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Efteling: General Discussion

tayspru said:
I know that the Efteling entrance experience was discussed as being somewhat lacklustre
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I think I disagree with this. The entrance is low-key and understated, but that doesn't make it lacklustre. Nothing wrong with a bit of subtlety. And the House of the Five Senses is lovely and totally unique.

I think I prefer it to the entrances of EP, Disney et al, which are all much of a muchness. Looks like this new proposal will detract from that uniqueness, with little benefit.
 
Benzin said:
The current hotel entrance on the other hand....

That's just terrible.
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There’s a general expectation this will be addressed in the near future. The area around Vogel Rok is being themed to the world of Sinbad, so it would be a fairly easy project to build a new hotel entrance that encompasses that theme. I guess with covid still lingering the money only stretches so far and that’s why it hasn’t been done at the same time as the other improvements to that area. I personally quite enjoyed the weird hotel entrance when I stayed at the Efteling Hotel
 
Efteling have put out a joyous video, for which you can have English subtitles, following redevelopment of Monsieur Cannibale, which re-opens soon with a totally new theme and experience. Credit to Efteling for completing this in just a few months. And I have to say, it looks wonderful. If you can't be bothered to follow the entire thing, then just watch from 7.15 for some testing footage.

 
Alongside the new hotel development, Mr F.T. Ling has announced that Spookslot will be closed for a new attraction also due to open in 2024. Article link here.

In 2024 there will not only be a new hotel, we will also add a completely renewed theme area with an indoor attraction. The renewed theme area with covered attraction will be constructed between the Pardoes Promenade, Baron 1898 and Max & Moritz. The well-known attraction Spookslot from 1978 will make way for this after the summer. The attraction capacity of the Efteling will be considerably expanded with this addition. It is expected that approximately 1,250 visitors per hour will be able to experience the new attraction. More details about the theme area and a possible farewell moment for the Spookslot will follow at a later date.
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investeringen-kaart-2024-blog-650x370.jpg
 
After all the years building up to the expansion and Circus Balance this all feels very bizarre! It's sad to see the whole of Spookslot demolished, but (despite what some Efteling fans seem to think) the park isn't a museum and has to update it's attractions in the same way all other parks do. Hopefully there'll be hints of spookslot in whatever they're building.
My biggest fears are how many trees will be coming down for this, or that it will end up being more of Max and Moritz land!
Rumours has it that this is an Intamin Ultra Tower themed to Pantagor, the evil wizard from the world of Symbolica.
 
Sad news Spookslot was the first attraction I went in when I first visited Efteling.

But yeah it's important the park continues to develop as its not a museum.
(plus I imagine the park probably have an idea of how popular or not attractions are when it comes to deciding things like this)
 
Honestly I thought it was a bit rubbish. Hopefully the replacement is a bit more interesting.
 
Is Spookslot staying open this season? Should be visiting Efteling for the first time in a few months and I would like to experience it before it's demolished!
 
NuttySquirrel said:
Is Spookslot staying open this season? Should be visiting Efteling for the first time in a few months and I would like to experience it before it's demolished!
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The press release implies that it will be demolished after the summer, so as long as you're going before the end of the summer season you should get on it. :)
 
Quetzal said:
Rumours has it that this is an Intamin Ultra Tower themed to Pantagor, the evil wizard from the world of Symbolica.
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With regard to the quoted; if anyone doesn’t know what an Intamin Ultra Tower is, here’s the ride type page on Intamin’s website: https://www.intamin.com/product/ultra-tower/

And a video:


I’ve got to say, I think this would be a great addition; I think the ride concept looks really cool, and I think it would be totally different to anything else at Efteling, from what I can gather!

Out of interest, what was Spookslot?
 
Here is the full article in translated English:

New hotel and renewed theme area in 2024
January 24, 2022 - Sanne | Marketing

In 2024, the Efteling will open an impressive new hotel and a completely renovated theme area with a covered attraction!

Although Efteling is currently closed and it is not yet known when we can open again, we are looking forward to the future. In 2024 we will expand the Efteling with an impressive hotel next to the Main Entrance. Plus, we're adding a completely revamped themed area with an indoor attraction! Work on both additions will start in 2022, the year that Efteling celebrates its 70th anniversary.

Don't stand still but look ahead

“Of course we hope that we can open again soon”, says General Director Fons Jurgens. “Despite the temporary closure, we do not want to stand still and use this period to prepare for the future. Last year the 'World of the Efteling' zoning plan was established, containing frameworks and possibilities for possible expansion beyond the current park boundaries. Nevertheless, we focus first on developments within the amusement park, because this entails fewer financial risks than a much more challenging expansion outside the current park boundaries. These investments for the next two years are also in line with our vision towards 2030, in which we want to guarantee continuity and the preservation of our independence and the quality of the organisation. The decision on this did not happen overnight: investing in this special time remains exciting. But it is also important in these times to look ahead and to ensure that Efteling remains a World Full of Wonders for young and old.”

Impressive new hotel

In 2024, visitors will be able to spend the night in the amusement park for the first time. The new hotel will be the largest hotel within the World of Efteling with 143 rooms, seven floors, two restaurants and a spa. It will be built next to the Main Entrance, the House of the Five Senses.

