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Europa-park

Europa-Park is a leading European theme park, based in Rust, Germany. The site is located west of the Black Forest Mountain Range and can be found close to the French and Swiss borders.

Europa-Park first opened in 1975, following Franz and Roland Mack‘s idea to develop a family theme park that could act as a showroom for potential clients of the family’s rides manufactured in Waldkirch, Germany.

The park is therefore predominantly home to a high proportion of attractions manufactured by MACK Rides and is owned by the Mack Family.

The site selected for the park is home to centuries-old castle gardens, close to a traditional fishing village which proved supportive of the newly introduced tourism to the area. 250,000 visitors visited Europa-Park in the first year alone, with the one million season mark being attained three years later.

The first themed area, Italy, opened in 1982, in collaboration with designer and architect Ulrich Damrau. Other countries including Holland, England, France, and Scandinavia followed in the next decade. By 1991, two million guests visited each year.

In 1995, Europa-Park began its transition into a resort with the addition of its first on-site hotel, El Andaluz, which had an 87% occupancy rate in its debut year. Castillo Alcazar followed in 1999.

In 2009 Europa-Park utilised a 15-hectare expansion to install blue fire Megacoaster.

Roland Mack was previously appointed IAAPA president in 2011. Michael Mack has been CEO of Europa-Park in Germany since 2006 and is part of the eighth generation of the Mack family to make a living in the amusement industry.

In 2018, the park experienced an unprecedented fire which severely damaged the Scandinavia and Holland areas of the park. A major dark ride, Pirates in Bavaria, has since been rebuilt and renovated with new animatronics and a soundtrack.

In 2019, Europa-Park’s second gate, Rulantica water world, opened to the public, with 25 water attractions including 17 slides, over a 32,600 square metre venue.

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