Summer afternoons · Story
Summer afternoons in Monroe: a visit described
What it actually looks like when a family walks in.
The afternoon heat is exactly when children have the most energy and the least chance of being allowed to spend it outside.
Coming in from Monroe 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.
Walking in
By the middle of a southern summer, indoors stops being second best and becomes the plan.
School holidays make weekday mornings quieter than weekends - the same visit, half the noise.
The middle of the visit
An hour on the ice is the most literal way to cool a child down that exists indoors.
If two adults are coming, split up rather than shadowing the same child. One at the rail, one free, and everybody has a better hour.
The last ten minutes
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.
What sticks
School holidays make weekday mornings quieter than weekends - the same visit, half the noise.
The quietest hour of the week is the first one on a weekday morning in term time. The busiest is Saturday around midday.
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.
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 Monroe
From Monroe the practical question is timing rather than distance. Arriving in the first hour after opening is worth more than shaving minutes off the drive.
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.
Two shorter visits teach a child more than one long one. The second time they already know what they want to try, and that is when the good part starts.
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 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.