"HardBloc": the largest climbing gym in France opens its doors

The bouldering gyms are everywhere these days. Block'out, Vertical'Art, Arkose: they all seem to have decided to open their doors right about at the same period. We are definitely not complaining: more places means more chances of finding the one you love and of having one quite close to home.

If you live in the south-east of Paris, you will be delighted to hear that a new gym has opening its doors, and it is pretty awesome! Just 10 minutes away from Paris, this is not just any gym: it has the largest climbing area. That would be 1150 m2 climbable and 6412 mounted holds with 7 levels of difficulty: is it even worth saying there is no way you might get bored?

Structure-wise, difficult to find a place to compare it with. The boss must have had steam coming out of his brain when developing these blocks. No less than 200 volumes were necessary to get it to look like it does today. A very complex novel structures, an arch, an ascending tunnel, a slide to go back down (you dreamt of it, HardBloc made it for you) and even a psychobloc. The first indoor psychobloc in France with a 1.50 metres carpet waiting for you.

Now, if you need more and aren't over-excited yet, you might be interested in knowing that the place offers a tree climbing course. Several monkey bridges, a spiderweb and a zipline going through half the room, should be enough to make everyone go insane, be they adults or little ones. Indeed, thanks to a fully secure system, children can engage in this activity without risk.

Just in case: a bouldering gym is a low height (4-5 meters) climbing space, requiring no ropes or harnesses. One climbs his route and, once at the top, you can go back down via the same route, go over and down through the slide, or just jump onto the huge mats waiting for you on the floor.

Concerning the equipment of the place, there is a bar for a drink. Since beer seems to be the climbers' favorite drink, you might be happy to know that the place offers 12 different brands of beer. You will also find a snacks' restaurant and a relaxation area to chill or for a get-together.

You may also want to enjoy the weights room with everything you might need to get your muscles working. The nice touch? the bay window that gives a direct view of the great climbing gym. At last, after working-out well, if you're still alive, you get to go to sauna.

Finally, please note that the room also offers courses to train young and old. "Pros" can even take lessons from real champions, ideal for improving one's technique.

Practical information:

Official website : HardBloc, climbing gym in Alfortville
11, rue Parmentier - 94140 Alforville
Times:
- 10 a.m to 22:00 (10 p.m) Monday to Friday
- 9 a.m to 19:00 (7 p.m) on weekends and bank holidays

Rates:
Regular entry: 14€ normal / 12€ reduced / 8€ children
10 entries: 120€ normal / 100€ reduced / 70€ children
Annual: 450€ normal / 390€ reduced / 320€ children