Originally Efteling catered towards children with a fairy tale theme, nowadays Efteling appeals to young and old with its cultural, romantic and nostalgic theme and its variety of amusement rides. In over fifty years, Efteling has evolved from a general nature park with playground and unique Fairy Tale Forest, into a full-size theme park along the lines of Disneyland.
Efteling is famous for its great attention to detail, the green atmosphere and excellent dark rides. With four million visitors annually, it's in the top of European theme parks right after the Disney parks in France and Europa Park in Germany.
The base for the park as it is now was created in 1950. Artist Anton Pieck and inventor Peter Reijnders set out to create a quality fairy tale forest. Pieck's remarkable, nostalgic style combined with Reijnders' ingenuity and the use of "real" materials created an enchanting forest that immediately profiled Efteling as a national attraction upon its opening in 1952. The style set by Pieck has been the base for many developments after that, setting the park apart.
The most important milestones in its development�:
1933: A catholic complex of sporting facilities is founded.
1952: The park opens its Fairy Tale Forest, which instantly becomes a tourist hit; this is considered the start of the current Efteling.
1978: The Haunted Castle is the first "large scale" attraction.
1980: Efteling starts to build thrill-rides (rollercoasters and the like) to appeal to a larger audience.
1987: Efteling returns to its roots with building large attractions but always themed around the (broad) fairy tales and myths theme; continues until today.
1999: Start of Winter Efteling. The goal is to be open year round.
2004: Efteling actively works on expansion with more lodging and facilities, a theatre with musical productions and a golf course.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Efteling
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Efteling - updated May 2024
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Efteling Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
