So you’re considering a family holiday at Puy du Fou in France? The first thing you should do is congratulate yourself. You obviously have the kind of impeccable taste and insight. Not only will you and your children have a great time, but when you tell your friends about this great ‘find’ — a more sophisticated version of theme park that serves good food and has shows that rival those in the West End, on Broadway or at Disney — they will all agree that you are very clever and in the know.
I could say that you are even more clever because you are checking in with Jenography, which has visited the park and has all kind of insider tips and knowledge. Am I so immodest as to do that? Of course not! But you can draw your own conclusions. J
Like any big park or attraction, you need to do some planning to wring all the fun out of it without wringing out yourself as well. After spending a busy and satisfying several days there, here is what I discovered about creating the perfect Puy du Fou experience:
1. Book your Cinéscénie tickets first, whilst planning your trip dates
2. Pick your hotel at the park with your children
All of the 5 hotels at Puy du Fou are themed, which makes staying there not only convenient but fun. On my visit I would lucky enough to stay in 2 different hotels and I heard from fellow Influencers about one other one where they stayed. All the rooms are well-arranged for families, with a main bedroom and a smaller sectioned off area or room with full-length bunk beds for kids.
Here’s how to distinguish them:
- Les Iles de Clovis — ‘Wow!’ we all said when we walked around the corner and first saw the lakes and the thatched roofs and half-timbered huts on stilts. You are truly transported to the dawn of the Middle Ages, slightly updated with soft beds and wifi. Some in our group noticed that the mirros in the bathrooms also looked “period” (which made putting on a makeup a bit of a challenge). Kara Guppy from Are We Nearly There Yet wrote about her experience staying there during our visit. Read it here. Charly from PODtravels has taken some amazing pictures.
- La Citadelle is a Middle Ages themed hotel – you walk through a portcullis into a courtyard with hanging lanterns, and check into rooms with carved oak beds, impressively period-looking loos and opulent fabrics. My room had a window that actually opened out onto one of the crenelated towers. This property feels more like a hotel, with a lift and fully-lit bathrooms.
- Le Camp du Drap D’Or — This Renaissance-era accommodation invites you into the tented-camp style lodging of Henry VIII of England and Francis I of France. Lit gravel paths leading to gorgeous red-and-gold tented rooms with four-poster beds. We had a delicious buffet dinner at the hotel’s Deux Caronnes restaurant. Sarah Christie from Extraordinary Chaos actually spent the night here. Read about it and see some fabulous pictures!
- La Villa Gallo-Romaine — Just steps from the Gallo-Roman theatre in the park (which features the don’t-miss Le Signe du Triomphe show, which features the excitement, pageantry and spurting blood of the Roman games) sits La Villa Gallo-Romaine. This is the first hotel built at the park and is grand, with a sprawling Ancient Rome-themed courtyard, olive trees and fragrant rosemary bushes, lovely patio seating and staff wearing togas (oh yes!). We ate a tasty pre-fixe dinner here in the Atrium restaurant before seeing Cinescenie.
- Le Logis de Lescure — This 18th century lodge has 4 suites that can sleep 4-6 people, each with a different look and feel. There’s a Hall of Mirrors, a Planetarium, the Cabinet of Curiosities and The Music Room. We didn’t get a chance to see it, but based on Puy du Fou’s usual attention to detail, you can expect a special experience in each one.
3. Book your meals ahead of time
One of the great things about the park is that it has a French approach to food: It’s not just funnel cakes and hot dogs. To have the best experience, book your restaurants beforehand, based on the schedule of shows you want to see. Not only can you waltz to your table even during busy times, you get a cheaper prix fixe by booking in advance. My favourite restaurant, Le Bistro in Bourg 1900, serves excellent classic bistro food such as frisee salad, confit duck leg and crème brulee. Yum. Other great options include the Mijouterie du Roy Henry with its set self-serve buffet menu and Le Café de la Madelon – a themed dinner that’s like attending a wedding meal, including a floor show. (We could follow along but it’s all in French, so a good opportunity to brush up your language skills.) https://www.puydufou.com/en/le-cafe-de-la-madelon All restaurants have appealing children’s menus.
4. Download the app
The Puy du Fou app is a real boon to planning your stay and navigating around the park during your stay. It will even prompt you when one of your selected shows is close to starting. https://www.puydufou.com/en/node/552
5. Plan your day
Intersperse sit-down shows with walk-through experiences. Every show is so dazzling, so attention-grabbing, that you’ll want to arrange them so your day is varied. We also loved having time after some of the big shows to sit down, have a cold drink or cup of coffee and excitedly share what we loved the best about it. It’s the kind of fun family conversation that will dominate your stay.
6. Schedule your day and movements around your must-see shows, then fill in with others
My ultimate don’t-miss ones are:
-
-
- Le Bal des Oiseux Fantomes
- Les Vikings
- Le Secret de la Lance
- Le Signe du Triomphe
- Le Mystere de la Perouse (walk-through)
- Les Amoreux de Verdun (walk-through)
- Le Ballet des Sapeurs
-
My friend and fellow blogger Katja from Globetotting has a great post detailing her recommended shows to see and what works best with English-speaking visitors. Check it out here.
7. Don’t feel you have to see every show
We had a jam-packed schedule over 2 days and still didn’t see everything. Give yourself time to wander, relax and take in the villages, the shopping and the food.
8. Buy an Emotion pass to get a jump in the queue
Because it’s always worth it to avoid a long wait. Cost: An additional €14 per person.
9. Plan to spend one night in the nearby city of Nantes
Three days and 2 nights is an ideal amount of time in the park. But during the high season, from June to September, you can’t book a Friday and Saturday in one of the resort hotels. They do that because the park is so popular and in high demand. One way to do it would be to fly in to Nantes on the Friday, enjoy the sights there and stay over, then make the easy 1 hour drive to Puy du Fou in the morning for a full day and a stay at one of the park’s hotels for 2 nights.
10. Book everything online
I’ve mentioned some of the benefits here. When you book tickets online and in advance you can save up to 20%.
Puy du Fou details
85590 Les Epesses, France
https://www.puydufou.com/en
Park Entrance only – €35 / adult for 1 day (all the shows and activities, included the night show “Les Orgues de Feu”) and €25 / child for 1 day. Discounted rate for under 4s. €56 / adult for 2 days and 40€ / child for 2 days.
More about Puy du Fou
Mari’s World shares a view of the role and life of animals at the park
BritMums took a group of influencers to France to experience Puy du Fou. Discover more about the trip.
Great tips Jen. I absolutely agree it is best to get your Cinéscénie tickets as early as possible – it sells out fast and people don’t want to miss it!!
Thank you for linking to my post about Cinéscénie and for your lovely words, my friend!!
These are all great tips! Puy Du Fou have thought of everything to make your visit as easy as possible (how good is it that you get a discount on meals if you book in advance?!) and this post spells out exactly what you need to do to enjoy your time there. I agree that getting your Cinescenie tickets asap is paramount and then everything else slots in around those dates.