So fun and unique! The only main attraction in this city. Mechanical animals that you can ride on. You should look at the time slots of the elephant ride before your visit. The ride is 30mins. The museum will take you an hour-ish or less to finish, before you take the elephant ride at last.

It's neat and has a lot of interesting machines to see. The machines as art are really amazing. They're intricately designed and really quite beautiful. They do shows of the machines that are displayed in the gallery, then a walk up the terrace to see the workshop and a short movie, and finally a walk along a metal tree lined with plants. 8.50 to see the gallery, 8.50 to ride the elephant, 8.50 to ride the carousel. The gallery ticket and elephant ticket allow you to go up to the terrace as well. With that said the machines movements and actions are all quite simple so don't expect any great feats or robotics.

Amazing open arts complex with the interesting and unique machines! A must visit if you are in Nantes. You can pay to ride the carousel or elephant or you can just walk around for free and admire the spectacle. Street vendors are there selling sweet, coffee, ice cream, etc. Located in the old Nantes shipping yards.

Amazing place to visit! The machines are incredible and they demonstrate all of them with some people getting to ride (talks are in French, obviously, fair enough). Worth staying in the gallery until they do all the demos as once you leave each section you can't go back. The ticket price is fair, just be aware it's either for the gallery OR a ride on the amazing mechanical elephant. But you can still see the elephant up close and in action. There is also a view of the workshops and you can climb down the incredible Heron tree and see its prototypes. Check the opening times if you're going at all "out of season" as it was afternoon only on the day we visited. Highly recommended.

A very nice place for all types of people, singles, couples, families, and kids. Really enjoyed being there with my partner. - The big elephant was going around and spraying water on people and everyone was following it. You have the option of seeing more information by buying tickets and going inside the building where other similar animals are found inside, which are quite nice as well. The elephant offers rides as well so many people enjoy the show from being inside and over it, yet I think it's more enjoyable to play down to it. - The areas around have playgrounds so some people were playing basketball. Also Going to the river is nice as well.

The gallery was really interesting, with many different mechanized animals. If you are lucky, you get to ride in one of the machines as it is demonstrated. We "flew" in the heron bied machine, with the audience watching us, it was a really cool experience. Children love it too! After the visit you can use the ticket to enter on the opposite site of the building and have a look at the workshop. This is also a really good spot to be in when the elephant returns from its round. You then exit through the three branch.

Loved this interesting interactive exhibit! My son had told me about it, so we were excited to visit. A rugby exhibition was happening nearby,and there were two carousels nearby created by the same people that if I was a kid I'd die to ride. One carousel was three in one! Three stories of carousels. The exhibit was guided,and they had older children and adults ride or run them - a giant me mechanical spider, a heron that "flew", etc. But of course the piece de resistance was the elephant. For less than 10€, you could ride on this enormous elephant in a 35 minute ride ( you have to book a time for the ride). A once in a lifetime experience! Great for families OR adults. Plenty of parking a block away in several parking garages.

Absolutely loved this place! The way they have the displays and demonstration in the shop and also for guests to try was amazing. They let you be part of the crew that operates the machines to make it move, such an interactive experience! This place is worth the visit for young and adults to experience.

(Translated by Google) Beautiful place, incredible structures, only negative point but not very serious is the organization for tickets for the elephant we had bought tickets online hoping to save time but not at all, but this place remains not less beautiful (Original) Lieu magnifique , structures incroyables , seul point négatif mais pas très grave c'est l'organisation pour les billets pour l'éléphant nous avions acheté des billets en ligne en espérant gagner du temps mais pas du tout , mais ce lieu n'en reste pas moins magnifique

(Translated by Google) Rather original concept, which was created I think to alleviate the poverty of the Nantes area. Nevertheless it is not worth the detour, but you will certainly do it because Nantes will only take you half a day to visit. (Original) Concept plutôt original, qui a été créé je pense pour palier à la pauvreté du territoire nantais. Néanmoins cela n'en vaut pas le détour, mais vous le ferez certainement car Nantes ne vous prendra qu'une demi-journée à visiter.

(Translated by Google) Repetitive in terms of entertainment and very poorly attended during the day but especially at night. Watch out for multiple attacks. (Original) Répétitif en terme d'animation et très mal fréquenté de jour mais surtout la nuit. Attention aux agressions multiples.

Interesting machines, with a discussion and demonstration of each that talks about the animals in their natural habitat and about how the machines work. The full tour of the gallerie lasts about an hour (and you will need your Covid health pass), however the queue will require standing in line for nearly two hours. If you want to ride the giant elephant, you may well find it booked up until late afternoon, if you finally manage to get in at noon. Therefore, I would STRONGLY advise booking ahead online.

