Visiting Nigloland, or: Making a Pilgrimage to the Animatronic Hedgehogs (16/07/2025)
- Kirsten
- Aug 31
- 13 min read
Tucked away in the Champagne region of France, only accessible by a once-a-day shuttle bus during peak seasons, Nigloland is a park I’d long thought I would never reach as someone without a car. However, after a successful solo trip to Tripsdrill last summer – a park with many parallels, including hideous yet oddly charming animatronics, surrounding vineyards, and most importantly, a frustratingly remote location – it felt worth giving Nigloland a go with a friend.
The main goal was without a doubt to see the Niglo Show: Nigloland’s hedgehog-centric answer to Disney’s Country Bear Jamboree. So integral were these animatronic hedgehogs to our plans that I primarily described my holiday to perhaps bemused colleagues as “going to see some animatronic hedgehogs.” However, we found plenty else to admire at Nigloland, from meticulously-maintained landscaping to a thoughtful tribute to the park’s Showman roots.
Getting to Nigloland
Reaching the park wasn’t quite as fraught of a process as I found getting to Tripsdrill was, but it did have its moments. Firstly, we chose to stay over in the historic city of Troyes, arriving the afternoon before from Paris so that we could catch the single shuttle bus at 8am from Troyes’ bus station. However, a few weeks before travelling, I was having a look at train tickets from Paris and noticed the direct 90-minute options were no longer available: the journey was now going to include a rail replacement bus from a tiddly town in the middle of nowhere because of a major rail upgrade project. Ever the pessimist, I had visions of melting on an overcrowded bus, or simply not being able to get on for the hordes of people clamouring to get to Troyes. Thankfully, everything was fairly well organised and we arrived in Troyes without any issues.
The next morning, we headed over to the bus station and located the stop displaying the NigloExpress timetable, with the bus stop number handwritten on it. The bus station was pretty deserted at 7:40am, bar a couple of people who were giving off ‘heading to Nigloland’ vibes, so we waited near the circle of coach drivers smoking by the coach, as the keenest of beans ready to be first to board. Except, it got worryingly close to the departure time and nothing was happening. A gaggle of teens who also gave off ‘heading to Nigloland’ vibes had appeared and then drifted off again. This counts as one of the very few times I have ever been happy to be amidst a gaggle of Lynx-infused teens because they were our signal that the bus was not in fact going from its designated stop. The NigloExpress ended up only being occupied by this group of teens, one small family, and one probable Niglo enthusiast, so I dread to think what would have happened if that group of teens hadn’t been there to clue us in…
Having paid for our €4 one-way ticket (cash only) onboard through a bit of a language barrier, we arrived at the park around 9:10am. We arrived slightly ahead of schedule since no one was waiting for the bus at its other stops; despite it supposedly being the local school holidays, it was already becoming clear that Nigloland was not going to be very busy. We then stood in the gentle intermittent rain for 30 minutes, about tenth in line for the entrance, listening to the same announcement in English and French about not vaping over and over again, and wondering why on earth Nigloland of all places needed a security guy in a bulletproof vest with a baton and a taser (or gun?) patrolling the incredibly sedate queue. The gates opened at 9:45am, but it wasn’t possible to get far into the park before 10am, so we followed the lead of the probable Niglo enthusiast who had stopped to get breakfast from the café within the Eden Palais carousel’s building; my friend got a coffee, and we enjoyed the charming seating next to the historic carousel for a few moments of calm with almost no other guests.
Spatiale Expérience
First through the doors as it opened, we got first pick of seats for the Mack Eurosat space-themed coaster, and chose the back row. Amongst its blur of pitch black and vaguely spacey shapes, the most memorable thing about this ride is how wildly it bucks and shunts along its track. ‘Rough’ might not be quite the right word, but I felt sufficient need to brace my entire body the whole way round that my thighs came off of it feeling like they’d done a bunch of squats. It was a unique enough ride that it would have been nice to have had time for a re-run later on, but alas, the day passed by all too quickly.
Alpina Blitz
The coaster gods were smiling down on us once again for our second ride of the day, as we had first pick of seats for the Mack Mega Coaster, so we chose the front row this time. Alpina Blitz was a pretty enjoyable coaster: it’s smooth, with a great first drop, but by the end of the ride my hips were painfully sitting on top of the restraint. With no wait, we went round the queue again for a second ride, encountering along the way some children who were legging it around the queue in an absolutely dead theme park with the urgency of people who have never had to say, “ooh goody, the queues dropped to 45 minutes – that’s practically a walk-on!” I do wonder if and when Nigloland gets truly busy; despite it being the summer holidays, the park was running comfortably on minimal staffing, with pretty much every ride, including Alpina Blitz, running with just one person doing all of the jobs.
Descente en Schlitt'
We continued our coaster streak with the nearby Mack Wilde Maus. I don’t think I’ve ever been on a roller coaster that glides as smoothly as this one, which is a really weird thing to notice with a Wild Mouse. Jankiness is kind of their thing, so whilst I am always thankful not to walk away with a dislodged rib, it did feel like Descente en Schlitt' was missing a certain something.
