Duinrell, would you recommend?

[Boredofbeinganadult]

Hi, I’ve been thinking about booking Duinrell next year for me and the kids but I am looking for opinions from people who have been on whether they enjoyed it?
Is it better to book through euro camp or directly on their website? I’m not sure what works out cheaper.
I like how you get access to the theme park and there is a cheap supermarket near by so hopefully it will be a budget friendly holiday.
Thanks in advance

Loved it! So much to do and being able to walk to the town was lovely. We would 💯 go back again. We booked through eurocamp but would need to work out what was cheaper as the cost of the water park is subsidised but still pay pp whereas I think the cost of the water park is included if you book direct. There’s more flexibility with dates for eurocamp though you can pretty much go any day you want.

Think I’ve read the water park is £15 pp if we book with euro camp but free if we book direct. I love how you can use the theme park everyday if we wanted, did you enjoy this? But I definitely need to work out who to book with. Was your accommodation ok with euro camp? Thanks for replying

A few years since we went but my now adult children still declare it their favourite holiday we went on!

I've just directly copied this from the eurocamp website so you can see the pool costs through Eurocamp. In my opinion, it's very expensive and complicated.

Aquatic area

The opening dates of pool complexes are correct at the time of collection at the beginning of the season, but are subject to change. It is possible that the parc may close outdoor pools in poor weather and/or in low season.

POOL BOOKING INFORMATION:

• Guests need to pre-book time slots at either the Indoor or Outdoor pool via the Duinrell webapp which is available once you have checked in at the parc. On arrival guests will also be given a number of Tikibad pool voucher codes at the Eurocamp reception to enable you to access the discounted rates below. The number of voucher codes is determined by your length of stay and are given per mobile home (not per person):

1-2 nights = 1 voucher, 3 nights = 2 vouchers, 4-6 nights = 3 vouchers, 7-8 nights = 4 vouchers, 9-10 nights = 5 vouchers, 11-12 nights = 6 vouchers, 13 nights = 7 vouchers, 14 nights = 8 vouchers.

• Children up to and including 2 years are free of charge (with ID) in both pools.

Tikibad Indoor Pool

• In 2025 the discounted price €15.00 per person in 2025.
• Only available for time slots between 10am and 2pm, for a maximum of 2 hours in the pool

- Anyone wishing to enter the pool after 2pm must purchase a ticket in conjuction with amusement park tickets, starting from €34.50. Separate entry tickets to the pool are only available after 4pm, starting from €24 per person

Outdoor Pool

• Discounted price €5.00 per person.
• Available throughout the day, for a maximum of 4 hours in the pool.

does seem complicated to book the swimming

Ah, many happy memories of Duinrell when the kids were little. Always a success.

I haven't been for a few years, so my advice may be out of date, but we preferred booking direct and getting a 'Dungalow'. The check-in process was quicker and the accommodation was better situated and just nicer and Eurocamp seemed to have so many rules and regulations - (having some 15-year-rep old checking the inventory and judge how well you had cleaned at the end of the stay really put a dampner on things!)

When we went, the amusement park was quite tame - perfect for little ones, not so much for thrill seekers. It was nice to be able to do it in chunks, so go back to favourite rides etc. There is also a nice playground and some jolly shows etc.

They may have changed it, but booking direct meant pool entry was at certain times (like 10 til 2 and after that you had to pay - or it was open to paying customers? They may have changed that, though).

You will need to get out at times to avoid cabin fever. The little town, Wassenaar, is a lovely stroll (there is bike and wagon hire at Duinrell, which is fun). The beach is good. There is a really fab natural history museum at Leiden.

Anyway, bottom line is we really liked it and went about 3 times. That was enough I think.

(Also, my crappy flip-flops got nicked from the changing rooms - didn't think they were worth putting in the lockers, but someone obviously saw an opportunity, so yeah, use the lockers!)

some great advise! I think I will book direct as the accommodation seems nicer. We are flying or getting the euro star, not sure which one yet so is it easy to get out to do some day trips? Or is a car essential? I’ve read about the town being nearby, seems like a nice place to explore and get food.

