Well I was in Amsterdam for a few days during the week so I made a trip to Walibi Holland. I was also hoping to go to Efteling but didn't have time, anyways sorry there are no pictures as I forgot my camera and my phone was dead 
.
So anyways I slept out my early 7am wake-up call, so eventually woke up just after 10 and got ready and headed to Amsterdam Central Train staion. I got the train and had one connection which was all pretty easy and arrived at Harderwijk station just after 1pm. The next Walibi Express bus wasn't until 2 so I got a taxi instead.
Anyways as it was mid July, it was hot and the park was pretty busy which I was expecting but rides were open until 8pm which wasn't too bad. Anyways onto the rides:
Xpress: Just to let ye all know Xpress is still SBNO. The rides entrance is now bordered up and fenced off and the sign removed and the ride has also been removed from the park map and the website! So they are either gonna give it some TLC in the off season and do it up or remove it but it looks like it's definitely not gonna open at all this season.
Goliath: Obviously the main reason to come to Walibi Holland and is definitely the star attraction. I went straight to this after entering the park which is quite a long walk from the entrance due to the parks crap layout. For my first ride there was a queue of around 45mins- hour, but that later became 10mins to walk-on .
I found the best seats to be in the front car! (I wasn't bothered queing for the front row so settled for the second row multiple times). The first drop is good and the first airtime hill delivers some serious ejector airtime especially towards the front! The stengal dive is quite cool and a fun element. The final 3 bunny hops all deliver a nice burst of ejector and the final turn is a cool way to end the ride. There is also some serious airtime in the back on the first drop but the overall better ride is the front.
Not quite as good as El Toro and just slightly below Dragon Khan, so it takes my no. 3 spot.
9.5/10
Speed of Sound: My first proper Boomerang! I've done a GIB before but not a regular one. Anyways it features Vekomas new trains with onboard audio, a new theme, paintjob and tunnel on the first lift. It's a shame they didn't do a bit of weeding around the ride and queue itself to make it looks a bit nicer. The queue on my first ride was around an hour.
The trains are definitely a huge improvement over Vekoma's older ones. The vest part isn't quite as comfortable as the ones found on B&M flyers as it digs into your shoulders a bit but it does eliminate headbanging. The ride was actually quite decent, really like the first hill and drop but you could tell it would be a rough ride with normal OTSR's.
7/10
Robin Hood: When I first went to ride the train was stuck on the lift and being evacuated. An hour later the train was still stuck on the lift and eventually it re-opened! The queue is pretty confusing as it divides into 2 - one queue for the back half of the train and another for the front half! And when you meet in the station there isn't even a divide or barrier. It's all rather pointless and confusing!
Anyways the ride itself was okay, a little rough, a few spots of mild airtime and a bit of fun. Nothing special really.
6.5/10
El Condor: Oh lord the first ever Vekoma SLC and I was not looking forward to it. I rode in the brace position (head held against one side of the restraint) which did help stop headbanging and avoid a headache. It was rough, a little more so than the other 2 SLC's I've done.
4/10
Excalibur: A standard Huss Topspin with water fountains. Was actually on a pretty decent setting but the water fountains didn't wet you like on Ripsaw which is a shame. Still decent ride.
7/10
Space Shot: Standard S+S Tower so nothing special... I did like the launch audio though which added a little atmosphere around the ride.
6/10
Anyways by the time I got around to the log flume it had cooled down a bit so I skipped it as I didn't fancy getting wet and I didn't whore the kiddie coaster which is now in the place of the removed wild mouse.
So the park itself - I really liked the park overall! Themeing is okay... nice in some areas, minimal in others but there are loads of trees, bushes and fountains which make the park look really nice overall. The area around the Space Shot is very concrete though with all the games stalls. Ride-op's were quite efficient, not the best but nowhere near the worst and the train was usually ready to dispatch as soon as the other hit the brakes. Ques were quite long during the day but died down after 5.
The layout of the park is AWFUL! There is no path connection between El Condor and Goliath so to access Goliath you have to go to the back of the park and follow the path around to a dead end where Goliath is. Then there is a circular path on the right side of the park which can take time to find some rides and I didn't even see the rapids ride at all.
