“It will be hypermodern, it will create dynamism”: the “Occita'fun” multi-leisure park will open in Sauvian next summer

The future park, Occita’fun, will cover 4,500 m2. – Xavier Moraga

Xavier Moraga and Pierre-Yves Duhamel, two of the partners who are leading the Occita'fun project. – Xavier Moraga

Example of a play area, in 3D modeling. – Xavier Moraga

With more than 3,000 m2 dedicated to leisure activities for all ages, Occita’fun will be built in 2025, in the town of Sauvian. The operators hope to welcome at least 25,000 visitors per year to this unique amusement park in Hérault, partly financed by the Occitanie region.

Quiz rooms, blind test rooms, a virtual reality room, a laser game, a karaoke room with a catalog of 42,000 songs or even an action game – a mix of escape game and Fort Boyard… So many leisure activities that will be accessible by next summer in the Occita’fun park which will be built by summer 2025. At the origin of this large-scale project, four partners working in the hotel industry who have sniffed out the growing trend of “immersive” leisure. They were inspired by Univerland, a park in Dordogne, managed by one of their friends, which hosts an escape game “La prison infernale”. “It's an action game that opened this year, and for which we participated in the design. We said to ourselves that it would be interesting to launch this leisure activity in the Béziers region”, says Xavier Moraga, one of the partners.

The only amusement park in the Department

Initially, the project leaders (Xavier Moraga, Pierre-Yves Duhamel, Christian Magro and Anne-Sophie Robert) approached the Béziers Urban Area, which showed interest, but due to lack of space and urban planning constraints related to heritage, among other things, the entrepreneurs extended their search to Sauvian, the town where Xavier Moraga lives. The mayor, Bernard Auriol, offered to sell them land on a leisure site:“I found it interesting, Mr. Moraga wanted to stay in his town, I thought about a solution on one of our plots which also hosts a padel activity and sports fields. It will be hypermodern, I am delighted, it will create dynamism, promote Sauvian, generate employment and spending on site. And it will be the only amusement park in Hérault”.

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4,500 m2 with parking, 1,900 m2 of building

This project, worth around 2.5 million euros, is financed to the tune of 792,000 euros by the Occitanie Tourism Fund, a significant contribution which has enabled the project leaders to develop Occita’fun beyond their expectations, explains Xavier Moraga. “Thanks to the funding from the Occitanie region, we gained time on development. At first we thought we would expand the park little by little, but in the end, we can integrate a wider offering from the start.”

The site, which will extend over 4,500 m2 with parking lots, will include 1,900 m2 of buildings. Organized around “La Prison Infernale”, the flagship attraction, the park is designed to satisfy all ages and profiles within a family or a group of friends, and even to meet the needs of businesses, he explains. “The children's trails are great, but parents usually get bored there. There will be different activities in the same place for an hour, half an hour, or a quarter of an hour, whether it's a quiz, axe throwing or catering. There will be the possibility of organizing birthdays, hen or stag parties or seminars, in a soundproof meeting room.”

The park will create 12 jobs

The park, which should create a dozen jobs when it opens, is already looking for employees who speak at least English or Spanish, ideally German, he emphasizes: “These will be multi-skilled positions, whether at reception, in entertainment, except in the kitchen. We need at least one person with a degree in the children's sector, for the kids fun park, and we are looking for a catering bar manager who is professional and has experience. We will advertise in January.”

After the earthworks, the laying of the foundations will begin this Tuesday, December 10, before the construction of the building, scheduled for January. “If all goes well, we will be open before July. We expect to have at least 25,000 visitors at the beginning. We will go to the campsites, the tourist offices to launch the communication, so that we are known before the opening. Then, our idea is to bring back the visitors, to build their loyalty, by subscriptions. Our asset, will be to be the only amusement park in the department” the project leader rejoices.

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