in Europe!
My personal favourite park is Alton Towers in England.
Alton towers isn't a "theme park", there is no theming, just roller coasters. We also have a "roller coaster park" in the netherlands (called six flags) but its completely ignorable next to the efteling, the efteling isn't about roller coasters. (also I personally dislike roller coasters, but that is a different story!)
I’ve seen many videos of Efteling and I can’t wait to go in person one of these days. Imagine how cool would it be if Journey into Imagination had an interactive, trackless dark ride makeover like Symbolica? Also, in regards to Dreamflight, that ride to me look like a more successful execution of a ride built around atmosphere compared to Na’vi River Journey. Neither ride has a storyline per se, but Dreamflight has more kinetic energy from the animatronics. River Journey is very visually appealing, but every scene with a screen-based animal/creature seems like it’s a spot where an animatronic broke down and the ride is operating in B-mode.
We are exactly on the same page and have the exact same thoughts. After breaking down Symbolica, I thought the exact same thing about Journey Into Imagination and how it would work as a new attraction with trackless RVs. I very obviously don't really trust Disney to pull this off in an innovative or satisfying way though. Same with River Journey. When I was typing out the script and trying to figure out what point I wanted to make about Efteling's dark rides, I also thought about how River Journey feels underwhelming because atmosphere can't really be achieved through screens. Instead, its the nuance of heavily populated scenes and the details within them that help achieve that sense of atmosphere.
@@PoseidonEntertainment You hit the nail on the head! I recently found your channel and love the video essays. If I think of any ideas I’ll let you know!
And you can’t even capture these rides well on video. You miss the smells, the wind effects and the movement. The smells in dreamflight are something, especially the earth smell in the troll section. It is like being in the forrest when it rains.
Its really funny to see peoples opinions on my favourite thing. I wheezed really hard whn you founded "the wolf and the seven goats" terrifying. Its very classic in the netherlands. My personal least favourite was the girl with the lights, not cause i was terrified but cause i always cry while watchin It. Also, its AMAZING to sit next to people on their first ride in villa volta. Their reaction is just the funniest!
My personal least favourite aspect is the fact that when ur in the ride in "lavenland" with the snails, you can see over the wall of the side of efteling, and u see the cars, which ruins the dreammy effect of everything and all you know- but even that they manage to fix, bc there used to be a mcdonalds advertisement that said "this isent a fairytail, the mcdonalds is only .... meters away!" In efteling style lmao
Here in the UK used to read the story of the wolf and the 7 goats to my kids when they were young. I assumed these sort of fairy tales were know everywhere isn't it a Grimm's fairy tale? Don't they have them in the US alongside Hans Christian Anderson's collections?
@@alisongreen7447 Yes indeed, was also surprised. It is one off the first fairytale I heard as a child because it is on the first part from fairy tales from Efteling (after roodkaje - Redhooded in English?)
This was a great video that really made me want to go to Europe (even more than I already do) It's cool to hear about other theme parks outside the US and I'm a sucker for fairytale theming. Excellent work!
The theming at so many European parks just blows the majority of U.S. parks out of the water. Efteling is definitely a bucket list along with Phantasialand.
@@PoseidonEntertainment I was already planning on going to Belgium next summer on a mission trip but if I can I may sneak up to the Netherlands and check it out! I’ve been learning Dutch so it would be fun to see how much I would understand
@@savannahatkins1488 That would definitely be an added benefit to experiencing the park! From what I understand, the park is trying to become more internationally appealing through its use of less dialogue heavy exposition in its attractions too.
@@PoseidonEntertainment Phantasialand is a lot of fun, but very small. Everything is standing near each other.
People which come a lot to the Efeling say that Phantasialand is build on a stamp.
oooh well if you really like fairytale theming that much, you should definitely go to the Efteling. Every single ride has a story and the forest part is just lovely. Though if you go, you might want to go 2 days since going in all of the roller coasters takes like 2/3 of time up in your day
I love the efteling. But I am dutch and grew up with this park. But I really loved your view of this park! great video.
