Birthday party · First time
Birthday party for the first time in Hermitage
A first visit has a shape to it, and knowing the shape takes most of the guesswork out.
Arrive early enough to get coats and bags sorted before the guests do. Ten quiet minutes at the start buys an hour of calm.
If you are coming from Hermitage, treat it as a cross-town outing rather than a day trip. Go with a return time in mind and the day stays easy.
The first ten minutes
The photographs take themselves. A bucket full of coloured balls or a car spinning on ice needs no staging.
A birthday here is a different sort of party because the entertainment is the place. Nobody has to keep fifteen children occupied - the machines and the ice do it.
What children do first
Talk to the centre before the day rather than on it. Numbers, timing and what a group needs are all easier to sort in advance - the phone numbers are on the contacts page.
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.
What usually goes wrong
Mixed ages are the usual headache with children parties, and both venues handle them without a plan: little ones stay in the pit or in a car, older ones go after the harder machines.
Arrive early enough to get coats and bags sorted before the guests do. Ten quiet minutes at the start buys an hour of calm.
Making the second visit better
The photographs take themselves. A bucket full of coloured balls or a car spinning on ice needs no staging.
If it is the first time, do not also make it a birthday. Learning a place and celebrating in it are two different visits.
Questions parents ask
How do I book a party?
Call or write first: +1 (424) 387-6232, +1 (615) 968-4925, or info@newlife-entertainment.com.
Is it suitable for mixed ages?
Both venues give younger and older children something different to do in the same room.
How long does a party need?
Plan for the attraction plus time either side for coats, cake and goodbyes.
Where is New Life Entertainment?
Two centres: 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214, and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027.
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.
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.
A short visit that ends while they still want more beats a long one that ends in a meltdown, every time.
Let the child choose what to do first even when it is the thing you would have chosen last. The order matters less than the choosing.
Coming in from Hermitage with more than one child, the useful thing to know is that the room does not need to be rationed - there is more than one thing to do at the same time.
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
The two centres are at 433 Opry Mills Drive in Nashville and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd in Concord, open 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM most days and 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Sunday.