Hunderfossen – Inspiration for Our Adventure
About three and a half year ago we posted about our plans to visit the Hunderfossen Family Park. Our desire to go to the “Troll Park” was even part of the inspiration for us to head off on this year (plus) long family sabbatical.
After three years of anticipation, did Hunderfossen meet our expectations? Read on to find out!
From Inspiration to Reality
Hunderfossen Family Park is located just a few miles north of Lillehammer, Norway. The theme of the park is fairy tales, and of course trolls feature prominently.
The park has rides for all ages, although the majority of them are geared towards kids under 10. There are three separate driving tracks. For smaller kids there is a driving school where kids learn the basic rules of driving before putting their skills to the test on a course with traffic lights. Middle-sized kids can drive slightly faster mini Mercedes convertibles. Larger kids (and adults) can test their racing skills driving speedy electric go-carts around a track. 
There’s also an RC car track.
After getting their fill of racing, the kids tried their hands at moving dirt with these mini Volvo backhoes. If you are starting to get the sense that many of the rides have corporate sponsors, you are correct 🙂
Movin’ some dirt. 
Little ones can even ‘drive’ tractors and learn about agriculture in the process. 
After riding some of the tamer rides we were looking for a bit more of a thrill so we headed to the roller coaster, designed in the form of a hot rod racer. The kids wanted to ride again and again so we were fortunate that the line was short.
One area of the park houses an energy education center. We enjoyed using some of the hands-on exhibits but English translations were a bit spotty so we didn’t get as much out of it as we probably could have.
Feeling the power of the plasma globe. 
One of the main features of the park is the fairy tale castle, which houses an amusing and slightly scary “Troll Drop” ride along with a tamer ride through scenes depicting numerous fairy tale stories. 
The fairy tale ride is narrated and fortunately there was an English option, which was nice since we weren’t familiar with most of the fairy tales being described.
We visited on two consecutive days. The first was overcast with occasional rain, which really kept the crowds down; we rarely had to wait in line to do anything. The second day was sunny and warm which brought out quite a few more visitors, but the park was still relatively uncrowded and lines for the rides were mostly short.
With the sun out we took advantage of the heated pool area that featured a splash area, water slide, and inflatable obstacle course.
Swimming always seems to make us hungry.
Tips for Visiting Hunderfossen Family Park
Here are our tips for visiting Hunderfossen!
- If your schedule allows, visiting Hunderfossen on two consecutive days makes sense because there’s plenty to fill two days and the second day is relatively inexpensive. Ticket prices can be found here.
- As with many parks in Norway, it is permitted to bring your own food and drinks and there are even gas grills available for use near the Energy Centre.
- If you don’t bring your own food prepare to open your wallet because the food is generally quite expensive (this is Norway after all). Some of the (comparatively) better values we found were the nachos in the taco restaurant near the 4D theater and the chicken wrap at the cafe by the pool, both of which were under $10.
- The most popular rides seemed to be the roller coaster, the Troll Fall, and the electric go-karts. If visiting on a busy day it is advisable to arrive at the opening time and knock out these attractions first.
- As with pretty much everywhere in Norway, the people we encountered spoke English so we had no trouble getting around. That said, the park primarily caters to Norwegians and many of the attractions and shows (including the Little Prince 4D movie) are presented in Norwegian only.
Summing Up
Our visit to Hunderfossen capped off a wonderful visit to Norway. If you haven’t yet, be sure to check out our posts on Oslo, Bergen, and Norway’s Scenic Routes. Hunderfossen didn’t wow us parents as much as the jaw-dropping scenery in Norway, but the kids loved it which made for a great family experience.
Next up: we venture into the land of flat-pack furniture and meatballs. 🙂 Check back soon!