Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Italy Nervesa della Battaglia Ai Pioppi Playground

Ai Pioppi Playground

Hidden in an Italian forest is a completely homemade amusement park that has taken a lifetime to create.

Nervesa della Battaglia, Italy

Added By
viliusdidit
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Ai Pioppi Playground   Oriol Ferrer Mesià
Ai Pioppi Playground   Oriol Ferrer Mesià
Ai Pioppi Playground   Oriol Ferrer Mesià
Ai Pioppi Playground   Oriol Ferrer Mesià
Great food too   shaunk82 / Atlas Obscura User
Ai Pioppi Playground  
AAA   shaunk82 / Atlas Obscura User
6 person rollercoaster. This is the only feature that is electronically assisted.   chellegola77 / Atlas Obscura User
Ai Pioppi Playground   Oriol Ferrer Mesià
Ai Pioppi Playground   Oriol Ferrer Mesià
Ai Pioppi Playground   Oriol Ferrer Mesià
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Nestled in a lush green Italian forest, the Ai Pioppi Playground began as a hobby meant to promote a small restaurant has evolved over 40 years of creation into a stunning home-brewed amusement park full of one-of-a-kind rides, all built by one man. 

Like the amazing rides it would later spawn, the restaurant Ai Pioppi started almost on a whim. As the story goes, the restaurant's owner, a spirited man by the name of Bruno, simply set up a makeshift food and wine stand beneath a tree, just to see if anyone would show up. By the end of his first day he had almost sold all of the goods he had brought and Ai Pioppi restaurant had begun.

After establishing a proper eatery, Bruno paid a visit to a local blacksmith looking for some basic hooks to join some chain. However the surly blacksmith blew him off and told him to make them himself, showing Bruno how to weld, and the man was changed from that day on. He returned to his restaurant and quickly constructed a giant slide as an added attraction to his eatery.

Over the next 40 years, Bruno continued to design and build increasingly complex rides with more and more moving parts, although all with out power. From a tumbling, swinging bridge to giant merry-go-rounds to contraptions that nearly defy easy description, the collection of dreamt up amusements grew. Bruno says he got the inspiration for his builds from the movement of the constantly encroaching nature all around.

  

Related Tags

Outsider Architecture Outsider Art Engineering
Atlas Obscura Adventures

Flavors of Italy: Roman Carbonara, Florentine Steak & Venetian Cocktails

Savor local cuisine across Rome, Florence & Venice.

Book Now

Community Contributors

Added By

viliusdidit

Edited By

EricGrundhauser, shaunk82, chellegola77

  • EricGrundhauser
  • shaunk82
  • chellegola77

Published

August 19, 2013

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://sfardor.com/?p=90
  • http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2013/10/ai-pioppi-kinetic-carnival/
Ai Pioppi Playground
Via VIII Armata, 76
Nervesa della battaglia
Nervesa della Battaglia, 31040
Italy
45.848705, 12.172803
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Tipoteca

Cornuda, Italy

miles away

Simon Benetton Museum

Treviso, Italy

miles away

Fontana delle Tette

Treviso, Italy

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Italy

Italy

Europe

Places 1,064
Stories 111

Nearby Places

Tipoteca

Cornuda, Italy

miles away

Simon Benetton Museum

Treviso, Italy

miles away

Fontana delle Tette

Treviso, Italy

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Italy

Italy

Europe

Places 1,064
Stories 111

Related Stories and Lists

How a Self-Trained Italian Blacksmith Built Himself an Amusement Park

forests

By Vittoria Traverso

A Visual Guide to 11 of the World's Most Baffling Theme Parks

essential guide

By Eric Grundhauser

Atlas Obscura's 20 Most Incredible New Places of 2014

best new wonders

By Atlas Obscura

The Best New Wonders of August

By Allison Meier

Related Places

  • Tres Piedras, New Mexico

    $CRAP$ Shrine

    It is intended to take one back to a stripped-down simplicity, to spend extended time both inside and out, and absorb the natural drama of the Upper Rio Grande Valley.

  • Pavement Clock

    Windsor, England

    Pavement Clock

    This is Britain's one and only clock concealed in the pavement.

  • George Masaveg in front of his creation

    Cleveland, Ohio

    George Masaveg Art Home

    One man's collection of found art, sculpture, and ephemera adorns his two side-by-side homes.

  • Veiga, Spain

    Casa das Pedriñas

    This house covered in small stones was the work of one man over the course of nearly 30 years.

  • Metal gate sculpture

    Denver, Colorado

    Enchanted Hart Haus

    A home covered with elaborate mosaic and other pieces of art.

  • Benalmádena, Spain

    Castillo Monumento Colomares

    A New York–based physician returned home to Spain to build his own elaborate monument to Christopher Columbus.

  • The iconically red dam, with the peculiar inland lighthouse uphill.

    Guanajuato, Mexico

    Presa de San Renovato

    This highly decorated dam is one of Guanajuato's most unexpectedly beautiful public works.

  • McLauchlin’s typical mix of Mexican and Indian religious influences.

    San Miguel de Allende, Mexico

    The Chapel of Jimmy Ray

    An artist's suburban abode looks like an architectural fever dream.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.