Open session · Faq
Open session in Gastonia: the questions parents ask
No sales copy - just the answers.
An open session is the unstructured version: no lesson, no lane, just the rink and whoever is on it.
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 short answers
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.
It is the easiest way to find out whether a child likes skating enough for lessons, without committing to a course first.
The longer answers
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.
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.
Still worth asking on the day
An open session is the unstructured version: no lesson, no lane, just the rink and whoever is on 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.
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.
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 Gastonia
Families around Gastonia 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.
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.
Take the photographs early. The best ones happen in the first fifteen minutes, before anybody is tired.
If Gastonia is home, this is the sort of place you end up returning to rather than ticking off. That changes what a first visit is worth planning around.
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
Anything time critical is worth a phone call first: hours are 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday to Saturday and 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Sunday.