For many years, theme park enthusiasts have been raving about how good Liseberg is, and so, I’ve finally sashayed over to Gothenburg to finally see what the fuss was about. The hype is real and here is why!
The Coasters
When people talk about Liseberg they usually talk about two coasters, Helix and Balder. So let’s start with them. Helix is amazing! I can see why so many people have it somewhere in their top 10. The inversions are silky smooth and the air time hills are fabulous, especially the air time hill just after the inverted top hat! Balder is a beast! It’s a wooden airtime machine and that 70 degree first drop is amazing! The only way to ride both these coasters is with a looser restraint, and the great thing about Balder is they barely check your restraint. Out of the four major coasters the park has, Valkyria was the weakest for me. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a good coaster, but it’s the weakest out of the four. I’m not sure if it’s because of the restraints or a slightly dull drop, this coaster just didn’t really do anything for me. The station is stunning though! The biggest surprise out of the four for me was Lisebergbanan, aka Liseberg’s banana because I kept saying it wrong. Jesus fuck! This thing is mental, especially later in the day. For its last hour of operations on a full 12 hour day, this thing absolutely flies. Again, same with Balder, restraints aren’t checked too severely and you can get some pretty amazing airtime moments because of it. The drops are ridiculous too. It really was a shock to the system, but a very nice shock.
The Water Rides
Anyone who knows me knows I adore water rides and Liseberg has two. A log flume, creatively called Log Flume and a Rapids called Kallerado. Let’s start with Log Flume. It’s a pleasant ride around the side of the hill with some great views. And then you come to it’s two main drops which happen within moments of each other. You go over the first drop, which isn’t too bad, but the minute you hit the bottom you kind of speed up, drop a small bit into what I can only describe as a rapid like bit and then straight over the larger drop. It all happens within seconds but it’s so much fun. Kallerado is the wet one. It has big waves, water guns, water cannons and you can and probably will get quite wet. Kallerado has a proper American woodland vibe too which is lovely.
Hotel Gasten
I will try to keep this relatively spoiler free but I fell in love with Hotel Gasten. It is Liseberg’s scare attraction and it’s gorgeous. I will be honest, it lacks any really scares, but what it lacks in that department in more than makes up with its epic sets! There are 2 scenes that really stand out. The elevator and what I’m going to describe as the wet room (as I know people going this week and I don’t want to ruin it). The elevator scene is so simple yet works brilliantly well. The wet scene, I kid you not, I walked in and my mouth dropped. It was glorious. If you visit Liseberg, just make sure you set some time aside to visit. Plus, if your English, they do do English versions. Just let the staff know and the actors know when you enter each scene with a speaking actor. As you exit Hotel Gasten, you have to pass by Spökbaren Gasten, a spooky themed bar and restaurant. Make sure you pop in for a drink, you won’t regret it.
The Food and Drink
Liseberg has many restaurants and food outlets. Unfortunately for me, my group wanted to not spend much time in them, so we went for the quick options. Max burger was a great quick option for food and the burgers are tasty. The Mozzarella sticks are to die for though. They are so tasty. There is also a delicious churro place in between Loke and Hotel Gasten. We also went into Spökbaren Gasten for a very delicious cocktail. The park does have many wonderful places to eat and next time I shall be eating in them.
Everything Else
Liseberg is basically the perfect theme park. It’s clean, atmospheric and has a great selection of rides. I must mention the flat rides. I’m not a fan of them myself but people who were with me did say that Loke and AtmosFear were amazing and Mechanica was fun. There are also plenty of game stalls around the park and one thing you will notice is how many over sized spinning wheel games there are over the parks. They are literally everywhere! The only niggle (and this is purely a personal preference) is that there isn’t a huge selection of merchandise. The merch they do have is cute and probably works well for the park but I’d have loved to see a pin badge. But like I said, personal taste. One last mention, that staff are amazing. They are happy and ever so friendly. They have a truly positive effect on the park.
Overall, the Liseberg hype is certainly justified and I really look forward to seeing what the future holds for this wonderful park
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