After managing to find cheap flights at convenient times my friend and I had booked a last minute trip to Stockholm to visit Gröna Lund and take in some of the sights in Stockholm and also getting to stay at the amazing Jumbo Hostel at Arlanda Airport.
Due to the cheaper flights we had to connect through Stansted but were able to fly back directly to Dublin. After getting the airport bus from Skavsta Airport to Stockholm centre we caught one of the local buses which dropped us off right outside Gröna Lund.
The park was very busy on the day due probably due to the fact that the weather was beautiful, it was the second last day of the season and there was a concert happening in the park throughout the day. Again like Liseberg and Tivoli Copenhagen people visit the park more for a day out rather than going especially just for the rides, so while the park appeared very busy the waiting times for the rides weren’t too bad.
A typical early start from Ryanair, this was taken just after leaving Stansted.
Welcome to Gröna Lund.
The park is very compact with the children’s area on one side and the larger attractions on the other side of the park.
First up was Kvasten the Vekoma family coaster.
Why can't they make their SLC's this smooth. It was a very good ride and nice themed to a haunted house.
Heading towards the brake run.
Next up was Vilda Musen the Gerstlauer Bobsled coaster. The queue was pretty long due to the slow throughput.
But it was certainly worth the wait with some great views and an intense compact ride.
The layout works it’s way around Jetline so the whole area appears to be a mass of tracks and supports with both coasters.
Just before entering the station area.
As Jetline hadn’t opened yet and we didn’t want to join the long queue for Insane just yet, we opted for Lustiga Huset the parks funhouse.
I was totally blown away by how good it was and how long it went on for. It felt like it was never going to end. There were so many things to try and pass through.
And then right at the end there was a cool matt slide at the exit of the funhouse.
Kattingflygaren the flying chair swings beside the water.
You get a nice view of the waterfront area once the swings are up and running.
Next up was Jetline which finally opened and the ride station was themed to an old style diner.
It was definitely my favourite ride from the park. I really love these classic Schwarzkopf coasters and fair play to the parks which keep them up and running.
It had a very similar layout to Knightmare at Camelot, great first drop and very intense throughout the turns.
Just incase you forget what country you are in.
New for 2009 was Insane or if you want to give the sponsor a plug, its the Tele2 Insane. The Intamin Zac Spin coaster.
I wasn’t really looking forward to it that much as I didn’t think much of the smaller model from Helsinki I did a few months back.
Once again it was pretty intense and too much spinning for my liking. Also the addition of the braking area half way throughout the ride when the train completely stops, kind of ruins the flow.
Again it’s a good addition to any park with limited room and it was certainly popular judging by the large queue on the day.
Daim <3. It seems to be a big thing in Scandinavia to win a huge bar of chocolate. I still don’t know how to play those games where you can win them. Although I’d be screwed trying to fit that into my Ryanair carry on luggage.
Over on the other side of the park the main attractions were Lyktan, the kiddie freefall ride.
And Nyckelpigan, the junior roller coaster.
They also hold concerts during the summer on the large stage area in the middle of the park.
I didn’t recognise the singer and he was mostly doing cover versions but he was attracting a larger crowd as the day went on.
Fritt Fall used to be the parks observation tower but was converted into a free fall tower.
Unfortunately I gave it a miss but you could either choose to ride it on a tilt or standard setting.
The only probably I had with Gröna Lund was when trying to get some food. The selection was okay and the prices weren’t too high especially for a park but having to queue for about 30 minutes just to get a hotdog and coke was a bit too much. They either didn’t have enough staff or they were too slow. We ended up having to go back over to the children’s area as the queues were shorter.
So after getting everything done first time around it was time for some re-rides before heading back to the city centre.
Jetline just about to pass through the tunnel section at the bottom of the drop.
Whilst wandering around Stockholm centre the next day we found an area across the river from Gröna Lund where you catch some nice views of the park.
Insane.
Kattingflygaren the flying chair swings.
You could also take a short hop over on the boat which connects you the area right next door to the park. It saves on having to go the long way around.
A close up of the awesome Jetline.
Overall I really enjoyed Gröna Lund. Its in such a great setting and Stockholm is such a beautiful city. Even though the park was very busy you could still get most things done as the queues moved quite quickly. The only problem was when it came to having to queue for food which took an awfully long time.
