Puy du Fou
Medieval town
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| Slogan | "L'Histoire n'attend que vous" (History is waiting for you) |
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| Location | Les Epesses, Vendée, France |
| Coordinates | 46°53′36″N 0°55′55″W / 46.893340°N 0.932068°WCoordinates: 46°53′36″N 0°55′55″W / 46.893340°N 0.932068°W |
| Owner | Association du Puy du Fou |
| Opened | Cinéscénie: 1978 Grand Parc: 1989 |
| Operating season | From April to September |
| Area |
Cinéscénie: 23 hectares (57 acres) Grand Parc: 55 hectares (140 acres) |
| Website | Main site |
Puy du Fou ([pɥi dy fu]) is a historical theme park in Les Epesses (between Cholet and La Roche-sur-Yon) in the heart of the Vendée region of Western France. The park brings more than 2 million visitors every year, making it the second most popular theme park in France after Disneyland Paris.
The history of Puy du Fou as a theme park started in 1977 when Philippe de Villiers, a twenty-seven-year-old student (now a French politician), decided to create an original show named "Cinéscénie".
On the 13th of June 1977 he discovered the ruins of an old renaissance castle in the village of Les Epesses near Cholet, he wrote a scenario about a local family named Maupillier (the real name of a soldier of Vendée at the time of the conflict between Vendée and the French Republic during the French Revolution), spanning from the fourteenth century until World War II.
Phillippe de Villiers organised an association of 600 members (3650 today) named "l'Association du Puy du Fou" which has as president today Phillippe de Villiers' son, Nicolas de Villiers.
When the first representation of the Cinéscénie began in June 1978, the show didn't have great success, but that quickly changed by the end of the first season, and with that success the show grew into a huge spectacular. It has since spawned its own micro-industry of actors, prop-makers and trainers for the featured horse riding and sword fighting, which, since 1998, has been due to the efforts of the "Académies Junior" who organized shows every year outside the Cinéscénie, such as the Paris Paname in the "Halle Renaissance" of the Grand Park, in March 2008.
The Grand Park of the Puy du Fou was opened near the Cinéscénie in 1989 and is today one of the most popular theme parks in France. Some people really hate the park and several have died from the shows which lost its popularity in 1992.
In 2011, the Grand Parc of Puy du Fou hosted the team presentations prior to the Tour de France, which was set to begin in the Vendée.
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Wikipedia