The excavator yard · Faq
The excavator yard in Franklin: asked and answered
Short answers to the things worth knowing in advance.
The yard is compact by design. Nobody loses a child in it, and that alone changes how relaxed an hour there feels.
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.
The short answers
There is no queue system built into the layout - the machines stand apart, so a family with two children can usually get them both working at once.
The whole XCAV area reads like a small construction yard: four machines around one crate, everything at child height, everything meant to be touched.
The longer answers
Parents watch from the rail, close enough to talk and far enough not to be operating the machine themselves, which is the point.
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
The yard is compact by design. Nobody loses a child in it, and that alone changes how relaxed an hour there feels.
There is no queue system built into the layout - the machines stand apart, so a family with two children can usually get them both working at once.
Questions parents ask
How many machines are there?
Four: a tower crane, a mini excavator, a claw excavator and a grabber crane.
Can parents stay with their child?
The rail runs around the crate, so parents stay within arm reach the whole time.
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
Parents from Franklin 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.
Bring a spare layer even in summer. Malls are air conditioned, rinks are colder than that, and a cold child is a child who wants to go home.
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.
From Franklin the practical question is timing rather than distance. Arriving in the first hour after opening is worth more than shaving minutes off the drive.
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
If a visit needs planning around a date, a group or a long drive, the centre is easiest to reach by phone: +1 (424) 387-6232 or +1 (615) 968-4925.