Amazing place. Especially to bring kids there. Lots of fun for everyone. Tickets can be but at the door or there are some slots available on line. Place is still growing so expect more in near future. Highly recommended place to see in Nantes

(Translated by Google) Great fun in the summer when the elephant starts to frolic, watering everyone at random. When it's very hot, it's refreshing! (Original) Très amusant en été quand l'éléphant se met à gambader en arrosant tout le monde au hasard. Quand il fait très chaud, ça rafraîchit !

Superb attraction, really impressive work done. The massive articulated elephant is the main attraction obviously, you can get on it as well for a quick tour around the area.

Overall a cool experience. You get to see all the machine they build in their workshop and is demonstrate. There were some funny sketch when they perform the tour but you have to understand French to get it... The elephant was cool, and pretty much the best thing here.

Interesting but you have to pay for every exhibit you want to see. 9 euro a pop soon adds up. The elephant was superb though and you can see that for free

Simply charming place.. If you love circus, Jules Verne, or just fantasy of artists, you have to see it. If you have children, you have to see it more than once :-) it is worth the price.

During winter it's not a very attractive place to visit. But that said, the magnificent elephant is a must-see even during g days there are no rides on it. I assume the rides are during summer when the crown is large. The suvernier shop has expensive goods.

This place is a dream come true for anyone into machines and Transformers movies! The elephant machine is seriously mind-blowing, looks like it belongs in the wild. Just a heads up, the info is all in French, but they've got this cool app, "Les Machines De L’ile," Link : (https://apps.apple.com/fr/app/la-galerie-des-machines/id1473290812?l=en-GB) that you can use in your language. Oh, and if you're planning a winter visit, bundle up; it gets pretty chilly. Overall, for mechanical engineers and machine geeks, this spot is a must-visit.

Amazingly good fun, especially for pre-teen children. I would recommend the ride on the Elephant and the Gallery of the Machines, but not the Sea Carousel as the ticket only gives 1 ride rather than 1 ride per level (there are 3 different levels and for a family of 4 or 5 it costs just over 33 euro for a 4 minutes ride)

It was pleasant outside seeing the elephant. We got there too late to enjoy the whole show, but you can see for yourselves! Enjoy the adventure!

One-of-a-kind place for sure! There's more to the Machines de l'Île than just the elephant in the gallery (that you need a ticket for, 14,5€ for visit + carousel ride). Not only do you get to see some of the unique machines (there exists others elsewhere in the world, made by this workshop), but they also have live demonstrations of them, that participate the audience in some of them. I'm not sure if the demonstrations are running all the time. There's also a greenhouse attached with, from what I understood, rare plants that they're trying to grow. Anyway it's a nice little botanical garden! In the workshop part, they promise that you get to see how the machines are built. Except that you don't. You get a view to the actual workshop where supposedly the machines are made and maintained, but basically everything is covered with tents. There's only a 10-15min video about the history of the place, in a room without enough seating for everyone. I didn't learn almost anything at all about the machines, which was a shame. The carousel was quite amazing - especially the top level with its views. Some rides are a bit "rockier" than others (like the sailboat) and thus probably not suitable for the smallest, but there are many others to choose from.

Cool experience for the steampunk fans out there. Overall I would say the price may or may not be worth it. Everyone has a different perspective on prices of things, to me it was a little high.

Steampunk lovers dream! I've been wanting to see the mechanical elephant for so long. It did not disappoint. The other mechanical animals were also incredible. Was disappointed we couldn't ride the carousel.

This place has two parts - the gallery with machines like bugs, the giant spider and the giant elephant, and the carrousel which is 10 minutes walk further with sea creatures machines. The visit to the gallery is a guided tour (in French only). There is no set time. You have to be lucky to be chosen to ride the machines, and usually they choose kids and people standing in the back. So don't expect a guaranteed ride. In the carrousel, the visit is every 40 minutes. The lower tiers also only accept kids for a demonstration ride. The adults can only ride the third top tier (once), I recommend you to stand right next to the ride you really want. We went on a day when the elephant was being serviced so no rides were possible. It was still a very interesting tour, but don't expect it to be an amusement park.

Absolutely amazing place. Every time we visit Nantes, we have to visit our Elephant and friends. Love the elephant when it goes for a walk, it trumpets and sprays water over the crowds. The Elephant has lots of friends, so make sure you visit and watch the show (9.50 euro).

I love this place! It is definitely a must-see for any visitor of Nantes!