We’re going for a third time this year. Previously we have taken our own tent and swimming was included as booked direct. This year we’re going in October half term and Eurocamp was way cheaper plus had more flexible arrival days. With Duinrell it was Friday Monday arrivals only. As we’ve been before and have teens well pay for the kids to go a couple of times to the pool without us.

We always drive so we don’t need to hire bedding and bikes. Plus being able to bring food and booze home. We get around on bike once there though. Loads of places in cycling distance depending on DC ages. Beach is close by and lots of lovely towns and cities including Amsterdam (we cycled to the train station for Amsterdam).

We will be adding a night at Efteling before we get the ferry back.

Amazing hope you have a great time!

My kids will be 4 and 7 by the time we go so think they will love it. I have noticed it does seem a lot cheaper to book with eurocamp. The flexible dates are good

We’re about to go for the second time! It’s great, so much to do. I’ve only ever booked direct.

We went last April with family and my 1 year old and absolutely loved it! The little town is gorgeous and the theme park is great that it's included! Really great place, would definitely go back

Went last year. The theme park is a bit rough around the edges and I’d thoroughly had enough by about day 3. Outdoor pool was freezing cold. Indoor pool was fun.
child had a great time but I wouldn’t rush back tbh.

We used to go with a tent. Dd loved it. A Go Ape place just the other side of the park too as I recall. As already mentioned worth looking at all the options to see about the best pool deal. There were activities in the main building in the evening, but everything was very dutch. Their own accommodation looked nice. The onsite supermarket was not unreasonable.

We have been many times - it's excellent ! The water park is excellent and the theme park is great . A little old fashioned but some great rides !
Book direct with them- the Premium Duingalows are great . Some even have a sauna.
Wassenaar is gorgeous - great restaurants and lovely ice cream shop.
Fantastic base for Amsterdam and you could even fit in a day in Efteling ( like Dutch Disney but better ).
One recommendation I have is to go off peak . We went once in summer but after that at Easter or February mid term . WAY cheaper , quieter etc .

Brilliant tips, thanks 😊

It is a great park but definitely book direct and get the best accommodation you can. I’m looking forward to going again soon.

Which accommodation do you recommend?

When we went we flew and got a taxi from Schiphol airport. We didn't need a car while there. You can hire bikes and there are buses and trains if you want to go to Amsterdam or Leiden. Leiden is cycling distance for adults along safe car free paths but probably a bit far for a child under about 10.

Yes we went last year with 14 and 10 year old, it's he first time we've done a holiday like that and we absolutely loved it!

We booked the premium+ dungalow. It was spotless and spacious.

The theme park is good fun, but quite small and compact. There was enough for us there.

We went swimming twice, and the water park was brilliant fun. But I can imagine queues get long for slides peak time

The supermarket on site is adequate. There is one in the town, but food in the Netherlands was generally more expensive than the UK. Eating out was similar to UK prices. There are lots of nice places to eat in the town and Dominos pizza too.

We flew KLM and took a pre-booked taxi from the airport.

We took a day trip to Amsterdam too. If we stayed longer we would have hired bikes and cycled to the beach.

Hi all,
I hope this thread can help me too!

We're going to Duinrell for a week next week. My daughter is 8 years old and we obviously do not have a Dutch swimming diploma A which is what the website states is required - otherwise children need to wear floatation device.

Please can anyone offer advice on this, is this actually a requirement or can you offer an alternative certificate or similar?

Apologies for the threadjack and many thanks in advance!

Hi @CandyCamper , we went last year. My older child (9) is not a hugely confident swimmer and we didn’t think he’d be able to pass their swim test so we took some of those arm bands that are basically foam rings which snap together. He wore those, and nobody asked for anything.

I’d take something like that with you - I suspect they would just ask your daughter to swim a certain distance independently if they had questions about her ability. Certainly nobody asks you anything on the way in and I think it’s more likely to be an issue with a younger child who is less likely to be able to swim - I did see a lifeguard checking out a child’s swimming skills in the outdoor pool, child looked to be about 4 at most.

Are you on the Facebook group for Duinrell? It’s called Duinrell - chats and tips for holidaymakers. If you use Facebook, I’d really recommend it.