Group visit · Ages
Group visit in East Nashville: is it right for a 7 year old?
Same room, completely different visit depending on how old the child is.
Teachers get an activity where children take turns without being told to, because the machines and the cars enforce turns by existing in limited numbers.
A East Nashville school holiday runs out of ideas by about day three. This is a day-three answer rather than a day-one one.
How it lands at this age
For a class group the appeal is that the activity explains itself. No briefing, no equipment to hand out, no rules that take ten minutes to teach.
Bring a snack for afterwards rather than during. Hungry children leave early and full children want to stay.
What to plan for
Group visits are worth arranging in advance so the centre knows how many are coming and when - a call does it.
It works as a reward trip, an end of term outing, or the indoor half of a day that has an outdoor half somewhere else.
What parents notice
Teachers get an activity where children take turns without being told to, because the machines and the cars enforce turns by existing in limited numbers.
Decide how long you are staying before you walk in. A visit with an end time attached to it finishes on a good note rather than a tired one.
Worth knowing
For a class group the appeal is that the activity explains itself. No briefing, no equipment to hand out, no rules that take ten minutes to teach.
Group visits are worth arranging in advance so the centre knows how many are coming and when - a call does it.
Questions parents ask
Can school groups visit?
Call ahead and arrange it: +1 (615) 968-4925 or info@newlife-entertainment.com.
Is it educational?
Working an arm on levers is hand eye coordination, cause and effect and patience, whatever you call it on the form.
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 East Nashville
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.
Do not schedule anything immediately afterwards. An hour of concentrated play is tiring in a way that shows up in the car park, not in the room.
Count on the drive home being the conversation. Children tell you what they actually thought about twenty minutes after leaving.
Weekends bring more of East Nashville out at once. If the schedule allows a weekday, take it; the same visit is quieter and the machines wait for nobody in particular.
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.