Joris en de Draak (George and the Dragon)
Ready for a thrilling battle against the dragon? A dragon, the ruler of Water and Fire, threatens the kingdom ... The king calls upon all brave citizens to defeat this monster. Come to the Efteling and fight against the dragon and against each other in the new wooden rollercoaster racer Joris en de Draak. Follow in the footsteps of the legendary Joris, who cleverly beat the dragon!
In this double, wooden racer rollercoaster the visitors are divided accross two tracks: water and fire. You race each other for the fastest time while listening to the terrifying roars of the dragon. First of its kind Joris en de Draak is the first wooden racer roller coaster in North-west Europe. The roller coaster has a capacity of 1.750 people per hour. Both tracks are 810 meters long and the maximum speed is 75 km per hour. The highest point of the roller coaster is 25 meters. *Joris en de Draak is not opened during the Winter Efteling if it freezes. 
You can buy George and the Dragon themed items at the Efteling Souvenir Shop!
|
|
|
Relive the experience in this 360 VR POV!
|
|
Fire |
Water |
Legend
There was once a small kingdom that was completely controlled by a dragon.
Not just any dragon, no, a terrible monster that could breathe fire. It lived in a stinking bog, where he guarded large golden dragon eggs. The gigantic creature would not hurt a soul, just as long as he was sufficiently fed. And he was picky. He demanded that the king should send him two fresh sheep to eat every day. So it happened that the sent someone to the bog every morning, to satisfy the dragon with a couple of sheep. For years this ritual was repeated. The king thought: As long as the dragon is eating sheep and not people we can't complain. Alas, one day the king’s advisor came running to the king in a desperate panic. "Majesty, Majesty! I bring bad news!" "Just you calm yourself and sit down first" said the king calmly “And then tell me what is the matter" "O Majesty, Its horrible!" cried the advisor animatedly "we have run out of sheep!" “We have run out of all the sheep?!” the king repeated astonished “Its as I say majesty! There isn’t a sheep to be found anywhere in the entire country. You know what this means. The dragon will go wild if he doesn’t get his daily portion of sheep!” “O dear what to do now?” said the king “In any case we will have to tell him”. |
|
And there the brave king went. With a scared trembling advisor following closely they set out into the woods. A winding path eventually took then to the soggy bog. Through the fog they could vaguely make out the sparkle of a few golden eggs. Op a small wooden bridge they suddenly stopped when a hideous sound welcomed them.
“WRAAAH!” Roared the dragon who emerged from the mist. “Here we have the king himself! Wrahaha!” He leapt forward and smashed his mighty tail into the water so hard that it created a tidal wave.
The high wave threw the king and his advisor to the ground. There they lay soaking wet and the dragon laughed “Wrahaha! I am the ruler of the waters!” The king was the first to scramble to his feet, straighten out his crown and wrung out his beard. “Hum, eh .. indeed, very impressive oh worthy dragon.” He said. “I should think so too!” The dragon roared proudly. “And I am also the ruler of fire!” He put action to his words as the flames shot out of his mouth for several feet. WHOESJ! The wooden bridge was on fire immediately. “Help!” the advisor cried out and jumped in the water in a flash of panic. The fire closed around him quickly and the king too almost didn’t make it off the bridge. He only just made it, if he hadn’t he was sure to have gotten burnt. The water stood up to their waists in the drossy pool and the watched as the dragon put out the fire with a enormous splash of water. “WRAHAHA!” He laughed. “That was fun!”
“But what brings you here dear king?” “It’s like this” the king started as calmly as possible “As you know I have two sheep delivered to you every day. However..” The king hesitated for a moment and took a deep breath. Then he confessed “We have run out of sheep” ”That’s not very good king” said the dragon “Then I will have to eat you and your little friend! Wrahahah!” The advisor hid behind the king trembling with fear. But he said bravely: “You could do that, but then who will make sure you are fed every day?” “Oh king I was only joking” The dragon said in his sweetest voice, and the advisor looked very relieved. “Old men like you are far too tough to eat… but you know what?” the dragons face suddenly turned cruel. “Deliver to me a young girl for breakfast every day! Wrahaha! Delicious!” The king and his advisor were schocked. “A..a.. young girl?!”The king stuttered astonished. ”I could bring you fresh fish or delicious hams. My cook can prepare meals for you every day with the spiciest peppers and the finest fruits. “ The king named a few other tasty things to change the dragons mind. “No little king.. a nice tender girl it must be.. one each day! Otherwise I will make trouble for you!" The dragon roared wildly. He turned and with a terrible swish of his tail he threw the two men out of the swamp.
