Ancient trees, a sea of flowers, fresh summer meadows, shady groves, southern fruit, wild bees, songbirds, storks, bats, dragonflies, salmon and trout. In between and away from the rollercoasters, a fabulous natural landscape with vibrant flora and fauna has been growing for decades. 5,000 trees of 400 different species and hundreds of thousands of flowers give the park a unique, green flair.
Unusual climatic conditions and a team of experienced gardeners are the best prerequisites for the wonderful and varied botany in Europa-Park which has its own garden department employing a permanent staff of 45. “Are they really all real?” many visitors often ask. Palms stretching up to eight metres feel at home in the Baden climate. Fig trees, heliconias, orange and olive trees, cactus and southern herbs. As well as the Mediterranean plants from Spain, Italy, Greece or Portugal, exotic ones from Australia, Thailand or South Africa lend an attractive botanic touch. No other leisure park in the whole world can present a botany like this. In the summer, visitors can enjoy a true sea of flowers made up of 250,000 blossoms. An in-house florist freshly creates countless flower arrangements every day for the restaurants, reception, lobbies and events.
The river Elz that meanders gently through Europa-Park beguiles the hotels, too. If you make your way here, you will discover unspoiled, wild nature and many romantic hideaways, right in the centre of the adventurous goings-on of the park. Lemon trees, olive trees and many other plants emphasise the elegance of the hotels and their country-specific character. A genuine old wooden fisherman’s boat is located on the small bridge between “Bell Rock” and “Colosseo”. Boats like these used to be part of everyday life in the fisherman’s village of Rust. Directly next to the “Colosseo” pool, a white swan is incubating her eggs. Europa-Park’s five stork nests are occupied over the summer, including the one on the roof of the “Bell Rock”. The herb garden at the “Santa Isabel” hotel and the “Bell Rock” are nature’s treasure chest for the hotel chefs and form the basis for their fine cuisine. “Nature is a cultural asset for us” emphasises Europa-Park owner Roland Mack, for whom the topics of sustainability and nature protection belong to the basic tenets of his family company alongside innovative high-tech ride attractions.
The illustrated book “Natur-Schätze im Europa-Park” (“Natural Treasures in Europa-Park”) presents the diverse animal and plant world of Europa-Park over 173 pages with many large format photographs. Available at: www.shop.europapark.de