Liseberg is an amusement park located in Gothenburg, Sweden, the park opened in 1923. Liseberg is the largest and one of the most visited amusement parks in Scandinavia, attracting around 3 million visitors annually. Among the noteworthy attractions is the wooden roller coaster Balder, voted twice (2003 and 2005) as the Best Wooden Tracked Roller Coaster in the world in a major international poll. The park itself has also been chosen as one of the top ten amusement parks in the world (2005) by Forbes Magazine.
Additional to the summer season, the park is also open during November and December, albeit with fewer rides operating, hosting a Christmas market with traditional Swedish cuisine such as mulled wine and specialties such as döner 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 80s.
The name Liseberg comes from the owner of the property. Johan Anders Lamberg. It was named after his wife, whose maiden name was Elisabeth Söderberg and whom he called Lisa. Around 1753, he baptized the plot "Lisa's Mountain" which eventually became Liseberg. 1900s
In 1908, Gothenburg City bought the property including the associated buildings for 225,000 Swedish crowns.
In 1923, Gothenburg celebrated its 300-year anniversary with an exhibition. And Leisure Park and Congress Park were built. The parks proposed for the first time its doors May 8 and among slides 996 meter-long Old mountain path were available. The park was originally intended as a temporary attraction for the ongoing exhibition, but it became such a success with over 800,000 visitors in just over a month, that it was pursued further. With an area of 150,000 m² the park had cost 2.5 million kronors to build.
On November 24, 1924, the Gothenburg City Council decided to purchase the Liseberg amusement park for 1 million dollars. 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 between the years 1923 and 1942.
On August 13, 1935, the Liseberg bath was inaugurated, created by engineer KI Schön Anderson. The functionalist-inspired building was considered to be modern in Europe at the time. The pool was 15 meters wide and 36 meters long. Underwater Lights and artificial waves were other features. The plant was able to receive 800 people, and entrance with a cabin cost 50 cents. First to open the pool was the Swedish Olympic hopeful champion from 1920, Arvid Wallman. The pool was emptied for good in 1956 and the facility was displaced in 1962 for the forthcoming 40th anniversary in 1963. Already in 1936, the number of visits exceeded 1,000,000.
Rotundan was one of the largest dancehalls when opened on January 10, 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 persons. On the second floor a bar with the name Uggleklubben opened, which was seen as almost mythical to hold in the 1950s. 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; the company took charge of running 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 enjoy the beautiful 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, so an annual selection is made as to who should get the honor to appear.
In the following years built it both on and to, the land was purchased and a whole lot of slides were put into service. In 1983, the Green-pink bunny, Liseberg Rabbit, became a symbol of Liseberg.
In 1991, the Liseberg Guest AB formed, which takes care of Gothenburg campsites and harbor.
In the 1990s the park was expanded by 35,000 square meters and a host of new attractions was inaugurated.
Multifarious Swedish musicians have performed at Liseberg since its opening. Among them, 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 like Sonya Heden Bratt, Hagge Geigert and Laila Westersund might be included among the artists who appeared countless times at Liseberg. Håkan Hellström also performed there a few times. Olof Palme gave a speech on the main stage during his last election in 1985. Since 1997, the magician and comedian Carl-Einar Häckner, together with Swedish and foreign guest artists and a variety orchestra, have had a main stage variety during most of July each season. The bench lines are often full with people at the performances at 6 and 9 o’clock.
Foreign artists who have performed at Liseberg include, Bob Marley, Led Zeppelin, Delta Rhythm Boys, Jimi Hendrix, Experience, Cat Stevens, The Beach Boys, The Kinks, The Who, PJ Proby, Frank Zappa with The Mothers Of Invention, Bill Haley and His Comets , Procul Harum, and Toto[].
Almost every year a new ride opens. In 2005 Liseberg opened a new rollercoaster called "Kanonen" (The cannon). Well-known attractions are Flumeride, Lisebergbanan, Balder.
Ride | Year Opened | Removed In | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Balder | 2003 | Twice nominated Best Wooden Tracked Roller Coaster. | |
Rabalder | 2009 | A junior coaster designed for younger children. | |
Kanonen | 2005 | Hyrdaulic launch coaster featuring a vertical loop and heartline roll. | |
Lisebergbanan | 1987 | Steel mine train rollercoaster, can reach speeds of up to 50 mph. |