Bellewaerde is a hybrid amusement park and zoo in Belgium.
I would describe this park as Busch Gardens Tampa with family friendly rides instead of
major coasters. This park surprised me with its atmosphere, ride lineup, and animal encounters.
This park has had a complex history, which makes its quality even more shocking.
In this video, I’ll help you determine if Bellewaerde is worth a visit.
This park originally opened in 1954 as a garden and bird park named Toeristisch Centrum
Bellewaerde. It was founded by the same family who owned Meli Park, the amusement park just 45
minutes away that is now known as Plopsaland de Panne. Bellewaerde opened on a former World War
I battleground and was named after a castle near the park. In 1969, the park expanded to become a
full-fledged animal park and shortly after, simplified their name to just Bellewaerde.
In the 1980s, the park transformed into a theme park. Rides were added
and several themed lands were built around their pre-existing animal collection.
In the 1990s, this park’s ownership was a hot potato. In the early 1990s, Bellewaerde was
sold to the Walibi Parks. Then in 1998, Premier Parks purchased the park. Just a few months later,
Premier Parks purchased the Six Flags chain and took this company’s more recognizable name.
Then in 2004, Six Flags sold all of their European parks to alleviate their debt,
transferring ownership of Bellewaerde to Palamon, who now owns Star Parks.
Then in 2006, Compagnie des Alpes purchased the Walibi parks and Bellewaerde and this
who has owned the park ever since. The stability over the past 1.5 decades has
helped Bellewaerde grow into the family-friendly park it is today.
The most striking thing about this park is its appearance. The park is extremely green
and lush. There’s plenty of foliage and shade down each midway and around most attractions.
Then all 7 lands look great. Each area has a distinct feel and aesthetic.
Mexico has some themed flat rides and fancy facades.
The Far West feels like you’ve stepped back in time to a quaint western town.
The Jungle feels like Disney’s Adventureland with the style and all that greenery.
Savanna is the main zoo area. India highlights big cats and has
fanciful theming fit for a palace. Canada is the largest section both
in terms of land and attractions. This area had a woodsy feel to it.
Then Kids Park is a colorful area with no shortage of kiddie rides
plus play areas. The size of this section makes sense given how this park targets families.
Bellewaerde has two entrances. One entrance is towards the center of the park
and another entrance is by Mexico. I arrived before opening on a busy summer Saturday and was
directed to the Mexico parking lot and entrance. I’m not sure if varies by crowd or time of day.
Without any discounts, tickets cost roughly 35 Euros per adult.
Kids and seniors cost a little less. Prior to visiting, there are
two things you should know. One, lines can be lengthy. The
roller coasters do not have the best capacities and rides like Dawson Duel, Huracan, and Wakala
can all have 30-60 minute waits most days. Even the junior coaster can get a long line. The water
rides also can get long lines, particularly on hot days. And there is not a skip-the-line pass,
which is surprising given their availability at the other Compagnie des Alpes parks.
Two, several rides have staggered openings that can complicate this park’s touring plan. On the
day I visited, both the Boomerang and Wakala opened a half hour late
and I’m sure other rides did too. If you go in the Mexico entrance,
I recommend starting with Huracan. You should then try to reach the water rides,
Wakala, and Dawson Duel as soon as possible. These rides had hour-long waits just two
hours after park opening the day I visited. I thought the dispatches were pretty good,
so I don’t fault the staff. The lines were more due to capacity and demand.
Moving onto the ride lineup, Bellewaerde is excellent for kids and families, but they
are pretty limited on thrill rides. And that’s reflected by their coaster lineup. There are 5
coasters in total and the lone thrill coaster was the world’s first operational Vekoma boomerang.
Despite its age, this coaster was decently smooth, which allowed me to enjoy the forceful
inversions going both forwards and backwards. Wakala is their newest and best roller coaster.
This Gerstlauer family coaster offers a dynamic ride experience with a fun series of twists and
turns, but the highlight is a the finale. You have a surprise spike against the water
followed by a brief backwards bit. And the ride has some light theming and a
great soundtrack to round out the experience. I have a separate review going into more detail,
but this is an enjoyable ride for all ages. Huracan is a weird Zierer creation. Replacing
a former dark ride, this is a hybrid roller coaster and dark ride. The coaster starts
with some show scenes past giant statues with impressive elemental effects. Then the coaster
section starts with a forgettable outdoor segment before heading back inside for some
moderately forceful helixes and lighting effects. Dawson Duel is a confusing ride. It’s a Wiegand
sport coaster, which is a variant on their familiar alpine coasters. On these rides,
there are no user-controlled brakes so everyone travels downhill at the same speed.