Dripping wet and looking rather worse for the wear they returned to the castle. “gather the people” said the king. “I have something very important to share.” Soon enough hundreds of people had gathered in the castles court. The king spoke firmly to them: “My dear people ! Now the dragon has eaten all of our sheep, he will accept nothing less than to consume one of our girls every day. That is why we will have to sacrifice a girl every morning.” A frightened murmur sounded amongst the people. ”I understand how you feel and I feel with you.” Said the king with a soft voice ”but we all know what the dragon will do if we do not do what he says. He will come out of the bog and create death and destruction in our streets… He will set our houses alight and create floods..” The king was silent awhile as he looked upon his people. He continued: “As long as the dragon lives on we will have to do as he desires. Meanwhile I will issue a reward on a thousand and one doubloons to the person who will defeat it. Let’s hope that in this manner we will soon be rid of the monster!” subsequently the advisor set down onto the stage a large chalice in which hundreds of notes were put. On these notes were the names of all the girls in the country. The king mixed up all the papers and said: “Henceforth I will pick a single note from this chalice every day. The girl whose name appears on the note will be sacrificed the following morning.”
The king could barely contain his tears when he stuck his hand in the chalice, Suddenly someone sounded “Stop!” There stood the daughter of the king “You have forgotten me father “ said the princess softly and she bravely threw in her own name with the other notes. “B-But dear…” the king stammered, although he understood right away that it was of no use. Throughout the land the king had posters put up. They said:
“WRAAAH!” Roared the dragon who emerged from the mist. “Here we have the king himself! Wrahaha!” He leapt forward and smashed his mighty tail into the water so hard that it created a tidal wave.
The high wave threw the king and his advisor to the ground. There they lay soaking wet and the dragon laughed “Wrahaha! I am the ruler of the waters!” The king was the first to scramble to his feet, straighten out his crown and wrung out his beard. “Hum, eh .. indeed, very impressive oh worthy dragon.” He said. “I should think so too!” The dragon roared proudly. “And I am also the ruler of fire!” He put action to his words as the flames shot out of his mouth for several feet. WHOESJ! The wooden bridge was on fire immediately. “Help!” the advisor cried out and jumped in the water in a flash of panic. The fire closed around him quickly and the king too almost didn’t make it off the bridge. He only just made it, if he hadn’t he was sure to have gotten burnt. The water stood up to their waists in the drossy pool and the watched as the dragon put out the fire with a enormous splash of water. “WRAHAHA!” He laughed. “That was fun!”
“But what brings you here dear king?” “It’s like this” the king started as calmly as possible “As you know I have two sheep delivered to you every day. However..” The king hesitated for a moment and took a deep breath. Then he confessed “We have run out of sheep” ”That’s not very good king” said the dragon “Then I will have to eat you and your little friend! Wrahahah!” The advisor hid behind the king trembling with fear. But he said bravely: “You could do that, but then who will make sure you are fed every day?” “Oh king I was only joking” The dragon said in his sweetest voice, and the advisor looked very relieved. “Old men like you are far too tough to eat… but you know what?” the dragons face suddenly turned cruel. “Deliver to me a young girl for breakfast every day! Wrahaha! Delicious!” The king and his advisor were schocked. “A..a.. young girl?!”The king stuttered astonished. ”I could bring you fresh fish or delicious hams. My cook can prepare meals for you every day with the spiciest peppers and the finest fruits. “ The king named a few other tasty things to change the dragons mind. “No little king.. a nice tender girl it must be.. one each day! Otherwise I will make trouble for you!" The dragon roared wildly. He turned and with a terrible swish of his tail he threw the two men out of the swamp.
Dripping wet and looking rather worse for the wear they returned to the castle. “gather the people” said the king. “I have something very important to share.” Soon enough hundreds of people had gathered in the castles court. The king spoke firmly to them: “My dear people ! Now the dragon has eaten all of our sheep, he will accept nothing less than to consume one of our girls every day. That is why we will have to sacrifice a girl every morning.” A frightened murmur sounded amongst the people. ”I understand how you feel and I feel with you.” Said the king with a soft voice ”but we all know what the dragon will do if we do not do what he says. He will come out of the bog and create death and destruction in our streets… He will set our houses alight and create floods..” The king was silent awhile as he looked upon his people. He continued: “As long as the dragon lives on we will have to do as he desires. Meanwhile I will issue a reward on a thousand and one doubloons to the person who will defeat it. Let’s hope that in this manner we will soon be rid of the monster!” subsequently the advisor set down onto the stage a large chalice in which hundreds of notes were put. On these notes were the names of all the girls in the country. The king mixed up all the papers and said: “Henceforth I will pick a single note from this chalice every day. The girl whose name appears on the note will be sacrificed the following morning.”