Ride Count:
Goliath x 8
Speed of Sound x 2
El Condor x 1
Robin Hood x 1
Excalibur x 1
Space Shot x 1
Overall park rating: 7/10
.So anyways I slept out my early 7am wake-up call, so eventually woke up just after 10 and got ready and headed to Amsterdam Central Train staion. I got the train and had one connection which was all pretty easy and arrived at Harderwijk station just after 1pm. The next Walibi Express bus wasn't until 2 so I got a taxi instead.
Anyways as it was mid July, it was hot and the park was pretty busy which I was expecting but rides were open until 8pm which wasn't too bad. Anyways onto the rides:
Xpress: Just to let ye all know Xpress is still SBNO. The rides entrance is now bordered up and fenced off and the sign removed and the ride has also been removed from the park map and the website! So they are either gonna give it some TLC in the off season and do it up or remove it but it looks like it's definitely not gonna open at all this season.
Goliath: Obviously the main reason to come to Walibi Holland and is definitely the star attraction. I went straight to this after entering the park which is quite a long walk from the entrance due to the parks crap layout. For my first ride there was a queue of around 45mins- hour, but that later became 10mins to walk-on
. I found the best seats to be in the front car! (I wasn't bothered queing for the front row so settled for the second row multiple times). The first drop is good and the first airtime hill delivers some serious ejector airtime especially towards the front! The stengal dive is quite cool and a fun element. The final 3 bunny hops all deliver a nice burst of ejector and the final turn is a cool way to end the ride. There is also some serious airtime in the back on the first drop but the overall better ride is the front.
Not quite as good as El Toro and just slightly below Dragon Khan, so it takes my no. 3 spot.
9.5/10
Speed of Sound: My first proper Boomerang! I've done a GIB before but not a regular one. Anyways it features Vekomas new trains with onboard audio, a new theme, paintjob and tunnel on the first lift. It's a shame they didn't do a bit of weeding around the ride and queue itself to make it looks a bit nicer. The queue on my first ride was around an hour.
The trains are definitely a huge improvement over Vekoma's older ones. The vest part isn't quite as comfortable as the ones found on B&M flyers as it digs into your shoulders a bit but it does eliminate headbanging. The ride was actually quite decent, really like the first hill and drop but you could tell it would be a rough ride with normal OTSR's.
7/10
Robin Hood: When I first went to ride the train was stuck on the lift and being evacuated. An hour later the train was still stuck on the lift and eventually it re-opened! The queue is pretty confusing as it divides into 2 - one queue for the back half of the train and another for the front half! And when you meet in the station there isn't even a divide or barrier. It's all rather pointless and confusing!
Anyways the ride itself was okay, a little rough, a few spots of mild airtime and a bit of fun. Nothing special really.
6.5/10
El Condor: Oh lord the first ever Vekoma SLC and I was not looking forward to it. I rode in the brace position (head held against one side of the restraint) which did help stop headbanging and avoid a headache. It was rough, a little more so than the other 2 SLC's I've done.
4/10
Excalibur: A standard Huss Topspin with water fountains. Was actually on a pretty decent setting but the water fountains didn't wet you like on Ripsaw which is a shame. Still decent ride.
7/10
Space Shot: Standard S+S Tower so nothing special... I did like the launch audio though which added a little atmosphere around the ride.
6/10
Anyways by the time I got around to the log flume it had cooled down a bit so I skipped it as I didn't fancy getting wet and I didn't whore the kiddie coaster which is now in the place of the removed wild mouse.
So the park itself - I really liked the park overall! Themeing is okay... nice in some areas, minimal in others but there are loads of trees, bushes and fountains which make the park look really nice overall. The area around the Space Shot is very concrete though with all the games stalls. Ride-op's were quite efficient, not the best but nowhere near the worst and the train was usually ready to dispatch as soon as the other hit the brakes. Ques were quite long during the day but died down after 5.
The layout of the park is AWFUL! There is no path connection between El Condor and Goliath so to access Goliath you have to go to the back of the park and follow the path around to a dead end where Goliath is. Then there is a circular path on the right side of the park which can take time to find some rides and I didn't even see the rapids ride at all.
Ride Count:
Goliath x 8
Speed of Sound x 2
El Condor x 1
Robin Hood x 1
Excalibur x 1
Space Shot x 1
Overall park rating: 7/10
