Summer afternoons · Compare
Summer afternoons in Cornelius, or something else?
An honest look at where it fits.
An hour on the ice is the most literal way to cool a child down that exists indoors.
The nearest of the two centres to Cornelius is the one to aim at - Concord Mills in Concord - and the drive is the ordinary sort rather than an expedition.
What it does differently
The afternoon heat is exactly when children have the most energy and the least chance of being allowed to spend it outside.
Weekday afternoons in term time are the quietest slot in the week. Weekend middays are the busiest.
Where other options win
School holidays make weekday mornings quieter than weekends - the same visit, half the noise.
By the middle of a southern summer, indoors stops being second best and becomes the plan.
How to decide
An hour on the ice is the most literal way to cool a child down that exists indoors.
Agree the leaving time before you walk in, out loud, to the child. Announcing it later sounds like a punishment; agreeing it first sounds like a plan.
The short version
The afternoon heat is exactly when children have the most energy and the least chance of being allowed to spend it outside.
School holidays make weekday mornings quieter than weekends - the same visit, half the noise.
Questions parents ask
Is it air conditioned?
Both venues are inside malls, and the ice park is a rink.
When is it quietest in the holidays?
Weekday mornings, generally.
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.
Where is New Life Entertainment?
Two centres: 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214, and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027.
Planning your visit in Cornelius
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.
Let the child choose what to do first even when it is the thing you would have chosen last. The order matters less than the choosing.
If it is the first time, do not also make it a birthday. Learning a place and celebrating in it are two different visits.
Weekends bring more of Cornelius out at once. If the schedule allows a weekday, take it; the same visit is quieter and the machines wait for nobody in particular.
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.