Valhalla at Blackpool’s Pleasure Beach Resort in Lancashire is crowned Europe’s Best Water Ride in the European Star Awards – for the fourth time.
The resort held off healthy competition from over the waters including Chiapras at Phantasialand in Germany, and De Vliegende Hollander at Efteling in the Netherlands.
The European Star Awards are widely considered to be the most important awards in the European leisure industry. Winners are decided by a panel of 32 influential industry professionals from across the globe.
They were presented at PortAventura World in Spain, on the eve of the IAAPA (International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions) Expo Europe.
Valhalla, created by Intamin, is dubbed “the UK’s wettest ride”, originally opened in 2000, before undergoing a £4M re-imagining project in 2023. Riders climb aboard a longboat and take a journey to the Viking afterlife, battling extreme elements – fire, ice and lots of water – along the way.
Pleasure Beach Resort’s director of operations, Andy Hygate, who collected the award, said: “Winning this award is a huge achievement, especially with so many other fantastic rides in the category. We’re incredibly proud to be home to the Best Water Ride in Europe.
“With the exciting arrival of our new ride Aviktas in 2026, our future is looking brighter than ever – but it’s fantastic to see our current line-up continuing to set the standard and bring home top industry awards.”
Valhalla has also previously been named Best Water Ride in the World at the 2023 Golden Ticket Awards – an award it has won seven times over.
Images: Pleasure Beach Resort
