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| Previously known as Avenir Land (1979–1988) | |
 | |
 Interactive map of Walibi Rhône-Alpes | |
| Location | Les Avenières,Rhône-Alpes, France |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 45°37′17″N5°34′13″E / 45.62139°N 5.57028°E /45.62139; 5.57028 |
| Opened | 1979 (1979) |
| Owner | Compagnie des Alpes |
| Operating season | April–October |
| Attractions | |
| Total | 27 |
| Roller coasters | 6 |
| Website | [1] |
Walibi Rhône-Alpes is a Frenchtheme park located in the commune ofLes Avenières, in theIsère department. It is the largest theme park in theRhône-Alpes region, containing more than 33 rides and covering an area of 35 hectares. It is a sister park toWalibi Belgium, which was created in 1975 byEddy Meeùs, a Belgian businessman. The name "Walibi" comes from the three municipalities in which the Walibi Belgium park is located:Wavre,Limal andBierges.
The park had an income of 8.8 million euros in 2005, and it greets over 400,000 visitors yearly.
Walibi Rhône-Alpes also contains a 13,000-m2water park called L'Île aux Pirates (previously Aqualibi).
As of 2006, the park is owned and operated byCompagnie des Alpes, which also owns many theme parks and ski resorts across Europe.
The park opened in 1979 under the name Avenir Land. TheWalibi group acquired the park in 1989 and renamed it Walibi Rhône-Alpes.
In 1986, Walibi introduced water rides with the creation of a water park called Aqualibi. It would be given a makeover in 2006, becoming L'Île aux Pirates (French for Pirates' Island), and featuring a Caribbean theme.
In 1998, the park changed hands once again when it was bought bySix Flags as part of the American company's international expansion.
However, six years later, in 2004, Six Flags sold most of its European parks (including Walibi Rhône-Alpes) to Star Parks. The exception wasWarner Bros. Movie World Madrid, which was sold back toTime Warner and renamed Warner Bros. Park and later Parque Warner Madrid in 2006. The Walibi parks were transferred toCompagnie des Alpes the following year and have belonged to the French company ever since.
Like its sister parks in Belgium and Holland, the park began to go down a more themed route in the 2010s. Despite being a smaller park, the park still received regular investments, including two roller coasters, Timber (anchoring a farm-themed area) and Mystic (anchoring a horror retheme of the front right of the park). The water park closed with the park after the 2019 season and will be replaced by Exotic Land for the 2022 season.[1]