I just wish the layout was more interesting. Rather than being built on a hillside, Dawson Duel
is built on a flat piece of land, which saps this ride type of one of its usual selling points. The
downhill descent is wooded, but it’s pretty short and not all that exciting. There are two tracks,
but they are very similar and the dispatches aren’t synchronized to add a racing element.
I think this is a pretty poor ride, especially given its abysmal capacity.
To make matters worse, you don’t ride up a lift hill. Rather, you climb this super long
set of stairs and ramps similar to a water slide. And if this attraction has a line,
the wait is miserable since it moves at a glacial rate and has barely any shade.
The final coaster is Keverbaan. I skipped this junior coaster due to crowds,
but this Zierer Tivoli coaster appears to have a nicely wooded layout.
The park’s flat ride lineup is solid but not spectacular. There are plenty of spinning rides,
but there are two notable flats. First, you have a rare Huss drop
tower in Screaming Eagle. The initial launch is quite thrilling. It occurs from a standstill
and has more force than the S&S versions. The rest of the ride is pretty dull. It offers solid views,
but there’s no airtime or stomach-dropping sensation as you bounce up and down.
Second, you have the prototype Huss topple tower in El Volador.
I was surprised any of these rides were still operating, let alone the first.
The ride had some technical issues, but I was able to snag a ride. The ride is perfectly placed on
a pedestal and surrounded by fountains. The ride is incredibly fun to watch. In fact, I’d say it’s
more enjoyable to watch than it is to ride. While the visual is cool on-ride, the ride is pretty
tame and only offers weak centripetal forces. The best water ride is Bengal Rapid River.
This rare Vekoma rapids ride features flexing rafts and wonderful visuals. The entire layout is
shrouded by trees and there is some light theming along the route. The rapids are incredibly weak,
but there are a few geysers that will splash you. River Splash is a Reverchon log flume with
a wooded layout and a few tunnels. And the ride culminates in a decent final plunge.
Niagara is a rare Interlink shoot the chutes ride. It’s pretty similar to the more common Intamin
ones in terms of the splash size and drop power. Big Chute is a racing wet/dry water slide.
It’s a short but fast ride and it’s worth a spin if it has a minimal line.
If you want larger water slides, you may want to consider the indoor Aquapark next door.
It’s a separate ticket, but it’s a brand new, climate-controlled facility.
But back to the amusement park, you have two unique experiences that should not be missed.
First is the Bengal Express. This scenic train ride brings you through
the park’s Bengal tiger exhibit. Second is Jungle Mission, which is a
boat ride traveling past animal exhibits, thru caves, and past angry locals who attack you.
Then you also have a dark ride in Houdini, which is a good Vekoma madhouse. This one has decent
theming and a very convincing inverting effect. Beyond the rides, you also have plenty of animal
exhibits. I expected the zoo to be on the smaller side, but there were popular
mammals such as giraffes and elephants just to name a few. I recommend starting
with the rides and exploring the animal exhibits mid-day when crowds intensify.
Last but not least, I did have a meal at Bellewaerde. I got some fried seafood.
It was surprisingly cheap and the quality was fine. I wanted to try some other stands,
but the lines were moving at a glacial rate. So do I recommend Bellewaerde? I’d say this
is a must for families and animal lovers. I loved the overall look of this park and how
the incorporation of the animals into the experience. For pure coaster enthusiasts,
Bellewaerde is just ok. While some of the coasters are unique, none are true standouts.
This park really is about the full experience rather than just the coasters. However,
this park is just a short drive from Plopsaland so you can do both in the same day if desired.
So those are my thoughts on Bellewaerde, the hybrid amusement park and zoo in Belgium.
What are your thoughts on this theme park? Do you agree it’s a family-friendly Busch Gardens Tampa?
Let me know your thoughts down in the comments. If you enjoyed this review,
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more roller coaster and amusement park videos here at Canobie Coaster. Thanks for watching!