Stories
Parc Astérix
Suffering from museum overload in Paris? Take a break from the city-center and spend a day at the Parc Astérix!
This theme park is based on the wildly popular French comic book series of Astérix and Obélix about a village of ancient Gauls resisting Roman occupation. While the target audience is primarily families with young children, teens and young adults will also love the throwback to childhood and larger rollercoasters -- my 20-something friends and I sure did!
The Attractions
The park is divided into five themed sections, each filled with its own roller-coasters, water-rides, acrobats, gift stores (with all the Astérix memorabilia one could wish for), and restaurants: Gaul, the Roman Empire, Ancient Greece, Vikings, and Through the Ages.
Family activities:
The dolphin show at the Poseidon Theater, the Grand Splatch (Big Splash) water ride, and young kid-friendly rides such as Les Espions de César (Caesar’s Spies), and Le Petit Train (The Little Train).
Main rides (most of these rides are forbidden to children under 1m in height, and those under 1.3m need adult accompaniment):
Goudurix rollercoaster (not for the faint of heart – this ride spins you upside down 7 times at speeds of 75 km/h), Menhir Express water ride, and Tonnerre de Zeus (Zeus’s Thunder) the largest wooden rollercoaster in Europe.
Tips
- If possible, avoid going on holidays or weekends, especially Sundays. The park is particularly busy on these days and lines for the most popular rides sometimes are over 1 hour long.
- Leave bags at the free coat-check at the Acceuil when you enter the park. This way you’ll be free to go on water rides and crazy rollercoasters without getting it wet or dropping it.
- Though there is a picnic area just outside the park, seating and grass are hard to come by once inside. Furthermore, the food is surprisingly affordable for a theme park – so go ahead and indulge in of pizza and ice-cream (just be sure to eat after you try the Goudurix ride!).
Practical Information
Getting there:
By car – 30 km north of Paris, take the A1 highway towards Lille, then the direct Parc Astérix exit between exits 7 and 8. Parking is 8 Euro for the day.
By shuttle – daily departures at 8:30am from the Louvre. Access from Louvre carrousell on Rue Rivoli, or by the Pyramide (take escalator located at the Charles V Hall near the boutiques). Return at 6:30pm from the park. Return trip 20 Euro for adults, 16 Euro for kids age 3-11.
By train – take RER B3 to CDG1-Roissy, then the connecting bus. Buses leave every 30 minutes from 9:00am to 6:30pm, and return every 30 minutes from 9:30am to 7:00pm. Return trip 7.5 Euro for adults, 5.5 Euro for kids age 3-11 (this does not include RER ticket – usually 16.8 Euro return if going to the center of Paris).
Hours: open every day during the summer from 9am to 6pm. More restricted schedule beginning in September; for more info: http://www.parcasterix.fr/calendrier
Cost:
Season pass – 84 Euro
Adults – 39 Euro
Kids – 29 Euro
Kids under 3 – free!
Special promotion – book tickets online at least 7 days ahead for only 25 Euro on weekdays and 29 Euro on weekends and holidays
Tel: 0826.30.10.40 (0,15€/min)
Website: http://www.parcasterix.fr/
