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Liseberg is an amusement park located in Gothenburg, Sweden, that opened in 1923. It is the second most visited theme park in Scandinavia, with around three million visitors annually. Among the noteworthy attractions is the wooden roller coaster Balder, twice (2003 and 2005) voted as the Best Wooden Tracked Roller Coaster in the world in a major international poll. Wood Roller Coaster Poll Results 2005 The park itself has also been chosen as one of the top ten amusement parks in the world (2005) by Forbes magazine and second best in Europe (2022) by IAAPA. Forbes.com
In addition to the summer season, the park is also open during October to December, albeit with fewer rides operating, hosting a Halloween season with various houses of horrors and a Christmas market, with traditional Swedish cuisine such as mulled wine and specialties such as Doner kebab made from reindeer meat.
The official colors of Liseberg are pink and green as can be seen on the entrance and the older houses in the park. The colors were also adopted for the logo, which was introduced in the 1980s, but changed in 2013 to the current logo.
In 1908, Gothenburg bought the property, including the on-site buildings, for 225,000 Swedish krona.
In 1923, Gothenburg celebrated its 300-year anniversary with the Gothenburg Exhibition, which included a Leisure Park and the Congress Park; the area was opened on 8 May and included fun slides and the long wooden Kanneworffska Funicular, designed by the Danish amusement builder Waldemar Lebech (originally there were five trains with three cars each that accommodated 10 people in each car, the ride lasted 2 minutes 30 seconds; it was demolished in 1987 after having served over 41 million visitors). The fun park was originally intended as a temporary attraction for the exhibition, but it became such a success with over 800,000 visitors in just over a month, that it was kept open. With an area of , the park had cost 2.6 million kronors to build.
On 24 November 1924, the Gothenburg City Council decided to purchase the Liseberg amusement park for 1 million kronor. In 1925, the amusement park was taken over by the municipal company Liseberg AB. The park's first director and one of its initiators was the legendary "carpenter from Skåne" Herman Lindholm, who managed it 1923–42.
On 13 August 1935, the functional-inspired Liseberg Bath was inaugurated, created by engineer KI Schön Anderson. The pool was wide and long and sported underwater lights and artificial waves. The pool was able to receive 800 people at a time and the entrance fee with a cabin was 50 öre. The Swedish Olympic hopeful champion from 1920, Arvid Wallman, inaugurated the facilities. The pool was closed in 1956 and the building was demolished in 1962 for the forthcoming 40th anniversary in 1963.
Rotundan was one of the largest dancehalls when it opened on 10 January 1940. Its architect was Axel Jonson, and the construction lasted for one year at a cost of approximately 500,000 SEK. The dance floor held 1,200 people and on the second floor a bar with the name Uggleklubben was opened. In 1956, the facility was renovated and its name changed to the Rondo. The architect Gunnar Aspe was behind the work, which cost 1 million dollars.
In 1947, Liseberg AB opened hotel facilities; Hotell Liseberg Heden. Right from the start one of the objectives of Liseberg was that it would be an opportunity for Gothenburg dwellers to experience recreation and the scenery, and in 1959 it opened the Princess Birgitta, a flower exhibition. During the opening ceremony, 15,000 roses were strewn over the park by helicopter. In 1977, Honor Place was founded, a collection of many of the world's largest celebrity hand impressions. At the time, there were 50 imprints; today, there are more than can fit the area, so an annual selection is made as to who should get the honor to appear.
In 1991, the Liseberg Guest AB was formed to oversee the running of Gothenburg campsites and harbor. In the 1990s, the park was expanded by and a host of new attractions were inaugurated. In 2015, Liseberg's different companies consolidated into one: Liseberg AB.
In 1983, the green-pink bunny, Liseberg Rabbit, became the park's symbol and mascot.
In 1998, that year's Sveriges Television's Christmas calendar När karusellerna sover was filmed there.
The park is noted for its Liseberg's Lustgarten (botanical garden) that is landscaped and has many waterfalls, artworks and a variety of plants.
