Tivoli Gardens is one of the most famous amusement parks in the world. Located in downtown
Copenhagen, this historic park has some good rides no doubt, but that’s just the tip of the
iceberg. This park has an incredible atmosphere and it has a compelling argument as the world’s
most beautiful amusement park. Heck, it helped inspire Walt Disney to make Disneyland! All these
factors make Tivoli Gardens a park that anyone can enjoy and I’ll explain why in this review.
This park opened back in 1843, making it the third oldest operating amusement park in the world.
The ironic thing is that it isn’t even the oldest theme park in the capital region of Denmark,
as the nearby Bakken is older by an astounding 260 years!
Tivoli Gardens is quite literally located in the heart of downtown Copenhagen.
You have city hall on one side and the city’s main train station on the other.
This location is both a blessing and a curse. Let’s start with the positives. This park
feeds off the energy of Copenhagen. This gives the park an incredible atmosphere.
And when you’re experiencing the park’s taller rides, you get some surreal views of the
surrounding buildings. They’re some of the best sights you can get on any theme park attraction.
And this is one of the easiest parks to visit using public transit.
Copenhagen Central train station is just across the street from Tivoli’s main entrance. You can
find trains here taking you across Copenhagen, to the airport, and even to foreign cities.
On the downside, this park is a little annoying to visit if you’re coming by car.
Tivoli Gardens doesn’t have its own parking lot. You need to find parking in the city.
Some of the roads by Tivoli do allow street parking, but not all of them. Therefore,
I recommend finding a lot. The ones closest to the park can cost up to 400 DKK per day or $56 USD.
I recommend the surface lots by the IDA Conference. This is a 10 minute walk from the park
and priced much more reasonably. It was roughly 20 DKK or $3 USD per hour and it was capped
at about 210 DKK or $30 USD for a full-day. The other downside with this park’s location
is that it is landlocked on all-sides by streets with no opportunity to grow.
That’s definitely a complication for a park that is just 20 acres in size, especially since this
park is extremely popular. This is why Tivoli often has to remove an attraction to add a new
one. Yet the park still managed to build a lineup with nearly 3 dozen rides. That figure is even
more impressive considering chunks of the park are dedicated to these large gardens. The sections
with rides are dense. There are multiple instances where rides are stacked on top of each other.
And since Tivoli is limited on land, they pack as much quality as possible into what they own. Many
of their rides are stylized and plussed by ornate architecture or extravagant lighting packages.
The rides here are stunningly beautiful. Even the pathways are lively. There’s a section
by the main entrance that feels like a bustling city-street with all the shopfronts and games.
Then there’s an oriental area by Daemonen with a giant pagoda plus
these lanterns strung over the midway. Then you have the gardens the park
is named after. These are gorgeous. There are so many photo opportunities
in this park. Everything looks amazing. This top notch appearance gives the park
a wonderful atmosphere. And it’s augmented by the awesome employees. The staff members
here are super friendly, which is the case at most of the Danish theme parks. And then
you have the energy of the bustling midways brimming with happy guests.
And there’s a good chance you’ll encounter some crowds here. Tivoli Gardens routinely places in
the top 5 for amusement park attendance in Europe, attracting between 4-5 million guests per year.
That’s an astonishing figure for a park as small as this.
Now you’d think ride lines would be horrific with that sort of combination,
but that isn’t usually the case. The waits for the top rides will usually hover around
the half hour mark. That’s even with me visiting on the weekend. And don’t be afraid if you see a
line spilling onto the midway. The physical queues for many rides can’t hold more than 15-30 minutes
worth of people. For example, the entire queue for Rutschebanen takes 15 mintues, if that.
One of the biggest reasons lines aren’t worse is because many people visit Tivoli not to go
on the amusement rides. A lot of people go here just to soak up the atmosphere, see the gardens,
grab dinner, catch a show, or listen to a concert. Heck, there even is a casino within the park’s
boundaries. The original owners envisioned Tivoli as more than just an amusement park;
it’s a full-fledged entertainment complex. That is why Tivoli has a few admission options.
Everyone must pay the 145 Danish Krone or $20 USD admission fee. There are two
different entrances you can use, but I’ve always used the one across from the train station.
To experience the rides, you can either pay per ride or purchase an unlimited wristband on top of
the admission ticket for 245 Danish Krone or $34. You purchase these at kiosks around the park.
This park gets busier in the evening, which makes sense given its location,
famously beautiful lights, and entertainment offerings. Interestingly,
while most parks slash admission as it gets later in the day, Tivoli sometimes increases
it if they have a concert. For example, this past summer on the day I visited,
the gate admission increased by 50% if you arrived after 6 pm.
Like many of Europe’s city parks, Tivoli Gardens has very long hours. The park is
routinely open as late as 11 pm or midnight. Just beware that most rides tend to open a
few minutes late and they all will close early. The latter blindsided me on my recent visit.
