Menhir Express

In October 2025, Parc Astérix presented an ambitious future plan. Over the next several years, the park aims to invest heavily in new attractions, new themed areas and transformations of existing zones. Within that broader package, Menhir Express also appeared: the water ride is listed for a refurbishment in the longer term.

Looopings mainly covered the major projects planned between 2026 and 2028, including changes in the Egyptian area, an expansion of the Greek zone and the new Londinium area with an interactive dark ride and an indoor Intamin coaster. Near the end of that roadmap, several existing attractions were named for later attention, including Menhir Express.

For guests and fans, that brief mention matters. Menhir Express opened in 1995 and is one of Parc Astérix's older, familiar family attractions. By placing it in the long-term plan, the park signalled that the flume is not merely being kept operational, but also fits into the resort's wider renewal strategy. No specific details or date for the refurbishment were announced at this stage.

A striking video from Parc Astérix suddenly put Menhir Express in the spotlight in August 2024. The footage showed the log flume's channel overflowing. Looopings reported that boats were believed to have become stuck, after which a large amount of water poured down from the ride toward an area where guests were standing.

The incident stood out because this type of attraction normally handles large volumes of water in a controlled way. This time, the water reached a place where visitors did not expect it. Some guests tried to stay dry by climbing onto rocks, while the person who filmed the scene wrote that people were stuck and had to remove their shoes.

Afterward, Parc Astérix temporarily closed Menhir Express. For theme-park fans, this is the kind of operational story that draws attention: not because the ride is new, but because a familiar water attraction briefly revealed the force and complexity behind what often feels like a simple log-flume experience. Looopings also placed the incident in historical context, noting that Menhir Express opened in 1995 and was built by Hopkins Rides.

In 2021 Parc Astérix turned Filotomatix from a temporary free pandemic-era service into a paid fast-access product. For Menhir Express, that meant the park's well-known log flume was placed in the same commercial queue system as the major coasters and other high-demand attractions.

Guests could choose between several tiers. The most expensive option, Illimité, cost 89 euros and offered unlimited priority access. Other packages provided one fast entry per attraction or cut the current wait time in half. A single paid access per attraction was also offered, priced at 6 or 8 euros.

For Menhir Express, this marks a useful chapter in the ride's visitor history. The attraction is not a new headline thrill ride, but it is exactly the kind of wet, family-friendly capacity draw that can build long waits on busy and warm days. Its inclusion in Filotomatix placed it inside the wider European theme-park discussion around paid priority: more flexibility for guests willing to pay, but also a clearer split between regular and accelerated queues at a classic crowd-puller.