Le Petit Pilote
Welcome aboard Le Petit Pilote, a heartwarming suspended dark ride that takes guests on a nighttime flight across the City of Light. Through a young child’s imagination and love for their pilot mother, guests are launched into the skies of Paris on oversized paper airplanes. Soaring over rooftops, dodging traffic, and sharing airspace with a real aircraft, this 4-minute journey blends immersive storytelling, whimsical visuals, and kinetic thrills into a breathtaking family adventure.
Attraction Overview
Ride Type: Suspended indoor dark ride
Duration: About 4 minutes
Ride Vehicle: Oversized paper airplane-style suspended ride vehicles
Ride Capacity: About 800 guests per hour
Thrill Level: Family-friendly with light thrills
Location: Enclosed show building
Accessibility: Separate accessible loading/unloading platform
Entrance & Queue
Guests enter through a quiet Parisian courtyard A Parisian apartment building is nestled inside of this quaint courtyard. A hand-painted sign reading “Le Petit Pilote” invites guests to explore the family’s home.
The queue winds through the softly lit hallway of a first floor apartment. Family photos line the walls: the mother proudly in her flight uniform, the father tinkering in his workshop, and the child holding a toy airplane with wide-eyed wonder. Along the way, aviation posters from around the world share space with hand-drawn maps and model planes perched on high shelves. It’s a space where imagination and love for flying are proudly on display.
Guests continue into the father’s office converted into a workshop, where the lighting takes on a warm amber hue. Here, paper airplanes dangle from the ceiling like constellations in flight, and string lights are clipped to blueprint sketches of aircraft and paper folding techniques. A worn workbench is scattered with glue, scissors, scrap paper, and open flight journals, some real and some clearly drawn by the child. On one wall, a large chalkboard shows scribbled "flight plans" and a diagram of Paris landmarks labeled in a child’s handwriting. The atmosphere is cozy, playful, and filled with anticipation.
A vintage radio plays soft French accordion music in the background, mixing with the ambient sounds of distant airplanes overhead. The space transitions gently into the family’s living room, setting the stage for the pre-show.
Pre-Show: Dreaming of Flight
Guests enter the heart of the family’s home, a warmly lit Parisian living room brimming with personality and love. Worn bookshelves overflow with storybooks, flight manuals, and travel guides. A cozy armchair is draped with a pilot’s jacket, and a low table nearby holds a mug of tea and a folded newspaper with an article circled: “Local Pilot Returns from World Tour.” The mother’s presence is felt throughout the room, even in her absence.
At the far end of the living room, a carousel slide projector clicks to life. A white bedsheet has been taped to the ceiling and drapes to the floor, acting as a makeshift screen. The lights dim slightly as a warm, nostalgic French radio broadcast begins to play, blending with the mechanical rhythm of the projector. Each slide features a frozen memory: the mother in a flight hangar, the family at an airport terminal, a child’s drawing of a plane flying over the Eiffel Tower.
As the narration continues in English with soft French accents, the child’s voice joins in full of energy and wonder. They talk about how they dream of becoming a pilot just like Mom. They admire her bravery, the way she flies through clouds and across continents. They explain their new idea with excitement: a paper airplane contest. If Mom can fly around the world in a jet, maybe their hand-folded planes can chase her across Paris tonight.
The child’s voice is accompanied by the projected images. Paper planes dance across maps, doodles of clouds and stars appear, and imagined aerial routes loop through the city. It is a charming, low-tech moment that feels intimate, personal, and deeply imaginative. As the final slide lands on a drawing of a paper plane soaring toward the moon, a breeze gently ruffles a curtain near the window, and the sound of the wind begins to rise, guiding guests toward the boarding area and the start of their flight.
Loading Station: The Apartment Window
Guests enter a warmly lit attic room at the top of the apartment. Wooden floorboards creak beneath their feet, and the sloped ceiling is lined with paper airplane prototypes pinned to strings and taped to rafters. The walls are filled with sketches and doodles made by the child, showing imagined adventures in the sky. In the center of the space, an oversized window framed by sheer curtains looks out over a stylized Parisian skyline painted with twilight hues. The sound of wind rustling through trees and distant airplanes overhead sets the tone for what lies ahead.
Guests are guided to board vehicles shaped like large folded paper airplanes, suspended gracefully from an overhead track system. Each ride vehicle is slightly weathered and textured to look hand-folded, with seams and creases painted to resemble actual paper. Childlike drawings decorate the wings and body: stars, hearts, clouds, and miniature sketches of the Eiffel Tower and planes in flight. The vehicles feature two rows of seating with two seats per row, accommodating four passengers each.
As guests take their seats, gentle ambient music plays while a light breeze begins to stir. A soft voice, either from the child or the narrator, encourages guests to hold tight and get ready to fly. The curtains billow slightly as the shutters slowly creak open. A sudden rush of wind fills the space, and the paper airplanes begin to move forward. In one smooth, graceful motion, they are pulled toward the open window and glide into the starry Parisian night, leaving the cozy apartment behind as the adventure takes flight.
Scene 1: The Paper Plane Contest
Suddenly, the guests are launched from the apartment window and into the sky. The adventure begins in the soft glow of the family’s backyard, framed by twinkling string lights and the gentle hum of an early Parisian night. Below the paper airplane ride vehicles, the child and father laugh as they toss hand-folded planes into the air, one catching the wind and soaring higher than expected. The ride vehicle tilts gently as the rooftops fall away below and a real airplane glints in the distance, flown by the child’s mother. Music swells as the paper planes chase the breeze, and Paris begins to unfold around them like a living storybook.
