Ice bumper cars · Seasonal
Ice bumper cars in the holiday season in Charlotte
Written for this time of year specifically.
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 Charlotte the practical question is timing rather than distance. Arriving in the first hour after opening is worth more than shaving minutes off the drive.
Why this time of year
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.
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 changes
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.
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.
What to wear
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.
If two adults are coming, split up rather than shadowing the same child. One at the rail, one free, and everybody has a better hour.
Planning around it
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.
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.
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.
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.
Where is New Life Entertainment?
Two centres: 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214, and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027.
Planning your visit in Charlotte
Families around Charlotte who have done it once tend to plan the second visit differently: shorter, earlier in the day, and with the machine the child liked in mind.
Count on the drive home being the conversation. Children tell you what they actually thought about twenty minutes after leaving.
Let the child lead the order of things. Adults optimise; children choose the thing that looks best, and they are right more often than they are wrong.
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.
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
Questions about a specific day, a group or a party are best asked directly - info@newlife-entertainment.com, or either of the numbers on the contacts page.