Par
Antoine Grotteria
Published on
Dec 14 2024 at 7:06 p.m.
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“How many minutes of waiting?” » At the exit of the Champs-Elysées – Clémenceau metro station, in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, around a hundred people are getting impatient in the cold. Parisians, residents of the inner suburbs and tourists are excited about the idea of put on the skates. Inside, the first lucky ones are already sliding on the ice of the imposing building. Almost five years of absence, the Grand Palais has regained its pop-up ice rink, the largest in the capital indoorsthis Saturday, December 14, 2024, ten days before Christmas.
3,000 m2 of ice
Coming with her two daughters, Laura, originally from Ivry-sur-Seine (Val-de-Marne), positions herself in front of the large mirror in the shape of a disco ball positioned in the center of the 3,000 square meters of ice.
“It’s an incredible place. We’re lucky to have been able to come back.”
However, the large nave is not foreign to him. “I worked here for a few years. The restoration was done in a sober manner,” she rejoices.
A hundred meters further, Camille and Marie are also part of the small circle of privileged people who were able to enter the nave as soon as it opened. The two friends meet again during a weekend in the capital. The opportunity to learn about this sport in a unique environment. “We came for the setting. It’s magical,” breathes the first, from Rennes (Ille-et-Vilaine). “It’s even better than on TV,” says the second, referring to the Olympic events taking place at the Grand Palais in the summer of 2024.
Famous building built for‘Universal Exhibition from 1897, this building 77,000 square meters has undergone a thorough restoration over the past four years. In total, 900 workers worked on the renovation of the large nave to deliver a site ready for use during the Olympic Games.
However, the project encountered many adventures. The total overhaul, presented during the first version, was abandoned in favor of a more sober and less expensive restructuring, as announced in September 2020 by the Réunion des musées nationaux-Grand Palais and the Ministry of Culture. An arbitration linked to the delay incurred by the site, due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Lively entertainment
The site was also scaled back from its initial ambitions in order to respond in time to the order from the Olympic organizing committee. Because under the immense glass roof 45 meters high, 8,000 people attended the taekwondo and fencing events.
Five months after the Olympics, the playing field has changed considerably. Designed as a place of entertainment and spectacle, the ice rink is overlooked by a platform on which the DJ at nightfall. A dining area is located below the renovated staircase. The children have fun on a frozen 200 m2 floor. “We could hardly dream of a better outing with friends and the children,” says Inga.
The seventh edition of the Grand Palais des Glaces will take place until January 8, 2025. Access to the ice rink requires payment of 25 euros for adults and €15 for children, during the morning session, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The afternoon session costs €30 for the former and €18 for the latter, from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. The price for night access is €36. The ticket office is open.
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