SnowWorld Outdoor Park

The outdoor park just opened in May, and is a great reason to visit SnowWorld. The website describes the outdoor park. It is basically a giant ropes challenge course, with two levels built on telephone poles and a 5 stage zip line. The course costs about €20 for adults and €17 for kids up to 12 years old. There is a height restriction of 1.4 meters and you must wear some sort of tennis shoes, but those were the only restrictions I could find.

There is also an alpine coaster that costs €2.50 per ride or can be combined with the climbing park ticket at a discount. The alpine coaster is definitely better than I expected. I like roller coasters so I thought this coaster would be tame, but it is surprisingly thrilling. The website says that the climbing course will take 2-3 hours to go through and they aren’t kidding. We went through the lower level of the course and the zip line and it took us 2.5 hours. You do spend some time waiting on people in front of you to progress, but as long as you aren’t behind a large group, you should be good. Overall, the experience was a good one and we will definitely be back. I went with my younger brother and sister (10 and 12 years old respectively). They both had a blast, especially on the alpine coaster.

If you’re climbing with kids, stay on the lower level of the course. The higher level is more difficult and some parts are hard for kids to reach. The attendants also require that adults be on either side of children so they can help out when needed.

Some words of caution:

Wear sunscreen – There is very little shade in the climbing park, and you’ll be out there for quite a while.

Brake on the zip line – The zip lines aren’t designed like the ones in the states that slow you down before you get to the end. There is a pad at the end, but you’ll want to slow down before you get to it. Your only brake is pulling down on your tie-in, which is just metal on metal contact so this method won’t leave you stranded in the middle of the zip line even if you brake as hard as possible.

Other activities at SnowWorld:

There are three restaurants on the ground level: self-service, a-la carte restaurant and a fondue restaurant. There are also several bars. SnowWorld is mainly an indoor ski facility. They have rental equipment and lessons for skiing and snowboarding if you are interested in learning before hitting the Alps.

Other things to see in Landgraaf:

GaiaZoo – The zoo appears to be fairly close to SnowWorld. I haven’t been, but their collection includes rhinos, giraffes, gorillas and many more. The zoo is free for 0-3 year-olds, €15.50 for kids under 10 and €18.50 for adults

Continium –  Located in Kerkrade, Continuum looks like it’s a children’s museum/science museum. Entry is free for 0-3 year olds, €8.50 for 4-17 year olds and €11 for adults. The Dutch Museum Card allows free entrance.