Best season in history: more than six million visitors come to Europa-Park for the first time in 2022

By | January 17, 2023

In the 2022 season, for the first time in its almost-50-year history, Germany’s largest theme park exceeded six million visitors, representing a significant expansion of its market leadership. Europa-Park owner Roland Mack says, “We see this record as a huge vote of confidence from our visitors, and one that comes in a difficult year in which war, supply problems, inflation and the energy crisis have been making things difficult for all of us. People are looking for leisure and balance, and the Europa-Park Resort, alongside the Rulantica water world, offers just that, which is an attractive travel destination in its own right. The beds of the hotel resort, which number approximately 5,800 hotel beds, were also often fully booked in 2022. In November, the internationally acclaimed new restaurant of the future ‘Eatrenalin’ was opened. A total of over 80 million Euros have been invested within three years.”

For the year 2023, Europa-Park expects a significant increase in energy costs. On this, Roland Mack says, “We are investing, with the automobile logistics company Mosolf, in a photovoltaic system covering more than 20 hectares in Kippenheim near Lahr. After completion, the plant will produce around 25 gigawatt hours of electricity from renewable energies. The total investment amount of the project is around 30 million Euros. The plant is scheduled to go into operation in 2024. In the long term, Europa-Park will then be able to supply itself with renewable electricity largely independently of other energy sources, particularly in the summer months.

We already operate photovoltaic systems, hydroelectric power plants and combined heat and power plants, but this new system opens up a completely new dimension for us in terms of renewable energy supply.” The connection to the international rail network via a direct ECE, and more recently the TGV connection available directly from Paris, is also an important step for Europa-Park, especially with regard to environmentally friendly solutions.

The search for employees continues to be one of the major issues. Roland Mack said, “It’s a big challenge for us, but our HR department is very creative when it comes to recruitment. We are very flexible here and already offer over 70 different working time models. We currently have young employees at Europa-Park who are extremely motivated and capable, and our opportunities for advancement are much higher than in many other companies. Around 300 Ukrainians are already working for us and we have recruited several hundred employees from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, many of whom speak fluent German, by the way. We have built accommodation for 1,200 employees, rented hotels and set up high quality container villages. A company kindergarten will also be opened this year, and accommodation for another 500 people is to be added. Without housing, we hardly find new employees. We also offer many other incentives.” Europa-Park employs over 4,500 people, and around 8,000 indirect jobs are linked to Germany’s largest theme park.

Europa-Park will continue to invest in 2023. Among other new attractions, a new slide tower is being built in the Rulantica water world and work has begun on the rollercoaster in the new Croatia themed area.