Julie Hinton from King Edward’s School Witley describes how her pupils reaped the rewards of a visit to Futuroscope in western France.
What was your main objective for the Futuroscope trip?
I wanted to arrange a cultural team-building experience. Many of the pupils had not been on a residential trip before, so I wanted them to experience this; spending time with their peers, travelling to a foreign country, experiencing the culture, some of them speaking the language they are learning and not worrying about academic work for a week. We organised the visit with Halsbury Travel.
Why did you choose this destination?
We chose to visit Futuroscope because we have been once before and really enjoyed the trip.
What did you get up to?
At Futuroscope itself, we had a guided tour in the morning and then pupils had free time in the park in the afternoon. We came back into the park for the light show in the evening, which was amazing. We also visited an aquarium - the pupils really enjoyed looking at all the different fish and loved the pool where they could touch the fish. Other highlights included a monkey sanctuary, which pupils absolutely loved, especially the feeding time and the climbing frames there, as well as Amboise town, where we gave them free time to buy souvenirs and have lunch.
We split the group at one point, with half going to a macaron museum and the other half going to Poitiers. We also visited the Parc des Mini-Chateaux, where we tasked pupils with sketching their favourite chateau and then doing some language and historical tasks. The focus of these tasks made the visit really interesting.
What is Futuroscope?
With 40 attractions drawing on different educational themes, Futuroscope is said to hold the keys to unlock pupils’ minds and explore the power of science and space through fun and imaginative experiences.
Located in western France near Poitiers, the park has a wide variety of rides which are sure to spark curiosity and thrills. Objectif Mars takes pupils on a wild adventure to outer space, with spinning cars and special effects which are sure to get pupils engaged on their mission to the Red Planet. New for 2024 is Hydro Dynamo – a 39-foot-high swing that pupils can ride, knowing that the huge ride helps operate the Futuropolis zone of the theme park by water.
School packages include one free adult place for every ten people aged five and over in the group, one free place for the coach driver, free coach parking (a minimum of 20 paying passengers, excluding the driver, of whom at least 80% must be pupils up to Year 13).
More information is available at www.futuroscope.com/en/school-groups
Why did you choose these visits and activities?
We felt they were the best fit for our pupils - a mix of cultural activities and free time to let off steam and interact with the locals.
What will be your lasting memories of this trip?
My lasting memories of this trip will be pupils’ smiles throughout the experience and their enthusiastic chatter, feeding time at the monkey sanctuary, touching the fish in the aquarium, watching pupils order French food and watching pupils playing on the grass outside the hotel.
Why did you choose Halsbury for this trip?
We have used Halsbury previously and were happy with the trip. Rachel was very helpful and quick to respond to all requests. The organisation of the trip was excellent.
