In 2003, an attraction opened its doors on the French Mediterranean coast that represented a real gamble at the time: the world’s first artificial canyoning park. Today, more than two decades later, we can say that the gamble paid off handsomely. Indeed, since then, the park has never ceased to operate or to be profitable. For Amusement Logic, which carried out its design and construction, it is one of the projects that defines its 30-year history. Now, following the Terra Mítica theme park and the huge Oceanogràfic aquarium, the series of features on selected projects from those three decades turns its attention to the iconic Canyoning Park in Argelès-sur-Mer, run by Paradise Aventures.
Origin: an idea that the architects rejected
The project’s original promoter was Dominique Charruaud, a keen enthusiast of natural canyoning. He had consulted architects and engineers about the possibility of artificially recreating a mountain gorge for practising the sport. The response was unanimous: impossible, madness! However, in the summer of 2002, Charriau presented his idea to the professionals at Amusement Logic. ‘His enthusiasm was contagious and we began to study the project in detail, with rigour and enthusiasm,’ explained Amós Casas, a director at Amusement Logic, in an interview with EuroAmusement Professional Trade Magazine in 2021; “on the one hand, we believed it could be an interesting innovation in the leisure sector; on the other hand, we were tempted to take on a technical challenge that other colleagues had deemed impossible.” And so, the project got underway.
A year to build what no one had ever built before
The design and construction of the canyoning park were completed in twelve months. A timeframe that Casas describes in the same interview as “a real record for a project of that scale and complexity”. The result was a circuit that captures the essence of natural canyoning: jumps ranging from 3 to 9 metres in height, 14 pools, rock slides, abseils down artificial waterfalls, 100-metre zip lines ending in the water… And all integrated into a themed space featuring artificial rock formations that offers adventurers, over the course of an hour and a half, the thrilling experience of exploring a high-mountain canyon.
Safety as a priority
“We have to create elevation changes, design the hydraulic systems for water flow, and set up the filtration and chemical treatment systems for the reception pools of the jumps to ensure the water meets the correct hygiene standards,” says Casas. For his part, the director of the adventure park, Nicolas Perpigna, put it this way in an interview we published in these very pages — which you’ll find at the end of this article —: “I always say at conferences that our main job isn’t the leisure activities, but the safety of our guests.” The figures prove them both right: in over 20 years of operation, the park has not recorded a single serious accident.
A model that has proven its profitability
Since it opened, the canyoning park in Argelès-sur-Mer has consistently been one of the region’s main tourist attractions. The park currently maintains a 4.6-star rating on Google and has been awarded the 2024 Travellers’ Choice Award by Tripadvisor. Perpigna explains that the key lies in managing an experience that ‘is special because visitors are greeted by name, and during their time at the park, the number of participants is limited; hence the feeling of being privileged’.
It is also a flexible business model. The tour takes place in guided groups, allowing capacity to be adjusted according to demand. Participants are provided with all the necessary equipment — a wetsuit, helmet and harness — and receive detailed instructions beforehand. And as the activity is carried out in wetsuits, it can take place even in cool temperatures or in the rain, thereby extending the operating season beyond the summer.
The legacy of a pioneering project
The canyoning park in Argelès-sur-Mer was, as its developer put it, “an impossible dream” that came true. For Amusement Logic, which designed and built it, it was also the first in a long series: it has been followed by projects in France, Qatar, Taiwan, the United States and Spain. But, as Casas admits in his interview with EuroAmusement, “perhaps, if we had to single one out, we would choose the first one we built, the canyoning park in Argelès-sur-Mer”. And he concludes: “Having been able to accomplish it, and the fact that today, almost 20 years later, it’s still open, remains a profitable business whilst also being a modern, up-to-date project and a major tourist attraction in the area, is also one of our greatest achievements.” As you can see, that project which others considered impossible is still going strong today, continues to attract visitors and, two decades on, is a global benchmark in adventure tourism.
If you’d like to find out more, we encourage you to read the full interview with Nicolas Perpigna here:
