A magical weekend trip from Amsterdam to Efteling
aka "Dutch Disneyland"
I really don’t mean to keep letting Seth Meyers be the driving force behind my decision-making, and yet the facts remain:
It was kind of his fault that I moved to the Netherlands in the first place
It was definitely his fault that a visit to Efteling was at the top of my bucket list for weekend trips from Amsterdam
See, just a month or two after I moved to Amsterdam, Seth had his former Boom Chicago alum Jordan Peele on his show, and the two reminisced about the crazy times they had at Dutch theme park Efteling during their time performing improv comedy in Amsterdam.
I’ve always loved amusement parks. Growing up, I could literally see Hershey Park from my house, and my grandparents gave my brother and I season passes for Christmas each year so we could spend the bulk of our summer days riding rollercoasters.
I’ve also (to no one’s surprise) always been a nerd. I used to coordinate school field trips to the Pennsylvania Rennaissance Faire for my classmates and I each fall under the guise of its relevance to our literature courses. I arrived for these trips in period-appropriate costumes. I ate giant turkey legs and drank apple cider from steins and cheered on Shakespearean performers.
All this to say: The idea of this combination theme park/fairytale forest rife with Dutch folklore that Seth and Jordan were talking about? It sounded right up my alley.
It was settled. From Amsterdam to Efteling we’d go.
Here’s exactly how we enjoyed a perfect weekend trip from Amsterdam to Efteling, aka “Dutch Disneyland,” and had a magical time from start to finish.
How to get from Amsterdam to Efteling by public transit
Efteling is only an hour and fifteen minutes from Amsterdam by car… but like many Amsterdammers, our primary modes of transportation are public, bicycle, and on foot, so we made our way there by bus and train.
From Amsterdam Centraal Station, we:
departed on the NS Intercity train toward Maastricht
got off at the 's-Hertogenbosch rail stop
Then we walked ~3 minutes to the 's-Hertogenbosch Centraal Station bus stop, where we:
departed on the Arriva Bus 300 toward Tilburg via Waalwijk/Efteling
got off at the Efteling bus stop
All told, traveling from Amsterdam Centraal to Efteling took us a total of about two hours. Then came the final leg of our journey: a ~15-minute walk to Efteling Loonsche Land, where we stayed for the weekend.
The return journey to get from Efteling back to Amsterdam was the same in reverse, naturally. We walked ~15 minutes from Loonsche Land back to the Efteling bus stop, where we:
departed on the Arriva Bus 301 toward Den Bosch via Waalwijk
got off at the 's-Hertogenbosch Centraal Station bus stop
Then we walked about ~3 minutes to the Station 's-Hertogenbosch train station, where we:
departed on the NS Intercity train toward Enkhuizen
got off at the Amsterdam Centraal Station train stop
We were able to use our usual OV Chipkaart to tap on and off of each bus and train I mentioned above without any issue—but if you don’t have an OV Chipkaart, you can easily plan your route and pay online through NS and Arriva respectively using the links above. It’s simple, I promise.
Staying on property at Efteling Loonsche Land
When we looked into the options for on-property accommodations, we knew right away that we wanted to stay in one of the cozy little holiday houses in Loonsche Land. We picked a quiet lakeside location with easy access to the surrounding 123 acres of dense forests, open fields of heather, and sandy dunes.
We felt like kids again as we wandered through the holiday village, oohing and ahhing at the animal enclosure and climbing across mini obstacle courses before heading to the nearby Loonsche Land Hotel for a few special-edition Efteling biertjes.
We were instructed to download the Efteling app, which we used to check in and out of our room and to make dinner reservations at the on-site De Proeftuyn Restaurant. Well, we used it to make dinner reservations on Friday, at least. By the time we were done exploring the park on Saturday, we were exhausted, so we used the app to order pizza delivery right to our gezellig little door instead.
Despite the additional expense, I’m so glad we decided to stay on property for the whole weekend instead of packing travel-time and park-time into one day. As neurodivergent travelers, having a chance to unwind in these accommodations both before and after our longest day at the park—instead of having to hop right back on a bus, then a train for two hours to get back to Amsterdam—made our already excellent Efteling experience even better.
Our favorite parts of exploring Efteling
It would be annoying for me to say “everything,” right? I mean, the design of the park! The music! The rides! The food and drink options! The folklore that’s woven into every experience! All of it!!! So yes, fine, I’ll give some specifics… But just know that my honest answer is genuinely closer to everything.
Our adventure began with Joris en de Draak, a thrilling wooden coaster that pits riders against each other in a dragon duel—definitely a favorite for everyone in our group. We couldn't get enough of the Baron 1898, a heart-pounding dive coaster with a vertical drop that we loved so much, we braved the line to ride it twice. The Python steel coaster offered classic looping thrills, while the indoor Vogel Rok coaster had us laughing uncontrollably in the dark. I even have the unattractive, double-chinned ride photos to prove it (see above).
On the food front, our favorite treats were some big-ass soft pretzels paired with cold German beers at Frau Boltes Küche—a perfect way to recharge between rides.
Exploring the Fairytale Forest was like stepping into a storybook. It was so cool seeing classic tales come to life, like The Little Mermaid, Rapunzel, and Little Red Riding Hood, among plenty of others. The charming Fairytale Tree narrated stories to visitors perched on seats shaped like tiny toadstools, and the all-seeing Long Neck kept an eye on everyone from above the treetops.
We were all also totally captivated by Symbolica, a dark ride that was as immersive as it was surreal—a truly trippy feast for the senses. Think: the Small World ride, but on shrooms. For a more classic amusement park experience, the Halve Maen swinging ship delivered that timeless rush (I always loved the pirate ship ride at Hershey Park, too). We wrapped up our day with the serene Pagode, a Thai temple-style attraction that gently lifted us up into the sky and spun around slowly to offer breathtaking panoramic views of the park.
But what really set Efteling apart is the park’s atmosphere. Every corner is meticulously themed, from the whimsical architecture of old-world Dutch buildings to the intricate sculptures and carvings that adorn each attraction. Lantern-lit walkways, lush forests, and cobblestone paths guide you through magical realms, with beautiful flower beds and water features adding to the serene and dreamy ambiance. Traditional songs playing from musical mushrooms and even talking trash cans all contribute to a sense of magic that lingers long after you leave.
Efteling is one of those unique places where you can truly lose yourself in the enchantment, and I can’t wait to go back.
What other theme parks do I need to visit in Europe?
Clearly I was a huge fan of this one in the Netherlands, so what other amusement parks and attractions can I travel to from Amsterdam to elicit the same sort of thrills and enchantment? Let me know in the comments so I can add them to my bucket list—and be sure to add Efteling to yours!