What does Bart say? – A theme park blog!

Tomorrow, on Saturday April 5th, 2025, Walibi Holland will open YoY! A single-rail coaster by roller coaster manufacturer Rocky Mountain Construction (better known as RMC). Before YoY opens for press and the general public, Walibi Holland organised a preview event for two hundred roller coaster enthusiasts with a Q&A with Mascha Taminiau (park director), an exclusive pin, food and beverages and of course, exclusive ride time on YoY. I was one of the two hundred enthusiasts who got to attend this event. Curious about what I think of the YOY at Walibi Holland, and what was it like to be present at this exclusive event?

Walibi Holland is the first park in Europe to open a single-rail coaster by RMC, and in doing so, Walibi Holland is pulling out all the stops. The park has chosen to add not one, but two single-railcoasters to its roller coaster line-up. One for families (Chill, blue), and one for the real thrill seekers with no less than six inversions (a moment where you hang upside down for a short moment, Thrill, green). With the opening of YOY, Walibi Holland the park isn’t the first one to open a single-rail coaster in Europe, but also the park which has a coaster with the most inversions for a single-rail coaster.

Before we all stormed the queue, Mascha Taminiau, park director, had the floor. She gave a short speech and answered several questions asked by us. She hinted that there is still room within the current park boundaries to develop, and that the area near YoY might get a scare zone. Other than that, she kept her lips tightly sealed on that subject, and we will have to find out for ourselves during the Halloween Fright Nights 2025.

Let’s talk about Chill side:
I chose to start at the Chill side, not only because we were closer to the entrance here but also because I wanted the Thrill side to be my 222nd credit. The Chill side is located on the other side of the station, therefore  you have to pass under the station. The queue is nicely themed and makes you feel like you are underwater. On a hot day like today, having to join this queue is certainly not a punishment (I will come back to this at the Thrill side). We entered the queue just inside, from this point it is estimated to take 15-20 minutes to the station. It is common knowledge that the capacity of a single rail coaster is not too high, but the pace among the operators was nice (the same goes for the Thrill side). 

The Chill side is an airtime machine and the interaction with the Thrill side at certain moments is fantastic! It starts at the lift hill where you are hoisted up together with the Thrill side at the same time, and then go down the track together. I was able to take three rides in different spots on the train (front, middle and back) and I must say that the back is my favourite spot. The Chill side in the front feels a bit slow sometimes, while in the back you can really feel the train pulling you over the airtime hills. 

Let’s talk about the Thrill side:
I was lucky enough to experience the Thrill side on several seats on the train, and for me, none of them really stands out (yet). It’s a good track, and the inversions are top notch. On a certain moment you experience a few seconds of hang time, that has to be the moment that stuck out to me the most to me. Whereas the previously built single rail coasters had three inversions, as mentioned earlier the Chill side has six. Does this roller coaster need six inversions? In my eyes, no. The last inversion is unnecessary to me, I have the feeling that they added this inversion last minute to arrive at an even number. Too bad. 

In the new area surrounding YOY you can find the new catering outlet “Flavors” – this new catering outlet offers a variety of sweets and hot/cold drinks. This catering outlet has covered seating, as well as a spacious outdoor terrace overlooking launch coaster Xpress: Platform 13. I can’t wait to sit here with a drink and watch both coasters fly by. 

If you have plans to travel to Walibi Holland to take a ride on YOY, I recommend reserving a time slot (note: to do both roller coasters you need different time slots, make sure you schedule enough time between both time slots) YOY is a low-capacity roller coaster. The time slot will guarantee a ride on one or both roller coasters. Reserving a time slot can be done via Walibi Holland’s official website. If the park does not offer any time slot on the day of your visit, you will be able to join the regular queue. And if you don’t mind waiting in line while your friends ride another coaster, I recommend queuing for the single riders line. 

Check Walibi Holland’s website shortly before your visit to find out if the YoY guarantee is also available on your preferred visit day.

Update June 2025: You don’t need a YoY guarantee ticket anymore, I recommend still checking the Walibi website they might change this policy during events like Fright Nights.

Is Walibi Holland worth visiting to experience YoY? Yes, definitely! Why? RMC roller coasters are almost non-existent in Europe. In Europe, we know Wildfire (2016) at Kolmården, Zadra (2019) at Energylandia, and Untamed (2019) at Walibi Holland. Opening a unique, 2nd and 3rd RMC will put Walibi Holland even more on the map for roller coaster enthusiasts. With the addition of YoY, the park has a great coaster lineup for families and thrillseekers.  And it’s a nice +10 for credit hunters.

Thank you Walibi Holland for organising this preview event, I couldn’t have thought of a better season start 💚💙

Are you ready to ride the other side? 

Thanks for reading, and until the next one!
Bart