L’Envol des Papillons
For a breather, we entered the Niglo Forest area of the park and peered into the then-unfinished (now open) new house for the park’s mascots Niglo and Niglotte, which someone from park management was explaining to a couple of VIP visitors. We then enjoyed a relaxing ride on the butterfly-themed monorail, from which we got a nice view of the park’s lush greenery and whimsical woodland theming – the Niglo Forest is a real treat for big fans of mushrooms.
Gift shop break
At this point, it was decided that I needed to acquire a funny little guy to carry around for the rest of the day. I had set my sights on the park’s new shoulder buddies, but when I saw them in the flesh, they were just too ugly and I couldn’t justify spending a whole €20 out of commitment to the bit. I was very willing to drop serious coin on so-ugly-it’s-cute hedgehog merch, preferably of the Niglo Show, but there was no Niglo Show merch, and Niglo, Niglotte and the seemingly unnamed bee that has a disproportionate merch presence (who are they?!) are all grotesque in a bad way. In the end, I got a hedgehog finger puppet, who by the end of the day was named Baby Donjon De L’Extrême, after the best ride in the park.
Africa Cruise
Next, we encountered what felt like our longest queue of the day, but which was probably still only around 20 minutes. This is very clearly meant to be a Jungle Cruise knock-off, but I’m in the unusual position of having never experienced Jungle Cruise, so this is the best Jungle Cruise I’ve seen (although perhaps Nigloland will someday retire the use of the song Monsieur Cannibale just as Efteling did a few years back…) I had hoped for a peaceful ride around the lake, listening to the birds and the soothing creak of animatronic elephants, but sadly, we got placed behind a lady with twin toddlers who fussed loudly until bribed with biscuits. Still, I love any boat ride that brings you close to fish and ducks hoping for a snack!
Donjon de l’Extrême
This 100m drop tower has confirmed to me that I am actually a fan of drop towers. Despite being the ‘tallest rotating free-fall drop tower in the world,’ it didn’t feel excessively high at the top, and my nerves only kicked in a bit when the gusts of wind as we reached the top reminded me that we were very exposed. It’s a lovely smooth descent that feels comparably forceful to smaller drop towers like Detonator at Thorpe Park, and it gave a better view of the park than the ferris wheel. The slightly-enclosed queue area seemed to concentrate the thick teenage body odour fug emanating from our fellow guests, but this ride was definitely worth having to stew in the fug for – especially for only 15 minutes!
Lunch at Crêperie Canadienne
It was now 12:30pm, so we sought out food. We opted for the creperie, as it had a clear vegetarian option. I got a Nutella crepe and my friend chose a vegetarian galette. Nigloland is tragically a Pepsi park, so I was reliant on the water refill stations for hydration throughout the day.
Rivière Canadienne
Nigloland’s log flume was a walk-on after lunch. It’s nothing too fancy, with no animatronics and just a single drop, but my shoes came out dry, so I cannot complain!
Krampus Expédition
We went for a one-two punch of wet rides, opting for the Mack Water Coaster next. I’m going to get the negative of this ride out of the way first: the queue. It features a section of almost complete darkness combined with props (I think crates?) to navigate around. Queues like this really frustrate me as someone with officially terrible night vision; they leave me fumbling for my phone light, feeling the pressure from better-sighted guests behind me to keep moving forward despite the risk of tripping, and it’s just so unnecessary. Atmosphere can be created with clever use of light, not just a total lack of it! On the positive side, I actually enjoyed the ride far more than I expected, given that its older brother Poseidon at Europa Park left essentially no impression on me whatsoever. It’s a fun track and the drop gets you pretty wet, but not so wet as to leave you miserably squelching about for the next hour.
Gold Mine Train
We were now starting to circle the Niglo Show’s area, trying to scope out just how keen we needed to be for the first showing of the day at 2pm. Every ride wait-time board in the park alternates between showing its ride’s wait-time and the times for the Niglo Show, so we reckoned the show’s a pretty big deal for guests. Guessing we had time for one more ride around 1:45pm, we boarded the park’s Mack powered mine train. I really loved this mine train, perhaps almost purely because of the fantastic rider response to it. Every park needs its family coaster that gets its audience amped up through a mixture of nostalgia passed down through generations and interaction with its landscape. Alton Towers has Runaway Mine Train, Tripsdrill has Rasender Tausendfußler – Nigloland has Gold Mine Train.
The Niglo Show
Sitting in the lobby to the Niglo Show, with its wood panelling and paintings of bison and grizzly bears, felt to me like stepping back into a 1980s vision of Americana. The only thing missing was a faint scent of cigarette smoke (all the dads at Nigloland seem to cradle comically massive vapes barely seen in the UK). Despite the show opening in the early 1990s, it’s a loving tribute to the animatronic shows that were popular in America especially in the 80s, and I am so grateful it has undergone essentially no changes. Would an attraction commissioned today feature an English hedgehog with smoker’s lung, or a lady hedgehog whose bosom heaves dramatically in time with her singing (with lyrical content consisting partly of pasta shapes because Italian hedgehogs)? Probably not, and it would be poorer for it.
