Visiting with a toddler · Story
Visiting with a toddler in Landis: what an afternoon looks like
Not a review - a description. Here is roughly how an hour goes.
Go at the quietest hour you can manage. A toddler reads a busy room as a loud room and gets tired twice as fast.
Weekends bring more of Landis out at once. If the schedule allows a weekday, take it; the same visit is quieter and the machines wait for nobody in particular.
Walking in
Bring the things that end visits early if they are missing: a drink, a snack for afterwards and a spare layer.
With a toddler the plan is short and simple. One thing, done properly, beats three things rushed.
The middle of the visit
Toddlers rarely want the machine. They want the balls, the colours and the noise, and that is a complete visit at that age.
Warn a nervous child about the noise before you walk in. Knowing what to expect is most of the difference between anxious and curious.
The last ten minutes
Go at the quietest hour you can manage. A toddler reads a busy room as a loud room and gets tired twice as fast.
Bring the things that end visits early if they are missing: a drink, a snack for afterwards and a spare layer.
What sticks
With a toddler the plan is short and simple. One thing, done properly, beats three things rushed.
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 there anything for very young children?
The ball pit holds their attention on its own, and on the ice side the cars need no skating.
How long will a toddler last?
Plan for less than you think and leave while they still want more.
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.
Where is New Life Entertainment?
Two centres: 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214, and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027.
Planning your visit in Landis
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.
If it is the first time, do not also make it a birthday. Learning a place and celebrating in it are two different visits.
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.
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.
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.