Efteling

[Sam]

Just got back from Efteling yesterday! I have a few thoughts, queries and comments.

Firstly, what the hell is going on with Joris? It was only on one train per side yesterday, despite the queue being 40 minutes. When we finally got on, we saw no sign of the other two trains in the maintenance shed at all. Where are they?! Poor show Efteling, poor show. Until you understand that stuff like this is important, you will never become a rival to DLP or Europa.

We also (accidentally!) saw Aquanura testing in person from our car, when we were driving round the Efteling entrance late at night trying to find the road to Bosrijk. It looked even more spectacular in person. I can see exactly what the residents mean about the northern lights. During that evening, an incredibly strong blue glow was rising into the sky from Efteling. If you didn't know about Aquanura, you'd think it was the second coming of Christ. Corine, I hear it's going to be streamed live on Dutch TV, do you know if there's anyway we could access an internet stream of that?

We eat at Polle's Keuken after park close yesterday. The restaurant itself is absolutely gorgeous, incredible, and bursting with magic. If all future additions are going to be done to this quality, Efteling are going to leapfrog every other park in Europe in terms of theming. It's a magical magical place. BUT. The price. Over €10 for one medium sized ham and cheese pancake? I was expecting about 10 for that price! I do not recommend anyone eat here (just go in and look) as it's by far and away the biggest food rip-off in any theme park I've ever been in.

Next gripe: Raveleijn. The arena itself, is eye-watering. It's insane. It'll be used for amazing things in the park for years to come. But I'm sorry, the show was awful. Yes, the eight-headed fire breathing dragon was awesome. But the show was about as bad as a show with that many incredible effects can be. I know it was in Dutch, but what was happening on the stage didn't make any sense, and even the Dutch people barely applauded at the end. When the dragon wasn't doing something, it was beyond tedious. This needs fixing drastically.

Sorry, I know this all sounds like gripes, but I love the park. I still love Fata Morgana and Dreamflight, and I think Raveleijn and Polle's are both absolutely beautiful places, and promise great things from the park in future. What I love about the park compared to Europa who have consistently been great, is that their additions have constantly increased in quality since opening. From the unthemed Bob and Python, towards Fata Morgana and Dreamflight, and then the absolutely lavish DVH and Raveleijn. Hopefully the theming will continue to improve, and crap like Python will be removed ASAP. Corine, any update on Hartenhof? I really really hope they scrap the Pandora's Box idea and just go for a car on a track. Make the ride system as dull as possible, and spend the money on making what you see FROM the ride system incredible. A good dark ride system should get out the way.

[CorineC]

Well, the two other trains of Joris are in maintenance. I believe they will return within a couple of weeks from now, those are the downsides to a 365/year opening It's either now or in a more busy period. I think they will change maintenance time to February/March next year, but this year they had the new Python trains.

The live airing on Dutch tv of the opening of Aquanura is a strong rumor, but pretty reliable. It will probably air on RTL, which is like the Dutch ITV/Channel 4 (the most important and common Dutch commercial channel). I think you can only access it from a Dutch IP address, but maybe there are ways to bypass that, but don't ask me how. They don't stream live tv, but it should be made available briefly after airing on www.rtlxl.nl (maybe you can check if you can access these videos from your computer). I wouldn't put too much effort in it though, it will probably be copied to youtube soon enough.

Moving further down your list Well, the prices of Polle's Keuken. To be honest, these are in line with other Dutch pancake restaurants and are considered to be reasonable on Dutch fora. I presume then that it is more a difference between England/Netherlands.

Next up, Raveleijn, I share your thoughts. I recently posted my opinion on this second season of Raveleijn on a Dutch website, concluding that it is still far from satisfactory. I don't think that it is going to improve over the next year. The author of the book Raveleijn is apparently already working on its sequel. The show is intended to stay on for three seasons and I think they will keep it that way. The new show would involve some arena refurbishments as well. The only upside is that Efteling is far from happy with the current show as well, but there are, I think, three reasons for not changing it already.

1) It would involve admitting making a very bad mistake.
2) Other projects. Apart from the park, there are like a gazillion Efteling projects in the pipeline. You must understand that within a couple of years, they not only build new rides, but completely overhauled the merchandising department, refurbished almost every restaurant existing in the park. And, outside the park business, built Bosrijk, refurbished the hotel, made tons of new tv series, set-up new IPs, overhauled the entire food & beverages dept, refurbished many business events venues and made an extreme effort to produce the musical Dreamflight, which ended yesterday and will probably be sold to Germany. In sum, there is just too much other stuff going on at the moment. While Raveleijn may not be the best show ever made and not up to Efteling standards, it is not considered to be below average by guests, making it less of a priority.
3) Connected to the second one, Aquanura is the new addition for this year. Raveleijn can then less be marketed as a new show or at least, there is less of a point of marketing a new Raveleijn.

