''Kongeparken'' (The King's Park) is an amusement park in the village of

Ålgård Ålgård (historic: ''Aalgaard'') is the administrative centre of Gjesdal municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The village is located along the European route E39 highway, about southeast of the city of Sandnes in the Jæren district of t ...

, near

Stavanger Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the a ...

in Norway. ''Kongeparken'' is the biggest amusement park in the south-west of Norway, and the main tourist destination in the county of

Rogaland Rogaland () is a Counties of Norway, county in Western Norway, bordering the North Sea to the west and the counties of Vestland to the north, Vestfold og Telemark to the east and Agder to the east and southeast. In 2020, it had a population of 47 ...

. The park has more than 50 different rides and attractions. and has won multiple awards.

History

''Kongeparken'' was opened by Gabriel Ålgård in May 1986 and intended to be a park with outdoor activities such as BMX, roller-skating and golf. Construction cost about 220 million

Norwegian kroner The krone (, abbreviation: kr (also NKr for distinction); code: NOK), plural ''kroner'', is currency of the Kingdom of Norway (including Svalbard). Traditionally known as the Norwegian crown in English. It is nominally subdivided into 100 ''øre ...

. ''Kongeparken'' had more than 200,000 visitors in its opening year but was bankrupt by July. In 1997, the park was bought by its current owners, the Lund family, who had more than a hundred years experience through the Lunds Tivoli amusement parks. The Lund family added new themes and increased activities, reversing a decline in visitor numbers. ''Kongeparken'' is owned and operated by Rogaland Fritidspark AS. Haakon Lund, the son of Bjoern and Veslemoey Lund, is currently in charge.

Bears theme

The Lund family rebuilt ''Kongeparken'' around the theme of bears. In the late 1800s, the family had been the first importers in Europe of

teddy bears A teddy bear is a stuffed toy in the form of a bear. Developed apparently simultaneously by toymakers Morris Michtom in the U.S. and Richard Steiff under his aunt Margarete Steiff's company in Germany in the early 20th century, the teddy bear, ...

from America. In 1997, a pair of bears, Brumle and Brumleline, were brought to the park. Named the King and Queen of Bears, they are housed in a castle which features one of the park's biggest rides, a roller coaster with spinning gondolas. Other bears in the park are named the Bie Queen, Pysjamas, Tranbamsen, Storm, and the Icebear. The park also has a

day spa A day spa is a business that provides a variety of services for the purpose of improving health, beauty, and relaxation through personal care treatments such as massages and facials. The number of day spas in the US almost doubled in the tw ...

, the BearBotel, where children can leave their teddy bears.

Rides and adventures

''Kongeparken'' is targeted at children aged from three to 12 years old but also has more challenging activities for older children. The park has more than 50 rides, along with restaurants and other attractions. New rides are introduced each year, such as the ''Fossen''

water ride Water rides are amusement rides that are set over water. For instance, a log flume travels through a channel of water to move along its course. Notable types *AquaLoop *Bumper boats * Fishpipe * FlowRider *Lazy river *Log flume *Old Mill *River ...

in 2013. Other attractions include a bobsleigh track, a do-it-yourself chocolate factory, and a children's fire station.

Christmas in Kongeparken

''Jul i Kongeparken'' (Christmas in Kongeparken) is held in November and December and features fairy lights, Christmas trees, elves, carol singing and family workshops.

Attractions and rides

Source: Kongparken, Errors might occur.

Awards

''Kongeparken'' has won many awards in Norway and internationally. * In 2012: The Children's Fire Station (Barnas Brannstasjon) won the THEA Awards for best new attraction!. * In 2012: Kongeparken got top score (6/6) by the Norwegian newspaper VG. * In 2011: Kongeparken got top score (6/6) by the Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet. * In 2010: Kongeparken was the biggest attraction in Rogalands, Norway, with 215 303 visitors. * In 2009 and 2010: Kongeparken got a score of 5/6 by the Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet. * In 2008: Kongeparken was named one of the two best amusement parks in Norway by the national newspaper Dagbladet. * In 2006: Spirit Award for the best leadership training program. The prize is awarded in the U.S. * In 2005: Rogaland Travel Award. * In 2004: Brass Ring Award for best print advertising in a park with 250 000 visitors. The prize is awarded in the U.S. * Pony Award. The prize is awarded in Italy.

Visitors

1986: 215,000 visitors 1997: 40,000 visitors 2009: 199,451 visitors 2010: 215,203 visitors 2011: 203,673 visitors 2012: 213,365 visitors 2013: 230,434 visitors 2014: 254,629 visitors 2015: 259,113 visitors 2016: 251,340 visitors 2017: 246,313 visitors 2018: 248,467 visitors

References

External links

Official website (English language)Archived version
{{Amusement parks in Norway Amusement parks in Norway Gjesdal 1986 establishments in Norway Amusement parks opened in 1986