A screen free afternoon · Occasion
A screen free afternoon in Hermitage: planning a playdate around it
The occasion changes the planning more than the activity does, so this is mostly about the planning.
Nobody has to ban anything. Children put the phone down on their own when the alternative is better.
The nearest of the two centres to Hermitage is the one to aim at - Opry Mills in Nashville - and the drive is the ordinary sort rather than an expedition.
Why it fits the occasion
The feedback loop is the same one games use - do a thing, see a result, adjust - except it happens with hands, in a room, with other people watching.
What replaces a screen has to be more interesting than a screen, which rules out most of the obvious answers. A machine a child actually controls is one of the few that works.
How the day runs
Screen free is easy to say on a Saturday morning and hard to do by two in the afternoon.
A short visit that ends while they still want more beats a long one that ends in a meltdown, every time.
What to arrange first
Nobody has to ban anything. Children put the phone down on their own when the alternative is better.
The feedback loop is the same one games use - do a thing, see a result, adjust - except it happens with hands, in a room, with other people watching.
Small things that help
What replaces a screen has to be more interesting than a screen, which rules out most of the obvious answers. A machine a child actually controls is one of the few that works.
Go early if the choice is available. The first hour after opening is quieter than any hour that follows it, and quieter is easier for everybody.
Questions parents ask
Is there screen time involved?
The machines are levers and cables. The ice is ice.
What are the opening hours?
10:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday to Saturday, and 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Sunday.
How do I get in touch?
By phone on +1 (424) 387-6232 or +1 (615) 968-4925, or by e-mail at info@newlife-entertainment.com.
Planning your visit in Hermitage
From Hermitage the practical question is timing rather than distance. Arriving in the first hour after opening is worth more than shaving minutes off the drive.
Warn a nervous child about the noise before you walk in. Knowing what to expect is most of the difference between anxious and curious.
Feed them first. Every attraction in the world is improved by not being hungry in it.
Nothing about the visit assumes you know the area. The centre is inside Opry Mills, which is signposted from everywhere in Nashville and impossible to miss once you are there.
The practical details
- XCAV ZONE — 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214: four child-operated machines over a ball pit.
- ICE PARK — 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027: a real rink with bumper cars on the ice.
- Opening hours — 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday to Saturday, 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Sunday.
- Phone — +1 (424) 387-6232 · +1 (615) 968-4925
- E-mail — info@newlife-entertainment.com
If a visit needs planning around a date, a group or a long drive, the centre is easiest to reach by phone: +1 (424) 387-6232 or +1 (615) 968-4925.