Liseberg Main Stage (Stora Scenen) was built in 1923 and was originally designed as a big music pavilion for the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and other large-scale concerts (over the years the design of the venue has been modified). Bands such as Abba and the Rolling Stones have performed here. Right next to the Stora Scenen is the smaller Kvarnteatern which plays host to various smaller events, in particular children's theater.
Polka (Polketten) is the dance hall that was built in 1925 but has since been moved to its current location. The Taube Scene was inaugurated in 2008 and is named after Evert Taube; this venue is used for different types of music such as jazz, and the Liseberg Orchestra plays here as well.
Adjacent to Liseberg Park are more venues: Lisebergshallen is an entertainment and sports arena, home to the local floorball team and team handball team. Rondo is the name of a show venue and Liseberg Theater is a local theater.
Multifarious Swedish performers have performed at Liseberg since its opening. Among them include, Zarah Leander, Maurice Chevalier, Marlene Dietrich, Evert Taube, ABBA, Lasse Dahlquist, Birgit Nilsson, Pernilla Wahlgren and Carola Häggkvist. Sten-Åke Cederhök played in 25 years' own perceptions of the "Week Revy". Other artists such as Sonya Hedenbratt, Hagge Geigert and Laila Westersund have appeared countless times at Liseberg. Olof Palme gave a speech on the main stage during his last election in 1985.
International acts who have performed at Liseberg include Bob Marley, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Cliff Richard, Nightwish, Delta Rhythm Boys, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Cat Stevens, The Beach Boys, The Kinks, The Who, PJ Proby, Frank Zappa with The Mothers of Invention, Bill Haley & His Comets, Procol Harum, and Toto, among others.
Since 2004 a sing-along show called Lotta på Liseberg ( Lotta at Liseberg), hosted by Lotta Engberg, is held every summer at Stora scenen in Liseberg, which airs over TV4 since 2009.
| Balder | 2003 | Intamin | A prefabricated wooden sit down coaster that reaches a speed of 90 km/h (55.9 mph) on a long track and a height of . Twice nominated Best Wooden Tracked Roller Coaster. |
| Helix | 2014 | Mack Rides | Steel roller coaster featuring two launches, seven inversions and numerous airtime spots (second longest roller coaster with inversions in the world). It reaches a speed of . |
| Lisebergbanan | 1987 | Zierer & Anton Schwarzkopf | A steel train-themed coaster that reaches a speed of on a long track and a height of . |
| Rabalder | 2009 | Zierer | A children's steel sit down coaster that reaches a speed of on a long track and a height of . |
| Stampbanan | 2013 | Preston & Barbieri | A small and short steel sit down coaster aimed at young children and first time riders. |
| Valkyria | 2018 | Bolliger & Mabillard | A dive coaster that reaches speeds of on a long track and at a height of . The longest dive coaster in Europe. Replaced Kanonen (now operating at Lost Island Theme Park as Matugani). |
| Luna | 2023 | Vekoma | A family boomerang roller coaster and the newest roller coaster in the park. It is the fastest and tallest of its kind. |
On 12 February 2024 a massive fire broke out at the water park, which was still under construction and had been scheduled to open in the spring. The fire left one person dead and injured 22 others, produced three explosions and caused the evacuation of a nearby hotel and office facilities. According to initial reports, Oceana was totally destroyed by the fire and nothing was salvageable. The fire reignited again, the day after it was extinguished. A body was found during clearing operations. The deceased man was later identified as Patrik Gillholm, a manager at the park. A subsequent investigation found that the fire was caused as a result of deficiencies in the fitting of the water diversion pipes, which resulted in the pipes overheating and then catching fire during electrofusion.
On 17 July 2024, during a board meeting, a decision was made to rebuild the water park and attempt to have it finished by 2026. Clearing operations of the site were ongoing.
** Includes guests to Lisebergsteatern, Rondo, Lisebergshallen and events inside the park
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