The Gallery is somewhat underwhelming, however the elephant ride is good fun and overall it is very good value for money. The large carousel also looked like fun but probably better if you have children with you. It was also a bit more expensive. The small carousel looked great for younger children and good value.

(Translated by Google) Fantastic (Original) Fantastique

Les Machines was such a one-of-a-kind experience! The staff were not only kind and helpful, but also very talented in their demonstrations and tours. Very kid-friendly, too! Don't stop at the gallery! If available, the elephant is certainly the star of this museum and the rides are in high demand. The Carrousel was also fun for kids and adults alike!

Very impressive piece of Machinery, all the family can enjoy those huge animatronics creatures made of wood and metal. Note that they are scheduled at specific times so make sure you check when the “things” will be wandering. Enjoy!

(Translated by Google) Grand attraction in Nantes which captivates young and old. (Original) Grandiose attraction sur Nantes qui captive petits et grands.

Great place to be and unleash the nerd in you, kid or adult :P Running away from the elephant spraying water was ridiculously fun. Elephant ride is was already reserved and complete for the day so we couldn't ride it but enjoyed our time a lot in the gallery and carousel anyway. Reserving your ticket online might be a good idea in high touristic season.

(Translated by Google) Unmissable in Nantes. Not to miss. (Original) Incontournable de Nantes. A ne pas rater.

THE MACHINES DE L’ILE IS an extraordinary artistic project like you’ve never seen before. Born from the imaginations of François Delarozière and Pierre Orefice, it is a blend of the invented worlds of Jules Verne, the mechanical universe of Leonardo da Vinci, and the industrial history of the French island of Nantes. From the website “A team of machine builders have set up their workshop in the industrial warehouses of the former shipyards, at the heart of the Ile de Nantes. The designers let their imaginations roam from the treetops, the savannah to the ocean depths, building a bestiary of living machines to populate this area under redevelopment.” The machines themselves are created in “the gallery” a workspace in Nantes former shipyards. Here, machinists work on the Machines in direct contact with the public. Visitors guided by the machinists can even operate the controls. Perhaps the most famous of the creations of the Machines de l’Ile is the Gigantic Sultan’s Elephant. The massive elephant is a 12-metre high by 8-metre wide, elephant automaton-sculpture which can take “up to 49 passengers for a 45-minute walk.” In the words of one viewer “When the majestic animal goes out for its walk, it is like architecture in motion departing a steel cathedral.. Each time the pachyderm goes out, it is a unique spectacle for everyone to enjoy.” The Elephant debuted in its home city of Nantes, France, and also appeared in 2006 in London. It can now be visited at the Machines de L’Isle. 2 Boulevard Léon Bureau Nantes, 44200 France 47.2056, -1.5640 View on Google Maps Visit Website NEARBY Nantes' Natural History Museum 0.47 miles House in the Loire 7.14 miles The Grotesques of the Chapel of Bethlehem 7.88 milesp

les Machines de l'Ile de Nantes are absolutely impressive. Incredibly creative design in the steam-punk style. Must see.

One of the great places to visit in Nantes, specially with kids, they would like it so much. For the machine gallery , you can’t ride the machine, only hosts just select some people randomly to participate !

A fantastical place to visit, it is a very enchanting experience and feels quite unique. The staff are also excellent, breathing life in to the experience. It does feel a little like a work in progress in places, and the core experience is only about an hour long. That said I would still recommend it!

Wow! Thought of spending an hour or so end up spending practically the whole day. People/staff were so friendly even the restaurants on the premises were friendly and good!

Great place to visit with worldwide attractions. Absolutely fantastic to see those gigantic moving sculptures. Art and mechanical engineering coming together!

Really impressive and interesting! If you are in Nantes you should absolutely go there and see the Elephant and the carousel right next to it too.

Allover it is a nice experience, but it will be much more fun for kids and the people who fall in love with machines. If you are planning to go there, do not forget to take an elephant ride. 😉

Just stumbled on this place, although you could hear it from streets away. Great big space full of happy dancing people. Thank you Nantes for a great Rugby Weekend

This is one of the highlights of our trip to the area. Les Machines de L’ile is absolutely unbelievable! If you are tired of plastic and tacky funfairs and themes parks are not doing it for you anymore - this is a place for you. It is not too crowded, reasonably priced, but most importantly - it is nothing like anything else I’ve seen so far. It feels very creative, authentic, cool and unbelievable at the same time. Highly recommend.

A truly special place, as soon as you enter it feels as if you are transported to another world. They have people explaining the displays and even demonstrations that include the public. I quite enjoyed seeing the workshop too. I have to say not truly knowing what they are making is very exciting.

