Summer afternoons · Tips
Summer afternoons in Hermitage: things worth doing differently
The things nobody tells you until you have done it twice.
An hour on the ice is the most literal way to cool a child down that exists indoors.
Parents from Hermitage tend to ask the same first question: how long will this hold their attention. Long enough to be worth the drive, and short enough to leave while they still want more.
Before you leave the house
School holidays make weekday mornings quieter than weekends - the same visit, half the noise.
Weekday afternoons in term time are the quietest slot in the week. Weekend middays are the busiest.
When you arrive
The afternoon heat is exactly when children have the most energy and the least chance of being allowed to spend it outside.
By the middle of a southern summer, indoors stops being second best and becomes the plan.
While you are there
An hour on the ice is the most literal way to cool a child down that exists indoors.
The quietest hour of the week is the first one on a weekday morning in term time. The busiest is Saturday around midday.
On the way home
School holidays make weekday mornings quieter than weekends - the same visit, half the noise.
The afternoon heat is exactly when children have the most energy and the least chance of being allowed to spend it outside.
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.
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 Hermitage
Weekends bring more of Hermitage out at once. If the schedule allows a weekday, take it; the same visit is quieter and the machines wait for nobody in particular.
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.
Take the photographs early. The best ones happen in the first fifteen minutes, before anybody is tired.
If you are coming from Hermitage, treat it as a cross-town outing rather than a day trip. Go with a return time in mind and the day stays easy.
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.