Visiting as a group · Story
Visiting as a group in Landis: what an afternoon looks like
Not a review - a description. Here is roughly how an hour goes.
Four machines and one big crate spread a group out. So does a rink - there is no single queue for the whole party to stand in.
Plenty of the families in the room on a weekday morning have come from somewhere like Landis. Nobody is local to a mall attraction; everybody has driven.
Walking in
Tell the centre the numbers in advance and the day runs better for everyone, staff included.
Any adult who has taken six children anywhere knows the failure mode: five occupied, one bored, and the bored one setting the tone.
The middle of the visit
Split a group by what they want rather than by age. The child who wants to watch is having a good time too.
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.
The last ten minutes
Four machines and one big crate spread a group out. So does a rink - there is no single queue for the whole party to stand in.
Tell the centre the numbers in advance and the day runs better for everyone, staff included.
What sticks
Any adult who has taken six children anywhere knows the failure mode: five occupied, one bored, and the bored one setting the tone.
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.
Questions parents ask
How many children can come at once?
Call ahead with your numbers and arrange it: +1 (615) 968-4925.
Where is New Life Entertainment?
Two centres: 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214, and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027.
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 Landis
Parents from Landis 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.
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.
Warn a nervous child about the noise before you walk in. Knowing what to expect is most of the difference between anxious and curious.
A Landis school holiday runs out of ideas by about day three. This is a day-three answer rather than a day-one one.
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.