Ground-Breaking Ceremony for Alpine Coaster at Oskarshausen

(eap) After longer approval phase by authorities, the symbolic ground-breaking ceremony for the new Alpine Coaster was held yesterday at the Oskarshausen leisure park near Dresden, Germany. Initial ground preparation work is already underway in the area of the future valley station and the final start of construction is imminent, says the park. The forest toboggan run from the company Wiegand will be operated all year round and is therefore being financially supported by the Saxon Federal Ministry with an amount of 500,000 euros as part of the “Year-round Tourism” program.

“The Oskarshausen leisure park has developed very positively in terms of tourism and attracts numerous visitors, even from outside Saxony. The new Alpine Coaster represents a significant expansion of the offer and supports the extension of the season as a weather-independent ride. I am delighted that we are continuing to promote year-round tourism in Saxony with this project,” emphasizes Saxony’s Tourism Minister Barbara Klepsch.

The coaster is built to blend in gently with a forest. Therefore, the attraction is being designed in a way that it can be integrated into the surroundings without major earth movement, thereby protecting existing trees and avoiding the sealing of forest areas. With a total track length of 864 meters, of which 658 meters are downhill and 206 meters uphill, riders will reach a maximum speed of 40 km/h. The toboggan run will have a total of 28 sledges, each with space for two people. Children from the age of three will be allowed to ride accompanied by an adult and children from the age of eight can ride alone. Besides the coaster, there will be an educational trail to sensitize visitors to forest protection.

“Since 2019, we have been working as a team on the idea of bringing a toboggan run for all generations to Freital and thus also to the immediate vicinity of Dresden, regardless of the weather and season. An attraction that conveys knowledge about our local forest and at the same time provides downhill fun. We are already looking forward to seeing children’s eyes light up next year,” says Steffen Prahl, Managing Director of Oskarshausen.

The Alpine Coaster is expected to open in summer 2025. A great deal of the construction work will take place after “Kürbishausen”, a pumpkin exhibition with 99 varieties and an autumn market. As part of this fall event, more than 50,000 decorated and different pumpkins will adorn Oskarshausen’s grounds and a separate outdoor exhibition from September 13^th to November 17^th this year. ■