Winter afternoons · Tips
Winter afternoons in Lebanon: what experienced parents do
None of this is complicated. All of it is the difference between a good hour and a difficult one.
An ice rink in winter is not the contradiction it sounds like: the cold is the attraction rather than the problem, and it lasts an hour rather than a day.
From Lebanon the practical question is timing rather than distance. Arriving in the first hour after opening is worth more than shaving minutes off the drive.
Before you leave the house
On the Nashville side the answer is the opposite - a warm room, a deep crate of balls and machines that do not care what the weather is doing.
If two children are visiting together, plan for them to split up. Doing different things in the same room is the point of a room with different things in it.
When you arrive
Winter shrinks the list of things to do with children to whatever is indoors and warm, or indoors and cold on purpose.
Dress for the room you are going to, not the car park you are crossing.
While you are there
An ice rink in winter is not the contradiction it sounds like: the cold is the attraction rather than the problem, and it lasts an hour rather than a day.
Warn a nervous child about the noise before you walk in. Knowing what to expect is most of the difference between anxious and curious.
On the way home
On the Nashville side the answer is the opposite - a warm room, a deep crate of balls and machines that do not care what the weather is doing.
Winter shrinks the list of things to do with children to whatever is indoors and warm, or indoors and cold on purpose.
Questions parents ask
Is the rink cold?
It is a real rink, so yes. Layers and gloves make the difference.
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 Lebanon
Parents from Lebanon 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.
Weekday afternoons in term time are the quietest slot in the week. Weekend middays are the busiest.
Photograph the machine as well as the child. In two years you will have forgotten what the room looked like.
A Lebanon 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
Questions about a specific day, a group or a party are best asked directly - info@newlife-entertainment.com, or either of the numbers on the contacts page.