Kaatsheuvel, The Netherlands,
19
March
2018
|
10:00
Europe/Amsterdam

Efteling achieves 2020 target two years early, registering 5.18 million visitors in 2017

In 2017, Efteling – the fairytale theme park in the south of Holland – welcomed over five million visitors, achieving a significant milestone of its vision for 2020. The theme park welcomed 5.18 million visitors in 2017, representing an 8.9% increase compared to 2016 when 4.76 million guests visited the park. 

 

This increase has been driven by significant investments made in the park in 2017 including the launch of the new family dark ride Symbolica and the opening of its third accommodation offering, Holiday Village Efteling Loonsche Land.

Fons Jurgens, President and CEO, comments:

"Since 2014, Efteling has had a clear vision for 2020: to become an international destination welcoming five million visitors per year. We have achieved this milestone earlier than expected. The investments made in the last year, such as the new family attraction Symbolica and overnight accommodation, have started to show results. In 2018, we will continue to work towards increasing the appreciation and satisfaction of our guests, in order to continue encouraging those five million guests to visit our park again. That is our new objective!”

UK visitors and overnight guests increase
In 2017, UK visitors were up by 26.2% compared to the previous year, while Belgium, Germany and France also represented a significant proportion of Efteling’s international market. Efteling has seen visitor numbers more evenly distributed throughout the year, due in part to a 25% increase in overnight guests at Efteling in 2017 compared to 2016. This is also attributed to the extension of the annual Summer Festival, which takes place in July and August, to include Fridays as well as Saturdays when the park stays open until 11pm.

Efteling plans steady growth towards 2020
Efteling aims to grow towards 2020 in phases. The second phase was completed in 2017 with the arrival of the new Symbolica dark ride and the opening of Holiday Village Efteling Loonsche Land, and the third phase will be completed by 2020 with the opening of a new attraction as part of plans to expand the park by eight hectares.