Efteling App Adds Subtitles for Fairytale Forest Accessibility

Efteling is boosting accessibility by now offering synchronized subtitles for nearly all spoken narrations throughout the park via its free app. The texts are available in Dutch, English, German and French, automatically appearing in the selected language.

Subtitles are provided for the attractions Baron 1898, Danse Macabre and Villa Volta. Before Villa Volta begins, Hugo van den Loonsche Duynen recounts the evening he was cursed, and visitors can now read this monologue in four languages. In the Fairytale Forest, subtitles cover almost all fairy tales with spoken narration, including “Cinderella,” “The Chinese Nightingale,” “The Indian Water Lilies,” “The Magic Clock,” “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” “The Princess and the Pea,” “The Red Shoes,” “The Six Servants,” “The Six Swans,” “The Wishing Table, the Gold-Donkey, and the Cudgel in the Sack,” “The Little Match Girl,” “Rapunzel,” “Little Red Riding Hood,” “Snow White” and “Mother Holle.”

In the app, subtitles are easy to activate: tap the three dots in the bottom-right corner, select “More,” choose “Subtitles” and enable the feature. The system automatically detects the current narration, displaying texts in sync with the on-site audio. Deaf or hard-of-hearing visitors can thus fully follow the stories and enjoy the attractions more fully.

Jolanda de Boer from Vlaardingen, who is hard-of-hearing herself, was among the first to test the subtitles and contributed to their development. She stresses the importance of everyone being able to enjoy the park equally. “I participated in the research project because I think it’s important that everyone can visit a place and enjoy it just as much as anyone else,” she says. Thanks to the subtitles, she discovered stories such as that of Longneck, one of Efteling’s best-known figures, for the first time. The experience at an attraction like Danse Macabre is also entirely different when the narration can be followed.

Efteling collaborated with organizations such as Bartiméus and experts by experience on the implementation. Femke van Es, manager of Society, Communication and Environment, states: “Efteling is a place for everyone, and we want all our visitors to understand our stories as fully as possible. Subtitles are the first step, followed by audio description. This is innovative in our industry and a real challenge because different technologies must interact. Together with our sole shareholder, the Efteling Nature Park Foundation, we are dedicating time and resources to this. With these steps, we are once again removing barriers and making our park more accessible.”

Later this year, audio description will be gradually introduced in the Fairytale Forest and at selected attractions, describing visual elements for visually impaired guests. Founded in 1950, the Efteling Nature Park Foundation preserves and protects the park’s heritage and promotes facilities for recreation and relaxation. As guardian of the fairy tale, it aims to keep Efteling’s stories and enchantment accessible to all and supports developments that ensure long-term relevance and continuity, so future generations can continue to enjoy this unique world.