Sorry, no news on Hartenhof. I do have a new link to an Aquanura test, of course with a spoiler warning...





From watching these videos - mark my words - you may find it controversial, but this is going to attract more visitors than any coaster will ever do.

And the new (Dutch) Efteling commercial:





Hopefully you had a nice time at Efteling, despite the bad weather...

[Sam]

Thanks for all that Corine!

I did have a lovely time at Efteling, despite my list of complaints. Everything else was fine. I really love Efteling, it has an amazing sense of magic for me.

Oh yeah, and I got my first ride on DVH after it being closed last time I visited! The queue and station are absolutely beautiful, so unreal. The dark ride section is great, and the coaster section is utter balls, exactly what I was expecting really.

The new trains on Python are a big improvement on the KumbaK trains. Still, the ride layout is pants. Just get rid of it Efteling and build something decent! You can't hang on to the past forever, especially when the past is rubbish!

I bought a documentary about the making of Joris in the gift shop. Have you seen it Corine? I'm going to watch it tonight I think.

edit: I agree with Aquanura attracting more visitors than most coaster ever could, at least any of the coasters at Efteling. Only a Disney-scale coaster could really match this. I can't wait to see the videos.

[maneatingmonstrosity]

Hey Sam. Interesting report/views - I agree with a lot of it. I'm interested in your thoughts on Villa Volta and Spookslot. Not being Dutch, what did you make of Villa Volta in particular? It's probably my second favourite theme park ride in the world after Fata Morgana, but I wonder how it translates when the pre-show sections are not understandable. The terrible English translation in the queue line probably does more harm than good I reckon.

Also, did you enjoy het Sprookjesbos (the Fairy Tale Forest)?

[AstroDan]

Villa Volta could well be the most overrated theme park attraction I have ever been on.

Seriously, why does it get such lavish praise? It's by no means bad but the way people talk of it suggests it is above and beyond (by a mile) any other mad house.

Sent from my HTC Desire HD A9191 using Tapatalk

[maneatingmonstrosity]

Well, I can only speak for myself, but for me it's mainly the combination of it having one of the most plausible theme park ride stories I know (as in, there's actually a reason that you're entering the house/going on the ride, and why the ride continues to run after you've left it), the fantastic Ruud Bos score and the attention to detail in the decorations of the main chamber. I love Hex, but I reckon the mad house illusion is much more convincing with all of the little things that make Hugo's living room seem real; the suit of armour, stuffed animals etc, which I find Hex lacks. (I find myself comparing to Hex because I have sadly not been on any other mad houses yet.)

Have you seen the Hugo animatronic since they changed his mask? It's the most beautiful animatronic I've ever seen, making the preshow even better.

In summation, I think I love it for the same reason I love most of the Efteling; the atmosphere. A vague term to be sure, but the cohesive immersion is just so great.

Having said all that, I am Dutch, and I first went on the ride when it was opened and I was only 11 years old. I am therefore clearly biased in my love for it, so I can understand your opinion. That was part of the reason I was asking Sam what he thought of it; I'd love to know more about what non-Dutch guests think of the Efteling.

[John]

For me, Villa Volta is a solid if unspectacular mad house.  As a non Dutch speaker, the story was lost on me (I didn't have time to read the English version in the queue as it was walk-on).  As a result, the pre shows aren't really of any interest, though the Hugo animatronic is impressive. 

As for the ride itself, the room seems fairly basic compared with other mad houses, though the mirrors and vases are a great touch.  There was apparently meant to be an under-floor effect which wasn't working, which might have added something to the experience.  My favourite aspect of the ride is the soundtrack and how well it fits the motion of the ride.  I particularly liked the way it took so long to do a complete rotation, which combined with the music made for a far more dramatic experience.  Overall though, I wouldn't say it was leagues ahead of all the other mad houses out there, and I prefer both Hex and Défi de César.

[Mattmash]

I must admit, I also found Villa Volta to be massively overrated.  The main chamber is beautiful but as you adhere to, not being able to understand the pre-shows was a massive problem.  We seriously didn't have any idea what was going on, and since they seem to last a long while too, it dampened the whole experience somewhat.  I would love to do an English version of it, I'm sure it would vastly improve my thoughts on it. 

