In the run-up to Christmas, we spent 5 days exploring the newsest park from Center Parcs in the Allgäu and were excited to see what a family with 2 small children could experience here. With a total area of 184 hectares and a total of 1,000 vacation homes, it is also the largest Center Parcs vacation park.
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Interesting facts about Center Parcs
It all began in 1953, when Dutch entrepreneur Piet Derksen opened a sports store called Sporthuis Centrum in Rotterdam. After expanding to 17 Dutch branches, he bought a piece of woodland in 1968 to turn it into a campsite. This was very well received, so the tents were quickly replaced by bungalows and an adventure pool was added in 1971. In 1978, Derksen sold his sports stores to focus on the vacation parks. The company was renamed Center Parcs in 1986. The Center Parcs Europe N.V. portfolio now comprises a total of 27 parks in Central Europe: 6 in Germany, 9 in the Netherlands, 5 in Belgium and 7 in France. In 2025, another park will open in Germany – on the Baltic Sea coast in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania on the Pütnitz peninsula. A total of 600 cozy vacation homes and apartments will be built here on an area of 120 hectares.
Center Parcs Europe N.V. is part of the French tourism and real estate group Pierre et Vacances with a total of 207,000 beds and a turnover of 1.4 billion euros. Since 2001, Center Parcs UK and Ireland has been operating independently with 6 parks. The vacation parks with their bungalows and vacation homes are usually located in the middle of the forest or by the water in the midst of beautiful natural landscapes – sometimes ancient forests, sometimes extensive beaches or fantastic winter sports areas. An exciting fact is that 90% of Center Parcs’ vacation parks consist of forest and water!
When you stay at a Center Parcs, you enjoy many inclusive services such as free WiFi, entry to the Aqua Mundo swimming paradise, a parking space and final cleaning of your vacation home. In addition, the more luxurious the accommodation, the more convenience, comfort and additional services included.
Center Parks locations in Europe
The Center Parcs vacation park in the Allgäu
Interesting facts about Center Parcs Allgäu
The Center Parcs vacation park in Leutkirch (location in Google Maps), which opened at the end of 2018, is located in one of the most beautiful and unique regions in Germany: the Allgäu, with many green meadows and hills and numerous sights. A real vacation region with almost unlimited possibilities for vacationers. Be it the world-famous Neuschwanstein Castle, Lake Constance or a trip to the neighboring country – from Center Parcs Allgäu you can reach many sights within 30 to 60 minutes.
Center Parcs Allgäu is a vacation park of superlatives: there are a total of 1,000 vacation homes on a total area of 184 hectares – making it the largest Center Parcs vacation park. It also breaks a record with its tropical Aqua Mundo bathing paradise: here you can whizz down Center Parcs’ longest white water course at 165 meters. There are also 130,000 trees, shrubs and grasses planted in the park – including more than 50,000 deciduous and coniferous trees alone. Wow!
As a rule, you book yourself into a vacation home for a few days. However, there is also the option of taking a day trip to Center Parcs Allgäu. This can be booked as normal via the website and costs EUR 51 per adult. This includes a visit to Aqua Mundo and the park’s freely accessible facilities.
A map of the park
You can see the size of the park on the following map. This map can also be downloaded here as a .pdf version.
Map of the Center Parcs Allgäu
Vacation homes
At Center Parcs Allgäu, you can choose between five different types of accommodation when booking – for 2 or up to 12 people. Each category offers different amenities, depending on what is important to you. In every vacation home you basically have everything you need: Comfortable furniture (including baby furniture), a fully equipped kitchen, a nice bathroom and a spacious private terrace with a view of the forest, the water or both.
The Comfort vacation home offers a cozy vacation home, the Premium vacation home offers additional amenities (e.g. made-up beds), while in the VIP and Exclusive vacation homes you can enjoy your own sauna and even more (e.g. towel package, bread roll service). You can also book a wellness vacation home as special accommodation. This is equipped with a private sauna, a relaxing whirlpool, a large spa bath and more.
Our 123 m² exclusive vacation home
We stayed in an exclusive vacation home for 8 people, which has more amenities than any other vacation home. The 123 m² chalet-style vacation home offers an absolute feel-good ambience on two floors. There are four bedrooms, each with two box-spring beds (90cm x 210cm) and four bathrooms. The house also boasts high-quality furnishings, including a fireplace, a flat-screen TV (43 inch), a fully equipped open kitchen with cooking island and a luxurious spa bathroom with Finnish sauna, rain shower, whirlpool and terrace. There is also a private terrace with garden furniture, sun loungers, parasol and a barbecue.
We really liked the Exclusive vacation home! Everything is very tastefully furnished and designed to match the region. We also really liked the daily bread roll service, which brought fresh bread rolls, pretzels or croissants to the front door every morning for breakfast (2 per person). Incidentally, this service is included in the price of the Exclusive vacation homes 🙂
The following services are also included in the price:
– the bed linen package (sheet, comforter cover, pillowcase) worth EUR 11.95 per person
– a towel package (large & small towel) worth EUR 9.95 per person as well as shampoo and shower gel
– a complete kitchen package (towel, tea towel, dishwashing brush, bottle of washing-up liquid, bath mat) worth EUR 7.50
– and the “made beds” package on arrival
If you find a good offer, you can book such an exclusive vacation home for as little as EUR 200 per night/holiday home. For up to 8 people, this is the equivalent of just EUR 25 per person – including all services (as listed above), admission for everyone to the Aqua Mundo bathing paradise, daily bread delivery service and final cleaning of the vacation home.
We think that’s really good value for money!
