Mall visits · First time
Mall visits for the first time in University City
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.
A University City school holiday runs out of ideas by about day three. This is a day-three answer rather than a day-one one.
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.
It also means the surroundings are familiar. Children who find new places difficult arrive somewhere they have been before.
What children do first
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.
Two shorter visits teach a child more than one long one. The second time they already know what they want to try, and that is when the good part starts.
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
It also means the surroundings are familiar. Children who find new places difficult arrive somewhere they have been before.
Photograph the machine as well as the child. In two years you will have forgotten what the room looked like.
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.
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 University City
Coming in from University City with more than one child, the useful thing to know is that the room does not need to be rationed - there is more than one thing to do at the same time.
If one child is nervous, let them watch for the first ten minutes without being asked to join in. Almost all of them join in.
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.
From University City the practical question is timing rather than distance. Arriving in the first hour after opening is worth more than shaving minutes off the drive.
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.