Renewed theme area with indoor attraction

In 2024 there will not only be a new hotel, we will also add a completely renewed theme area with an indoor attraction. The renewed theme area with covered attraction will be constructed between the Pardoes Promenade, Baron 1898 and Max & Moritz. The well-known attraction Spookslot from 1978 will make way for this after the summer. The attraction capacity of the Efteling will be considerably expanded with this addition. It is expected that approximately 1,250 visitors per hour will be able to experience the new attraction. More details about the theme area and a possible farewell moment for the Spookslot will follow at a later date.

Start work

The closure of the park has been used as an opportunity to carry out preparatory construction work for the new hotel. Underground work will be carried out first in the coming months. The above-ground work is expected to start in the course of this year. Because the new hotel is being built near the Main Entrance, part of the parking lot has been set up as a construction site. Work on the renewed theme area will also start in the course of 2022.
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Matt N said:
Out of interest, what was Spookslot?
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Spookslot is the Park's Haunted Castle, and was the first symbol of them expanding from the fairytale forest. It's a very quaint (very impressive for the time) mechanical show, performed to 'danse macabre'. It's a beautiful piece of the park and is very symbolic in terms of Efteling's history, but by modern standards the attraction is a bit dated.

Other rumour is that the ride is an Intamin 360 Fly Adventure, which looks quite fun!
 
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Matt N said:
Out of interest, what was Spookslot?
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Oops, didn't notice this question 'til Quetzal answered you with the above.

Another item of note regarding Spookslot is, it was Ton Van de Ven's first solo project. Ton was the park's Creative Director between 1975 and 2002 and successor to Anton Pieck, whose fairy tale style is seen around and is synonymous with the park aesthetic. Ton was also responsible for Fata Morgana, Dreamflight and Villa Volta.

The scale and ambition of Spookslot for its time is very impressive, rather like a successor to The Indian Waterlilies show where animatronic and effects stuff happens as you stand for a period of time. And there is a story to it, albeit not one written by Ton Van de Ven, which doesn't make a lot of sense and doesn't help much in terms of engagement.

Long, long ago, when the Meuse still reached the foot of this fortress in times of storm and high water, the fourth viscount of Capelle van Kaatsheuvel lived in this castle. He collected fairy tales and sagas from all over the world and worked magic. He could make flowers sing and walls dance.

There was only one plague in his life: the evil witch Visculamia. He lived under lock and key in nearby Druinen. She wanted to take his fairy tales away from him.

One bad day, when the witch had disguised herself as a young virgin on a rampage, she was caught by the gardener of Castle De Efteling. She was sentenced to be burned at the stake in the east wing of the castle by the three judges of the duchy.

At last she pronounced a curse, in which the viscount was forever doomed to search for his last fairy tale: his daughter Esmeralda.

And every time the water of the Meuse rises again, the enchanted crow of Visculamia strikes the clock at twelve o'clock. Then the corpse of the gardener who betrayed her dangles again from the bell cord. The judges who condemned her lament from the attic window and into the catacombs, the count rushes after his daughter, never finding her.

As the flowers sing and the walls dance, the witch hurls her curses into the sarcophagus where the count's remains are imprisoned. His daughter finds no rest on the south hill of the palace square, and she will be for years to come... until the song of the flowers makes the owls close their eyes, has lulled the evil crow to sleep and the curse is broken.

Plus, as gothic and mysterious as Spookslot is and as much as I appreciate it's part of the park's historical institution, I will admit that even I'm bored after a minute and want to leave. The only aspect I will miss is my imagining Kate Bush climbing out of the tomb and warbling Wuthering Heights amongst gravestones IN the attraction itself, as per her 1978 special.

 
I just remember coming out and spending the next few hours working out where I had heard the music before.

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Seems they will keep the same kind of theme/atmosphere with the new attraction and keep the music. The project code name is Danse Macabre.
Efteling fans need not fear that all elements of the Spookslot will be lost. The new attraction that will replace the haunted castle will have a similar theme and the same legendary music. Looopings is the first to report this after discussions with insiders. The working name of the project is Danse Macabre.

The Efteling once again opts for an eerie appearance, in which the well-known soundtrack of the Spookslot will play a very important role. The ghost show has been graced since its opening in 1978 by the famous Danse Macabre by the French composer Camille Saint-Saëns.

A performance by the Philharmonia Orchestra from London is currently playing in the Efteling, recorded in 1980 in The Kingsway Hall. The iconic melody also appears in all available versions of the water show Aquanura: De Eerste Efteling Symphony (2012), Tiësto-Aquanura (2014) and Aquanura with a Soft G (2020).

Danse Macabre is the provisional title of the attraction that will replace the Spookslot. Internally, there is therefore talk of PDM: Project Danse Macabre. Whether the new attraction will actually be called that, remains to be seen.

The Efteling itself has only announced that the Spookslot will disappear. This immediately led to angry and disappointed reactions from Efteling fans, which were widely reported in the regional and national media. A petition against the decision has been signed thousands of times in a short period of time.

Despite the commotion, Efteling chooses to keep its teeth tight on the Danse Macabre project. A spokesperson informs Looopings that more information will only be released about the replacement of the Haunted Castle at a later date. "We ask everyone to be patient for a while."
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https://www.looopings.nl/weblog/187...-attractie-heeft-werktitel-Danse-Macabre.html
 
It's all happening at Efteling right now - the park have recently shared a video of the rethemed Mack tea cups, now called Sirocco:



Unfortunately for fans of extreme spinning it looks like the new vehicles are still very bulky which probably means they'll be extremely hard to get going.
 
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