Absolutely astonishing! One of my favourite places to go to. I've been to many museums and galleries but never like this one. The show with the employees who start the machines are fascinating and interesting. There're lots of history behind those machines, hundreds of people working on them and years of making this place so remarkable in France and a whole world. Amazing work has been done in Nantes and if you're up to something inspiring and motivating go and see the gallery. There're so many other projects in making! Cannot wait to see them soon!

In Nantes for the day, I went to check Les Machines de l'île. Arrived in time to see the elephant ride, and it was worthwhile. Great fun with the water sprays, everyone was having a good time, especially the kids at the park.

Very interesting creatures in a cool setting. Very cleverly engineered animals and creatures which take you back to a Jules Verne-esque universe. The giant elephant is beautiful and graceful but watch out, it might squirt you with water! A must visit when in Nantes.

What a great idea! You need to plan your tickets in advance if you want to ride, or if you just turn up it is still a spectacle to behold, and the elephant interacts with children on the ground which they love. Parking nearby is easy to reach and reasonably cheap.

Machines de l'Île is an exceptional adventure for those who love Jules Vernes, steampunk and mechanics in action. This was on my list for a long time, and I was surprised that this visionary project is already running since 2003. If you can plan ahead buy tickets online 48h ahead. You cannot buy tickets in advance the day before you go or the same day. We did have to queue, but even with a large crowd waiting, we got tickets after only 45 to 50 minutes wait. The wait is somewhat eased by very attentive staff, well-designed booklets in various languages and the mechanical elephant which will pass by, if you are lucky. The whole experience consists of three separate attractions you can buy combo tickets for the exhibition and the elephant ride at the booth, yet for the carousel, you will have to queue again at the venue. I recommend to visit all three, especially with children as the carousel will allow them some activity by riding one of the mechanical sea creatures. Just mind the opening hours of the carousel rides before booking as during school holidays these might differ. The exhibition is a guided tour in French, but it is done in such a jovial manner that you can easily follow without understanding every word (or none at all). The arboretum is not too special, though. The elephant ride is worth the wait. The mechanical giant circles the premises in 1.5h hours. Each ride lasts 30 minutes and there are three points to (dis)embark depending on your slot. Also waiting in the main hall for the elephant to arrive is great fun. The driver can splash water out of the gigantic snout amd children love getting soaked! And do not miss the video about the history and vision of the project. There is still so much more that is dreamt of. I cannot comment on the carousel, as we did not make it that day.

Nice, relatively cheap attraction in Nantes. Not that accessible for English people as the explanations are all in French. Massive queue to get in and quite little there to be honest. I don’t think I’d go again but I do think tourists should see it while they are there because it’s a main attraction.

The exhibits are amazing to look at, but I was slightly disappointed with the size of the actual exhibition. I think that the ticket price should have included the entrance to the carousel rather than having to pay twice. By far the best machine is the elephant, and you can see that for free.

Great day out for the family. I loved the retro look of the carousels and how they were made with recycled materials. The elephant was insane.

Incredible Jules Verne-like mechanical beats of all kinds. Worth the trip, if only for the elephant alone!

(Translated by Google) Tourist and cultural place, very accessible and close to shops (Original) Lieu touristique et culturel, très accessible et proche des commerces

(Translated by Google) Surprising and fun but a bit expensive and a complex visit to understand (Original) Surprenant et ludique mais un peu cher et visite complexe à appréhender

(Translated by Google) The must visit if you want Nantes. Absolutely magical. (Original) La visite incontournable si vous voudriez Nantes. Absolument magique.

(Translated by Google) Do not miss a passage in Nantes (Original) A ne pas rater de passage a nantes

(Translated by Google) Too many people no distance in the queue (Original) Trop de monde pas de distance dans la file d'attente

(Translated by Google) Not to be missed if you come to Nantes Superb 😍 (Original) A ne pas manquer si vous venez à Nantes Superbe 😍

(Translated by Google) It looks beautiful, unfortunately with the covid you can only see part of the site. (Original) Ça à l'air magnifique, malheureusement avec le covid on ne peut voir qu'une partie du site.

(Translated by Google) Gorgeous (Original) Sublime

(Translated by Google) magical place! (Original) endroit magique!