Thanks, I'm glad that you enjoyed!
Just came across this video and im amazed by the delicate coverage that you deliver about the attractions. Really hope to see a part 2 considering the elements of the different theme zones, the attractions like piraña, the show of ravelijn, the pagoda and of course aquanura!
This is a fantastic video and ought to have more views! I confess I was only vaguely aware of Efteling, but now I'd love to go
I'm absolutely fascinated by this park.
Wow! I had heard about this park, but your video finally grabbed my interest. It is so much more than I understood it to be. It's definitely on my "to visit" list.
As a dutch person, I've been here quite a few times and it's wonderful! Definately my favorite theme park out there :) Also, the jin on fata morgana scared the shit out of me as a kid haha
Song text from the fairytale based on it: "Djin, Djin reuze Djin luister naar ons koor, doe toch niet zo lelijk en laat ons door"
In English it would be like "Djin, Djin, giant Djin, listen to our song, don't be so bad and let us go" (pass thru the legs)
This giant is a guard to the treasure room.
This park looks amazing. I would be really interested in another video expanding on some of the things you didn't have time to mention
As a person that's been born and raised in north-Brabant (or just the Netherlands in general) I've visited this park countless amount of times, my family goes at least once or twice a year and I never seem to get bored if it, it's become my all time favorite park
If you're ever interested in learning about the history of the park there's a nifty series on the efteling youtube channel called "de magische klok" which translates to "the magic clock" being one of the fairytales in the fairytale forest
It's in dutch but I'm pretty sure you can just use the auto translate feature!
It's how I learned little trivia like how Anton Pieck almost didn't want to work for the park because he was too busy, but after being offered that the park would make everything look identical to his work he decided to accept the offer.
I live 15 minutes driving away from Efteling and I visit it many times! I love your video, it's always really fun to see how people from other countries think of Efteling, because here in the Netherlands everyone knows Efteling, and here we grow up with it, specific with the fairy-tale forest! Great video, keep it up! PS: The dragon of George and the dragon is sadly broken, when Efteling is going to fix this is, is not clear. And the song of Carnaval Festival is a real earworm, everyone here hates it!
I figured that the dragon would most likely be fixed, but I had trouble finding actual information on it. From what I was able to find, it appears there were initial concerns with the pyro effect being so near to a wooden coaster and I have to wonder if that's part of the issue?
@@PoseidonEntertainment No, that has nothing to do with it, since the opening the dragon has had a lot of technical malfunctions, often leaking oil pipes. Efteling indicated in 2019 that the dragon would not be made for "a long time", when they will take action is unfortunately still unclear.
@@paggasnaan Ah okay interesting. That's a bit unfortunate because it's such a cool effect.
@@PoseidonEntertainment It sure is, in my opinion the dragon (when it's moving) makes the ride better, especially when it spits fire as you pass it.
@@PoseidonEntertainment Sadly theve announced that they won't fix it anymore.
This is the most in-depth video I have seen about this park today. Would love to see more of the details on the features you love in future videos if you are able to. Thank you so much for the awesome content! 👍
Parks with simple animatronic characters are what people remember, and I feel want to return to see over and over. As a kid we would go to Knotts and I just couldn’t wait to see the little Devil that made the volcano erupt, or the haunted shack with it’s simple illusions. Simple but effective, and memorable. My kids were able to see both attractions before they were removed. Ghost rider is a good replacement for the volcano, but I think the parks need to remember the simple things also
What I like about the Efteling is that they kept the fairytales "real". A lot of them are based on the stories of Hans Christian Andersen and the brothers Grimm and they are not child friendly but give a good message. My favourite story is "the girl with the matchsticks" and it is stunning to look at in the Efteling. The use of smell in the fairytale forrest is also brilliant. You know you are close to the house of the witch from Hansel and Gretel because it smells like candy, or the smell of incense when you enter the display of "the Nightingale". An adult will feel like a child again, I feel nostalgic every year. What I have noticed is a lot of the rides are based on curses (cursed house, cursed ship, cursed castle or monestary as it is going to be now, cursed mine etc.).
