Franz Mack - Europa-Park

Franz Mack: The Founding Father of Europa-Park

Franz Mack was born on 7th March 1921 and took over his father's factory (now ‘MACK Rides’) in Waldkirch with his brothers after the war. "The world is my playground" served as the family motto and is representative of his efforts towards international expansion. Franz Mack, who was inducted into the ‘Hall of Fame’ of IAAPA in 2005, has numerous inventions and innovations to his name. Following his death in 2010, his creation, Europa-Park, is now under the operation and direction of his children and grandchildren, the 7th and 8th generation of Macks.

Brave Visionary

Franz Mack - Europa-Park

The inventor, carousel specialist with master craftsman's diploma and recipient of the 'Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany - Cross of Merit, First Class' was a restless visionary. Under his leadership, the company expanded to Europe and America. The idea to create Europa-Park as exhibition grounds for the rides built by Mack was courageous and pioneering, not only in the 1970s.

Ingenious Constructor

In addition to his great humility and his courage to dare to do the unusual, Franz Mack had another ability: an incredible spatial imagination. At a time when there were no computers, he managed to design a rollercoaster inside a sphere with only paper and models. The ‘Eurosat’ quickly became one of the landmarks of Europa-Park and an absolute favourite of the public. One of the last works by Franz Mack was the legendary tower lift of the high-speed rollercoaster ‘Euro-Mir', which caused a sensation in the entire industry.

Enterpreneur from Baden

Familie Mack Europa-Park

Franz Mack was a local entrepreneur through and through; modest, honest, hard-working, with high standards for himself and others. Those characteristics have formed the values of the family business and are the operating basics for his children and grandchildren.

Together with his sons he was the driving force behind Europa-Park. Their visions and engineering laid the foundations for this family attraction to become an international leisure resort. It was the biggest joy for him to see his sons and grandchildren to continue and develop his lifework further.

On 7th March 2021, Europa-Park's founding father Franz Mack would have turned 100 years old. Look back on his life with us in the video ‘100 Jahre Franz Mack - Europa-Park Weekly Special’ - To the video