August in Austin means one thing. It's HOT outside so we spend the majority of time indoors this time of year. Lucky for Austinites, Mt. Playmore opened up last week.
Mt. Playmore is an indoor play area in North Austin that features a gigantic playscape, arcade, and snack bar. It's a great place for playdates for kiddos 4 and up - they do have a toddler area for young ones. We visited this week to get the scoop on this new place. Here is what we thought:
What I Loved About Mt. Playmore:
It's Big & Unique: The multi-level playscape is HUGE & complex with lots of fun things to do - slides, zip lines, swings, bungees, rope ladders, and more. I took with me an 11, 9, and 5 year old and all of them had a great time entertaining themselves for over an hour.
It's cold: I like the fact that Mt. Playmore keeps the thermostat on cold - I may have froze but with all those kids running around indoors, it was nice to keep them cool.
Lots of places to sit: There are big comfy chairs in the center of the large playscape to sit on, and tons of tables & booths near the snack bar. It was fairly busy when I was there and I still saw a few open tables. That said, parents are invited to climb and play with the kids in the playscape.
Free WiFi: I was very happy to brings friends for my kids and get some work done. Yay for FREE WiFi!
Magazine Rack: I know, it doesn't take much to make this momma happy. For those that didn't bring a friend to talk to or a book to read, there is a magazine rack was full of new magazines to read.
Lots of Employees: I was impressed by the number of employees that were monitoring the playscape - both inside of it and walking around. It gave me a great peace of mind to know that the children had help nearby if they needed it. The playscape is so large, that it would be difficult to quickly get to a child who needs help.
Secure Entrance & Exit: Both upon entrance & exit, my kids had to match up to the ultraviolet stamp on my arm. I love that Mt. Playmore is serious about making sure kids are leaving with who they came with.
Mt. Playmore does have some room for improvement, but knowing that they just opened up last week, I am sure they are working out all the kinks. And because school is out for the summer, it is really crowded. Being that it is housed in a large warehouse, it is a very loud space, so if you have children who are sensitive to noise, this would not be the place to go while school is out - maybe wait until a fall weekday to try it out.
They do have an area for toddlers - it seems a bit sparse, but I didn't ask if they would be adding more to this area or not.
And it would be nice to be able to bring in small snacks and drinks for the kids. I understand the policy to not bring outside food in as they have their own snack bar. I glanced at their menu and it was full of kid-friendly food and salads and sandwiches for adults. We visited after lunch, so I didn't notice anyone eating to see how the food looked.
Lastly, they have a full-sized arcade with skee-ball, kiddie rides, and video games. These cost additional money (i.e. tokens) and you can earn tickets to redeem for prizes before you leave. I suspect that is for older kids who might get bored with the playscape.
I think the cost is reasonable - $9.95 for 4 and up on "non-school days" and $7.95 for "school days".
Overall, my kids enjoyed the time that was spent there, but were ready to leave after an hour and a half. They were really excited to play on the playscape and ran through it the entire time we were there. I think they would have liked it more had they brought friends to play with. That said, this is a great place to set up a playdate.
But don't take my word for it, here's what my crew liked best about Mt. Playmore:
Mt. Playmore is located at 13609 N Ih 35, Austin, TX 78753 Click here for their website.
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