Futuroscope is a theme park in Poitiers France.
But it’s a theme park with a difference. No roller coasters, no big thrill rides, well there is but not the usual kind.
As the name suggests Futuroscope is about technology and innovation. “Oh boring” I hear some of you say, and the techie geeks amongst us start to get excited.
The park is the 2nd largest theme park in France many of the attractions are based around cinema technology, IMAX technology is extensively used.
Futuroscope is certainly a full day. it’s worth noting that at the close of every day there is a night time show on the central lake area which is well worth watching, but in summer due to the lighter evenings the start time of this show is quite late and you will probably not be leaving the park until after 10:30pm.
When you enter the park you first come to the business end of things with a large gift/souvenir shop on the left and the information point/hire shop on the right. It’s here that you can borrow a translation headset. You hand over your driving license and they give you a card and however many headsets you need. Get one each. You can buy the in ear type headphones for €1 when we last visited. These are non returnable for hygiene reasons but on your way out of the park call into the shop and hand back your translation device and the card they gave you and the nice staff will return your driving license. Remember if your driving in France you need to be carrying your driving license so you should have it handy anyway.
There are plenty of park maps around for you to pick up, you will need one the place is BIG.
If your planning a visit do some homework it’s not cheap to get in but if you shop at Tesco you could convert your clubcard vouchers into a day ticket for entry to Futuroscope, you will need to check that Tesco still offer Futuroscope as a perk or whatever they are calling it these days. Food inside the park is actually pretty reasonable for a theme park and there are various levels of restaurant from a sandwich kiosk to a sit down waiter service joint and all points in between. Our favourite is the Creperie serving savoury and sweet crepes.
To make sense of the park I would recommend you head around to the left to Dynamic Vienne, described as a madcap race through vienne. Your first IMAX screen of the day see’s you strapped into the seat of a racing car, a plane, a train. It’s not a 3D show but the seats do move! and yes that is a wall of water on the front of the building.
Times for all of the shows are listed in your handy map and are displayed on boards around the park. Dynamic Vienne is one of the first to open. There used to be a short documentary playing in the waiting area which explained the parks ethos but that was replaced couple of years ago with a water curtain which is quite amazing to watch.
The architecture is quite remarkable at the park but the buildings all house attractions. One of the IMAX screens shows a film from the point of view of a bird it’s quite a calming film but remarkable as the screen is enormous even to the point that it extends beneath your feet. The floor between the seats is glass and looking at the images beneath your feet is quite something.
Download the brochure here
Getting There
Avenue René Monory – 86360 Chasseneuil-du-Poitou
N 46° 39′ 48” (46,66337) – E 0° 21′ 43” (0,36187)
Getting there is easy 2 minuets off exit 28 of the A10 motorway.
There is a mainline Train/TGV Station
Poiters Airport
Don’t Miss
Futuroscope is well worth a visit. Make sure you don’t miss Artur et Les Minimois which is a 4D adventure in a 9700 square foot hemispherical IMAX screen. You are litterally surrounded by the screen. Then there is “Dance Avec Les Robots” where your strapped into a seat at the end of a giant robotic arm as it dances to some groovy tunes.
I can’t recommend a visit to Futuroscope enough. If your staying in the Loire, Vendee or anywhere within a couple of hours drive it is well worth a visit I have been 4 times now and it still draws me back. There is a new attraction every year and a new major attraction usually every couple of years. I doubt anyone will regret a visit to Futuroscope.
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