Ice bumper cars · Ages
Ice bumper cars in Concord: is it right for a 8 year old?
Age changes the answer more than anything else, so this one is written for a specific one.
The cars turn on the spot, so the game is less about racing and more about aim - and about the spin you leave behind when you connect.
From Concord the practical question is timing rather than distance. Arriving in the first hour after opening is worth more than shaving minutes off the drive.
How it lands at this age
Bumper cars on ice do something bumper cars on a floor cannot: they keep spinning. A nudge that would stop dead on rubber sends the whole car turning, and everybody in it laughs.
Bring a spare layer even in summer. Malls are air conditioned, rinks are colder than that, and a cold child is a child who wants to go home.
What to plan for
The rink underneath is real ice, which is why the cars behave the way they do. On any other surface it is a different, duller ride.
It suits families with mixed confidence. One child can be a natural on skates and the other can be nervous, and the cars put them on the same footing.
What parents notice
No skating is involved. Children who would not step onto the ice on blades will sit in a car and go straight out onto the same surface without thinking about it.
Feed them first. Every attraction in the world is improved by not being hungry in it.
Worth knowing
The cars turn on the spot, so the game is less about racing and more about aim - and about the spin you leave behind when you connect.
Bumper cars on ice do something bumper cars on a floor cannot: they keep spinning. A nudge that would stop dead on rubber sends the whole car turning, and everybody in it laughs.
Questions parents ask
Do you need to skate to ride?
No. The cars sit on the ice and the rider stays in the seat.
Is it rough?
It is a bump and a spin rather than a crash. The speed is low and the ice does most of the work.
What should a child wear?
Something warm. A rink is cold even when the ride is not.
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 Concord
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.
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.
Tell a nervous child what is going to happen in the order it will happen. Surprise is the thing they mind, not the activity.
Plenty of the families in the room on a weekday morning have come from somewhere like Concord. Nobody is local to a mall attraction; everybody has driven.
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.