I am not exaggerating when I say that the Niglo Show is worth the price of admission on its own. I was enjoying my day at Nigloland up until this point, but it was missing that thing that makes a park feel special. Sitting in the darkened theatre, frozen in its early-90s time warp, and clapping along with families for whom this show was probably a formative (perhaps emotionally scarring?) memory across generations, was a genuinely surreal experience. I went into the theatre a bit of a Niglo-sceptic, but came out of it with hedgehog-tinted glasses. Seeing the park through the lens of the Niglo Show really changed my feelings about the place, and I wished they had had a morning showing too, to set the tone for the day.
Manoir Hanté
Coming down from the high of the Niglo Show, we took a (literal) spin on the park’s answer to Haunted Mansion. This ride has some cute tricks up its sleeve (I was a particular fan of the silly flying chair, and the funny little skeleton playing a saxophone), but there’s some quality inconsistency too. Most of the ride feels quite polished, but the final room feels more in keeping with a funfair ghost train, with its slightly dated spooky murals in place of physical set pieces. Overall, it’s not quite Disney, but it’s also not the worst ghost train I’ve been on!
The Eden Palais Museum
Before a short, delicious waffle break, we had a potter around the small museum exhibition space inside the carousel’s building, which retraces the roots within the fairground and circus industry of the family who run the park. I really appreciate when parks contextualise their development by showcasing their history, and I think as family-run parks, both Nigloland and Tripsdrill get this just right. Whilst the displays are ostensibly about the Gélis-Caron family, it doesn’t feel self-indulgent; instead, the information is there to help guests understand what has shaped the park and its ethos.
Dinosaures Aventure
Fans of goofy dinosaurs may get their goofy dinosaur fix in this walkthrough attraction, vaguely themed to Jurassic Park in a non-copyright-infringing way, complete with off-brand Attenborough. However, I have to admit, whilst the dinosaurs are quite goofy, I have seen more unhinged dinosaurs elsewhere (for example, Drayton Manor). It was also hard to muster enthusiasm for purposefully standing outdoors, since it was raining again at this point.
Noisette Express
At around 4pm we finally got round to the final coaster of the day and the only non-Mack one: Noisette Express. We left it until fairly late because it always seemed to have one of the longest queues in the park. We probably waited around 15 to 20 minutes and this felt fair for what was a solid family coaster. It did amuse me though that the red squirrel mascot, Rikko, who sits on the back of the train, bears a striking resemblance to Conker from the ‘rated M for Mature’ Nintendo 64 game, Conker’s Bad Fur Day. Maybe they’re relatives.
Grande Roue
We were now trying to kill a small amount of time before an all-important second viewing of the Niglo Show at 5pm, and we thought the ferris wheel – with absolutely no queue – would fit the bill. Whilst we still had 30 minutes before the doors to the show opened, Nigloland is strangely tricky to navigate – for some reason all paths seemed to lead back to the horribly diesel-scented Circuit de Nigloland car ride, where we constantly ended up against our will – so we wanted to leave a comfortable margin. The ride operator had other ideas however, and decided to kindly give us the longest ride cycle in the history of the park as compensation for making us wait a few minutes to board. Each time we thought we were about to be let off, we sailed past for another round, and the promise of hedgehogs singing about pasta grew fainter and fainter. Thankfully, we were eventually set free and we hotfooted it over to the Canadian Village.
King of Mississippi
We almost missed out on this beautiful riverboat because it’s so tucked away, nestled right at the back of the park alongside the Zamperla Disk’o we didn’t get round to riding. We kept seeing signs for something called ‘King of Mississippi’ and there was a painting of a paddle steamer on a door near the front of the park, but somehow, we didn’t put two and two together and realise the park has a really big boat until 45 minutes before park close. We boarded with only a handful of other guests and enjoyed a peaceful pootle along the ‘river’, only interrupted by the occasional whoosh and screams from the drop tower nearby.
Tour des Petits Fantômes
Speaking of drop towers, we chose to end our day with a go on the baby version of Donjon de l’Extrême since it was close by with no wait and we didn’t want to commit to anything too long, as we needed to be ready to get the bus back at 6:30pm. I am a big fan of these kiddie drop towers; they always punch above their weight in terms of stomach-dropping sensation, and are reliably silly!
Final thoughts
We had a really lovely time at Nigloland – it’s an easy park to enjoy, with low wait times, smooth rides, and a lush, relaxing setting in nature. I am however going to be a bit controversial and say that I think the Niglo Show really makes the park, and without it, it’s just a very, very nice park for international visitors, not an absolute must-visit destination (especially given its difficult location for people dependent on public transport). I would love the park to lean a little more into its hedgehog theme – a few more animatronics here, a little better merchandising there – because, for me, that feels like its unique selling point which sets it apart from other very nice independent parks. I do wonder however if my impression of the park would have been better if it had been a gloriously sunny day, as I do find that grey skies and drizzle can make even the prettiest parks look a little bleak. Having said this, I did still find the park incredibly charming and I hope to have the chance to visit it again someday once their next major coaster is open – although we all know which attraction I’ll actually be there for!
Comments