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Futuroscope: an amazing attraction park that your kids will remember for years

Have you ever been to Futuroscope near Poitiers? No? I can already tell you that Futuroscope is an amazing attraction park that your kids will remember for years. Well, not only will your kids remember it, but I´m sure you will also do. If you want to know what makes Futuroscope different from other attraction parks and how to get the most out of your visit, read this blog further.

What makes Futuroscope different from other attraction parks?

Let´s start with a bit of history, our history with Futuroscope 😉 I visited Futuroscope for the first time 25 years ago!! Back in 1997, Futuroscope was celebrating its 10th anniversary and already then it was a very unique attraction park: they had 3D films, a 360° screen, a film where your seats moved to the rhythm of the images, a simulator, laser shows and huge screens everywhere. 25 years later I still remember how impressed I was to visit Futuroscope as a teenager. Having that in mind, you can guess what was the first thing that came to my mind when I was planning the itinerary from The Netherlands to Spain. You are right, a visit to Futuroscope!!

Futuroscope: the park map of 25 years ago and the map now
Futuroscope: the park map of 25 years ago and the map now

In 25 years Futuroscope has changed a lot, but the concept remains the same: attractions that are focused on visual effects with the newest technology. And this is exactly what makes Futuroscope different: their attractions are just breathtaking or mind-blowing. There´re four types of attractions now:

Thrill attractions

These are the attractions where your heartbeat will raised to the top. Don´t expect loopings or falling from a great height (things that our kids don´t like by the way), but a combination of action, speed and visual effects. Objectif Mars is, for example, a roller coaster that will train you to go to Mars. In this attraction, the wagons turn while going up and down the track. For me, this was the attraction that had the most thrill of all.

Futuroscope - Objectif Mars: you will feel like your training to going to Mars while waiting for the ride
Futuroscope – Objectif Mars: you will feel like your training to going to Mars while waiting for the ride

Well Arthur, l´adventure 4D is also a very thrilling attraction. You will fly a ladybug into the world of Arthur and the Minimoys. I think this is the best 4D attraction: you see the images in 3D with your glasses and you will feel as if you were part of it, not only because your seat moves but also because you will get splashed or something will grab you (don´t tell the kids in advance, it´s much more fun when it´s a surprise).

La Vienne Dynamique is another fun attraction, with thrill but for all ages really. I think there were two different films, but we had the one where a man is late for his wedding and you drive, run and fly with him across the Vienne region (the region where Futuroscope is) in order to get on time to the wedding.

Dynamic is another attraction that combines the visuals and the moving seats to take you somewhere else. In this one, the movements are quite hard and the minimum height is 1,20m. Mika was 1,18m and he couldn´t seat in the moving seats. Instead, he was sitting in a regular seat that wasn´t moving, perfect for letting the kids under the minimum height enjoy the attraction!

Futuroscope - Dynamic: in the evening the waiting time was just 2 minutes!!
Futuroscope – Dynamic: in the evening the waiting time was just 2 minutes!!

In Danse avec les robots, you’ll take dancing lessons with giant robots and they’ll send you waltzing around 7 meters up in the air. We didn´t have time to ride in this attraction, but I think it is similar to the ice pilots schools in Legoland Billund and I can assure you, it´s not suitable for those that get dizzy easily 🙂

Immersion attractions

These attractions are focused on letting you be part of the story. The most innovative one was Sebastien Loeb Racing xperience. This is an attraction with VR! Well it´s even VR5D, so it´s not only about seeing but also feeling. For me, this one was a bit too much: you race with Sebastien Loeb to get an antidote on time. It´s like you are in the car and with your VR glass, you can look anywhere you like. A few times, the movements were too heavy and I was getting a bit dizzy (I use glasses and I had the issue of getting dizzy with VR before). Liam on the other hand loved the attraction and he could ride twice as Mika couldn´t ride. Those under 1,20m can watch the film without VR or special effects. I watched the film with Mika while Paul and Liam had the full experience. Afterward, we switched: Paul stayed with Mika while Liam and I did the attraction.

