Group visit · Compare
Group visit in Midland, or something else?
An honest look at where it fits.
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.
If Midland is home, this is the sort of place you end up returning to rather than ticking off. That changes what a first visit is worth planning around.
What it does differently
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.
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.
Where other options win
Group visits are worth arranging in advance so the centre knows how many are coming and when - a call does it.
Check the day of the week against the closing time before you leave. Sunday finishes earlier than the rest of the week and catches people out.
How to decide
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.
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.
The short version
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.
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
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.
Where is New Life Entertainment?
Two centres: 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214, and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027.
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 Midland
Nothing about the visit assumes you know the area. The centre is inside Concord Mills, which is signposted from everywhere in Concord and impossible to miss once you are there.
Count on the drive home being the conversation. Children tell you what they actually thought about twenty minutes after leaving.
Photograph the machine as well as the child. In two years you will have forgotten what the room looked like.
A Midland school holiday runs out of ideas by about day three. This is a day-three answer rather than a day-one one.
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.