I absolutely adore the music though, it's a great piece, although not quite as epic as DVH's! (in fact I love a LOT of efteling music, something I think they do better than the rest!)  

[maneatingmonstrosity]

Cool. I'm really looking forward to going on some other mad houses myself.

The story of Villa Volta is such a big part of why I love it that I can really understand why others would not. I might sit down and try to write a good translation of it if I've got time.

And yeah, Efteling music is usually of a really high standard, although I do prefer the Ruud Bos pieces to the newer Rene Merkelbach work (although he is great too). The Fata Morgana suite rivals any of the great film scores out there in my opinion.

On a somewhat related note...

http://pyramid-head.bandcamp.com/track/room-two

[Sam]

Hi maneatingmonstrosity!

Just to be clear, I've been to Efteling before (in 2010), this wasn't my first visit (though it was my first rides on DVH and Spookslot).

To be honest, I thought Spookslot was absolute rubbish. It's hilariously awful. Firstly, the nearly pitch-black waiting area is both somehow alarming and scary to be in (just because of how dangerous it feels), yet somehow also boring. The "show" itself is laughable. Which is a shame, as the Dance Macabre is a wonderful piece of music. I was expecting animatronics and stuff, not just gravestones wobbling from side to side! Thoroughly bored, it was a nomination for my Golden Bulldozer award of the trip. Clearing out that and PandaDream would leave a huge space for development in the park.

I love Villa Volta, and I don't think it is overrated as everyone else says. I agree that the ride score is amazing, and it sends shivers down my back when it plays in the vault. The vault itself is decorated so well (nice to see a madhouse that doesn't go for a dingy dungeon décor in the vault!) and the tipping vases are such a cool touch. It's a shame the pre-shows are tedious if you don't speak Dutch, but oh well. A translation would be awesome if you could provide one! Usually I'd prefer Hex, but I prefer Villa Volta at the moment given the poor state of Hex.

[CorineC]

I always have the impression that it is mainly due to the language issue that Villa Volta is sometimes regarded as being overrated by non-Dutch speaking persons.

While genuinely wishing maneatingmonstrosity good luck with a translation, I think it's extremely hard to translate it well. The whole story is packed with dialect and archaic words and phrases, and on top of that, it contains many proverbs and sayings.

In general, the story goes like this. In the first room, you hear villagers talking about a gang of robbers who terrorised the region surrounding Efteling several centuries ago. These were a group of men, who were verocious looters, called the 'Goatriders', sitting on goats and who were able to enter locked doors as the myth goes. (It is actually a well known myth within the Netherlands.) The Goatriders found their doom in a battle high up in the skies above the Abbey of Postel, as the myth further explains.

After some general remarks on this gang of robbers by the villagers, the story takes the turn of focusing on Hugo, as the ring leader of the Goatriders. You hear them discussing on how bad he has always been as a child and that it was just a matter of time before he would walk off the religious path and turn into this satanic robber as he is guessed to be.

Then you enter the doors where you stand in front of Hugo. He tells you about their quest to rob the Abbey of Postel and he also tells you that, during their robbing of the chapel, a white lady appeared out of thin air. This lady spoke to him (it is the woman standing on top of the Villa):

"You, Hugo van den Loonsche Duynen, ye profane this house here. So repent, and seek not the Lord's wrath upon you ...." (Google translation)

He did not listen and continued looting the chapel. When he returned home, the woman was standing on top of his house and she cursed him:

"Nowhere in your own home nor anywhere in the world, ye shall find rest or peace, now that you have violated God's house ... only then, when a noble man with the clean conscience of a newborn child, will enter your house, you shall find peace in your home and in your heart ..." (Google translation)

And on that note, you enter the vault and that is also why the curse will never be lifted

[AstroDan]

Regardless of the story, and brilliant music, I have seen better queuelines and more dynamic pre shows.

Sent from my HTC Desire HD A9191 using Tapatalk

[jeroen_twee]

Villa Volta isnt what it used to be anymore. The music and the ridemovements are made for eachother, but they arent synchronised anymore.

Spookslot is the first real 'ride' outside the Fairytale Forrest. It's a show, and very good for its time. Now Spookslot looks a little outdated, but because of the history of Spookslot and Efteling, it is still an important ride for the park.