L’extraordinaire voyage is one of my favorite attractions: you fly to the most popular places in Earth in just a couple of minutes. It was nice to recognize places I have been before, like the Taj Mahal, and also some I would love to go, like taking a hot air balloon in Cappadocia. You can do all without leaving Futuroscope.

Chasseurs de tornades is the newest attraction. Here you’ll be whisked away by a mind-blowing storm. It was also so popular that the queue was more than one hour the whole day. Well, 30 min before closing time, the queue was 15 minutes, but Liam preferred Objectif Mars which also had a long queue the whole day. So we will need to come back to try this one.

Attractions for the whole family

While in the thrill and immersion attractions there´re height restrictions (minimum height is 1,05 m to 1,20 m), the attractions for the whole family don’t have any restrictions.

I would, without a doubt, start at la machine à voyager dans le temps. You will laugh with the best of the Raving Rabbids’ demented jokes in this version of world history. They don’t really talk, so language is not a problem.

Another attraction with well-known characters is l’age de glace. This one is a cartoon movie with 4D and as the previous one really really funny.

Kinekid is as well a cartoon movie for the kids about the myth of the stork that brings babies. It’s in French, but even if the kids don’t speak the language it’s easy to follow and fun. Definitely one you shouldn’t miss!

There’re also two attractions for the space lovers: chocs cosmiques and kinemax. The first one is about the cosmic collisions and it’s shown in a 360 degree screen. It was in French and I was translating (some of) the explanations to the kids. By the time I remembered that I had installed the translation app, the movie was almost finished. The second attraction is a IMAX 4K laser projection about the space journey of Thomas Pesquet, the youngest astronaut from the European Space Agency (ESA).

After all the movies, it’s time to discover Futuropolis. This area is like a mini town with 22 open-air attractions. The attractions here are more like the ones you will find in “regular” attraction parks: you can compete as a firefighter against other families, the kids can learn to drive, splash everyone and get completely wet in a boat tour, spin around in rescue boats, pedal on floating bikes, bounce on water and show off your best moves on the floating trampolines, play in an airport, dance with famous characters and so much more.

Futuropolis is also the perfect place on a hot day as there’s a water playground and chill cushions in the shadow. There was as well animation and the kids were able to make an octopus hut out of three balloons (the downside is that you will have to carry it for the rest of the day 😉 ).

Futuroscope - wate rplayground at Futuropolis
Futuroscope – water playground at Futuropolis

In Astra, there are slides and other activities like VR sports. The slides were closed due to the heat when we were there, but they are really high!

Shows

If the attractions weren’t enough, there were three shows:

IllusiO is a magic show that I wouldn’t miss. The show is in French, but it’s easy to follow and even without understanding the talking, it’s really spectacular. I normally not easily impressed, but this show will blow your mind. It’s not the typical magic show about cutting people in half of pulling rabbits out of a hut, it isn’t! It’s the kind of show that will make you think “how did he just do that?” the whole time. Just an example, they draw a car with light and then the light drawing becomes a real car!! And that one wasn’t even the most impressive part of the show. So make sure you are on time for this show, you can find the playing times in the app.

Another show was Plage au cirque, an open-air acrobatic show in a really cool and chill setup. There were three times planned for the day of our visit, but the two we tried to attend were canceled.

futuroscope - Plage au cirque show
Futuroscope – Plage au cirque

And finally, the final show: la clé des songes, the night show with music, lights and fireworks. Save some energy because this show is amazing as well and it started at 22:15 when all other attractions are closed (it will be at a different time in winter, so check the Futuroscope app). It’s really a fantastic way to finish the day. Be aware that on a busy day you have to take a seat at least 20 minutes before the start. Liam and I went to ride Objectif Mars while Mika and Paul sat down for the show. 15 minutes before it was full and they closed the doors. We could enter because Paul was already there and he had a seat for us.

Our favorite attractions in Futuroscope

There are so many amazing attractions in Futuroscope. It’s impossible to pick just one attraction, so we pick one each: La Vienne Dynamique for Paul, IllusiO for me, Objectif Mars for Liam (8 years old) and la machine à voyager dans le temps for Mika (6 years old). But the kids also loved playing in the water and splashing people from the boat in Futuropolis.