(Translated by Google) A fantastic place to visit, which makes us all dream, our children as well as our parents and ourselves. The creators have a project that seems pharaonic to me ... But they have already created so many incredible things that I am convinced that they will succeed. So many works of art (I voluntarily put an S in arts, so much their constructions involve multiple skills (carpentry, sculptures, electronics, mechanics, ...). Their works simply fascinated us ... We are leaving with the pleasant feeling that there is no limit to the creative capacities of the human mind. Another important point: I work in the field of scientific innovation and their capacity to transform the idea into creation and business is fantastic! (Original) Un lieu fantastique à visiter, qui nous tous fais rêver, tant nos enfants que nos parents et nous mêmes. Les créateurs ont un projet qui me semble pharaonique... Mais ils ont déjà créé tant de choses incroyables que je suis convaincu qu'ils y parviendront. Tant d'oeuvres d'arts (je mets volontairement un S à arts, tant leurs constructions impliquent des compétences multiples (menuiseries, sculptures, électroniques, mécaniques, ...). Leurs oeuvres nous ont tout simplement fascinés... On en repart avec l'agréable sentiment qu'il n'y a pas de limite aux capacités créatrices de l'esprit humain. Autre point important : je travaille dans le domaine de l'innovation scientifique et leur capacité à transformer l'idée en création et en business est fantastique !

Great day out

(Translated by Google) Great (Original) Super

(Translated by Google) Good (Original) Bien

(Translated by Google) Whaoh! .. fairytale trip to childhood! A real memory factory! Change of scenery guaranteed! (Original) Whaoh !..voyage féerique en enfance ! Une vraie fabrique à souvenirs ! Dépaysement garanti !

(Translated by Google) Looking forward to 2022 (Original) Vivement 2022

(Translated by Google) Very nice show for children. (Original) Très beau spectacle pour les enfants.

(Translated by Google) A lot of impressions (Original) Очень много впечатлений

(Translated by Google) we love it with children (Original) on adore avec les enfants

(Translated by Google) Amazing what man can do, awesome (Original) Extraordinaire ce que peux faire l'homme , impressionnant

We really enjoyed our visit to the Machines de L'Ile and we are looking forward to the future development of the heron Tree! The machines were amazing and the elephant looks like great fun. A good day out for all of the family.

(Translated by Google) Superb attraction that attracts children and parents Majestic and imposing this elephant !!! To see as much as we can (Original) Superbe attraction qui attire enfants et parents Majestueux et imposant cet éléphant !!! A voir autant que l'on peut

It was nice, but I was little disappointed. First, I had to wait almost 50 min to just buy tickets because there were only two ticket counters available. Next, I thought that there would be more riding things for kids but it wasn't. There are not enough information on the web site I thought. The carrousel was nice, but again, just to enter, you need to pay so I expected to see more... Fortunately, it was worth to see the huge elephant. It was amazing.

Wonderful, super! We loved it. The elephant is amazing, the carrousel is wonderful....everything here is wonderful, absolutely wonderful. In the top 3 of things to see in France.

Amazing exhibit and machinery. I enjoyed my time riding the Heron! Well worth it atleast once in a lifetime. As a mechanical engineer, this was really exciting.

(Translated by Google) Fantastic ! A wonderful time! Captivating! (Original) Fantastique ! Un moment merveilleux ! Captivant !

(Translated by Google) I didn't have time to visit the machines but the Jules Verne atmosphere speaks volumes. Special mention to the very original shop where you want to buy everything 😍 (Original) Je n'ai pas eu le temps de visiter les machines mais l'ambiance à la Jules Verne en dit long. Mention spéciale à la boutique très originale où l'on a envie de tout acheter 😍

(Translated by Google) Awesome site. Nice visit. What about the elephant ... (Original) Site impressionnant. Belle visite. Que dire de l'éléphant...

(Translated by Google) Super experience! (Original) Super expérience !

(Translated by Google) Just awesome. Thank you for giving us happiness in these difficult times. (Original) Tout simplement génial. Merci de nous avoir donné du bonheur en ces temps difficiles.

(Translated by Google) Visit a few months ago but it was really great to do with the family. Unmissable in Nantes (Original) Visite il y a quelques mois de cela mais c'était vraiment super à faire en famille. Incontournable à Nantes

(Translated by Google) Still as amazed (Original) Toujours aussi émerveillé

(Translated by Google) Super wahouuuuu (Original) Super wahouuuuu

(Translated by Google) Amazing place! (Original) Endroit incroyable !

(Translated by Google) Always so impressive this machine. Big downside no free parking next door (Original) Toujours aussi impressionnante cette machine. Gros bémol aucun parking gratuit a côté

(Translated by Google) Fabulous magnificent grandiose A great family moment to do without hesitation. Super interesting gallery and very interesting and funny animators. Ditto for the carousel and the elephant, a very pleasant team. (Original) Fabuleux magnifique grandiose Un moment formidable en famille a faire sans hésiter. Galerie super intéressante et animateurs tres intéressants et drôles. Idem pour le carrousel et l'éléphant une équipe très agréable.