Carnival Festival is something of our Dutch culture, even me (as my roots are in Asia) can laugh about it. Why? I'm living 66+ years in the Netherlands, I know my skin color is different, but I never felt a form of discrimination. The Netherlands is a country of immigrants, it started BC with the Caninefaten who entered our country. We never had a form of segregation between race or roots. Except the Germanja times 1940-1945. The people who are afraid for being different are a minority. Our history is different than the US. So we react different.
I first heard about Efteling at the age of about 5 (circa 1990), from a friend of the family, who was telling us about the dragon who roared at visitors if they touched its treasure, and mentioned the "Long-neck" character.
I adore De Efteling. I still remember my first visit in 1996, I was 4 and my parents, brother and me saw a fancy house, we did not know what it was. Turned out that was Villa Volta. I was so scared, but fascinated too. Now there are signs around the villa warning parents that the ride might be a bit much for the little ones.
I went to Disney Paris for the first time this year, and it was fun. But it is no Efteling. It feels too commercial for my taste. Efteling has a lot of space and a lot of green in the park, so it feels less busy. I love that.
This place looks incredible
You should visit our pride and joy
Since I come to this park every week, sometimes even multiple times a week, I always find it very interesting to see videos from United States content creators and how they view Efteling. Makes me appreciate it more after it has gotten so normal for me.
Guys, to everyone who sees this. Efteling announced that they will be replacing “Spookslot”. The replacement is not yet revealed. But I am truly sad that it will go. It was their first real attraction
That’s so sad, do you know where they announced it?
@@bruh-lg6ch they anounced it on facebook and other socials. The structure of the building is getting to bad to maintain and the ride is not being visited enough for the maintenance costs so they’re going to demolish it and build a new bigger ride in the same style with the same theme the new project is dubbed dance macabre like the music used in the current ride. You can look it up on the efteling facebook they show a project preview with a video depicting the feel and style of the new ride. No conclusive info yet tho.
Just came back from a trip to Efteling, I must say the park is the Ultimate Fairy Tale Park. I only got to handful number of popular attractions including the Fairytale Forest, Baron, and Symbolica to name a few. This and Tokyo DisneySea has the best level of immersion with a strong focus of detailing and scope that not many theme parks can accomplish. My only feedback to some of the rides range from add just a few more drops (Fata Morgana), additional scenes (The Flying Dutchman) or the ride vehicle travel pass directly into the scenes (Dreamflight), then it's even more perfect. I hope to return to Efteling to experience more of the rides you cover in this video, as well as the new ride Danse Macabre coming in 2024.
Really cool video. I've never heard of this park, but it looks incredible and immersive. I suddenly want to go to the Netherlands.
Where have your videos been my whole life 😭 love the quality and research you put into these thank you
I heard about this park only a few months ago and I am completely in enchanted in it. I want immersion and detail in parts. California Adventure or Hollywood Studios does not entice me, I love Animal Kingdom for its immersion and Diagon alley at universal studios Orlando.
I have officially added this theme park to my must do bucket list.
I'll agree, especially with Diagon. Gringotts may be kind of "eh" but Diagon is easily one of the best themed lands I've ever been in. I thought Universal was crazy to design a land so compact, but it is quite remarkable.
When you will come to the Efteling, take a few days, because the park is huge.
The Efteling is an non-profit foundation and you see it back in the park, everything is made with love to enjoy the people.
Also the park is a lot cheaper as Disney, a Coca Cola is € 2,= 0,5 liter, a fine Burger € 5,= and a standard evening meal with meat, potatoes and vegetable € 15,=.
The first time is the park seems strange, because you will come to a different world, most people fall in love with the park after a few vistites.
It is a ideal park to relax, when you come only for rollercoasters, you will never understand the park and can beter go to another park, shake off being an american there, take all the time you have and let yourself suprise.
@@Yochemm If I found myself at the park, I would definitely prioritize the Sprookjesbos and the dark rides. The park definitely interests me with its commitment to themed entertainment, which I'm finding very lacking with Disney over the last decade or so. Efteling is definitely a top priority to me.