Scene 2: Flying Over Paris
Now fully airborne, guests swoop and drift through an illuminated Paris skyline. The Seine River gleams beneath a web of stone bridges. Below, boats glide and streetlights flicker. The Eiffel Tower rises like a glowing beacon, and guests curve gracefully around it, the wind brushing against their faces. Light projection and air bursts simulate motion while iconic structures like the Louvre’s glass pyramid and the Notre Dame Cathedral appear from new, magical perspectives. This is Paris from a dream, a romantic, vast, and full of possibility city beneath the vehicle.
On-Ride Photo
A camera captures the moment during Scene 2 as guests soar past the sparkling Eiffel Tower. Guests can purchase printed or digital versions of their flight experience.
Scene 3: Dodging Obstacles
The wind shifts and the paper planes begin descending, gliding lower toward the city's tight streets and busy rooftops. The ride quickens as guests suddenly duck under clotheslines strung between buildings, brush past flocks of startled pigeons, and veer away from creaky rooftop antennas. A roundabout below buzzes with cars and scooters, their lights swirling like stars. Suddenly, the mother’s plane appears overhead, diving and performing a barrel roll as it playfully leads the paper planes onward. This is the thrill of flight, the thrill of being brave and navigating the unexpected with a smile.
Scene 4: Narrow Escape
Now deep in the city, the streets grow tighter, and the journey becomes a breathtaking race through narrow passageways and tangled alleyways. Guests zip through an open-air night market, barely avoiding fluttering banners, merchants, dangling lanterns, and spice carts. A tram bell clangs nearby as the ride vehicle swoops across its path, then spiral through a tight gap between buildings. The city pulses with life, music echoing from courtyards, bells tolling from Notre Dame, a dog barks through an open window. Just as the flight seems on the brink of losing control, a gust of wind lifts the plane sharply upward. Paris falls away below, replaced by the peaceful rhythm of the clouds.
Scene 5: Airport Landing
High above the city once again, the pace eases. Guests glide above a peaceful park and bank gently over a nearby airport runway. Down below, the mother’s plane descends gracefully, landing lights blinking and ground crew waving her in. She waves out the window and up to the paper airplanes circling overhead. This serene moment reminds guests that while the child’s adventure has been wild and thrilling, it's rooted in admiration and love. A soft musical cue echoes the theme from the pre-show, tying the mother’s real-life journey to the child’s imagination. The paper airplanes make a wide arc, turning back toward the heart of Paris.
Scene 6: Return to the Apartment
As guests approach the familiar rooftops, the apartment window reappears, glowing softly in the moonlight. The paper airplanes gently descend and glide through the open window. Inside, the child and parents embrace, bursting into laughter. The apartment now feels filled with life, adventure, and warmth. The ride vehicle settles, and the paper airplane completes its flight. The final image is intimate and touching: a family reunited, their dreams shared and memories made.
Finale: Gift Shop – “Le Petit Aéroclub”
After their return flight to the apartment, guests glide gently back into the unload platform and step off their paper airplanes. A short hallway filled with framed family photos and childlike aviation drawings acting as an epilogue of the ride, they showcase thee child starting pilot training and the family’s gatherings leads the guests to the exit. Just beyond, guests arrive in Le Petit Aéroclub, a charming Parisian-themed boutique styled like a vintage aviation clubhouse.
The space is warm and inviting, with wooden floors, exposed beams, and hanging model planes suspended from the ceiling. Walls are adorned with faded travel posters, chalkboard flight logs, and flight jackets on hooks. A central display table features stacks of folded paper airplane kits, ready for take-home adventure. Along the shelves, guests find plush paper plane plushies, toy airplanes, colorful postcards, and journals styled like flight logbooks.
Pilot-themed apparel is tucked into antique steamer trunks and open lockers filled with everything from aviator caps and scarves to bomber jackets and flight goggles in both adult and children’s sizes. A corner reading nook offers Paris-themed storybooks and illustrated maps showing the landmarks seen on the ride.
At the entrance to the shop, at the ride’s exit, a polished wooden counter serves as the photo station, styled like a vintage passport office. Here, guests can view their on-ride photo, taken during their breathtaking pass around the Eiffel Tower. Digital kiosks let guests customize their photo with decorative Parisian borders or add a caption like “My Night Above Paris.” Photos can be printed or linked to a digital account for easy access.
Soft accordion music plays in the background as cast members, dressed in vintage flight crew uniforms, help guests browse, purchase souvenirs, or simply enjoy the final few moments of their imaginative journey. With bags in hand and hearts full of wonder, guests step out of Le Petit Aéroclub and back into the world, still carried by the magic of their nighttime flight.
Key Features Summary
4-minute suspended dark ride through a whimsical Parisian night
6 scenes + pre-show + finale gift shop
Iconic Paris landmarks brought to life with projection, wind, and light effects
Charming family-centered story about imagination and aviation
Accessible design with separate platform for wheelchair users
On-ride photo with the iconic Paris landmark, the Eiffel Tower
Themed exit gift shop with paper airplane and pilot gear souvenirs
Le Petit Pilote delivers a heartfelt and imaginative flight through the skies of Paris, making it a timeless family attraction celebrating love, wonder, and the joy of soaring above the ordinary. Le Petit Pilote delivers a heartfelt and imaginative flight through the skies of Paris, making it a timeless family attraction celebrating love, wonder, and the joy of soaring above the ordinary.
