After last year's inauguration of the Cosmos stationa 4* hotel with 76 rooms on the theme of space, Futuroscope is opening Ecolodgee this week. Not classified but of category 3*, this establishment of 120 ultra-cosy wooden lodges - but without air conditioning or TV! - required the creation of a landscaped park, islands of biodiversity and an artificial lake. Water management, energy saving, waste sorting: thanks to its ecological commitments, the hotel is ideally suited to the CSR concerns of companies staying at the park as part of an event.
This sustainable policy, together with its green environment, has earned it a HQE Exceptional certification as well as the Biodiversity label. Ecolodgee also has an 80-seat meeting room, which completes the business tourism offer of the Vienne leisure park. Companies are already booking their places here in September. And we're looking forward to 2027". an original, themed third hotelpromises Rodolphe Bouin, Chairman of the Futuroscope Board, who reminds us that "the €225 million invested over the period 2020-2025 to increase visitor numbers and make Futuroscope a genuine short-stay destination" .
In this maelstrom of new features, more are expected next year, with a revamped entrance to the park, coupled with a huge green square and, what's more, a number of new features. the inauguration of Aquascopea water park that is set to revolutionise the genre with its immersive features. Then in 2025, it will be the turn of an aquatic attraction codenamed Mission Bermuda. At the same time, the 260-room Plaza Hotel (4*) and the 295-room Alteora Hotel (3*) will be completely renovated by their respective owners in early 2024.
Strong momentum for business tourism until the end of 2024
Futuroscope saw its MICE business take off again last year, with the convention centre achieving sales of €3.4m, compared with €3m before the pandemic. This trend is also being driven by the Futuroscope Technopole and the 300 companies located in the surrounding area. " Some 150 events were hosted over the year with an average of 300 to 400 participants" explains its director Danielle Castan. The Arena, due to open in April 2022, will be able to play a complementary role and host major conferences thanks to its auditorium.
" The investment dynamic at Futuroscope and the addition of the Arena is in full swing, with conference bookings of between 1,200 and 1,800 participants up to the end of 2024, a year that will already be marked by very strong activity in June. Further demand is expected, with companies and event agencies committing later since the end of Covid." she adds. She goes on to say that among the expected events, the start of July will see SoCoo'c, the kitchen manufacturer, host a conference organised by the WMH agency, followed in September by conventions organised by In Extenso and Marionnaud, as well as a conference on paediatric surgery...
" Our maximum capacity today is between 2,000 and 3,000 people in order to handle both the conference and catering aspects. We have a lot going for us, with modern facilities, a total capacity of 1900 rooms on the site and easy access by motorway or TGV from Paris, Nantes, Toulouse, Lille, Strasbourg, Bordeaux, etc."says Danielle Castan.
While only 40% of professional visitors used to discover the attractions of the leisure park, this ratio is set to increase since Futuroscope has obtained the prize for the world's best attraction obtained for Tornado Hunters. And Futuroscope is promoting its €19 night ticket, available until 10pm, to this business audience, so as not to interfere with work during the day.
" From 2025 onwards, the next task will be to strengthen our environmental objectives with a section devoted to soft mobility between the various centres comprising the Futuroscope park, the hotels, the Arena, Aquascope and the Convention Centre" says Rodolphe Bouin, with " the ambition to achieve carbon neutrality, even though we currently emit 7,000 tonnes of CO2 per year" .
