Open session · Local
Open session around Indian Trail: worth the drive?
The local version of the question: how far, how long, and is it worth it.
The mix of ages on an open session is part of the appeal - and the reason to keep an eye out for smaller skaters when the rink is busy.
Families searching from Indian Trail 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.
Getting there
An open session is the unstructured version: no lesson, no lane, just the rink and whoever is on it.
It is the easiest way to find out whether a child likes skating enough for lessons, without committing to a course first.
What you will find
Families spread out. One parent skates with the confident child, the other stays near the rail with the one who is still deciding, and both are on the same ice.
Tell a nervous child what is going to happen in the order it will happen. Surprise is the thing they mind, not the activity.
How long to allow
The mix of ages on an open session is part of the appeal - and the reason to keep an eye out for smaller skaters when the rink is busy.
An open session is the unstructured version: no lesson, no lane, just the rink and whoever is on it.
Worth the trip?
It is the easiest way to find out whether a child likes skating enough for lessons, without committing to a course first.
A short visit that ends while they still want more beats a long one that ends in a meltdown, every time.
Questions parents ask
Is a session structured?
An open session is free skating rather than a class.
Can parents go on the ice too?
Skating with a nervous child is usually the fastest way to get them moving.
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 Indian Trail
Plenty of the families in the room on a weekday morning have come from somewhere like Indian Trail. Nobody is local to a mall attraction; everybody has driven.
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.
Bring a snack for afterwards rather than during. Hungry children leave early and full children want to stay.
Families around Indian Trail 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.
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.