Finally our rather strange accommodation for the night was the Jumbo Hostel at Arlanda Airport.
Due to the cheaper flights we had to connect through Stansted but were able to fly back directly to Dublin. After getting the airport bus from Skavsta Airport to Stockholm centre we caught one of the local buses which dropped us off right outside Gröna Lund.
The park was very busy on the day due probably due to the fact that the weather was beautiful, it was the second last day of the season and there was a concert happening in the park throughout the day. Again like Liseberg and Tivoli Copenhagen people visit the park more for a day out rather than going especially just for the rides, so while the park appeared very busy the waiting times for the rides weren’t too bad.
A typical early start from Ryanair, this was taken just after leaving Stansted.
Welcome to Gröna Lund.
The park is very compact with the children’s area on one side and the larger attractions on the other side of the park.
First up was Kvasten the Vekoma family coaster.
Why can't they make their SLC's this smooth. It was a very good ride and nice themed to a haunted house.
Heading towards the brake run.
Next up was Vilda Musen the Gerstlauer Bobsled coaster. The queue was pretty long due to the slow throughput.
But it was certainly worth the wait with some great views and an intense compact ride.
The layout works it’s way around Jetline so the whole area appears to be a mass of tracks and supports with both coasters.
Just before entering the station area.
As Jetline hadn’t opened yet and we didn’t want to join the long queue for Insane just yet, we opted for Lustiga Huset the parks funhouse.
I was totally blown away by how good it was and how long it went on for. It felt like it was never going to end. There were so many things to try and pass through.
And then right at the end there was a cool matt slide at the exit of the funhouse.
Kattingflygaren the flying chair swings beside the water.
You get a nice view of the waterfront area once the swings are up and running.
Next up was Jetline which finally opened and the ride station was themed to an old style diner.
It was definitely my favourite ride from the park. I really love these classic Schwarzkopf coasters and fair play to the parks which keep them up and running.
It had a very similar layout to Knightmare at Camelot, great first drop and very intense throughout the turns.
Just incase you forget what country you are in.
New for 2009 was Insane or if you want to give the sponsor a plug, its the Tele2 Insane. The Intamin Zac Spin coaster.
I wasn’t really looking forward to it that much as I didn’t think much of the smaller model from Helsinki I did a few months back.
Once again it was pretty intense and too much spinning for my liking. Also the addition of the braking area half way throughout the ride when the train completely stops, kind of ruins the flow.
Again it’s a good addition to any park with limited room and it was certainly popular judging by the large queue on the day.
Daim <3. It seems to be a big thing in Scandinavia to win a huge bar of chocolate. I still don’t know how to play those games where you can win them. Although I’d be screwed trying to fit that into my Ryanair carry on luggage.
Over on the other side of the park the main attractions were Lyktan, the kiddie freefall ride.
And Nyckelpigan, the junior roller coaster.
They also hold concerts during the summer on the large stage area in the middle of the park.
I didn’t recognise the singer and he was mostly doing cover versions but he was attracting a larger crowd as the day went on.
Fritt Fall used to be the parks observation tower but was converted into a free fall tower.
Unfortunately I gave it a miss but you could either choose to ride it on a tilt or standard setting.
The only probably I had with Gröna Lund was when trying to get some food. The selection was okay and the prices weren’t too high especially for a park but having to queue for about 30 minutes just to get a hotdog and coke was a bit too much. They either didn’t have enough staff or they were too slow. We ended up having to go back over to the children’s area as the queues were shorter.
So after getting everything done first time around it was time for some re-rides before heading back to the city centre.
Jetline just about to pass through the tunnel section at the bottom of the drop.
Whilst wandering around Stockholm centre the next day we found an area across the river from Gröna Lund where you catch some nice views of the park.
Insane.
Kattingflygaren the flying chair swings.
You could also take a short hop over on the boat which connects you the area right next door to the park. It saves on having to go the long way around.
A close up of the awesome Jetline.
Overall I really enjoyed Gröna Lund. Its in such a great setting and Stockholm is such a beautiful city. Even though the park was very busy you could still get most things done as the queues moved quite quickly. The only problem was when it came to having to queue for food which took an awfully long time.
Finally our rather strange accommodation for the night was the Jumbo Hostel at Arlanda Airport.