On most days, the rides will close 10-15 minutes before close. I made the mistake of visiting on
a concert night. While the park was open until midnight, the rides closed 2-2.5 hours early,
which happened all summer on concert nights. I had no idea until I caught this on the info
sign for Tik Tak. I didn’t see any mention of this on the park hours page. But it was on the
website. This info was hidden at the bottom of each individual attraction’s ride page, which
seemed like a weird place to post it, but now you know so you won’t make the same mistake as me.
Further complicating matters is that the given closing time is when the final cycle will go out.
So if something has a long line, the queue will close well before that.
Most concerts are on Friday nights and unless you want to see the act, I would recommend visiting
on a different day. Rides will be open later and crowds will be lighter. But if you do want to see
the concert, just arrive early so you have enough time to do all the rides before they close.
You can hit the main rides here in half a day. I know a lot of coaster enthusiasts pair this
park with the nearby Bakken. I’ve done this before. But I would advocate a full day at
Tivoli if you care about more than just coaster credits. It’ll make your day a lot more relaxing.
You’ll have plenty of time for rerides and you’ll also have time
to enjoy the aspects beyond the rides as well like the aesthetics and food.
I tried to do this in my second visit, but I lost a chunk of the day due to a flight delay.
If you want to maximize your day, I recommend knocking out the most popular flat rides first.
These tend to get the longest queues. The three to prioritize early in the day are the Gyldne
Tarn drop tower, the Himmelskibet star flyer, and Tik Tak. The latter two are conveniently
located right next to each other. Another smart one to hit early is the Daemonen roller coaster.
In general, the operations at Tivoli Gardens are fast, but Daemonen can have slow dispatches.
That’s odd because B&Ms are usually super efficient. Part of that is this ride’s loose
article policy though. Some rides, like this one, ban all loose articles, even glasses with straps.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Rutschebanen is super lax. You not only bring all your
belongings with you. Riders can enter and exit the train in the station while it’s still moving.
And guests lower their own restraint. All these factors allow this ride to
run 3 trains with no stacking. And on that note, let’s talk
about the ride lineup. This park features 4 different roller coasters.
It’s not the deepest lineup due to Tivoli’s limited space,
but it does at least cover the main boxes of kiddie, family, and thrill coasters.
Rutschebanen is the crown jewel. This coaster is nearly 110 years old and it runs around and
through a mountain. Despite its size and age, this ride can offer a deceptively wild experience. This
is a rare scenic railway that still operates with a brakeman on-board. They control how fast the
train goes. Some are more daring, so you will want to ride this a few times with different brakemen.
But if you get a good ride on this coaster, you can get some shocking ejector airtime because of
how minimalistic the restraints are. You have just a loose lap bar and no seatbelt. I highly
recommend the very back row on this one for the most extreme ride. I have an entire review that
goes into more detail, but this is the perfect top attraction for a historic park like this.
Daemonen is a Bolliger & Mabillard floorless coaster that reminds me a lot of Hersheypark’s
Great Bear. Both rides start with an elevated helix, then you have a banked drop and the same
3 inversions in rapid-fire succession. The zero-G roll is very whippy in all rows, but you need to
be in the back to maximize the first few elements. The drop has some airtime there and then both the
vertical loop and Immelmann have some snap. This is among the shortest coasters from B&M,
but it’s impressive they were able to cram a ride like this in such a small space. My biggest issue
with this ride is its reliability. Maybe I’ve just been unlucky, but it was closed for half my visit
in my first trip to Tivoli and then it didn’t even open on my second day a few years later.
Maelkevejen is a Mack powered coaster. It’s cool how this family coaster winds
above buildings and pathways, but this is an attraction I’ve yet to experience since it
was under construction in my first visit. Then when I returned in 2022, the ride was closed,
which was an issue for many this past summer. Kamelen is a Zierer kiddie coaster. It’s super
smooth, making it a great starter coaster for kids and comfortable for adults who are either
accompanying their little ones or seeking an extra credit. And the bunny hill is a genuinely
fun element. It comes scary close to a tree and even gives an itty bitty pop of airtime.
Moving onto the flat rides, this is where Tivoli’s attraction lineup shines most.
This park has some sweet flat rides. Most are plussed by lighting, stylization, or visuals.
Himmelskibet is the best if you want to take in the sights.
This Funtime star flyer is the park’s tallest attraction at 26 stories tall.
It’s among the slowest star flyers, but this swing ride compensates by offering one
of the most impressive views. You ascend the tower twice every cycle, which grants you an
incredible birds-eye view of the park, the entire downtown area, and even Sweden on a clear day.
Gyldne Tarn is another one offering an aerial view. This S&S drop tower stands 20 stories tall,
but it is another ride banning glasses, so I wasn’t able to appreciate the view
as much as others. And that’s a shame because you have plenty of time to take it in on the
slow rise and hold at the top. While other manufacturers offer more extreme towers,
this one still has a solid drop. It’s sudden with a quick pop of air at the start.
Fatamorgana is another tower, and a unique one too.
This is a newer Huss Condor, which is basically an aerial scrambler if you’re unfamiliar.
