Tower crane · Local
Tower crane around Franklin: worth the drive?
The local version of the question: how far, how long, and is it worth it.
Older children usually prefer it once the novelty of the excavator has worn off, because getting a clean lift out of it is genuinely harder.
For a Franklin family the trip works best folded into something else - the shopping that was happening anyway, a birthday that needed a venue, a Saturday that needed a plan.
Getting there
Its reach covers a wide slice of the crate, so two children on different machines rarely get in each other way.
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.
What you will find
The tower crane works on a cable rather than a jointed arm. A magnet grab goes down on the line, closes on whatever it lands on, and comes back up - which sounds simple until the line starts swinging.
It is the machine that teaches patience. Rushing makes the cable swing wider, and a swinging line never grabs anything, so children learn to slow their hands down without anybody telling them to.
How long to allow
The crane rewards the child who watches before touching. A few seconds of looking at how the line moves is worth more than a minute of pulling levers.
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.
Worth the trip?
Older children usually prefer it once the novelty of the excavator has worn off, because getting a clean lift out of it is genuinely harder.
Its reach covers a wide slice of the crate, so two children on different machines rarely get in each other way.
Questions parents ask
How is the crane different from the excavator?
The excavator has a jointed arm that goes where you put it. The crane hangs on a cable, so it swings, and stopping the swing is most of the skill.
Is it too hard for young children?
Younger children enjoy the up and down of it even when they do not manage a grab. Most of the fun is in the line.
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 snack for afterwards rather than during. Hungry children leave early and full children want to stay.
Weekday afternoons in term time are the quietest slot in the week. Weekend middays are the busiest.
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
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.