Cycle Center & E-Cars
At the Cycle Center you can hire bicycles, mountain bikes, sledges, child seats and electronic means of transport. As Center Parcs Allgäu is generally car-free (except for arrival and departure) and it rained almost constantly during our stay, we rented an e-car to take us everywhere. This was not only great fun for us, but also for our children. The cost for a four-day loan is EUR 185.
Market Dome
At the heart of every Center Parcs is the Market Dome with its tropical atmosphere, where all the important facilities of the vacation park are concentrated: the reception, the Aqua Mundo adventure pool, the Activity Center, various restaurants, a well-stocked supermarket, a boutique and an Allgäu shop with tourist information. You can easily spend a whole day here alone without getting bored.
Tropical bathing paradise Aqua Mundo
Aqua Mundo Allgäu is Center Parcs’ newest and largest swimming pool in Germany. On over 6,000 square meters, there is a wealth of weather-independent attractions and recreational opportunities: These include children’s pools, the Water Playhouse water playground, whirlpools, a wave pool, a snorkeling pool and an outdoor pool. Aqua Mundo Allgäu also boasts Center Parcs’ longest wild water slide (165 meters) and other exciting water slides.
Families will find everything they need here: Family changing rooms or family changing rooms, changing mats, playpens and bottle warmers.
Indoor play world BALUBA & Action Factory
Inside the Market Dome you will also find a gigantic range of indoor amusements on over 2,000 m²: in the free play paradise BALUBA and the Action Factory there is unlimited, weather-independent climbing, adventure and play fun for the whole family.
For children aged 0 to 11, BALUBA is the perfect place for fun and games at Center Parcs Allgäu – and it’s completely free of charge (except for the Mini-Flitzer). The indoor play world offers different play areas, one for toddlers up to 3 years, one for children from 4 to 7 years and one for slightly older children up to around 11 years. There is a large climbing area with bridges, slides and nets, trampolines and a softball area with cannons. In addition, a large stage offers a colorful entertainment program. Here, for example, we went to see a small puppet show at lunchtime.
The Action Factory is designed in the style of an old factory: between boilers, pipes and brick walls, you can have lots of fun here with mini golf, billiards, bowling and in the climbing and Gametown area. For most of the activities in the Action Factory you have to pay an additional fee. We tried out the indoor mini golf, for example, because ever since our older daughter tried it out for the first time on her Florida vacation in Panama City Beach, she has been totally enthusiastic about it. The course comprises 13 holes in a very cool environment – light, music and wind effects provide that little bit extra.
Outdoor Activity Center
Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to explore the entire Center Parcs Allgäu site during our 5-day stay. This one is really huge. It also rained almost all the time, which is why many outdoor activities were closed. Activities include archery, minigolf, laser battle, vertical run, football, a digger park, beach volleyball, water zorbing, a high ropes course with climbing elements and short zip lines, a kids’ safari and pedal boating on the lake.
Children’s farm
A daily meeting point for our daughter was the large children’s farm. Here the little ones (and adults) can stroke ponies, rabbits or sheep and experience many other animals such as chickens, goats, guinea pigs and even Allgäu brown cattle up close. It was a great experience to be able to get so close to the animals.
Further facilities
An Allgäu farmers’ market takes place in front of the Market Dome three times a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturday mornings). A wide range of regional products are on offer here, such as handicrafts, jams, honey and wine. We also loved the honey and bee house, which is also located in the immediate vicinity of the Market Dome. The honey and bee house offers exciting talks about the work of a beekeeper and the life of bees, as well as the opportunity to sample numerous types of honey. Of course, we didn’t want to miss out on this and our older daughter loved trying it 😊
There are five beautifully designed playgrounds spread across the Center Parcs, each with its own animal theme: fox, pig, cow, hedgehog, weasel.
Restaurants & Food
There are six different restaurants at Center Parcs Allgäu that look forward to welcoming visitors.
The Allgäuer Sudstüble offers delicious regional specialties and rustic German dishes – from classic snacks to Wiener Schnitzel. We ate here on two evenings and found the menu very varied: meat, fish, vegetarian dishes and desserts – there was something for everyone.
Directly opposite is the Alpenblick Restaurant under palm trees, which is open all day. In addition to coffee and cake, the restaurant serves delicious pizza and pasta as well as Mediterranean meat and fish dishes.
Fancy a hamburger, fries & co. Then head to Rocket’s Restaurant, where everything revolves around handmade fast food. We particularly enjoyed the delicious buttermilk chicken here and the homemade milkshakes are also delicious.
At the Oachkatzl, you can dine in style during your stay, as it serves upscale regional cuisine that will make your gourmet heart beat faster. We didn’t try the Oachkatzl, because it’s often difficult to eat “in style” with two small children 😉 You can feast here several times a week at lunchtime in the pancake house. The classic is available here in almost endless variations, whether savory or sweet.
The Market Restaurant is an all-you-can-eat buffet restaurant with daily changing national and international specialties, live cooking stations, an extensive salad buffet, chocolate fountain and much more. And for the perfect start to the day, there is also an extensive breakfast menu with freshly baked rolls, fruit, fresh juices and dairy products.
In the Spa & Country Club you will find the Auszeid Hüttn in a cozy mountain hut ambience with a selection of snacks and salads.
A regional bakery and a supermarket (nahkauf) round off the culinary offerings at Center Parcs Allgäu. We wanted for nothing here!
Center Parcs Allgäu – is it worth it?
We really enjoyed our five-day stay at Center Parcs Allgäu. When we first entered our exclusive vacation home, we immediately felt really at home. Our older daughter was also totally thrilled and was really sad when our stay was over. We didn’t manage to explore everything in the 5 days. There’s so much on offer here for children and it’s a really nice vacation resort for families, where you don’t have to worry about almost anything 😉.