What is the best age to visit Futuroscope?

There are attractions for all ages, really. I think Futuroscope is one of the few attraction parks (like Europapark) that I would recommend for all ages.

Younger kids won’t be able to ride few attractions as some have a minimum height of 1,05 m to 1,20 m, but there’re still so many other attractions that they will be able to enjoy. Mika was 1,18m and he couldn’t ride objectif Mars, but he also didn’t want to. In other attractions, they can watch without the 4D/VR like in the Sebastien Loeb Racing xperience.

How long do you need for visiting Futuroscope? how much cost the tickets?

If you want to ride all attractions and see all the shows, you will need two days. You can do a lot in one day as the Futuroscope opens at 9:30-10:00 and the evening show is at 21:00-22:15 depending on the season. In summer, you can enjoy more than 13 hours of fun per day!

We visited Futuroscope at the end of August, so still in the holiday season and there were quite some queues in certain attractions. Nevertheless, we were able to ride 16 of the 21 attractions in the almost 13 hours that we spent in the park (we arrived at 10:00 and left at 22:45). We spent the afternoon in Futuropolis and the water playground as it was quite hot, and, in the evening, we also had dinner in one of the restaurants. The best way to keep an eye on the queues and plan your day in the park is the Futuroscope app. You can even mark the attractions that you have already visited.

Futuroscope has different tickets. In 2022, the one-day ticket costs 38€ to 48€ for an adult and 31€ to 39€ for children (5 to 12 years old). Check the offer section of Futuroscope for the best price.

In the summer, they also have tickets to enter the park after 17h for 22€/20€ or even after 20h for 12€ which I think it offers a good value. The queues in the evening were shorter than in the morning the day we were visiting Futuroscope.

Taking the last picture in Futuroscope at 22:45 after spending almost 13 hours in the park
Taking the last picture in Futuroscope at 22:45 after spending almost 13 hours in the park

Where to eat in Futuroscope

Futuroscope has 9 restaurants and many kiosks to buy a drink or and ice-cream. Each of the restaurants has a different theme and the prices are reasonable. A menu with a burger, fries, dessert, and a drink costs 13,90€ for an adult and 7,90€ for the children at Comptoirs du monde. But you also have crêpes at La crêpe volante for 4€ or a hot meal with dessert and a drink for 22€ for an adult and 13€ for children (18€/12€ if you book it online) at La table d’Arthur. There’s enough choice and different food styles to suit everyone. I would recommend checking the menu’s online and reserving the restaurant in advance.

I had the impression that at lunch everywhere was busier than at dinner. We didn’t have a reservation and we had no problem having dinner at Studio Grill.

Futuroscope - having dinner at Studio Grill
Futuroscope – having dinner at Studio Grill

If you ask me, the coolest place to eat at Futuroscope would be Space Loop. A restaurant where the food comes spiraling down to your table. You just place your order and then watch it wind its way across the restaurant on a fantastic system of rails to arrive piping hot at your table. You can eat here even if you aren’t visiting Futuroscope. So it’s also a good idea if you arrive in the afternoon and you are planning to go into the park the next day.

Another cool place is the Aerobar. Here you can sip a drink at 35m.

Futuroscope as a stopover to a trip to Spain

Are you driving from The Netherlands to Spain or the other way around? Futuroscope is the best stopover for your trip. You can drive to Futuroscope in one day, either from The Netherlands or Spain. The second day, you can enjoy the park and on the third day drive to your destination. From Utrecht, it’s 800km, and from San Sebastián 500km. For us, this is the best way to split a long drive and make it fun.

If you are travelling with your van or campervan, Futuroscope has a overnight parking for them. If you travel with your caravan like us, you can stay at camping municipal des Ecluzelles. This is the closest camping and it offers good value for the money. You can use the swimming pool next to it for free. If you plan to stay longer that three nights, there’re other campings that offer more services.

If you are travelling by car, Futuroscope has hotels and it offers packages that includes the accommodation and the entry to the attraction park.

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