We review Efteling - the biggest theme park in the Netherlands – and give our top tips for visiting

We take our children to the fairytale-themed Efteling Theme Park Resort in Holland

Name

Efteling Theme Park Resort.

What is it?

This is a huge fairytale-themed family attraction. It’s the biggest theme park in the Netherlands and is open every day of the year.

Where is it?

In the town of Kaatsheuvel in the Brabant region of south central Holland. Just over an hour’s drive from Amsterdam and Rotterdam.

What did we think?

This is a great theme park for all ages – it feels Disney-like and magical as you walk in with music playing around you, but it is much quicker to park and get into than Disney parks.

Navigation around it was made easier as the left-hand side is largely suited to younger children and the right has more for teenagers and older children with more rollercoasters and bigger rides.

Our highlights

*The fairytale forest – you wander through a wooded area, seeing recreations of fairy tales like Rapunzel and Sleeping Beauty and some we had not heard of before. The commentary is in Dutch but there are written descriptions in English.

Hansel and Gretel in Fairytale Forest

*There is lots for younger visitors, we saw three carousels alone. There are some lovely gentle rides, plus a little train.

*Comfort – there are lots of shaded areas and it’s big, it didn’t feel cramped at all.

*Carnaval Festival – a nice gentle ride, with music, through different countries.

*Symphonia ride – this had the longest queue, it is a theatrical, dark, indoor ride suitable for the whole family but scary in parts for some young children.

*The Aquanura water show is a great way to finish a day at the park. It is normally on at around 7.15pm and 8.15pm on a lake near the exit. It’s along the theme of the Princess and the Frog. Water shoots out of giant frogs’ mouths and from the middle of the lake while classical music plays.
There are lots of vantage points to get a good view.

Aquanura water show

Top tips

*Check when the Dutch holidays are, we went at the end of the summer holidays when local children had already returned to school so it wasn’t too busy.

*The best place to start with younger children is the Fairytale Forest. Climb into Sleeping Beauty’s castle and see Rapunzel leaning out of her tower while the witch climbs up. It is a good gentle introduction for younger children to what the park is all about.

*If you’ve got a picnic and don’t want to stop to eat it, you could eat during the lake cruise – you sit on a boat being led around a track for 20 minutes. It’s a good spot for a rest as its also next to a pagoda, which takes you high above the park, giving you a good view of everything.

Pagoda

*A lot of the signs have an English version and staff speak good English. But a lot of the commentary and shows are in Dutch.

*Parking is well-organised. It costs 10/12 euros to park, you pay at the entrance/exit and use your ticket to open the barrier when you leave.

*Use the Efteling app, it is simple and straightforward. It shows you where you are on a map, gives up-to-date ride queue times and basic information about each ride to assess its suitability for your children.

*There are no fast track passes or similar (except for disabled visitors), other than the Python rollercoaster where you can book a ride time.

*Baby switch is available for two adults who have a baby and both want to go on a ride – one queues and the other waits at the exit with the baby and they can then swap with the new adult going in through the exit.

*You can rent wooden pushchairs/strollers for 4 euros.

*All toilets in the park have at least one baby changing cubicle.

*Restaurant staff can warm up water, milk or food for babies.

You can stay overnight in a hotel or holiday home with unlimited access to the park.

Good rides and areas for children aged under six

*Fairytale Forest – walk through recreations of famous fairy tales.

*Stoomcarrousel – a big undercover carousel (there are others in the park too).

*Avonturendoolhof – adventure maze – look out for the bridge where you will get wet!

*Stoomtrein – the train – it does a circuit of the park and there are two stops so you can use it to get from one area to another or stay on for the duration to rest your legs.

*Kleuterhof – the playground.

*De Oude Tufferbaan – classic car ride – children feel like they are driving the cars themselves and even have their own horn.

*The monorail.

Older children, teenagers and thrillseekers

There are plenty of bigger, faster rides for those that want them including the Python roller coaster and the Baron 1898 Dive Coaster. There’s a pirate ship, water rides and more.

Efteling Theme Park Resort information

Food: The cost of food is good and there is a wide variety of choice including a Vietnamese food stand, a Dutch pancake house and restaurants.

There are lots of ice cream stands (good value at around €1.50 for an ice cream) including one where you pick a flavour of whipped ice cream and FIVE toppings which get mixed together, yum!

But it was also great to see fresh fruit and vegetable stalls at a fair price – a punnet of strawberries was 3.45 euros.

We ate an evening meal at Octopus restaurant, before watching the water show at the end of the day. Billed as an ‘underwater’ restaurant (it’s not but it is really quirky, dimly lit with moving animals and play areas), fresh pasta and a drink for children was around 6 euros.

There are also nice picnic spots.

Opening hours: Opens at 10am and closes at 6pm during the week and later at the weekends, depending on the season.

Cost: Tickets are 42 euros. Children aged three and under are free. You can buy a parking ticket in advance for 12.50 euros.

Best for: Aged four and above.

Time needed: At least one full day.

Access and restrictions: Accessibility is very good and most rides have wheelchair entrances to get on rides without a long queue. These are available to all with physical or learning disabilities. You must register at guest services where you are given a card to present to ride attendants showing them, then you wait at the disabled entrance.

There are plenty of toilets around the park and this being Holland, the park is mostly flat and easy to get around.

Address: Efteling Park, Europalaan 1 5171 KW Kaatsheuvel, Netherlands.

Read our full review of this visit to the Netherlands: Deserts, fairytales and glamping – a family trip to Efteling and the Brabant region of Holland.

We stayed at Duinhoeve Holiday Park near Efteling, read our review and tips here: A holiday park in Holland next to the ‘Dutch desert’ – we review Duinhoeve and give our top tips for a family holiday there with children