We often associate adventure parks with fun and adrenaline, but rarely think about the fact that we are connecting with nature. As Oeiras’ municipality not only motivates people to educate, clean and help nature, but also to spend our leisure time. By immersing visitors directly in natural environments such as forests, these parks create opportunities for individuals to develop a stronger appreciation for ecosystems they might not otherwise engage with. This newly created deeper connection with nature can then help support the development of new, nature-oriented habits.
What are the activities that the adventure park offers?
The main part of the park is composed of “stages”: platform-set obstacles in the treetops that end in an exciting zipline. There is a part dedicated to children taller than 1.40 meters and a part for the adults, the Mega Circuit, one of the largest treetop adventure treks in the Iberian Peninsula. It contains 5 stages, each stage is composed of around 5-6 obstacles, varying from obstacles where one has to step on wire, to ones where the adventurers swing to a net that they then need to climb. Throughout the experience, the visitors take in the beautiful surrounding forest as the platforms get higher and higher, reaching up to 14 meters, with a zipline extending as far as 200 meters, but never forgetting that safety comes first.
The experience always begins with a detailed security briefing, ensuring the visitors can have fun, while keeping their safety as a top priority.
**Caption** Informational signs along the treetop adventure course provide guidance and promote awareness of the surrounding natural environment.
How can such activities in nature help us?
Spending at least 30 minutes outside, gives us enough oxygen saturation in our blood and can improve our immune system function. But with some physical activity and for example, spending our free time in the adventure park, we can improve our mental health, reduce stress, increase vitamin D, and strengthen our muscles in certain terrains. Kids on the other hand need at least 1-3 hours daily, because it can positively affect their physical health, cognitive health, social skills while playing, and mental health. Finishing a difficult obstacle at the adventure park can boost your confidence and make you want to try more.
The Inconvenient Truth Behind the Treetops
The Oeiras park however isn’t as sustainable as it may seem at first glance: the trees, wooden structures etc. cannot hide the fact that simply being surrounded by nature is not the same as protecting it. The park doesn’t have any recycling bins, hands out 33cl single use water bottles, and has no visible commitment to renewable energy, no environmental briefing alongside the safety one, no contribution to local conservation efforts, and no clear policy on waste reduction or the use of biodegradable materials. The cables and platforms anchored into the trees can also cause long-term damage to the very ecosystem that makes the park attractive in the first place. For a park in a municipality that dedicates many projects to environmental awareness, the difference between what Oeiras promotes and what the park practices is difficult to ignore. The park could implement solar powered facilities, dedicate a part of their revenue to reforestation and include recycling bins.
Oeiras already positions itself as a municipality committed to green values, and the adventure park could become a genuine expression of that commitment, rather than a contradiction of it. The treetops are there, the forest is there, and the visitors are there. What is missing is the will to make it truly sustainable.
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