The Inspiration for Disneyland!

Time visited: September 2022

Time spent: Three hours

Imagine an arched entrance that seems over ten metres tall. You look up and see miniature orbs hanging above you. The spheres are covered in earthy colours, making them seem like miniature planets. You step inside and the path winds through beautiful gardens and quirky decorations. The buildings you spot look like palaces and castles. And around you is an explosion of colours.

Welcome to Tivoli, the amusement park that inspired Walt Disney to build Disneyland!

I'd done my research well before coming to Tivoli and knew exactly which rides and experiences I wanted!

Galoppen ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Now, off to the races! If you think that Tivoli Gardens has weekly races, I'll stop you right there! At Tivoli, there was a fantastic horseracing game called Galoppen, which we came across while diving into the many joys of Tivoli prior to our trip. I sat down, the whistle blew; and the small balls were released. I rolled them under the barrier aiming for the 16 holes a metre ahead of me to score points. As soon as the first ball rolled into a hole, the horse matching my booth number rolled forward. Confusing, isn't it? Let me explain!

There are 12 'tracks', each with 16 holes at a metre's distance from the players. Seven of the holes are yellow, seven are blue and two are orange. As soon as the balls are released, you should roll them into the holes to score points. With each ball rolling into a hole, the horse matching your track number moves forward. The orange holes are the highest-scoring ones, so you should definitely aim for those as then your horse would cover more distance in one go. When a horse reaches the finish line, we have a winner and the game is over.

For a horse race that involved no riding, Galoppen was actually pretty fun! I played it twice!

The Roller Coaster ⭐⭐⭐⭐

When my parents asked me which rides we should go on, I started blabbering about the Demon and the Golden Tower, and then I saw the look on their faces, and I knew 'we' wouldn't be going on those rides, only 'I' would! So for a family ride, we went on the second oldest roller coaster in Europe, which was built in 1914 and was called... drumroll... the Roller Coaster!

When the ride started, the roller coaster bumped along the track building up momentum. As we approached the first drop, and the roller coaster rushed down, everybody screamed! Then we went up the next hill and down without stopping and found ourselves screaming our lungs out once more. Then came the tunnel! It was pitch black. We sped through it, unable to see where we were or guess how much longer we would remain engulfed in such darkness. After we came out of the tunnel, we continued going up and down the hills as the roller coaster made two rounds before coming to a stop.

When we came out, we saw many people crowding around a booth which appeared to have the pictures taken during the ride. We went closer to take a look at ours, and since my dad sat behind us on the ride, in the picture of me and my mother, he could also be seen, with his eyes tightly shut!

The Galley Ships ⭐⭐⭐

So what kind of ride was the Galley Ships? Well, it wasn't a water ride, that's for sure! There was a thin circular track with multiple colourful wooden boats that could carry two people in each. The track rose and fell very much like the waves in the ocean. I was surprised that my mum went on this ride with me!

The ride began with a jerk! At each bump, I was lifted off my seat and would then come crashing back down as the boat lurched in a circular motion. My mum and I screamed and laughed as we bopped up and down feeling both terrified and so excited that I can't even begin to describe it. As the boats came to a stop, my mum and I got out and walked over to my dad, who had chosen not to go on the ride after being within earshot of the hysterical screams.

The Dragon Boats ⭐⭐⭐

Next stop: the Dragon Boats. The pond was dark, and as the dragon boats glided on the surface, they sent ripples across the water. The dragon boat was the only other ride that my dad had chosen to try out; my mum, on the other hand, who can't swim, chose not to.

The second I stepped onto the boat, it swayed, making me wobble so much that I nearly fell into the water! Once the boat stabilised, we were told that we could begin. There was a steering wheel, and since my dad drives, we decided it would be better for him to try steering the boat before I had a go. After around two minutes, it was my turn. If there's one thing you should know about me, it's that my only driving experience is from video games and that I've never gone a full five minutes without crashing! Within a minute I almost hit the edge of the pond...

We carried on with my dad being the driver.

The Astronomer ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Astronomer (sorry, no hyperlink because the link on the Tivoli website was broken) was a large ride with a sturdy metal centre and multiple long metal beams holding many small rocket ships. As the rockets rose and fell, the riders let out cries of joy. After the ride started. my mum and I - yes, even I couldn't believe that she was joining me on this - were surprised to see that we weren't rising and falling the way others were! What was amiss? As I looked around, my eyes fell to a small lever that could be moved up and down at will. I immediately reached for it and lifted it as high as humanly possible only to be met with the force of being raised upwards with unbelievable speed and my mum's terrified scream! After getting the hang of the controls. I wanted to continue the ride at the very top; my mum, however, wanted to stay near the bottom, so we both had to compromise and for the rest of the ride remained about five metres above the ground.

