France: New Ride Attraction “La Restitution de la Grotte Cosquer” Immerses into Cosquer Cave

This past Saturday, the new experience of “La Restitution de la Grotte Cosquer” opened in Marseille’s Villa Méditerranée. It is a faithful reproduction of the original cave discovered in 1985 by the diver Henri Cosquer and named after him, located south-east of the city at Cap Morgiou. While the real grotto, the entrance to which lies 37 metres below sea level and in whose partly dry, approximately 175-metre-long tunnel section several ten-thousand-year-old cave paintings have been preserved, may no longer be dived into due to nature conservation regulations, visitors to Villa Méditerranée can now discover the Cosquer Grotto completely independently of any access restrictions and (of course) without diving equipment.

In order to simulate a dive, the experience begins with an elevator ride down to the lower floors of the Villa Méditerranée, which also lies below sea level. There, guests take their seats in one of the 44 available six-passenger cars (three passengers in each of two rows), which are trackless “Multi Mover” vehicles from the Dutch manufacturer ETF Ride Systems. The journey through the replica grotto, which here is also surrounded by water, then begins at a leisurely speed of 4.7 cm/s, so that visitors have the opportunity to admire a total of 480 recreated cave paintings (mainly animal motifs). An audio guide also provides passengers with information about the cave, its history as well as its future against the backdrop of climate change. The topography of the recreated grotto was realised by the French company Atelier Artistique du Béton (AAB), which specialises in artificial rock design, in all its complexity (including reliefs and colours) oriented towards the original cave.

The special features of the ride technology implemented here are highlighted by Ruud Koppens, President of ETF Ride Systems: “[…] This project asked for different engines and engine settings which we carefully tested and successfully implemented. In addition, the client asked for a not fixed but a flexible ride profile. This allows – on the fly – to change the ride speed without stopping the ride. This also requires adjustments of the programming in order to guarantee the level of safety. In this ride, our vehicles move exactly 50 cm apart from each other in the slow sections. As soon as a vehicle slows down or speeds up, this has an effect on the programming. Especially on a track with many curves and tight corners. Our vehicles are therefore equipped with smart technology. As soon as the ride changes speed, the vehicles will adjust themselves adaptively to each other. The visitor doesn't notice this, keeps the experience and can enjoy the ride to the fullest,” describes Koppens.

All in all, the experience in the “Restitution de la Grotte Cosquer”, in the realisation of which geologists, climatologists, divers and photographers, among others, were involved, lasts about 40 minutes. (eap)