The king could barely contain his tears when he stuck his hand in the chalice, Suddenly someone sounded “Stop!” There stood the daughter of the king “You have forgotten me father “ said the princess softly and she bravely threw in her own name with the other notes. “B-But dear…” the king stammered, although he understood right away that it was of no use. Throughout the land the king had posters put up. They said:
|
Dragon slayers, dauntless be
Listen to what the king requests The brave one to defeat the dragon Receives a thousand and one doubloons To any knight who reads this note Go to battle with this beast! |
 |
Read the official Efteling version of the story in 'En Ze Leven Nog Lang en Gelukkig' available from the souvenir stores (Only in Dutch)
|
It was a terrible time. Every morning a girl was fed to the dragon . As well as this the dragon also consumed a great deal of strong young men. They had all tried to defeat the dragon but kept breaking their swords on the dragon’s hard scales The king became sadder and sadder . He did not know what to do. One afternoon the thing that he had feared for weeks finally happened.
He drew a note from the chalice and read the name of his own daughter. With tears in his eyes he turned to his people and sobbed: “is there no one who can defeat the dragon?” The king was silent awhile and said: “I hereby give not only a thousand and one doubloons to the knight who will defeat the dragon. But he will also be permitted to marry my daughter!” A wave of excitement rolled over the crowd and the king said: “That way he will one day rule over our beautiful kingdom.”
Then suddenly the gate swung open and a rider galloped into the courtyard. It was a handsome young man with blond hair and blue eyes, but he did not look very big or strong. He dismounted and turned to the king: “Majesty, give me weapons and I will defeat the dragon!”
Everyone looked astonished and the king asked: “And who are you?” “I am George” said the boy. “I come from a land far from here. I have come to fight the ruler of water and fire.“ “But how do you plan to accomplish this?” asked the king. “This dragon is very strong and has defeated many brave knights” “You need to strike a dragon where it is most vulnerable” George answered. “I wish you luck” said the king, but his face did not inspire much confidence. “In our Gear house you will find harnesses, shields and weapons.” “Thank you” answered George “You can count on me!” He visited the Gear house and helped himself to the smallest harness. It fitted him perfectly. He then provided himself with a shield and a lance that was twice as big as himself. He then mounted his horse and set out into the forest.
|
By nightfall George arrived at the misty bog. The dragon couldn’t stop laughing when he saw the slender figure of the little knight. “Wrahaha! It cant get much crazier then this!” He put power to his words by slamming his tail into the water and turned the bog into a swirling vortex. He opened his mouth and WHOESJ! The flames set fire to two pine trees on the shore. “And with whom do I have the honour?” asked the dragon. George jumped off his horse and said: “I am George, The one true ruler of Water and Fire” The dragon looked surprised for a moment only to burst out laughing again:”Wrahaha! You... the ruler of water and fire? Did you not see what I just did?” “Of course I did” said George “But that’s Childs play compared to what I did” The dragon looked even more surprised and George continued: “I have set fire to the water of the ocean!” “The water of the ocean?!” roared the dragon. “That’s impossible” “It’s very possible” said George “The whole sea is on fire at this very moment, see for yourself. You can see it burning even from this distance.” George pointed to the red evening sunset above the treetops.
|
 |
The sun was setting so beautifully that day that it looked for all the world as if an enormous fire was raging on. The dragon was clearly unsettled by this statement. “This cannot be” it mumbled and it stretched its neck to get a better view. “I mean I can see a red glow” he said hesitantly. “Stretch yourself further and you will be able to see the flames themselves!” At the moment that the dragon stretched himself completely George leapt forward and pierced the heart of the monster with his lance. A great shock rippled through the large body of the dragon. For a moment it did not move a muscle. Then suddenly it let out a deafening roar before tipping over backwards and crashing into the bog. The terrible cry of the dragon was heard throughout the land but it was only short. The dragon was dead.
The dragon slayer was warmly received. Banners came down, the trumpets and the cheers of the people sounded through the streets. George himself was honoured on a podium. Solemnly the king and princess came forward. “Dear George you have kept your promise and defeated the dragon. We are forever grateful to you and you have earned your reward. A thousand and one doubloons... and the hand of my daughter.”
George bowed to the king and spoke: “Majesty I do apologise but I will not be marrying your daughter. My heart belongs to whom I love.” The king looked wonderingly at George who said: “Majesty please divide all the doubloons across the people of your beautiful land.”
The crown cheered and even before the king could say another word the people took George onto their shoulders. They threw him up into the air and then caught him again. They sang and danced and everyone celebrated. Later that night George left the festivities unnoticed and rode off on his horse. No one ever saw him again but everyone in the little land lived happily ever after.
AccessibilityWheelchair users can enter through the exit. In front of the steps to the left.
You will need to be able to be transferred from your wheelchair in order to ride. |
|
 |
 |
Behind The Scenes
History
The Making Of
You can buy the George and the Dragon making Of DVD at the Efteling Webshop!
01-07-2010: George and the Dragon opens replacing the Pegasus
September 2009: Pegasus is demolished
19-07-2009: Pegasus is closed for good
1992
11-07-1991: Pegasus is opened
Image Source: Mam een duppie voor de kip
|
Image Source: Efteling Facebook
|
