Mini excavator · Local
Mini excavator for families in Gallatin
If you are searching from Gallatin, this is the practical answer.
Nothing about it is automatic. The machine does exactly what the hands do, which is why a five year old and a ten year old get completely different runs out of the same two minutes.
The nearest of the two centres to Gallatin is the one to aim at - Opry Mills in Nashville - and the drive is the ordinary sort rather than an expedition.
Getting there
Because the arm moves slowly, there is time to think between one movement and the next. Children who find fast rides overwhelming often last far longer here than their parents expect.
Weekday afternoons in term time are the quietest slot in the week. Weekend middays are the busiest.
What you will find
The seat is at child height and the whole machine is built around a child-sized reach, so nobody is stretching for a control they cannot see.
Parents tend to stand at the rail and narrate. By the third scoop most of them have stopped narrating and started filming.
How long to allow
Working the bucket is a two-handed job. One lever swings the arm, the other drops and curls the bucket, and the first few scoops usually come up empty. That is the part children remember: the moment the timing clicks and the bucket comes up full.
Photograph the machine as well as the child. In two years you will have forgotten what the room looked like.
Worth the trip?
The mini excavator is the machine most children head for first. It sits on rubber tracks at the edge of the crate, the arm reaches out over the balls, and the controls are the two levers in front of the seat rather than anything on a screen.
Nothing about it is automatic. The machine does exactly what the hands do, which is why a five year old and a ten year old get completely different runs out of the same two minutes.
Questions parents ask
Does a child need to know how to use it?
No. The two levers are the whole system, and most children work out which one does what within a minute of sitting down.
Is the arm heavy or fast?
It moves slowly and deliberately. The pace is part of why it suits younger children.
What if my child cannot reach?
The seat and the controls are built for children rather than adults, so the reach is short by design.
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.
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 Gallatin
Families searching from Gallatin 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.
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.
Warn a nervous child about the noise before you walk in. Knowing what to expect is most of the difference between anxious and curious.
Nothing about the visit assumes you know the area. The centre is inside Opry Mills, which is signposted from everywhere in Nashville 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
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.