Two of the arms featured the usual gondolas with the caged cars, but the other two arms have giant
spinning discs facing guests outwards. It’s a neat way to experience a familiar ride and it makes
it considerably scarier since the forces push you outwards into the restraints. This one has decent
speed. Then the sightlines of the back half of the park and nearby buildings is marvelous. And like
many flats at Tivoli this one has a long cycle. Another weird one is Monsunen. This is a Zierer
flying carpet, except this one features rare suspended seating. In my first visit, the ride
shot geysers upwards towards riders, which was a neat visual. Those weren’t active in 2022,
but the ride still offered a forceful experience. No airtime over the top, but the downswings are
wild. You get blasted with positive Gs and are abruptly pushed forwards into the harness.
Radiobilerne is an underrated set of bumper cars. These cars have a lot of power to them. You’ll
feel each collision and the arena is wide open unlike most of the ones you’ll find in America.
Aquila is your usual Zamperla air race. It offers some nice hangtime, but it’s located
atop an elevated platform for enhanced visuals. Galejen is an old sea storm Himalaya. It doesn’t
have the craziest laterals, but the ride has a long cycle and the entire experience is enhanced
by a themed center display and lighting. The best flat here is plussed in a similar
way and that would be none other than Tik Tak. This ride is a spectacle between the ride’s
mesmerizing motion and the auxiliary effects such as fog, lighting, and giant clock on the ceiling.
This was the first Mondial shake to come to an amusement park and it’s intense. Take your average
Huss break dance, but allow the vehicles to also flip. You don’t get too many full flips on Tik
Tak, especially compared to the versions on the German fair circuit, but you’ll rock quite wildly
and get a ton of hangtime. When compared with the fast spinning, this ride is super disorienting.
See my review if you want to learn more. The park used to have an even better flat
ride in Vertigo. This Technical Park Flying Fury was one of the most intense rides in the world.
This was similar to a booster operated at the speed of a centrifuge. This made it arguably
the best ride in the world for positive Gs. They were super forceful and sustained, which was a
crazy combination. Then the ride also mixed in some slower points with sweet hangtime. It’s a
shame this ride was removed, but it had a horrific capacity and some maintenance issues in its later
years. Check out my review for all the details. Tivoli also has an impressive dark ride
collection. Flyvende Kuffert is a charming dark ride past different fairy tales and stories.
The ride is distinctly styled after puppets and it features a multitude of short scenes. I think
I would have liked it better if it fleshed out a few of the stories more, but this is still a good
ride. Especially since there’s a switch on each vehicle to change the language of the narration.
Minen is a Mack boat ride that has been adapted into an interactive shooter. You don’t keep score,
but you take aim at a series of targets. And they change colors depending who hits them.
Then this element is paired with some charming sets and a catchy soundtrack.
Skaersilden is a unique fun house. Unlike most that follow a linear path, this one feels more
like a playground. There’s no set path and a variety of fun obstacles. You have climbs,
rock walls, spinners, barrels, bouncing platforms, and some fast metal slides.
The park also has a haunted walkthrough in Villa Vendetta, but I unfortunately ran out of time to
try it due to the closing issue I previously noted. This attraction is an extra upcharge.
Moving onto the water rides, Tivoli is quite deficient in this department.
There isn’t a single ride here that’ll get you wet. The only water attractions
you’ll find are a few leisurely boat rides. Kids have a handful of attractions available to
them. Not only do some of the aforementioned rides have low height limits, there are some dedicated
kiddie rides scattered about the park. But the most baffling thing to me is how many kiddie drop
towers this park has. You have two side-by-side in the oriental area that have been there for nearly
2 decades. Then the park replaced Vertigo with yet another junior drop tower this past year.
Moving onto food, Tivoli Gardens does really well in this area. The park is jam-packed with
food stands and restaurants. I’m pretty sure I saw a different one around every corner.
There is so much variety. My favorite meal here is the fish & chips over by Daemonen.
These were super fresh and delicious, and that’s coming from a New Englander.
Tivoli is equally as stacked in the games department. You have a wide
of carnival games and unlike some parks where staff members will be
endlessly begging people to play in vain, these ones are highly popular.
Then you have an arcade with plenty of games for kids and a casino for adults.
So do I recommend Tivoli Gardens? Absolutely! This is one of the best traditional amusement parks in
the world. What makes this park special is the atmosphere. It’s so unique. Between the downtown
location, the beautiful gardens, impeccable upkeep, and friendly employees, this park is
magical. Everyone can enjoy this aspect of the park. Then this historic park also has
an exciting mix of rides. While this park isn’t heavy on the coasters, Rutschebanen should be on
every coaster enthusiast’s bucket list and it is a true standout. Then you have a great mix of flat
rides and dark rides to round-out the offerings. So those are my thoughts on Tivoli Gardens, one of
the most beautiful amusement parks in the world. What are your thoughts on this Danish park? Do
you think it’s as special as me? Let me know down in the comments. If you enjoyed this review, I’d
appreciate it if you gave this video a like and you considered subscribing since there will be a
lot more roller coaster and amusement park videos here at Canobie Coaster. Thanks for watching!