Mall visits · First time
Mall visits for the first time in Charlotte
The first time is the one that decides whether there is a second time, so it is worth getting right.
Mall parking means the walk from the car is short and covered, which matters more with small children than any other single detail.
Families searching from Charlotte are usually weighing one thing: whether it is worth the trip for an hour of something the children have not done before. The honest answer is that it depends on the child, and the rest of this page is about telling which.
The first ten minutes
Both centres sit inside big shopping malls, which changes the shape of the day: park once, stay dry, and the rest of the errands are already there.
Opry Mills in Nashville and Concord Mills in Concord are destinations in their own right, so an hour at the attraction fits into a day that was happening anyway.
What children do first
It also means the surroundings are familiar. Children who find new places difficult arrive somewhere they have been before.
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
Mall parking means the walk from the car is short and covered, which matters more with small children than any other single detail.
Both centres sit inside big shopping malls, which changes the shape of the day: park once, stay dry, and the rest of the errands are already there.
Making the second visit better
Opry Mills in Nashville and Concord Mills in Concord are destinations in their own right, so an hour at the attraction fits into a day that was happening anyway.
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.
Questions parents ask
Which mall is it in?
Opry Mills in Nashville and Concord Mills in Concord.
Is there parking?
Both are mall locations with mall parking.
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 Charlotte
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.
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.
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.
A Charlotte 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.