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Erlebnispark Tripsdrill

Cleebronn, Germany

“Great rides and a unique German flair“

If you ever want to get a taste of the real Germany, there are several options. You could book a bed & breakfast in a quiet village on the countryside, you could attend the world-famous Oktoberfest in Munich or… you could go to Erlebnispark Tripsdrill. This is without any doubt the most German theme park you’ll ever find. It’s full of cute German houses, cheap animatronics, odd-looking rides and it even has a German wine museum. Sorry, did you say wine? Yes, absolutely: Tripsdrill is surrounded by vineyards and the park gives the opportunity to taste some of the region’s best wines. And as if the wines didn’t give you enough reasons to visit Tripsdrill, the park also boasts a very interesting collection of roller coasters.

ROLLER COASTERS

Coaster enthusiasts have adored Tripsdrill and its quirky theming for many years. The park’s popularity got an even bigger serious boost in 2020, the year in which Volldampf and Hals-über-Kopf were opened. These intertwining Vekoma coasters have been built in a new area of the park and they’re stunning to look at. During my 2020 visit, theming was still nonexistent. Tripsdrill has the habit of building its major rides in two stages. The park often opens a ride in the first year and then adds theming in the second year.

One year later, we noticed that Hals-über-Kopf’s boarding station was finally completed and it looked just as German as the rest of the park. A typical Tripsdrill ride is full of unexpected gags and the same is true for the ride’s brand-new station. Besides, Hals-über-Kopf is simply one of the best thrill coasters in Europe. This is Vekoma’s modern take on its Suspended Looping Coaster and it’s incredibly good. The ride is super smooth, they integrated some intense curves and the near misses with Volldampf are great. By the way: Volldampf is a Family Boomerang and it’s more than okay. I’m usually not that fond of Family Boomerangs, but it’s guaranteed to become a crowd pleaser in this family-oriented park.

The park’s other coasters are called Rasender Tausendfüßler (Zierer Tivoli Large), G’Sengte Sau (this was the first ever Bobsled Coaster built by Gerstlauer), Mammut (a medium-sized wooden coaster that’s surprisingly smooth) and Karacho. Karacho is the park’s most thrilling coaster. It’s a Gerstlauer Infinity Coaster and believe it or not… I like it a lot. It’s smoother than most other Gerstlauer inversion coasters and it’s got a very surprising layout. Tripsdrill added a beautiful station building including… a vomiting audio-animatronic. Yes, you did read that right!

OTHER EXPERIENCES

This park has an abundance of unusual rides and crazy theming ideas. They have a carousel themed to slippers, a waltzer themed to cake pans and a kiddie log flume themed to burlap sacks. The park’s two major water rides deserve some positive attention as well. The rapid river is themed to laundry and the log flume’s boats are shaped as bathtubs. This so-called Badewannenfahrt zum Jungbrunnen is themed to the fountain of eternal youth and it even traverses a bathhouse full of naked women. Log flume, the adults-only edition.

Tripsdrill offers a ton of (family-friendly) flat rides and Fahrten, as they would call it here in Germany. One of the park’s craziest rides is Donnerbalken. This free fall tower was themed to a tree house. It looks cute and it’s meant as a family-friendly attraction. Therefore, you’d expect it to be tame or even boring. However, I literally experience Donnerbalken as a major thrill. I don’t want to spoil everything, but you really shouldn’t miss this attraction. Tripsdrill at its best.

WORTH A VISIT?

Yes! Yes! YES! Tripsdrill is an amazing theme park that should be on everyone’s bucket list. That isn’t only due to the wine museum or Hals-über-Kopf’s coaster perfection. No, this park is just awesome in every possible way. They’ve got some great rides, theming is splendid and most staff are very friendly. If you have plenty of time, be sure to check out Tripsdrill’s Wildlife Park and definitely consider staying in one of the park’s tree houses. And no, I’m not talking about Donnerbalken.

Is Donnerbalken the most frightening free fall tower ever created? Does Hals-über-Kopf live up to the hype? And what’s the weirdest ride at the park? Share your opinion in the comments section at the bottom of this page.

This article reflects my personal experience at Erlebnispark Tripsdrill during a visit in July 2024.