As of today we’ve been 4 times to Europa Park. We always recommend this theme park to all our friends because we love it so much! It is themed around the various countries in Europe. Both the decor architecture, attraction and food follow those themes i.e Greece, Scandinavia, Ireland etc…
No wonder it has won the best Amusement Park Award late 2018. Here are all the details, pictures and videos that I hope will inspire you.
Cover picture: Wodan rollercoaster: 100km/h wooden ride in the Scandinavian area of the park.
Below: Poseidon splashing ride in the Greek district.
1. Baby and toddler friendly
We started the adventure when our youngest was just 2 years old. Surprisingly there were lots of rides he could enjoy: driving a car (on rails), Venetian gondola (with a roof for shade) and his absolute favorite: Abenteur Odyssee, a ship moving in the dark where you shoot creatures of the sea with a laser gun. There is never any queue there so you can do it 10 times in a row and have so much fun!
Even for toddlers and babies can have a great time. Check here all the activities they can do based on their age or size.
Kids also get to meet characters around the park: princesses, animals and Europa Park signature ” Maus”.
Last but not least, the park has a lot of trees and shade so you can walk around with your stroller even on a very hot day, and you will find a couple of buildings with nursing rooms, Hipp baby food, microwaves, toilets (very clean toilets: it’s Germany!), change mats and wipes for you to use.
2. Great for bigger kids
Most rides are from 4 years old or 100 cm, which is pretty incredible and won’t let your little one frustrated. It will be their decision if they want to do it or if they find it too scary.
Europa Park is also keeping up with technology and you can change your perspective on the ride you think you know too well, thanks to the magic of VR!
My eldest is now 10 year old and his absolute favorite is the Silver Star by Mercedes. The wait is a bit longer but the queue goes through a whole Mercedes Car museum, and then you are not disappointed! The sensations are just crazy. It peaks at 73m high, goes as fast as 130 km/h and although I was tightly fastened, I thought I jumped out of my seat! I would say it’s on par with California Scream at Disneyland Anaheim, although the latter had music built in your seat for even more thrills!
Here are all the rides for Rollercoaster Junkies minimum 140 cm.
3. Twice as cheap as Disneyland yet twice as big
Europa Park boasts 54 attractions, 11 being roller coasters vs Disneyland and California Adventure combining only half a dozen roller coasters, and 5 for Disneyland Paris.
When we went to Disneyland Anaheim in California, it was $100 per day per park. Disneyland Paris is €87 per adult.
Here are the Ticket Prices for One Day Pass at Europa Park (Summer 2019),
- under 4 years old: FREE
- Kids on their birthday up to 12 years old: FREE
- 4-11 y: € 44.50
- 12+: €52.00
Even better for 2 days as the park is huge and we advise you to stay over night as one of their 4* hotels (see below)
- 4-11 y : €83.50
- 12+: €98.50
4. Fun hotels and beautiful swimming pools
To fully enjoy the experience, what’s better to stay on the premises, enjoy late night and early birds pass so the queue is minimal? What we also loved are the kids friendly rooms and access to the swimming pools and spa areas of all four of 4* and 5*star resorts, namely: Bell Rock, Andaluz, Colosseo and Santa Isabel.
Hotel rooms are perfect for families with cute bunk beds for kids
Package price in summer 2018: €842 for 2 nights in a 4 people bedroom + breakfast and 2 day pass for the whole family, booked through Dertour.
In comparison, in Oct 2016 we paid $1,830 for the same package at Disneyland California plus Magic extras (photo, lanyard, badges and luggage tags), booked through Kim Magic Family Getaway
5. Food: good choice in the park and at hotels
Food has never been the forte at theme parks. I remember over priced burgers at Disneyland Paris when I was a teen. At Disneyland Anaheim it was better to catch and Uber or a Lyft to have Vietnamese food in little Saigon than eating on the premises. Here, because of the theme covering all the European countries, you can find Raclette Cheese in the Swiss district, Spaetzel in a Sleeping Beauty like Austrian castle, Souvlaki in the Greek area etc…
Each hotel also as a couple of restaurants and bars, some with buffets, some with table service. Choose from Italian, Spanish, from the Grill and a new Scandinavian fine dining experience!
We loved the churrasco style dinner at our hotel: all you can eat meat at Rodizio, at Castillo Alcazar. Then we had a paella and sangria dinner just downstairs, no worries to leave the kids (7 and 10) in the room by themselves.
How to get there?
- From Zurich: only 1h50 drive
- From Strasbourg: 30 min drive
- From Basel: 1 hour
- From Stuttgart Airport: 1h50