[CorineC]

Efteling released some new Aquanura stuff:

The trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1X7eitSepc8&feature=player_embedded

It's a mixture of the teaser and some shots of Aquanura's testing. Personally, I don't think much of the trailer. I liked the teaser, but the 'jump' in the music of the trailer is really strange.

They also released some pictures of testing:


Fog machines testing





Apparently, the water level is going to rise, so that you don't see the fountains anymore.

Corine, I hear it's going to be streamed live on Dutch TV, do you know if there's anyway we could access an internet stream of that?

Forget all the bypasses to access Dutch tv, Efteling is also going to offer it live on youtube via: http://youtube.com/efteling

[AstroDan]

I just love the sheer class which oozes out of the promotion for this new attraction. Everything about it is just so high end quality and isn't some shallow attempt at appealing to people. Love the use of classical music and the way the show seems to have an almost timeless feel.

Really, really looking forward to this and cannot wait to see it for real.

[BigAl]

I'd love to see a show that's even half as good as this at Alton Towers. Imagine if they could use the lake in front of the Towers for such an attraction? They could have short displays every day and big displays at special events and in the evenings at the later dates of the season. If Merlin aren't prepared to bring in entertainment on the scale of the ice shows because it may not prove to be popular enough, water fountains at the front of the Towers would be something they can use whenever they want and people can come and go as they please. We know Alton Towers used to have the fountain show at the Talbot Street theatre, so they've got experience with this sort of thing already.

Anyway, I'd love to be able to go to Efteling and see Aquanura because it looks so, so magical!

[Vegitabeta]

I totally agree that it would be nice to see something of the sort done with the lake at AT, as it seems perfect for that kind of thing.  Can't wait to see Aquanura, hopefully sooner rather than late!

[Sam]

Efteling have a new website. It's roughly ten billion times better than their old website.

http://www.efteling.co.uk/

Also hilarious new dicking around in this video. Dutch people are so cute.

[CorineC]

Dutch people are so cute.

Uh, thanks, I guess...

Yes, the new homepage is the first step of the entire operation 'new website', although the webshop has also been restyled into this new 'corporate image'.

The Youtube video is part of some new venture. Up until the opening of Aquanura, a new video will be posted every day. After the opening of Aquanura, content will be added on a weekly basis. According to the press release:

'Through this new partnership between Efteling and YouTube, Efteling will position itself as a supplier of quality content. The Efteling YouTube channel will be an 'experience portal', on which, on a weekly basis, current information on Efteling will be provided through an interactive format.' (own translation).

I'm curious how this is going to work out though...

According to the sign the presenter holds at the end of the video, the premiere of Aquanura will start at 22:00 PM on youtube.com/efteling, so that should be 21:00 for the UK on the 31 May. I'm guessing that that is the starting time for the Aquanura show, but there is a one hour 'pre-show-show' beforehand, celebrating 60 years of Efteling. I wonder if they are going to broadcast that as well through Youtube... I'll try to keep you informed on that (Edit: Never mind, the pre-pre show is also going to be broadcasted through YouTube according to the Dutch press release which just came in. The whole broadcast will be approximately one hour.

It's all part of this whole marketing/pr operation which has taken on some pretty large proportions. Efteling and change are not close friends. There was a time in the nineties when Efteling was one of the first companies in the Netherlands which had its own website. Then things started going down. With the new CEO (who as one of its first actions fired the marketing manager  who held that position for years up until then) (he is now the Dutch marketing manager of Europa Park), the company is now turning around (slowly). Since a couple of months (!), Efteling has a FB page and, also since recently, they actually actively engage with people on Twitter. They now have targeted campaigns for Belgium and Germany (the UK is regarded as difficult because of the long distance, the strong connection between British consumers and Disney and the low name-recognition of Efteling; just not being worth the investment at the moment). In addition, they have their own page on Netherlands' most favorite news web site and so on, so on...

[CorineC]

Today is the big day 

60 Years of Efteling!

Today marks the day of the publication of Efteling's Jubilee book 'Are we there yet' (also available in English):

https://www.efteling.com/webshop/p-8603-boek-engels-zijn-we-dr-al.aspx

Yesterday, the new exposition of 60 Years Efteling opened at Efteling museum:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GYCpuylZB4

'Eftelingfan' photographed the final preparations for tonight's premiere of Aquanura:








A nighttime shot of testing Aquanura:



According to the tv-schedule of the television station broadcasting Aquanura, the complete 60 years Anniversary show + Aquanura takes about 90 minutes.