They are a bit better then the efteling, While I love the efteling it just hasn't got the budget to go that far. I still think the Efteling is overall a more beautifull parc. But then i might be a bit biased cause its me home parc.
@@arturobianco848 I like Disney and Universal, but I wouldn't necessarily say they're better. What I like so much about Efteling is how intimate it feels and how it creates such an incredible atmosphere. Disney and Universal have a lot of great attractions, but also manage to feel very "corporate" in comparison.
Thank you for sharing this. This place sounds amazing and we would love to visit this park some day. Disney and Universal take notice... stear away from video screens and return to the magic that Efteling seems to be offering.
Someone that's from Belgium here! I loved and still love this park till this day, i've been to it in my childhood But I don't remember much so I surely wanna revisisit the park in the future to really soak up the magical and fantasy experience this park has to offer. As a country with no notable world class themeparks its amazing that we have good ones around us like Europa park and the Efteling in neighboring countries And I can say that the fairytales here can be more dark and edgy compared to the depiction and just the general fairytales mentioned in the United States. I also would love to visit the theme park capitol of the world Orlando and visit all of its parks to really get a sense of the themepark culture that I know and love. I really do love watching your videos and improving my themeparks knowledge everyday. Much love and respect from Belgium, keep up the good work.
I loved your desciption and appreciation for Spookslot, as many other think it's a ride and get disappointed. So, FYI: Spookslot has been demolished, now making place for a new ghostly attraction: Dance Macabre. It opens next year.
Efteling is magical charming and for every age ❤
Efteling is on my bucket list now
The Python might lack the dark and whimsical theme but the ride is about 3 minutes long but the 2,5 minutes being dragged up (tick after slow tick) will make you evaluate your life before plunging down.
Marvelous video. I can understand your point on Carnaval Festival.
What I want to mention is the fantastic music in the park. Not only the attraction themes (which get stuck in your head the whole day) are great, also the park and pathmusic is great.
I suppose I should have at least mentioned it, but I also saw that the music would probably trigger a copy-write strike, so I avoided it.
Haven't watched the whole video yet but I have thought about what makes efteling so good a lot, especially after visiting in 2018. One thing I think is fundamental to the success and quality of efteling is their respect for themselves and their visitors. I mean what other park adds stuff to 30 year old rides! The park knows themselves and they know their guests and they never ever try to sell them short.
Fun fact: Michael Eisner also hated carnival festival! I quite like it though, I like the visuals and it's good fun to be on.
Oh and the animatronics in Fata Morgana or not AAs, they are created using a large music box type mechanism patented by the efteling. I love the figure that moves!
Also, the house of the five sense is supposed to emulate a curtain being opened.
I'll stop now hahhah
You certainly know quite a bit more than I do. I tend to use "animatronics" as a blanket industry term for animated figures even though I know that the only true "audio-animatronics" exist at Disney. However, I wasn't aware of the mechanism used for the animation on Fata Morgana and that's quite interesting. It would explain the jerky movements, but I think that's part of the charm. I was also unaware of what The House of the Five Senses truly means to convey. I'll admit, because the park has so much to offer, I only researched it at a superficial level, but I'm fascinated nonetheless.
@@PoseidonEntertainment I'd say the best site for info is eftepedia if you want to find out more about everything. I get you, the animatronics are very unique, there's a RUclips video from the 80s which shows how they work. They are all timed as the boats move past, not by sensors but because everything is always continuously going, it's like clockwork. The house of the five senses is supposed to represent the five senses but the curtain opening is part of Ton Van De Vens design, it's also the largest thatched roof in the world. Yeah that's fair, there's a lot to find out about the park
This really is the best theme park channel on youtube.
Good video! I did miss the inclusion of the only water ride in the efteling. Piranha, which is a really unique river rapids and also beautifully themed.
And the boats on the main lake of the park would have been a nice inclusion, it adds a nice backtory to the Fata Morgana ride, since the system used to move the boats was invented and tested first with these boats on the main lake.