The Milky Way Express ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Previously known as the Odin Express (I liked that name more), the Milky Way Express was a high-speed roller coaster at 17 metres with a red and blue tip. Just looking at it made me excited! If I really wanted to go, it'd be my first time on a roller coaster alone! I was nervous. I chose a seat in the middle and waited for the ride to begin. But as soon as the roller coaster started to move, all my fear faded and was replaced by excitement! There were sharp turns, and there were points when the roller coaster was on its side and would've fallen if it weren't for the sturdy track! Plus there was a tunnel so dark that it took away my ability to see more than a metre ahead of me! Altogether, the roller coaster was thrilling, and I would've gone again if it hadn't been for the Demon...

The Demon ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ + a million more

The Demon was by far one of my most favourite rides ever! When I was looking up the rides on the Tivoli website long before our travel, the Demon stood out for me due to the fact that the roller coaster makes a full three-hundred-and-sixty-degree turn at high speed! I couldn't contain my excitement when I first laid my eyes on this marvellous creation. I excitedly marched towards the entrance! At least I thought it was the entrance...

After circling the roller coaster for five minutes - okay, maybe three minutes - we finally found the actual entrance. My parents escorted me up the stairs but later had to leave as they couldn't stay without riding the Demon too. They took my glasses. I gulped as I sat down in an empty seat. There were people behind me and in front of me chatting with anticipation. Then two girls came and sat in two of the vacant seats in my row. I would've spoken to them if they hadn't been double my age, and I hadn't been nearly as nervous as I was at that time.

The machinery whirred, signalling the start of the ride. I shot my parents a nervous glance as the Demon whooshed along the track! I gripped the armrests tightly as I got a rush of adrenaline! I looked straight ahead and felt the wind zooming past me as we approached the loop. I regretted my decision to keep my eyes open because there were no glasses to protect them from the whistling wind. I squeezed my eyes shut as I felt myself getting pulled upwards (or was it downwards?)...

I opened my eyes to find the roller coaster back in an upright position when it quickly spiralled, turning once again upside down before I had time to react! By then all my fear was gone and I was enjoying myself, wishing the ride would never end, but of course, it did.

The Golden Tower ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ + a million more

There was no stopping me now! I headed to the Golden Tower. After a bit of searching, there it was, all 63 metres of it! The people on it, mainly kids, were screaming hysterically, yet they somehow still had huge smiles on their faces! I sat down, strapped on the seatbelt, and prepared myself for what I was about to experience! We began to rise, slowly but steadily. Once we reached the top, I had a few seconds to take in the view as best as I could without my glasses, but then suddenly we began to drop! I let out a scream as my hair flew whipping my face wildly, and I stretched my feet out as though it would stop me from falling so quickly! We stopped suddenly with a thud that shook our seats but were once again raised upwards and then back into a freefall in what seemed like an endless cycle. Then we slowly came down to a stop. As I got out and started walking back to my parent, my legs were shaking as though they were no longer used to the feeling of the ground beneath them. My face was grinning.

Tik Tak ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ + a million more

Now I had enough courage to go on Tik Tak! There were very few people there compared to some of the other adrenaline-stirring rides, but those who were there must've lost their voice after screaming for so long!

I went inside and chose my seat. I was terrified. The ride began to spin. The seats were attached to the floor in a way that allowed them to roll around. As a result, I found myself upside down, or sideways, while being spun in circles. I don't normally feel like screaming on any rides but still do for the sake of fitting in. Yet, when I was on Tik Tak, I screamed like there was no tomorrow because of how thrilled but terrified I was. By the time the ride ended, I had experienced a new way of seeing the world. Literally! I had gone upside down for a full thirty seconds, and seen the world flash past from every possible perspective! What a great last ride!

I found out later that Tik Tak was built to celebrate the 175th birthday of Tivoli.

It was evening. We walked around, looking at the Vintage Cars, the Carousel, the Ferris Wheel, and the countless people having fun with friends and family. I remembered what the 21-year-old son of our Airbnb host said. He said he bought a yearly pass every year and still enjoyed going there as much as his younger self. If he had nowhere else to go, he'd go to Tivoli, whether it was with his friends or on his own. I believed him. We only needed to look around to see that there were not only parents accompanying their children, but also people of all ages having a good time.

We bought a lovely magnet from the gift shop to remember our time at Tivoli and walked out of the magical park through the same arched gate we'd entered it. The many small lights which outlined the arch gave off a warm glow, and the pathway behind us was lit up by lanterns which cast a crimson hue.

This was Tivoli!

Don't forget to check out our video Tivoli, Copenhagen on YouTube!