A new waterpark, themed lands and a Smurfs dark rides are all in the works for Holiday Park in Germany, with its owner Plopsa announcing a five-year, €80m investment in the regional attraction

Tom Anstey | Planet Attractions | 20 Mar 2024

A Smurfs-themed dark ride is among the attractions in the work for Holiday Park Credit: Plopsa
Plopsa - the theme park division of Belgian production company Studio 100 - has announced plans to invest €80m (US$86.8m, £68.3m) in Germany’s Holiday Park, unveiling a five-year masterplan for the popular attraction.
Owned and operated by Plopsa, Holiday Park is one of Germany’s most visited theme parks, regularly welcoming more than 660,000 visitors each year.
Following the significant spending through the newly-announced masterplan, the attraction will gain a new waterpark, which will represent half of the investment, while the other half will go towards the development of new themed areas and attractions in the park, as well as investment into the current infrastructure.
Among the new additions, by Spring 2025 a new Smurfs-themed dark ride will make its debut as an extensive redesign of the existing Falkenstein Castle ride, while a themed area by the park’s pond will also be developed.
According to the company, a “spectacular attraction” themed on the Tomorrowland electronic music festival will debut in 2026, with the attraction targeting a teenage audience. In July 2021, Plopsaland De Panne teamed up with Tomorrowland on The Ride To Happiness - a first-of-its-kind spinning coaster by Mack celebrating the event.
Finally, the Plopsaqua waterpark development is an “ultra-modern waterpark” with themed adventure pools, water slides, sports pools and play elements for children. The €40m (US$43.4m, £34.1m) investment is being built at the location of the Haßloch bathing park.
The investment announcement follows a €10m investment in 2018 and a further €25m investment in 2019 as the park aims to become a multi-day destination with more than one million visitors per year. According to Plopsa management, this latest funding aims to draw visitors from outside the region to visit Holiday Park.
“We are investing in the future to create an even better guest experience,” said Carl Lenaerts, CEO of Plopsa. “A lot can be achieved with 80 million euros.”
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