De kleine Zeemeermin

Once upon a time... The Little Mermaid - the Efteling Story

There was once a merman king who lived at the bottom of the ocean.
His wife had passed away but he had six beautiful mermaid daughters.

The youngest princess was the loveliest of all
and she could also sing beautifully.
She dreamed of one day living among the people above the water.
When she was 15 years old she was allowed to take a look above water.
A sailing ship passed by and she heard voices.
She carefully swam closer and was able to see people for the first time.
One of them was a prince with whom she immediately fell in love.
Suddenly, a heavy storm blew up and the prince was washed overboard.
The little mermaid dived in after the prince and brought him safely to land,
before quickly leaving.
She could not forget her prince, though,
and wished more than ever that she could one day be a person.

One night she secretly crept to see an old sea witch who said,
“I can make you human but I want your voice in return”.
And so it came to pass.
The little mermaid now had human legs and she went to meet her prince again.
But with no voice, she could not tell him how much she loved him.
One day the prince was about to be married,
which filled the mermaid with sadness.
“If I didn’t have to marry a princess,
I would have married you,” said the prince.
The wedding took place on a great ship.
When the mermaid looked over the railing she saw her mermaid sisters.
“We’ve brought a dagger from the sea witch,” they said.
“If you use it to stab the prince through the heart,
you will get your tail back and you can leave with us.”
But the mermaid’s love for the prince was too strong.

Would they ever be together?

History:

• 1954-1959: "De Magische Liefdesbron", of which the wall was preserved
• 1964-1979: De Dansende Dolfijn