Summer afternoons · Ages
Summer afternoons in Franklin for preschoolers
What works brilliantly at one age is a shrug at another. Here is how it lands at this one.
By the middle of a southern summer, indoors stops being second best and becomes the plan.
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.
How it lands at this age
The afternoon heat is exactly when children have the most energy and the least chance of being allowed to spend it outside.
An hour on the ice is the most literal way to cool a child down that exists indoors.
What to plan for
School holidays make weekday mornings quieter than weekends - the same visit, half the noise.
Decide how long you are staying before you walk in. A visit with an end time attached to it finishes on a good note rather than a tired one.
What parents notice
By the middle of a southern summer, indoors stops being second best and becomes the plan.
The afternoon heat is exactly when children have the most energy and the least chance of being allowed to spend it outside.
Worth knowing
An hour on the ice is the most literal way to cool a child down that exists indoors.
Do not schedule anything immediately afterwards. An hour of concentrated play is tiring in a way that shows up in the car park, not in the room.
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.
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 Franklin
If Franklin 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.
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.
Tell a nervous child what is going to happen in the order it will happen. Surprise is the thing they mind, not the activity.
Coming in from Franklin 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.
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
Questions about a specific day, a group or a party are best asked directly - info@newlife-entertainment.com, or either of the numbers on the contacts page.