I was unaware that the lake boats had any relation, but I didn't talk about them because I felt the video was getting too long. I'll definitely look into that though because I'm curious about the ride system. I also looked at Piranha but don't see what makes it unique? I've been on plenty of raft rides, many of which seem to offer more interesting elements in comparison. I'd be interested to know why it's popular though.
@@PoseidonEntertainment Maybe I am wrong then, but I believed the wide layout of the Piranha is quite different than most river rapids around the world. Almost the entire layout is wide enough for two or even three boats to fit next to eachother. It offers a fun interaction with the other boats, in terms of overtaking and bumping into eachother.
The fact about the boats and operating system was just to inform you :) Efteling has coined a lot of original designs. For example Villa Volta, made by Efteling and Vekoma was in fact the first modern Mad House. A big part of Efteling is also the 'street' performers and entertainers throughout the whole park. I have very fond memories of their bigger musical shows in the 90s en 00's, when they would actually perform multiple fairytales on stage in a theater every day, they were great. They still have some shows, most notably Raveleijn.
But you covered a lot of great stuff in your video! Some facts I didn't know yet and I loved the footage of the opening of the Efteling you showed in the beginning of the video.
@@daanjanssens4266 Oh yes, I did make note of the Piranha "track" as it were, but I assumed it was so wide because it's older. In retrospect, I realize that a wide ride path for raft attractions has never been the norm, but I see your point now. In my research on the park, one element that I couldn't find much information on was the streetmosphere and meet and greets. It most certainly looks interesting though.
@@PoseidonEntertainment Do you know the story about the Piranha.
Their was a queen that always wanted more treasure. One night she dreamed of a land with more treasure she ever had. 1 problem: the Piranha. A river no boat exist that can ride it.
A young boy thinks he has the solution: a boat made from a truckers band. But nobody believes that could work until he dares to make a trip.... and survives.
Now every one can ride the Piranha in boats based an the idea off the young boy.
(the story original is 10 minutes long and can be found on part 10 fairy tales from Efteling)
The RUclips channel De Vijf Zintuigen uploaded a super interesting documentary of the making of Fata Morgana! It shows how the creators went to Morocco to buy props and the creating of the animatronics. Unfortunately its only in Dutch, but if you speak it, I highly recommend it!
Edit: actually you can select automatic subtitles in English and it will translate the Dutch subs in English!
Efteling will start their expansion soon. I can't wait.
Same. I'm interested to see what they do.
My favorite part of these videos is enjoying them so much and then realizing iii didn’t *hit* “like” until Homie at the very end asks us to like and subscribe. it gets me super hyped and makes me feel like iii’m doing my part for some reason lololol just wanted to put that there🙏🙏🙏
As a Dutchman, I really appreciate your take on my favorite theme park. Though I think it's worth mentioning the Spookslot is being replaced by Dance Macabre by Intamin and there will also be an Efteling grand hotel. I've been going there since I was 4, have been going there every year since and I'm 47 now. My kids and me go there every year around my birthday, the Efteling gives €12,- discounts for a birthday party with a maximum of 6, and we'll be enjoying ourselves for 8 hours or more. I love feeling like a child with my children and can't wait for my youngest to be tall enough to go on Python and Baron 1898. I don't think anywhere will be as magical and nostalgic for me, so thank you for this excellent video.
St. George (lived circa. 300) famously slayed a dragon that ruled over a kingdom, demanding human sacrifice. This is probably where the name 'George and the Dragon' came from 😉.
This was a really interesting and in-depth video. As someone who's theme park experiences are largely Disney and Universal (as well as regional parks in the mid-west USA) I really enjoyed the look at this park's beautiful theme-ing (sp?) and atmosphere.
George is a translation (and I am not sure if it is right. The name in Dutch (language spoken in The Netherlands where Efteling is) is Joris.
I love carnival festival, but that’s because of nostalgia. It’s definitely a kidsride and small children will force their parents to go over and over again. I can see why someone wouldn’t like it if they saw it for the first time as an adult tho.